EP-8RGA+ Integrated Video Problem

[nanto]

Hi,
I assembled an EPOX EP-8RGA+ motherboard with a Athlon XP 2000+ CPU
(Thoroughbred A) and 512 MB of DDR333 RAM (two sticks of 256 each one) made
by Twinmos (CL 2,5) in a case with a 300W power supplier.

I bought this motherboard to use the integrated videocard (Geforce 4 MX)
besides the other integrated peripherals.
But I think that my problem is caused by the videocard (in my opinion).

This is what I did:
I installed Windows 98SE, Windows 2000 SP1 and Linux Mandrake 9.0 without
any problem. Then I installed the following drivers from the cd bundled with
the motherboard, in this order: nforce2 chipset driver (v1.15 + v3.17),
DirectX 8.1, nvidia detonator driver (v31.20 for Win98SE and v41.13 for
Win2000) and USB 2.0 driver (only for Win98SE).
I set a resolution of 1024x768 at 85Hz with 32bit color's depth.
The problems begin when I start games or I try to play videos (AVI, MPG and
also DVD after installing PowerDVD).
Some seconds before the PC crashes, I can see the beginning of the game (or
the video) with some disturbing horizontal lines and then the PC restarts or
freezes.
Thinking that drivers were obsolete, I uninstalled them and I installed the
updated version: nforce2 drivers v2.03 and detonator v43.45. But the problem
persists!!

P.S.: without installing detonator drivers (at 640x480 with 16 colors) the
video plays (naturally the quality is very low) and the PC doesn't crash.
The same happens in Linux where I haven't installed detonator drivers.

Please help me!! Could it be a motherboard fault??

Thanks!
NANTO

Email: nantostars@libero.it

[adamginz]

got the same prob. even worse
mine would boot for copule of seconds in windows
and then crash 32.sys file erorr

[nanto]

This is the reply of my mail at epox.nl:

We think it is still a combination of driver problems, to solve this problem
you have to try with differend driver combinations.
Most people are using winXP and this OS is working without any problem here
in our test system and all the latest drivers.

[bradmax57]

what make is the psu?

[nanto]

what's psu?

[nanto]

sorry ... PSU= Power SUpplier .. isn't it?

Do you think it's a psu problem??

[bradmax57]

Originally posted by nanto
sorry ... PSU= Power SUpplier .. isn't it?

Do you think it's a psu problem??

its a possibilty, do you have another you could try?

[nanto]

I think it's a memory brand/type problem.

This afternoon I installed two modules of SPECTEK DDR266 and the problem went away..... now i have to find a type of ram that is ok for my board from my reseller!!

Thanks at all

NANTO

[jeryll]

Disclaimer: Any errors in spelling, tact, or fact are transmission errors. :nervous:

(bad english sorry people - jeryll)

to nanto & EPOX:

pleas view this thread (I have the same problems as "nanto" or in thread "andy_a"(I have 8rga+ & two PC2700 TWINMOS 512 MB DDR CL2 memory sticks))

http://www.nforcershq.com/forum/view...er=asc&start=0

probably problem is in Twinmos memory sticks (or NVIDIA NFORCE2 drivers) - don´t work in DUAL DDR mode (for me they work in any position on MoBo, but only in DUAL DDR mode any aplication entering 3D accceleration part of IGP - it crashes XPSP1 or W98; 2D is stable as hell at all - and 3D too - but not in DUAL DDR mode )

I tried any 8RGA+ bios i found 3320, 3325, 3410beta
I tried latest NVIDIA NFORCE2 drivers 2.03 for XP, W98
no succes

EPOX people please buy TWINMOS memory sticks and test it with 8RGA+! Its perfect mobo, but we want use it on FULL POWER!

jeryll

[nanto]

Thanks Jeryll for the link.. i'm feeling not so much alone with this problem

Twinmos ram isn't good for our MB.. now it will be nice to make a "little database" of which brands of ram are good for 8rga+.

Tomorrow I'll go to change my twinmos ram from my reseller then i'll tell you about the new ram.

For the moment: SPECTEK DDR266 256MB are OK!

Bye

NANTO

[bradmax57]

used twinmos and ocz with 8rda & 8rga no probs at all both get upto 210fsb, maybe your ram is faulty as it shoudl be fine

[Not Slim]

I have to second what Bradmax said, I also have Twinmos in mine and although I now have a 9700 Pro in my system it worked without any problems what so ever with the integrated graphics and Twinmos.

[bradmax57]

although I have never used igp, but if the 2700ddr works rma the twinmos!

[adamginz]

well i talked to epox officialy and the sent me by mail the bios update and suprily the sent the
11043
11 04 03
with the awdflash.
i flashed the bios, didnt work!
then i changed my geil into a corsair both 3500 256mb
and now its working exellent with the 43.35 driver.
hope i help u guys
adam

[bradmax57]

Originally posted by adamginz
well i talked to epox officialy and the sent me by mail the bios update and suprily the sent the
11043
11 04 03
with the awdflash.
i flashed the bios, didnt work!
then i changed my geil into a corsair both 3500 256mb
and now its working exellent with the 43.35 driver.
hope i help u guys
adam

well I guess thats PC's for you with there thousands of combinations!:clown:

[tgrrr]

well i had that problem with kingston value ram.. some had the same things wf corsairs, geils, twinmos but there's no pin-pointing any brand that is actually incompatible wf the 8RGA+.
the reason could b as simple as the stick of ram is faulty, not the whole batch or brand. i just replaced my kingston stick wf another same kingston stick n it work fine.

oh yeah this memory problem is also found on the 8RDA+, abit n soltek board.

[adamginz]

so i will switch the memory into another stick

[:oD]

I've got exactly the same problem with my brand new setup. Installed last night - been crashing ever since!

I've been stable all day today thanks to my quick fix. I discovered that, as well as all the seemingly random crash events, there's one surefire way to crash my system and that is to use the flowerbox screensaver in windows (I'm using win2k). Once I had established that, rather than reducing the resolution and bit depth, I reduced my hardware acceleration to minimum setting (for more serious apocalypse-style system errors) and tried previewing the FB screensaver again and all went well. So I tried the next notch up on the hardware acceleration and still no probs. Finally my system crashed when I selected the 3rd lowest setting and tried to preview the FB screensaver.

So I'm back down to the one that disables all but basic acceleration. Rest assured, I'm not going to put up with this setting for any length of time. I'm going to try a couple of different RAM combos (different blocks in different slots) and if that fails, it's going back. I'm going to get the same brand and spec. though, as general consensus is that the dodgy RAM is a dodgy block, not a fundamental incompatibility.

If anyone has exactly same RAM spec as me, please let me know your experiences, especially if you DID get it working with your 8rga+ in IGP mode. Also, my Twinmos chips say Twinmos on them, not Winbond. I had read that these WERE winbond, but not stated in order to reduce price...can anyone verify this? If not I might pay the extra £3 ($4.50) for the certified Winbond.

:oD

[jeryll]

Under XPpSP1 this dont work ... but if you disabled all D3D & DirectDraw accelerations ... you only use for 3D applications - 3D software rendering - this is very slow under my XP1800+@2600+ with IGP ...

So i switched back (again) from Dual Channel mode to Normal DDR mode and everythings work for now (as before). I have only problems with 3D acceleration parts of IGP in Dual Channel mode ... anything other works fine for me 2D&3D in Normal DDR mode (o´clocked or not), and 2D in Dual Channel mode work too ... but not 3D ... any try for 3D accelerations in Dual Channel = crash ...

So at the moment I think there is a bug in integrated GF4MX in 3D part ... because I tested my memory (no problems) and system is in Normal DDR mode 100% stable - tested with PRIME95 for hours (o´clocked or not)

Jeryll

[tgrrr]

Originally posted by D

I've been stable all day today thanks to my quick fix. I discovered that, as well as all the seemingly random crash events, there's one surefire way to crash my system and that is to use the flowerbox screensaver in windows (I'm using win2k)...
D

hehe that's exactly the same thing as my case. the flowerbox can onli run for a couple of seconds b4 n the system will inevitably resets

Originally posted by jeryll
So at the moment I think there is a bug in integrated GF4MX in 3D part ... because I tested my memory (no problems) and system is in Normal DDR mode 100% stable - tested with PRIME95 for hours (o´clocked or not)
Jeryll

ur talkin bout the ram problem rite?
1st question,
since the IGP is actually using a portion of total memory while the system is using the rest, which is causing the fault that leads to the crashes?
issit the video part? or the system? or both?(i know 1 error could lead to the other, but which is the actual culprit?)

the bezier screensaver cause lots of lines drawing at the wrong places wf 'faulty' ram, so could that b the video problem?
if it is the video part, then perhaps that video rendering requires more er.. 'high quality' memory? in other words they're more 'picky' than the system since some of those 'faulty' ram apparently works ok on other system.

on the other hand if its the system that's causing the pc to crash... n so my 2nd question,
the nforce1 board IGP solution also uses shares memory rite...? any similar problem like this?
since the major changes is dual-channel could it b there's some fault in the architecture??