Videocard Slowdown - Please Help!

[Carnifex]

Did you recently update to Windows XP??? Or did your problems arise after you installed the newest nVidia drivers???

[GregHess]

Your system is below the recommended requirements for Windows XP. I'd suggest upgrading to windows 2000, and then worrying about performance issues with your video card.

(I'd also consider taking the GF4 MX back to the store and getting a Ti 4200 instead).

[playmesumch00ns]

Greg is right, take the MX back - or use it as an ashtray if they won't take it back - and get a Ti4200, they're lovely

[Xaint]

I tought that people will come up with solutions which are based on an entire hardware upgrade. Right now I can't afford such a thing.I'm aiming this thread on getting as much of this config as I can.

As for XP, I'm using it since it's out and I've never (ok, almost) had problems with it. At least not problems that depends on my machine's performance.
So I don't think it's an 'XP' problem. But you're the experinced Greg, if you say it could solve my problem, I do a clean Win2000 on the weekend. :-D

In fact I recently updated, my config with this wondercard. I had a TNT2 M64 before and I tought a GF4 would be faster even with a shot in it's somach!
Man! Don't say it can't be better than a TNT2 on the same system.

As with games it's way faster, but dealing with MAX it's...
not good.

I thak for any advices you share!

[Xaint]

Maybe I'll collect money from donations...
:rolleyes:

[GregHess]

XP persay isn't the problem compatibility or troubleshooting wise, its just your system is far below the recommended 1 gigahertz range for running windows XP.

(Recommended Config for Windows XP is a 1 gigahertz+ with 256 megs of ram+ computer)

Basically your sacrificing your performance for the sake of a pretty gui. Its up to you, but I don't think XP is doing anything but reducing the performance ceiling of your system. (Thats my professional opinion)

As for the video card. Its pretty much equivilant to a geforce 2 GTS, so its not all that bad. Try running the nvidia 21.83 WHQL drivers with it.

www.reactorcritical.com

www.guru3d.com

for the drivers. If those don't work, try the newer nvidia drivers from www.nvidia.com.

Realize that none of the max4 or max5 d3d functions (hardware shaders etc) will work with the card you purchased.

I just mentioned returning the MX back to the store, because the TI 4200's are only a bit more expensive (120-140 USD)

[Xaint]

:) I signed Up for PCSTATS newsletter for a GF4 Ti! All I have to do is... to pray!

I've Downloaded the 21.83 driver and a load of info, so I'll make use of them and share what I have learned tomorrow. Here is 1:26 AM.

Remember: my real problem is the slow wireframe framerate. I don't care if it's D3D or OpenGL anymore. It should move 25.000 polys in wireframe with no trouble. One question: is the card accelerates wireframes or not? 'Couse it seems like not for me.

[GregHess]

Compared to the Tnt2, it should be accelerating wireframes. A tnt2 has no GPU, the GF4 MX does. Should be a pretty big difference.

Check out the 3dluvr section on optimizing your accelerator for 3dsmax.

http://www.3dluvr.com/content/article/104

Remember that with your computer speed, resolution will play a big factor in performance.

(Aka the lower the res you work in max, the faster it'll be).

[Xaint]

I've installed the 21.83 Nvidia driver that you recommended, Greg. Or rather I tried to install it. After the XP restarted the 40.72 stayed in it's place and no changes were made. I checked the versions.
As far as I know Detonator Destroyer don't works under XP, neither under 2K. I guess no other choice is left but reinstall a new OS. I wonder why Nvidia (and many other software manufacturers) do not care about their product's removal?! It's L A M E ! :thumbsdow

The resolution should not be a problem, I haven't changed it and it's the standard low: 1024x768. I've worked also in 1280x960 with the TNT2 and it was fine from that card. I changed to 1024x768 to bring out higher refresh rate from the monitor.

OK, so if it sould accelerate wireframes than I still have hope.

[GregHess]

The Geforce GPU's don't accelerate the Wireframes as much as the Quadro's, but they still show be noticably faster then a TNT2. I'm still surprised you aren't seeing an immediate change in performance.

Before the new OS install try the following....

Add/remove programs...Nvidia XP drivers....

Add/remove hardware....nvidia geforce4 mx

Before rebooting, use winzip or another archive utility, to extract the files contacted within the 21.83.exe. Extract them to some directory like C:\nvidia

Reboot. You should be in VGA mode with the add/remove hardware wizard popping up. Point this to the directory you extracted the files too.

Hopefully that should enable the 21.83 WHQL to install.

So very odd though.

Did you put multitexture=1 in the oglfx.ini of the 3dsmax directory?

[Xaint]

What about Maxtreme drivers? I think they should be less stable than the official ones.
I think my problem is not perfomance, but driver or incompatiblity. The situation is that my mainboard is ABIT too... Hmm? But If I pull out the SBLive, and the modem...
What do you say? Give It a try?

[GregHess]

I don't have much experience with that particular motherboard. So I can't really help you there. Is the video card IRQ being shared by another device? If so you might want to try and move another card to an adjacent PCI slot to try and free up the AGP IRQ.

(If it doesn't have AGP, my bad)

Make sure to do some sort of backup/clone of the system before you start moving too much stuff around. Bad things can happen.

[Xaint]

I'm surprised TOO!:eek:

Did you put multitexture=1 in the oglfx.ini of the 3dsmax directory? - NOPE!
I go and try what you recomended about the installation.

[Xaint]

I uninstalled the 40.72 drivers from the add/remove programs menu. And Igot this as shown in the image. The XP's language is hungarian, but you'll probably guess things out.
And after I unzipped and installed the 21.83 drivers as Greg recomended I got exactly the same properties.
So this means the drivers was not installed. :annoyed:

Tomorrow I'll KILL.
Kill XP.

[Xaint]

I uninstalled the 40.72 drivers from the add/remove programs menu. And Igot this as shown in the image. The XP's language is hungarian, but you'll probably guess things out.

And after I unzipped and installed the 21.83 drivers as Greg recomended I got exactly the same properties.
So this means the drivers was not installed. :annoyed:

Tomorrow I'll KILL.
Kill XP.

[Xaint]

I attached a 34K JPG, where is it?
How can I post an image?

[Xaint]

Oh yess.
The pleasure of a tiny success...

[Xaint]

OK, I still want to run games on my system so I probably won't install 2K. But maybe I'll still try it.

[GregHess]

Did you get it to finally overright? Dang thats weird, the unzipping and pointing directly to the extracted drivers and then saying yes and choosing from the selected driver sets (choosing the older one) almost always works.

Probably just my inexperience with XP.

What games are you playing in XP that you can't play in win2k? The only stuff I can't get working in win2k are games that are 2-3 years old.

[Xaint]

I had the opportunity to try out some computers running Max 4. And I made some quick tests on wiewport speed with Edged Faces on. There was a GF2, a GF3 and a R9700. And guess what: they was pretty as slow as my GF4mx440. This is probably 'couse the cards are optimized for gaming, thus no wires supported.

One solution can be Maxtreme drivers and softquadro.

I found a comprehensive thread here at CG-Talk:
http://www.cgtalk.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=33610&perpage=15&pagenumber=1

Thanx for the posts, Greg! :beer: I disappiered, 'couse the searching for a job, and I made my webpage at the time.

Hallelujah!:buttrock:

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