Problem after installing TOP 4850

[Fleksta]

Hi guys, this is my first ATI video card experience so please bear with me:

I just received a package from Newegg with my new Antec Earthwatts 430 watt PSU and the ASUS 4850 TOP version card. I've installed both (and am posting from that computer) but there is a strange issue.

Every time I restart the computer I get the found new hardware wizard popping up (Windows XP SP3) and my screen resolution is set to 800x600 or less. The most recent ATI drivers are installed and I can reset the resolution higher without a problem.

Also, when I started Fallout 3 (the first time) it auto readjusted my video options to "Ultra High" but when in game there is occasional glitching and an eventual crash.

The game and computer worked fine with the previous card (BFG nVidia 7950GT OC) and power supply.

If I'm leaving some information out please let me know, I want to solve this problem

Edit: I've just noticed that the computer recognizes the card as having 1gb RAM, however this should be a 512mb card. Is this normal?

[Blín D'ñero]

You don't mention if this is after a format and reinstall of Windows?

[Fleksta]

No, its the same install of Windows. I used Driver Sweep in safe mode to erase the nVidia display drivers also.

I've figured out that it is the VPU Recover utility that is crashing the game. Every time I launch the game I can play for about 10 minutes before the screen goes blank and starts flickering randomly with colored boxes. After a minute or so of this it finally goes back to the desktop with the VPU message displayed.

Another Edit: I've disabled the VPU in the Catalyst Control Panel and this seems to have stopped the crashing. I'll be sure to update again later on if the problems persist.

[Qualitier]

Did you fix the problem about the reinstalling at every reboot and the incorrect recognition of the vcard's memory or model? I think that they are the same problem and that it can cause the issues with Fallout 3 or the VPU recover.

Maybe you can try installing the driver through Advanced Display Properties -> Adapter -> Properties -> Controller -> Update Controller , directing Windows to the Catalyst INF file for XP (it's in a folder under the one where the Catalyst files were uncompressed if you didn't delete them, by default c:\support\ati\<catalyst files folder>\xp_inf , where <catalyst files folder> is 8-10_xp32_dd_ccc_wdm_enu_69561 for the official 8.10's , or a similar name for other versions). I cannot remember the exact details of this procedure now, but depending on which options you choose, you'll be able to specify a concrete vcard model, or at least see which options do you have without installing anything.

An error in a file can cause these problems (it would be a really gross error, but errors happen). If you're using the CD version (I think that an error is more feasible here because many users ignore the CD drivers and go to the last downloadable ones), maybe you want to try the official downloadable 8.10's. In one or two week's time the official 8.11's should be out.

http://ati.amd.com/support/driver.html

[Pr3tty F1y]

is a 430w psu enough for that card? I had a 430watt psu back in 2003 with an Athlon XP and a 9700Pro w/ 1gb of ram... now with dual cores and a very power hungry new vid card... it might be close.

[Qualitier]

The PSU should be enough. With a 90W TDP processor (4850: 110W), that system should consume about 270W.

EDIT:

http://www.antec.com/usa/productDeta...an=us&id=27430

Dual 12V outputs: 12V2 for Motherboard and peripherals; 12V1 for processor

Well... not so loose in the V2 rail depending on the specs, but these don't sound me to PSU problems anyway.

[Fleksta]

I no longer get the total display reset when the computer reboots. I ran driver sweep a second time and also ran CCleaner which seems to have fixed that issue.

Since turning the VPU off I had no crashes for almost 8 hours of on/off play yesterday. Today however, I have had two crashes in Fallout 3 but none in Red Alert 3 so I'm not sure if those were because of the graphic card or game instability. Though one of the CTD's reverted the screen size to minimum and had a Microsoft Error report come up.

It still reads as having 1024 mb video memory and the adapter window only identifies the card as a 4800 series, not a specific model.

In game the graphics are amazing so the card does function. There just has to be a conflict somewhere that I'm not seeing. The card is idling at a steady 60c and after playing Fallout 3 for an hour or so it reads low 70's (Celsius).

I'm running the latest driver from the ATI website, without the hotfix. I did not try the drivers on the accompanying CD as the reviews for the card all said those drivers were bad.