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Video Card out of date already!


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Posted

MUST... HOLD OFF.... FOR.... 64meg VERSION... MUST NOT GIVE.... IN.... DAMN... MARKETING DEPARTMENT....

Posted

Like most of you, I've spent enough on video card upgrades to have financed a politician for the U.S. Senate. I have one pc with a continuously upgraded card, presently using a GeForce, switched out from a VooDoo3. The other pc has the most long-lasting-and-still-able-to-keep-up-but-only-just-barely video card system I've had in the last several years; a NVidia 128 with two SLI-linked VooDoo 2 cards. Why doesn't 3Dfx make all of Glide capable cards as add on daughter cards like the VooDoo(1) and VooDoo 2? Hello, customer service!

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Cmdr Doc Hoover

GCV JOHN PAUL JONES

"I will not fear death on the field of battle, for life is

but a dream from which we all must wake"

Guest aramike01
Posted

Okay, my turn to rant about technology.

Bought a new computer a couple of months ago due to my old one taking a crap on me. Didn't even flush.

Anyway, went to buy a 3DFX capable card. Bought said card. Put said card in computer. Card works not with computer. Call tech support. They tell me to do the same thing I was doing, except they charge $30 for reassurance. After their (my) ideas do not work, they tell me that I cannot upgrade my video due to the current card being integrated into the motherboard.

Anyone have any suggestions?

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

Recruitment Officer

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

Posted

You should've done the research before buying the computer. If you can't disable the on-board video from the BIOS, you're screwed six ways from Sunday (or was that Friday?).

[This message has been edited by Supreme Cmdr (edited 04-28-2000).]

Posted

Get out the computer manual and look to see if you can disable the on-board video by changing around the jumper pins (If any).

My PacBell automatically disables the on-board video when a PCI vid card is added (Thank God!).

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CMDR GREG MILLER (GMAN)

ORION FLEET

EXECUTIVE OFFICER

TSUNAMI BATTLE GROUP

GCV - SARK

ICQ 64202480

www.orion-hq.fsnet.co.uk

'The righteous care about justice for all,

but the wicked have no such concern.'

[email protected]

Posted

Is it an 8 meg AGP card built onto the motherboard Aramike? When I installed the Voodoo 3 2000 pci card I have I just went into setup (you know, when the computer boots; "hit del to run setup") and removed the shared memory. No shared memory no onboard vid card. Voodoo Card works great as far as I can tell.

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Commander Chavik

Spectre Fleet

ICV Phoenix

Official BC3K Tester

"We Shall Arise From The Ashes"

Guest aramike01
Posted

Thanks guys. I'll try Charles' plan. If that doesn't work, a new computer will be on it's way to the door. Obviously the Gateway salesman doesn't understand the question, "Is it fully upgradable?" Grrr....

Posted

No, it is fully upgradeable. All of the parts that they allow you to upgrade, you can upgrade. smile.gif

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Captain TBone

GCV Delorean

"If you're gonna build a time machine, you might as well do it in style"

Guest Ron Wallin
Posted

aramike, there is/should be a setting in the bios that will disable the "on board" video. That's usually the ONLY place you can do it.

Posted

aramike - same as what ron said with this added - there may also be a jumper on ye mobo to disable on-board vid-card. Another place to try involves going into Windows9x control panel.

Open Control Panel/Systems icon.

Select Device Manager Tab (can either search by device type or device connection).

Expand Display Adapters - Here you can disable the on-board video on mobo.

TTFN

[This message has been edited by Gallion (edited 04-29-2000).]

Guest aramike01
Posted

Thanks a lot. I'll give all of these ideas a whirl in the near future. I'd love to get this thing to work.

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

Recruitment Officer

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

Posted

My good friend reported that there's GeForce 2's at Fry's Electronics (Fry's is a huge legendary mega-electronic geek meka up where I live, sorta the Ron Jon's of computer stores wink.gif ). Have at 'em folks.

I think I've decided to go the extravigant rout and get me my 4 turbine cooled 128 meg mutha of a card known as the Voodoo 6000. Now that reviewers have both the new Voodoo's and G2's to do side by side comparisons they're saying that the Voodoo cards actually have better image quality...

Who do voodoo?

Posted

Hi Aramike,

My BIOS also has a setting for which display card to initialize at boot AGP or PCI. If yours has this the set it to PCI or it will always try to use the onboard AGP.

Good Luck

Cmdr Andy DiFontaine

Guest aramike01
Posted

Thanks, DiFontaine. I just checked my BIOS, however, and I can't find such a setting. Thanks anyway! smile.gif

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

Recruitment Officer

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

Guest aramike01
Posted

...and in the end, 'twas the big guy that was right. Screwed, it tell you, screwed!!! Time for a new computer.

As a side note, the jolly Best Buy technicians were rather certain they could do this.

Still, any suggestions (save me $$$, please!!!) are greatly appreciated!

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

Recruitment Officer

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

  • 3 weeks later...
Guest aramike01
Posted

Update:

I returned the Stealth card and decided upon purchasing a Voodoo3 2000 PCI. Lo and behold, works perfectly and I had to do nothing with my onboard video.

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Cmdr. Michael Kristophers

Spectre Fleet

Commanding Officer, Spectre StarStation

ICV-Intrepid

Recruitment Officer

"You won't get the Purple Heart hiding in a foxhole!"

Posted

Well, since we aer on the topic of vid boards, which do you think is better, the Voodoo 5 or the Geforce 2?

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Cmdr. Antilles

Spectre Fleet

Spectre Starstation

ICV- Eclipse

Chief Security Officer

Learning is not compulsory... Neither is survival.

Guest Ron Wallin
Posted

Depends on what you're doing... If it's just for gaming then either of them will push the pixels just fine...

However, if you're rendering graphics (i.e., 3DSMax files, Maya, Lightwave, etc.) then I'd go with the GeForce... or a better OGl card.

Anyway, here's the major arguments in a nutshell:

Voodoo 5 'cause it's got multiple processors

that will push the pixels faster than any single processor.

GeForce 2 'cause it's got a faster single processor and doesn't have to double the textures in memory for each seperate processor like the Voodoo 5.

I say go with the GeForce, only because I'm an Nvidia fan and my 16mb TNT still pushes 60fps in mp with all the bells and whistles turned on (of course a fast CPU helps!)

Either way, you'll hear differing OPINIONS from everybody (touting the manufacturer they like best). I wholly suggest hitting ALL the review sites you can and making your own decision.

Posted

*Chris steps up to the mic*

I have a Monster 3D2 and it works greatly BUT! I can't use it as a primary video card "sucks". Anyway I have had MANY problems with it and I have bypassed most of them but there are still a few little bugs. Can anyone here comment on the Monster 3D2 if any knolodage? I know I need to upgrade BUT I just don't have the $ redface.gif. If only there was a way that I can keep it without upgrading it.

I will sometime in the near future will get a new comp and it will have just a standard VooDoo3! I know I am slaging behind but I have no choice yet.

See ya all out there biggrin.gif!

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Cmdr. Chris Alan Blair

Spectre Fleet

Spectre Starstation

ICV-Ticonderoga

Posted

I have 2 8mb Monster 3d2 cards in SLI in my machine. They haven't been used in awhile because my main video card is now a Creative Annihilator Pro.

My main problem with the Voodoos was that 4mb of texture memory was insufficient for most current games, resulting in choppy performance. Picture quality with the Geforce is also better. I use the Creative drivers and not the latest 3dfx reference drivers, because some people reported problems with the reference drivers and the reference drivers also didn't allow me to disable 3dfx in Direct3d mode, which interfered with my main graphics card.

I only use the Voodoos for older games that only support glide or provide much better support with glide than Direct3d.

Posted

All boils down to how much $$ one is willing to layout for v-card. Price vs. performance is ultimate consideration.

Voodoo5 5500 has been released and was quickly recalled by 3dFx. Couldn't happen to a better company IMO. The Voodoo5 5500 specs look impressive on paper. Personally I am waiting for the Voodoo5 6000, only for the Glide support. My current v-card, 3d Prophet DDR-DVI really kicks, it is too bad the 3dFx is keeping Glide proprietary.

There are plenty of v-cards out at $200 and below that will support 90% of the games - current and previous. As what Ron stated earlier - dependant on what one is using comp system for depends on type of componets (v-card, etc.) that fill the inner spaces. Since I dabble in comp graphic now and then I needed a v-card that could handle my meager requirements and still not break my piggy bank biggrin.gif

TTFN

Posted

Gallion: 3DFX made Glide open source about 5 months ago.

Oh, also you may want to make sure the V5 6000 fits in your case. I was going to get one too till I found out it wont fit in my mid-tower (no joke), now I'm just waiting on the 5500.

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