Nvidia 7600GT *AGP* driver question

[Blagard]

Originally posted by Krusty
However with nVidia, avoid all 90-series Detonators.

Krusty,
Have you tried the very latest 90 series ? I mean it seems accepted that 8466 do a good job but there is nearly always room for improvement and just because the 90 series started out with some bad stuff surely it does not mean they will remain that way.

I have a 7600GT and have not attempted to update / install any new drivers so I am currently on 8421 (I think this is what was in Windows when I first fired up the PC) and don't notice any problems at all. My view as a user is they do the job and my frame rates are always 60 or a couple of notches down from that (I have a 19" Viewsonic VX922 LCD at 1280 x 1024 that I think limits frame rates to 60 anyway). So what benefit would I see using which later driver ?

[MrRiplEy[H]]

Originally posted by Krusty
For some things this is true. For hardware drivers? Wrong wrong wrong!!!!!

Most hardware drivers that come WITH the hardware are obsolete before you purchase the hardware and get home to install it. Sure it may "function" -- but chances are it's got bugs that need to be worked out, or it doesn't display transparencies well, or it's only got about half the FPS it should be getting. Proper video drivers are very important, and testing new versions is one way of discovering which are best.

However with nVidia, avoid all 90-series Detonators.

It's hardly wrong if the hardware works 100% fine with the shipped drivers and _does not_ work with offered dated drivers.

If he has no gameplay problem, why on earth should he mess up his system by doing several installations of old driver sets? He might end up with persistent stability problems if one of the installs leaves residue in the system.

[Krusty]

Originally posted by Blagard
Krusty,
Have you tried the very latest 90 series ?

A couple of months ago I tried NGO drivers, I tried 90-series drivers, I tried another set of third-party drivers, I tried Omega drivers. Overall, 84.66 were the best of the lot, with the least bugs and the best display of colors and desktops and text and so forth.

[MrRiplEy[H]]

Originally posted by Krusty
A couple of months ago I tried NGO drivers, I tried 90-series drivers, I tried another set of third-party drivers, I tried Omega drivers. Overall, 84.66 were the best of the lot, with the least bugs and the best display of colors and desktops and text and so forth.

You have to realize that dated hardware often works best with dated drivers, the new hardware needs new driver support.

It's not like a unified driver made a year ago will work with todays latest hardware.

[Krusty]

Yes, I realize that. However there's not much "dated" about the 7600GT line of video cards

It's all beside the point, anyways. Sorry for the hi-jack.

[llama]

Originally posted by humble
http://www.driverheavendownloads.net/zeropoint.htm

I Cant find any detail on there 84.66. From a couple of comments on forums its possible they work with your card. From the blurb they took the 84.66 and tweaked it to mirror the later 9x.xx drivers....they think the 84.66 was better overall....so they appear to have used it to create an alternative "updated" driver....

Ok, well, I can report a few things.

The modified 84.66 drivers located at the end of this link *do not* work the the AGP version of the 7600GT - as before, when run, they are unable to identify a compatible card.

I can, however, follow the instructions in the thread to construct a set of 84.66 drivers with all the right .inf file settings so that they *will install and "work"* with the AGP version, and they do in fact, install completely.

Unfortunately, (and you knew this was coming, right), while AH will fire up and work with these modified drivers, CS:S and Aquamark will not start up, instead bringing up a dialog box about a corrupt memory address.

While there is no set benchmark routine for AH, I have my own routine, and found the speeds to be all but identical. Visually, I can't detect any difference either.

As such, I'm going to re-ghost back to 93.71 and then settle in for a night of flying, shooting, and other gaming debauchery and see how they turn out. Based on the generally positive positive reviews of 93.71, I have high hopes.

-Llama

[MrRiplEy[H]]

Originally posted by Krusty
Yes, I realize that. However there's not much "dated" about the 7600GT line of video cards

It's all beside the point, anyways. Sorry for the hi-jack.

Nothing except it's oh, a full year old technology now. Any idea how long time a year is in hardware / driver terms?

[humble]

Originally posted by llama
Ok, well, I can report a few things.

The modified 84.66 drivers located at the end of this link *do not* work the the AGP version of the 7600GT - as before, when run, they are unable to identify a compatible card.

I can, however, follow the instructions in the thread to construct a set of 84.66 drivers with all the right .inf file settings so that they *will install and "work"* with the AGP version, and they do in fact, install completely.

Unfortunately, (and you knew this was coming, right), while AH will fire up and work with these modified drivers, CS:S and Aquamark will not start up, instead bringing up a dialog box about a corrupt memory address.

While there is no set benchmark routine for AH, I have my own routine, and found the speeds to be all but identical. Visually, I can't detect any difference either.

As such, I'm going to re-ghost back to 93.71 and then settle in for a night of flying, shooting, and other gaming debauchery and see how they turn out. Based on the generally positive positive reviews of 93.71, I have high hopes.

-Llama

Sorry bout the wild goose chase....awful hard to figure out exactly what modified drivers are modified to.....from what I read the 93.71's are highly regarded as well.....good luck