athlon,kt7 raid,creative gforce problems...HELP!!

[nalexander]

have recently purchased :-tbird 800,abit kt7(raid),creative labs geforce gts,128 mb ram(pc 133 cas2),ibm 30 gb hdisk(udma 100),300w psu.
all nice components indeed but not so nice when i try to connect them all up.
previously built my last system p350 about 2 years ago with no problems but boy is it tough putting this combo together.
starting with the optimum preset bios i proceeded to install components,win 98 and drivers supplied.
everything seemed ok until i tried to play some games,namely rally championship and grand prix 3.
sometimes the grand prix will freeze on the grid and lock my system resulting in pulling the power lead or it will run absolutely ok.
as for rally championship it will freeze about 30 seconds into a game again resulting in me having to pull the power lead.
so basically i wanna hear from some of you guys with similar specs to myself as to how uset up ur sys and bios in order to have a stable system.
some other questions:-

1.i set up my primary hard disk on ide controller 3 to enable udma 100 and set this as my boot disk with my cd rom plugged into ide controller 2.is this best setting for performance or should i just plug hard disk into ide controller 1?if i just use controller one then do i need to install hpt370 software?

2.do i really need to make lots of bios changes?if so please please please explain them exactly to me as i really dont understand significance of these settings?

3.only fans in my pc case are fan on heatsink on processor(coolermaster),fan on northbridge chip,exhaust fan on psu and fan on geforce carddo i need more?where can i get one?
is heat causing my system to lock in these games?can these fans be attached to my pc case and powered from mobo fan connectors or do i have to plug it into one of the available pci slots?which is most reliable?

4.pci sound card is sblaster 64value-which pci slot do i need to plug it in?

5.i only have drivers that came with system.must i use new drivers?which are latest versions?wot order do i have to install all these drivers?

6.do i use detonatator drivers on my geforce?which version?

7. i have connected each drive to an individual power supply cable from psu.is this ok?or should i double some of them up?

8.not interested in overclocking!!!!

thanks for reading such a long post but i got £600 worth of new gear sitting inside a pc case and it just doesnt wanna work.

thanks ,neil

nalex@nclm.freeserve.co.uk

[NumbNutz]

Blimey, you've really worked up a sweat there haven't you :rolling: ?

My system specs are not that far removed from yours as I'm running this self-built rig:

ABIT KT7 RAID
Duron 650 running at 832
128mb PC133 RAM
15Gb HDD
32mb GeForce2
SB Live!
PCI SCSI card for SCSI CDRW

To be perfectly honest, mine was a real biatch to setup especially the sound card which caused me huoooge headaches. Anyway, I think your problems might be being caused by conflicts (IRQ's) or heat or a combination of both. It's late but I'm going to go through each point and try to answer them.

Here goes nothing ....

1. I've setup my system to use IDE1 form the main HDD. OK, so the HDD I have is ATA100 and it could go in IDE3 (one of the RAID slots) but I'm going to save that until I get another disk so that I can setup the RAID bits. I'd suggest you try the same and move the HDD into IDE1 and leave the CD Rom as master on IDE2 (which you should already have). If you did have the HDD in IDE1, then I don't see a need for installing the HPT370 software, but I've installed it on mine, so you could on yours.

2. BIOS changes ? Well, yes you do. For a start you'll need to get the HDD disk recognised on IDE1. Even though this should be automatic it isn't, you'll have to enter the HDD config screen and press the Auto button. This screen also has the CPU settings. The BIOS should've recognised the CPU as an Athlon or T/Bird but may not have set it up correctly. Make sure that your Operating Speed is 800 and that the Multiplier Factor is set to 8 x 100.

Leave the voltages alone. It's possible that you may need to up these later on and if you do, increase them fractionally each time.

You should also check that the memory is running at the correct speed. On the first BIOS page, you should have the DRAM Clock set to HCLK+PCICLK as you are using PC133 RAM. There are other memory settings in the "Advanced Chipset Features" where you can change the speed of the RAM. The default for these is SDRAM 8/10ns. It's probably better to leave this alone until the system is stable. Mine has been whacked up to TURBO now but I'd hold fire on yours. Another thing in here is the "SDRAM Cycle Length" which I think is the CAS setting. Although my RAM is supposed to be CAS2, if I set it to be 2 the system will not boot! The default is 3 so I'd leave it at that.

Also check that the AGP Aperture size is 64mb and that AGP 4x mode is ENABLED. These should be the prime settings when using a GeForce2 card and 128mb RAM.

Leave the Power Management bits lone for the moment and move to the "PnP/PCI Configurations" menu. Check that you have PnP OS Installed ENABLED - the default is disabled. You will need this so that Windows & the BIOS can help handle the IRQ's in the system.

3. I do not like the CoolerMaster fans - I bet you bought this litle lot from OcUK ?. I'm using a GlobalWin FDP32 to keep my CPU cool and it's doing a far beter job than the CM version. Heat, especially with these new AMD CPU's, is real pain in the backside. You should have installed the VIA Hardware Monitor that came on the ABIT CD, this will give you an idea of the system temperatures. I've overclocked my CPU from 650 to 832 and this has generated extra heat. Currently, my CPU idle temp is 36 degrees and under heavy load (SETI & Quake3) it rises to around 40-42 degrees.

Please install the Hardware Monitor and check your system temperatures. If you are getting anything over 50 degrees then I would be concerned. If this is the case, you need a better fan on the CPU and probably some extra cooling. I've got fans mounted on the front and back of my case as well as a fan that sits above a PCI slot directly under my GeForce2 card. Yes, it is a little noisy but I'd rather try and cool the PC then burn my new baby out. You can mount three fans to the motherboard on a KT7 (make sure you have the CPU fan on the right connector or the hardware monitor won't see it!) and the others can be connected using the standard HDD connectors. Personally, I'd look at getting extra cooling as a matter of course with an Athlon system. The fans I'm using are called "YS-TECH FD8125 80mm Fan - 3 Pin" on the front and back of the case. The fan under the GeForce2 is a "Just Cooler" FC-100 Super Slot Fan". All these are available from OcUk and other outlets. If you haven't the room for fans on the front and back of the case (a lot of cases don't have the back plate for fans) then you could get a cooler that sits in one of the 5 1/4' bays. The "GlobalWin King Kong" would do a good job here.

4. If you are not getting any conflicts from the sound card, then don't move it. As a rule of thumb, you shouldn't be using PCI slots 1 or 5. 1 shares IRQ with the AGP slot and 5 shares an IRQ with the RAID setup. If it's working then leave it alone!. Mine is working fine in slot 6 btw. If you do decide to move the SB card, make sure you:

Un-install the SB drivers
Remove the card logically from the system in the Device Manager
Turn off :dork:
Move the card to a new slot
Turn on and install theSB drivers.

If you don't do this, Windoze will see the original installation of the drivers and try and use them. It causes problems so it's far better to remove the drivers as I've shown above.

5 & 6. In virtually all cases I would reccomend using the latest drivers you can get your hands on. There have been updates to the RAID and VIA 4 in 1 drivers sets and these are available on the Abit (http://www.abit.nl/english/index.htm) site.

Also get the new Detonator drivers for the GeForce card. This is up to version 3 and is available from Det3 (http://www.nvidia.com/products.nsf/htmlmedia/detonator3.html). You will need to install the new 4 in 1 drivers FIRST and then follow the instructions for installing the Detonator3 drivers.

7. Using an individual power connector is fine.

8. Neither was I but it just grabs you :naughty: and once you get the O/C bug you cannot stop!

Finally, there are some really good FAQ's and help pages about the KT7, the one that has helped me the most can be found here (http://go.to/kt7faq)

So, check your BIOS - don't just go with the defaults as your kit is different to the BIOS defaults. Note any changes you make so that you can alter them back. Check the Hardware Monitor and see what your temps are like. You cannot have too many fans in a beast like yours!. Get the latest drivers and install these. Have a good look at the KT7 manual, it is a good sourec of information.

Phew!! This is the longest post I've ever written! What's the betting that no one else bothers to reply :( to this ? Ah well, it's made me right knackerred and I'm off to bed. Nalexander, I hope I've been of some assistance and that I've pointed you in the right direction. if you need 'owt else, my ICQ is in the siggy so gimme a shout.

Please, PLEASE! let us know how you get on! :P

[NumbNutz]

Oh pooh. Some of the links were screwed & I didn't check before going to bed!

5 & 6 should've read:

5 & 6. In virtually all cases I would reccomend using the latest drivers you can get your hands on. There have been updates to the RAID and VIA 4 in 1 drivers sets and these are available here http://www.via.com.tw/drivers/index.htm

There is also a new version of the video card drivers, Detonator3, which can be downloaded from http://www.nvidia.com/products.nsf/htmlmedia/detonator3.html.

You will need to install the new 4 in 1 drivers FIRST and then follow the instructions for installing the Detonator3 drivers.

[Toxygene]

Yet again someone with a similar setup, ME! :E

Do all of the above its all top advice, if games still crash when you start them or after a couple of mins, then turn of AGP x4 id did this and mine no longer crashes. I sure someone will tell me the benefits of AGPx4 but i dont know them :{ (Anyone???)

When i run bench marks there seems to be no difference with it turned on (If it runs the complete test)

Also some thing to consider is your power supply, the one that came with my case was an 250 watt AMD approved BUT i don't think its enough (AMD & Geforce are greedy) i'm going to swap it for a Enermax 433Watt one ,maybe agpx4 take more power than x2 (Anyone know if this is true??)

Got 2 panaflow 120mm fans in there + an alpha, Haven't overclocked yet, waiting for new power supply then real fun begins :smokin:

[NumbNutz]

Blimey! :rolling:

Someones bothered to reply to my biggest ever post! Cheers Toxygene!

I just wish the raiser of the thread had been bothered to say whether it had worked or not. :{

Not much to ask is it ?

[Toxygene]

They might still be reading it :E

[nalexander]

thanks guys for all your suggestions.i should have replied before now.i apologise.
been tweaking and testing and have finally got my system running rock solid.three weeks ago this looked an impossibility.
wot i have been doing is using 3d mark 200 and then making an adjustment in bios and rerunning application until i've got the best possible benchmark.
setup was as follows:-
tbird 800 not overclocked with cooler master fan,no other cooling in sys.
kt7 raid
128 mb ram
30 gb ibm deskstar ata 100
creative geforce gts 32 mb
creative soundblaster 64 value

installed software and drivers as descibed in kt7 faq http://www.casema.net/~howland/kt7faq/allin1.html
setup hard drive on ide 3 to make use of ata 100 transfer rate.
soundcard into pci slot 6.disabled dos emulation in system/prpoerties to avoid conflicts.
used creatives own drivers and best 3d mark was 5640.
installed detonator 6.18,installed registry patch for agp x4,direct x 7a and 3d bench mark was 6770.
obviously i have tweaked bios settings but there are so many to go into that i cant remember.wot i must do some day is go through each page and write down settings in case i have a crash or flash bios etc.

anyway stability is solid,no crashes at all.
played rally championship with settings to max and it is fabulous.didnt know some of those colours were available on a pc!!!
now i've got adsl being installed in a fortnight i want to get into online gaming.has been a yaer since i last played online and that was halflife.tried unreal tournament and quake arena but they were too frenetic/chaotic.i want something requiring a bit more strategy.wot u guys recommend?seen screen pics of counterstrike in a mag.is it a add on to unreal or quake or wot?wot is ultima online like?
anyway thanks for your time.
anyone needs any help just post here.I WILL ANSWER.
best wishes Neil

[NumbNutz]

Glad to know it's gone well :E

As for online gaming, I only really play the 'frenetic' stuff like HL, TFC, UT, Q3A and now Star Trek Voyager:Elite Force. I'm not into the slow stuff, I have a limited ammount of free time and I want to enjoy it and not have to think too hard :dork: :rolling:

Hmmm Counter Strike. This is a mod for Half Life and is apparently the game of the moment the one that most people play. I've tried it again and to be perfectly honest, watching the rain drops running down my window was more fun. CS can be fast but the overall impression is that it's slower and unlike most FPS games, once you die you are stuffed until the game finishes. No quick respawning in CS. I reccomend you give it a whirl and make your own decisions on the game.

Others to consider are Everquest, Ultima On Line and their ilk. I have never played any of these so I cannot comment other than that I know I personally wouldn't like them.

Don't forget that whatever game you choose to try, there is probably a WirePlay board and users capable of answering any questions you may have.