Radeon 9700 Pro in XP Pro problems

[aSTAR]

I have a new ATI Radeon 9700 Pro.

I need to make 4 decisions before I build.

1)MoBo
2)CPU P4 2.66
3)Mem Cosair#CMX256A2700C2 or 2700LL
4)Case-KINGWIN KT 436S

I have sound card Audigy 2, DVD,Plexwriter,WD 80gig Caviar

Getting nervous now, must make right choices.

Thanks for the help.

[aSTAR]

BTW , I talked with ASUS TECH, they donot know of any problems
with the Radeon 9700 Pro & the P4G8X Deluxe?

[Vermillion]

S-Eagle if you talk to them again, tell them to read this thread

http://www.rage3d.com/board/showthr...readid=33662452

RGJ, if your brave you might try the 1.004 Beta Bios (the link is in that BBS thread you posted).  I installed it today, and while it increased system stability it didn't remove the problem all together. With stock 3.1 Catalyst drivers in stock configuration, and Fastwrite turned OFF, I am only crashing now about once per hour instead of once every 5-10  minutes.  But thats only with 4 hours of use.

[Wlfgng]

I have the Intel® 850E chipset  
P4 2.8
512 MB of Dual Channel PC1066 RDRAM
SB Audigy 2 sound card
DVD
CD-RW
120 gig and 80 gig Hard Drives
etc etc

[Pfunk]

Originally posted by Vermillion
Well... new memory is not an option.  Without some kind of test showing a problem, they're not going to RMA it for me, and it costs $375 for what I have, and I'm not going to just toss it out and get new memory, after just 30 days.  So please no more "just get new memory" suggestions

Well if you figure out that it is the memory you can get 1GB of FASTER AND BETTER memory for $200, go to my link above and check out the PC3000 512MB HyperX for $89.50, sell your memory on ebay or anandtech and maybe make some $$$ for getting better and more stable memory.  Corsair is all hype, hell it has all kinds of issues with my 8rda+ board, this Kingston stuff not a single one, AND im overclocking my 1600+ by 400mhz.  Just thought I'd give you some options.

[RGJ]

Thanks Verm will give 1004 a try.

Since I turned off fastwrites it has only hang twice, and that was while playing AH offline(trying to get the damn Cougar to work smoother:(),  but gave no error on reboot.

Is this also a problem in W2K as well as XP?

RGJ

[RGJ]

Verm,

It seems that my system hanging of late was down to the J/S and pedals locking up AH, so since turning fast write off no crashes or going back to 640x480.

AGP is set to 8x the rest is default settings, hope it helps.
Bios 1003

RGJ

[boxboy28]

Verm - i have the same issue still.....
ASUS P4PE
P4 3.06
2 sticks of 512 2700DDR
ATI AIW 9700

I tried every thing there was even the tips memtest and Sandra burn in stuff  but still from time to time it pops and BSOD is there. If they ever figure this one out PLEASE PLEASE let me know!

Box

[aSTAR]

WOW, the troubles we are having, do you think it may be
the Vid Card with certain MoBo's?

My decion on the MoBo is still in limbo

If some one can suggest a MoBo that will work with ATI 9700 Pro
PLEASE SPEAK UP . not Rambus, or AMD.

Mucho Gracias

[Wlfgng]

never had a single lockup or problem with these:

I have the Intel® 850E chipset
P4 2.8
ATI 9700 pro
512 MB of Dual Channel PC1066 RDRAM
SB Audigy 2 sound card
DVD
CD-RW
120 gig and 80 gig Hard Drives

[Vermillion]

Yah it Wlfgang, it seems to be a problem with the E7502 chipset and the 9700's not being quite compatible.

I got my new retail 9700 Pro card today and just installed it.  I set everything back to a "standard" install with Cat 3.1 drivers, and I'm crossing my fingers that it cleans up the problem.  I'll let you guys know the results.

[Vermillion]

*sigh*

This is my last post in this sorry stinking thread (massive frustration buildup).

The new ATI Retail 9700 Pro card that I received and installed today, did not fix the problem.  Within 10 minutes, my machine had crashed 3 times.

Basically neither Asus or ATI acknowledge that there is a problem.  But those of you who've participated in this thread know its not an isolated incident.

So being totally sick of this I called up Customer Support at Newegg.com and described my problem.  Unfortunately, the Asus P4G8X Deluxe MB  is suppose to be "REPAIR/EXCHANGE EXACT ITEM ONLY", with no refunds given on this product. But after talking politely to the Customer Support tech, they gave me a complete refund RMA  for the Motherboard (ie not only did they refund my money, but they didn't stick me for a 15% restocking fee like I expected).  BIG THUMBS UP !! to their Customer Support.  Thats really rare in this day and age of internet business'.

So looking for a replacement, I had been reading about the SiS 655 chipset motherboards.  Basically they're the exact equivalent to the E7502 boards in features such as Dual Channel memory, x8 AGP, gigabyte lan, and others,  just a different chipset manufacturer.  They're a little hard to find right now, having just been released (just like the Granite Bay boards).  

Of the 3 SiS 655 MB's reviewed at Anandtech, the only one I could find in stock anywhere was the MSI 655 Max at Mwave.com.  I would have preferred to do business again with Newegg but they don't have any of the 655 boards in stock and no timetable for delivery.  I only have 14 days to return this Asus board, and I need a replacement in hand before I return it.  But the MSI board got a good review and I needed it right away, so I bought it.  Hopefully it will fix my problems.

I hope all you other guys get yours fixed too.  Good Luck !!  

A word of wisdom to anyone thinking of buying an Intel Granite Bay Motherboard and using a Radeon 9700 Pro .... Don't !

[Skuzzy]

Been following the Granite Bay problems with the 9700Pro.

It's really odd.  Sorry to see you go through all that Verm.  Wish I knew where the problem lied.

You did try setting the AGP bus to 4X, didn't you?  If that did not correct it, then I would lean towards something bizarre in the E7502 chipset.
Shame.  The E7500 chipset was simply outstanding.

Looking forward to hearing your luck with the SiS motherboard Verm.

[RGJ]

Verm,

Good news on that they changed the M/B for you, I hope everything goes ok on the new board. But since I turned fastwrites off, I have not had a crash that is down to chipsets, and hoping it stays that way:).

RGJ

[Vermillion]

Yah Skuzzy I tried literally everything suggested in those threads.  If anything, on my computer the switch to x4 AGP made it even more crash prone.  

I'll let you know how the SiS655 MB goes.