throw money at it, maybe it'll go away

[Guest]

well. here's the deal. my computer likes to freeze at random times, specifically during the playing of games (Quake 3, Worms armageddon, aliens vs predator 2 demo, driver, messiah, rainbow 6, swat 3, serious sam, red alert 2... oh hell all of em to a degree) ive been through bout all i can think of, power supply, hsf, ram, whatever else i could think of. my computer guys out here mentioned that they have had nothing but trouble with amd processors and tnt2 video cards. are they telling the truth or are they full of it? will buying a geforce2 mx400 fix it? heres my system:

AMD Athlon 1.00gHZ
128 MB PC133 SDRAM
ECS K7VZM motherboard (kt133 chipset)
Diamond Viper V770 (TNT2, 32 MB)
DVD, CD-r/CD-RW, HDD

---I thought computers were supposed to make our lives EASIER!

 

[FUGGER]

Easy answer, you own a AMD. Glad to see you are enjoying it to its fullest.

Good thing you saved lots of money.

 

[AEboy128]

What PSU do you have?? What are your CPU temps?? Have you tried the via 4-in-1 drivers?? They are full of it, and ignore fugger, he's pro intel, anti-AMD. He's just jealous of how AMD processors are faster when it comes to actual performance.

My system: <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=8946" target="_new">http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=8946</A>

 

[Oni]

ECS K7VZM motherboard (kt133 chipset)

This is your problem crappy motherboard, not JUST the brand, the mobo is the problem. The brand isn't all that good either, also partially the chipset on the motherboard kt133 is not a major chipset any more for a reason.
I'd have to suggest something with AMD761, Via KT266a, or nForce for decent stability. I don't even think KT133a will do the job. Without a doubt AMD761 will give the most stability, who better to release a chipset than the manufacturer of the CPU!
Also check what sound card you have in your setup because many sound cards don't like the southbridge included on the KT133 chipset.

 

[Oni]

Easy answer, you own a AMD. Glad to see you are enjoying it to its fullest.

Good thing you saved lots of money.

This is a pretty stupid statement, even an idiot knows that when you build something with even one crappy part the entire thing can be horrible. I could build an intel solution with a crappy motherboard and sure enough the entire thing will be bad. People just have to learn whats good and whats bad for AMD products, and when they do there will be fewer user errors and AMD will get the respect it deserves.
The thing that always makes me happy is knowing I built an AMD solution with the best parts I could buy and knowing I saved money over an Intel solution made with its own best parts (respectively because of different chipsets, memory, etc).

 

[Crashman]

I also have a Diamond V770. It won't work on several systems. I once had a V770 Ultra, same problem. Diamond seems to have done something with the card itself that makes it unstable in certain systems. I still recommend that people considering the MX200 try the V770 instead because it performs better, BUT still does not work on some systems!
I recommend the MX400 to fix your problem. While you could still have stability problems related to your chipset, the video card is the most likely culprit.

What's the frequency, Kenneth?

 

[Smilin]

Man, when you've tried everthing else try this:

Ask yourself: Do I use winamp when I'm playing games?

 

[bront]

I had a KT133 that ran just fine. Just turn off a few things like AGP Fast Write and such that make things a bit more unstable in your bios. Aslo, try slower memory timings and see if that helps.

However, the KT266a is a nice chipset. If you do upgrade, and don't mind moving to DDR Ram (IE, have the money), it will help speedwise, and posably stability.

As far as the Nforce MB, given that isn't out yet, I can't say anything about the stability.

Chesnuts roasting on an open CPU
Bill Gates nipping at your wallet

 

[Guest]

i have a 300w amd approved (?) A1 electronics atx power supply, my cpu temps hover around 96-107 deg F, with most problems happening at the higher end of that, and yes the 4 in 1's were like number 25 on my "did it" list (out of 500) ive had amd processors since the k5 came out. i think my dad was an amd...

---I thought computers were supposed to make our lives EASIER!

 

[Guest]

the reason im thinking its my video is sometimes when it freezes, i can eject cd-roms, the hdd light flashes, the sound continues to play in the background, etc. is there any correlation maybe between processor temp AND video card performance?

---I thought computers were supposed to make our lives EASIER!

 

[AEboy128]

It could be the video card is getting too hot. Your CPU temps are low. Try running the games with the case off.

My system: <A HREF="http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=8946" target="_new">http://www.anandtech.com/mysystemrig.html?rigid=8946</A>