ATI Drivers are making me miffed.

D

Dan_D

Extremely [H]
Joined
Feb 9, 2002
Messages
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I recently setup my Core 2 Duo based system using an X1950XTX. Problem is that once connected to my LCD panel, the card does not output video in DVI mode. It only does so in analog mode.

Of course this means my display looks like crap. I've installed the modded Catalyst drivers I found on this forum, and the ones that came with the card and neither one works.

I know it is a driver problem because when I remove the drivers, The display works fine in DVI mode.

I also noticed that the display properties are reported wrong in the CCC. It shows that the monitor is capable of 1920x1080@85Hz. This is obviously untrue of my 20 inch LCD. I've manually adjusted those settings, but nothing seems to be fixing the problem. Anyone have any thoughts on this? An internet search (brief) has not turned up any results.
 
Have you tried the Alternate DVI Frequency option? I forgot whether it is checked by default or not, but whatever is the opposite of the default solved my problems of getting a blank display from boot or turning the monitor back on.
 
Cript said:
Have you tried the Alternate DVI Frequency option? I forgot whether it is checked by default or not, but whatever is the opposite of the default solved my problems of getting a blank display from boot or turning the monitor back on.
Click to expand...

I didn't think of that. I have seen that option on ATi cards in the past, and never paid it any attention. I will try that.
 
Have you installed the display INF for your LCD?

Right Click on Desktop/Properties/Settings/Advanced/Monitor/Properties/Driver/Update Driver - make sure you are connected to the Internet, let it download and install the latest drivers for your LCD if there are any, reboot. That's the first thing I do, to make sure the proper modes are supported.

Next, I'm not sure what these modded drivers are you are using but perhaps they are fowling something up. I'd go with the latest official WHQL drivers from ATI.com, latest version with/CCC is Cat 6.9.
 
Brent_Justice said:
Have you installed the display INF for your LCD?

Right Click on Desktop/Properties/Settings/Advanced/Monitor/Properties/Driver/Update Driver - make sure you are connected to the Internet, let it download and install the latest drivers for your LCD if there are any, reboot. That's the first thing I do, to make sure the proper modes are supported.

Next, I'm not sure what these modded drivers are you are using but perhaps they are fowling something up. I'd go with the latest official WHQL drivers from ATI.com, latest version with/CCC is Cat 6.9.
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Actually, I tried the WHQL ones off the ATi website first and they didn't work at all. It wouldn't even detect my card. Next I tried the ones on the driver CD that shipped with the card. They detected my card and they work fine, except with my LCD. I didn't notice this problem at first as my machine was on my test bench attached to my CRT. When I moved to the LCD I got no video in windows. I eventually connected in analog mode because it worked on my CRT, and it worked fine on my LCD in analog mode on the D-Sub input. I then tried another DVI cable, and another computer on my DVI port and it worked fine. Also when I remove the drivers from the system, the LCD works properly on the DVI port. So I know it isn't the monitor. I also installed the monitor .INF files thinking that might fix the problem. That didn't work either.

Next I remembered there was a thread about modded CATs needing to be used with the X1950XTX on the forum and someone had moddified the .INF files to work with the X1950XTX stating that the ones on the ATi didn't work with the X1950XTX. So I grabbed those. I tried them with the same results. I also noticed that it was reporting my LCD model correctly, and the specifications for it incorrectly. So I manually have tried forcing the settings and that hasn't worked either.

There is one important thing I forgot to mention, I am running Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, so this may just be an issue with the 64 bit driver. I also found that this problem was documented as an issue with some 9000 series Radeon cards but that no fix has been issued as of yet.
 
Well now the Catalyst Control Panel has somehow become non-functional. So I can't access that anymore.

I am really not digging the ATi ownership experience.
 
Well now I have the Catalyst Control Center working again. I had to turn off Intel's virtualization technology. Some how this setting got toggled on. I recalled it being off when I first setup the system, but oh well. That's fixed.

That's about all the progress I have made. In the latest CCC I can not find the alternate DVI frequency option mentioned earlier. I am pretty pissed as the LCD looks really bad in analog mode. My CRT isn't the best either as it is really old and the test isn't blurred so much as it has a ghosting effect. I have to smack the crap out of it in order to get it to stop doing that.

Pretty piss poor for a $450 video card. The fact that the web site 6.9's don't support the latest and greatest video card is flat out appaling. I think I can probably chalk this one up to crappy 64 bit drivers. I would wager that this won't occur in 32bit XP.

Switching isn't even an option as I don't own the 32bit version and I am damned sure not buying it with Vista's launch so semi-close.
 
Dan_D said:
In the latest CCC I can not find the alternate DVI frequency option mentioned earlier.
Click to expand...

digital panel properties -> Attributes -> down there at the bottom.

You probably dont have that option though since you are outputting an analog signal.

I would remove the drivers/ccc, run driver cleaner. Install just the driver and not ccc and see how that works.

My guess would be that somehow some settings are left after you hooked the card up to the crt.
 
Spank said:
digital panel properties -> Attributes -> down there at the bottom.

You probably dont have that option though since you are outputting an analog signal.

I would remove the drivers/ccc, run driver cleaner. Install just the driver and not ccc and see how that works.

My guess would be that somehow some settings are left after you hooked the card up to the crt.
Click to expand...

Yeah that was my thought. When I pull everything off and connect it to the LCD it works, but not after installing the drivers.

I guess I can try it without the CCC.
 
Well I tried again, and still no good. Everytime I go past 640x480 or increase the display from 8 colors to anything else, it kills the LCD and I have to hook up the CRT, or connect the LCD's analog cable to it and switch inputs.

It's BS. I've never liked ATi's drivers as much as nVidia's. Despite that I have owned a lot of ATi cards over the years. I have NEVER in my life dealt with so much crap out of a video card driver. This is one of the worst experiences I've ever had. Two days and I am no closer to fixing this.

I could reformat and re-install, but I don't believe in doing that until the last possible thing has been tried. The worst thing is to format, and then immediately encounter the same old problems.
 
Miffy, fuzzy little bunny.....Miffy......god dam kids shows are killing me.
 
Well, I have tried the ATi tray tools. Those were worthless in helping fix my problem. Otherwise they are pretty cool.

They just don't help.

Well, both ports work at the same time, but not in DVI mode. So again I am pretty much screwed here. I just can't bear to look at that LCD in analog mode. It's horrid.

I am just really running out of patience and options.
 
What LCD are you using?

Maybe try 32bit XP and see if 64bit XP is your problem, just to know for sure?
 
Brent_Justice said:
What LCD are you using?

Maybe try 32bit XP and see if 64bit XP is your problem, just to know for sure?
Click to expand...

Well I reformatted just a bit ago and installed the chipset drivers, then the ATi drivers. The problem still exists.

I am using a Viewsonic VP201S 20.1" LCD. It's always worked fine for me. It still does provided I don't have the XP drivers for this card loaded.

I think it may be a Windows XP Professional x64 Edition driver problem. It wouldn't surprise me in the least. ATi's developement with that OS usually lags behind nVidia's.
 
If you want to know for sure then throw up a 32bit xp install; load the graphics driver and see what happens with the LCD connected.
 
Brent_Justice said:
If you want to know for sure then throw up a 32bit xp install; load the graphics driver and see what happens with the LCD connected.
Click to expand...

Well I just got finished trying that. Same old crap. LCD still doesn't work in DVI mode when the Catalyst drivers are installed. I'd say it was a hardware problem, but I don't think that it would work at all if that were the case. If I don't have the ATi Catalyst drivers installed at all, DVI functionality is fine.

I've got nothing left. After three different installs, two different DVI cables, three different ATi drivers (All variations of the same version) I can't make this damned thing work. Both DVI ports do the same thing and there doesn't seem to be anything I can do about it.

Beyond that, I am a bit miffed about the fact that I can't find a damned X1950XTX Crossfire Edition card either. It's taking everything I've got to hold back from bashing the crap out of ATi in my posts. :mad:

I found another link to some drivers on ATi's webpage in their tech support section. Those are the same crap that are on the CD, and those don't work either.

I think the problem is that these dumbass ATi drivers are reading my monitors capabilities wrong. No matter what I do, it won't stop doing this either. It says that it has a max resolution of 1920x1080 which is BS. It also goes on to say that it can run that resolution at 85Hz. Which of course, it can not.
 
Well I had a brilliant idea. I brought my card to work today, and I am going to throw it into a PC and connect it to a Dell 2007FPW LCD and see what happens.
 
Well the mystery is solved at last. I found that my card and drivers work fine when attached to the Dell monitor I have here at work. It works well with either the standard VGA, or the DVI connection.

The problem I am faced now is getting a different monitor, living with what I've got and hopeing that a new driver update will fix this, or getting a new monitor that will work with it.

The problem seems to stem from the ATi card and or drivers reading my monitors VESA information incorrectly. I am not sure if this is something specific to my monitor or to Viewsonic LCD's in general, (doubtful.)

So I will need to do some research and see about upgrading my monitor. Unfortunately this will cost me some serious cash. If I am going to upgrade, then I want to get a 23 or 24" widescreen monitor. I do not want to buy another 4:3 ratio monitor, and certainly I am uninterested in lesser resolution 21" and smaller widescreen displays.

So at this immediate juncture I can not fix this issue. I do take some comfort in the fact that the problem is now solved, and that the new video card works fine.
 
This is unfortunate. I would contact ati and viewsonic about this so that they can get their act together.
 
jebo_4jc said:
This is unfortunate. I would contact ati and viewsonic about this so that they can get their act together.
Click to expand...

I am not really sure who is at fault here. Viewsonic for their VESA implementation or ATi, for how their driver reads it.

Funny though how both work fine until the driver gets loaded.
 
Dan_D said:
I am not really sure who is at fault here. Viewsonic for their VESA implementation or ATi, for how their driver reads it.

Funny though how both work fine until the driver gets loaded.
Click to expand...
That is funny. That would probably prompt both companies to blame MS. :rolleyes:
 
hes using modified drivers that include the 1950 in the entries

I was watching your situation hoping it would come out fine, I am boggled as to the fact with the conflict between drivers

hopefully this gets fixed, I haven't used view sonic since they released their cheap'o 19 and 21" monitors
 
Maybe the dvi frequency setting is your ticket. If they aren't in the driver try another utility such as ati tool. There are a bunch of handy tools here http://www.mvktech.net/component/option,com_remository/Itemid,26/func,selectfolder/cat,3/ Being that everything works except for when you load the driver I blame the driver having a problem reading the pannels edid. It may not be reading the correct frequency across the table as it should.

I really think this will be resolved via the dvi frequency adjustment. Now getting to that is the problem. Either way, good luck.
 
Lord_Exodia said:
Maybe the dvi frequency setting is your ticket. If they aren't in the driver try another utility such as ati tool. There are a bunch of handy tools here http://www.mvktech.net/component/option,com_remository/Itemid,26/func,selectfolder/cat,3/ Being that everything works except for when you load the driver I blame the driver having a problem reading the pannels edid. It may not be reading the correct frequency across the table as it should.

I really think this will be resolved via the dvi frequency adjustment. Now getting to that is the problem. Either way, good luck.
Click to expand...

I really think that this is in fact the problem. I went ahead and bought a new LCD. I really wanted a Dell 24" or 30" but I wasn't ready to drop that kind of cash. I bought a Viewsonic VX2025wm for $350.00 that I will use until I have the cash to drop on something better. This isn't a bad monitor for the price.

I'll throw the 20.1" on my test bench to replace my slowly dying NEC CRT monitor. I needed this thing anyway, but I didn't want to buy now. I just couldn't live with ghosting letters on a CRT or analog crap on my regualr LCD. Plus I wanted to try the widescreen. This thing is the same size as my old monitor, but it is a different aspect ratio. Kind of neat really.

Though this isn't as high end as my old monitor, but the picture quality is pretty good and the response time is a little better. Overall I am ok with this.
 
Wow that's weird. Dell 2405FPW, Sony FW900, and Westy 42" 1080p, never a problem. Only difference is x1900 crossfire instead of 1950. Not to say Nv doesn't have way better drivers. They do. But I feel you're pain. What you are trying to do is nothing out of the ordinary,
 
I'd love to have a 24" Dell monitor, but right now I am a bit short on the cash. I just spent a assload of money getting the new video card, the ram, motherboard, CPU cooler, drives, and PSU.

It's been one problem after another with this build. This is just one more damned thing on the list I had to resolve.
 
Have you tried hooking up your new monitor and your Viewsonic to get at the dvi frequency option?
 
Cript said:
Have you tried hooking up your new monitor and your Viewsonic to get at the dvi frequency option?
Click to expand...

No I haven't, but the option should be present now that I have another monitor hooked up via the DVI port. I'll give that a try and see what happens. Though I'll keep using the new monitor as I have found myself enjoying the widescreen display. I do want to try and see if I could make that monitor work though.
 
I believe I might have the solution to your problem. I signed up just to tell you this, to save you the trouble of replacing your monitor when there may very well be nothing wrong with it.

I too own a Viewsonic VX2025WM and I have, in the past, experienced this issue. The problem occurs when you use the D-SUB on your Viewsonic monitor at some point, and then switch over to the DVI port. What happens is that when you use your D-SUB, the monitor's power configuration caters towards the D-SUB, but when you switch it back to the DVI, the settings fail to reset, so when you plug your monitor into your DVI port, the screen fails to work.

Your problem can be solved by resetting your Viewsonic VX2025WM's power settings. With all your monitor's wires disconnected from the monitor, simply turn off your monitor from the main power outlet and unplug the power socket from the monitor. Then simply plug it back in and reconnect the DVI plug.

When you turn on your computer, you should find your monitor working.

I don't think it has anything to do with the lack of official driver support for the X1950XTX, because you see, if it was, you'd probably be able to get a DVI signal before you entered Windows. The reason it shows your monitor as being capable of 1920x1080@85hz is simply because your DVI isn't properly connected to the graphics card due to the issue that exists in every Viewsonic VX2025WM that I mentioned above.

Anyway, in spite of being a pretty simple fix, it should do the trick.

Edit: I'd have posted this response sooner but I was only authorized just now.
 
Sol Invictus said:
I believe I might have the solution to your problem. I signed up just to tell you this, to save you the trouble of replacing your monitor when there may very well be nothing wrong with it.

I too own a Viewsonic VX2025WM and I have, in the past, experienced this issue. The problem occurs when you use the D-SUB on your Viewsonic monitor at some point, and then switch over to the DVI port. What happens is that when you use your D-SUB, the monitor's power configuration caters towards the D-SUB, but when you switch it back to the DVI, the settings fail to reset, so when you plug your monitor into your DVI port, the screen fails to work.

Your problem can be solved by resetting your Viewsonic VX2025WM's power settings. With all your monitor's wires disconnected from the monitor, simply turn off your monitor from the main power outlet and unplug the power socket from the monitor. Then simply plug it back in and reconnect the DVI plug.

When you turn on your computer, you should find your monitor working.

I don't think it has anything to do with the lack of official driver support for the X1950XTX, because you see, if it was, you'd probably be able to get a DVI signal before you entered Windows. The reason it shows your monitor as being capable of 1920x1080@85hz is simply because your DVI isn't properly connected to the graphics card due to the issue that exists in every Viewsonic VX2025WM that I mentioned above.

Anyway, in spite of being a pretty simple fix, it should do the trick.

Edit: I'd have posted this response sooner but I was only authorized just now.
Click to expand...

I appreciate your taking the time to respond to this issue.

The problem I encountered was not with the VX2025wm it was with the VP201s. The VP201s is the one that won't work in DVI mode. The monitor was never switched to DSUB mode and Windows was installed with that monitor connected to the DVI port. It only worked when the drivers for the video card were not installed. Once installed, the first reboot would give me video up until the Windows desktop initializes. At that point the monitor would go blank leaving me with no video at all. If I then switched to DSUB by pluggin the analog cable and DVI converter in and then switching to that input it worked perfectly. That monitor was even reset using the proceedure you described. That proceedure never worked.

I never got digital flat panel settings to appear in the ATi driver until I connected the VX2025wm. So when it was all said and done I did have to replace my monitor in order to make myself happy. It is not the solution I wanted, but it is working out well for me. I needed to replace the dying CRT on my test bench anyway. I am happy with how things turned out, but the problem is irritating to say the least.
 
I am having the same issue, but with an x1950 pro. The work around I have for the moment is to unplug the monitor from the video card, boot up windows, and the plug the monitor back in and it works as expected. Pain in the butt if I may say so myself...
 
I had this same problem before with viewsonic VA1912wb with a x1900xt. Everytime I installed the driver the dvi signal died. After trying many things that didn't work I decided to unplug the monitor from the main dvi output and plugged it into the secondary dvi output. Amazingly it worked. For some reason it was receiving signal from the secondary dvi but not from the primary dvi which was weird. I have since moved on to a 20" benq and I've never had the problem since.
 
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