SurClaro Flight Simulator Resources

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 1:01 am Post subject: just a little word of...

Just a little word of advice here........compatibility........it is very important when trying to get good visual output. Some mother boards are just not capable or configured correctly for the task at hand. It is sort of like having a super charged hemi under the hood with a mega-output fuel pump at the rear trying to feed it through a 1/4 inch fuel line. The mother board must be up to the task of speed and throughput for the processor and video components to achieve maximum efficiency. Keeping it all pumping out the pretties will require a hefty power supply as well. So while you are debating the finer points of components, dont forget they all play a part in the "system".

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 1:06 am Post subject:

Did you try the drivers that came with your cd first? The latest drivers aren't always the BEST drivers for your card. Try the drivers that came with your gfx card and see if that helps. You'll also need to set your anti-aliasing settings higher than 1x...... Wink

Experiment with your settings and you'll find the best settings for your set up that way. Hope this helps. Very Happy

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 1:45 am Post subject:

About the motherboard point...
Is there a way to test my motherboard to see if it is at least compatible with FS9 and my video card?

For B777...
Yes, I should try new settings. But it's confusing. Like I said, if I max out all the settings the graphics look terrible. I have to set a certain combination (8X A/F and 4X A/A) in order for the graphics to look good. Why do they make settings like that then? Maybe I should consult Visiontek

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 1:52 am Post subject: yes...

Yes, there are hardware diagnostic utilities, the best ones cost a little though. There are also places that can run a diagnostic routine from a small download to determine if it is recommended to update your BIOS. I cant say if it applies in your case, but I have seen a BIOS upgrade do wonders for machines with updated components.

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 7:54 am Post subject:

That card is a very low end card for quality and performance. Try Catalyst drivers as opposed to the stock ones. Don't expect it to do too much though.

Exx

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2005 9:43 pm Post subject:

I know Visiontek remanufactures or modifies ATI video cards. What is the actual difference between my card (XTASY 9250) with the ATI Radeon 9200? Is the ATI Radeon 9200 a pretty low-end card too?

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 2:35 am Post subject:

Well, in defense of the ATi 9200/256 graphics card I have in my system, I will tell you to look at my shots... I don't type this to be arrogant, but only to let you know what the card is capable of. Now, I will tell you how the card is doing this on MY system. First, load the stock drivers from your cd. Then, go to the ATi Radeon website and search for "Catalyst 5.4" version drivers. Download that version and install them. I know you're supposed to delete all other display drivers before installing new ones, but don't delete the stock drivers. They should be in two different folders after you've completed downloading the Catalyst drivers. I looked at the specs on your card, and the only difference I can see is mine is 256MB, so this SHOULD work for your card also. I coudn't tell you how or why my anti-aliasing is MUCH better with the drivers configured this way, but I can tell you that it's working on MY system. If it doesn't appear to make any difference to your anti-aliasing results/settings, then I'm at a loss to help you...... My screen resolution is 1280x960x32. This is the setting that seems to give me the smoothest picture. I have my anti-aliasing at 4x, anisotropic filtering 16x, texture preference=high quality, and mipmap detail level=high quality. I hope this proves to be a solution to your problem. Keep in mind that your settings in FS9 also affect the appearance. Very Happy

For any "computer buffs" that might be trying to figure out how this is working: The stock drivers are in the "System 32" folder (where they should be) and the Catalyst 5.4 drivers are in their own folder along with the control panel and so on........ Shocked

WAY out of my league, but it would be interesting to know how there isn't a conflict..... Laughing

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 6:50 am Post subject:

Bman...the Catalyst drivers are linked to the INF folder so you can leave the old drivers in your System32 folder as the link points towards the new folder anyways. However, your example is not the norm as most times system problems occur if the old CCC or Catalyst drivers are not removed. You are just holding onto files that don't need to be there is all. Beauty of Xp is that it won't tell you those files aren't needed so you get like me where your System32 folder gets to be like 2GB in size if you don't clean them up...LOL.

Cheers,

Exx

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 8:33 pm Post subject:

However, my card is not ATI. It is by Visiontek. I think Visiontek modified ATI's cards a little bit. But I don't know if downloading and installing drivers from the actual ATI website will *beep* up my video card.

Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 8:37 pm Post subject:

If it's an ATi GPU then it's ATi. Doesn't really matter who was contracted out for the manufacturing of other parts. ATi and Omega drivers will work for you card so don't worry. It's just finding the best one that takes time...

Exx

Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2005 1:43 am Post subject:

I'm terribly sorry for using a word (in my last post) that Surclaro forums filtered. I was not trying to offend anybody. Sorry again.

@ Exx: That means I can download from the ATi site. Is there a way I can discover my graphic card's version number?

Posted: Mon Jul 18, 2005 9:44 am Post subject:

Should be a product sticker on the card itself. On ATi's it's usually near the GPU. Drivers aren't really sticky about serial #'s though, just pick the driver for your card version (ie. 9200, 9600) and away you go. If you are using Omega drivers then it doesn't matter what card you have as their drivers suit most ATi's anyways.

No problem on the word. Filter took care of it anyways.

Exx

Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2005 4:18 am Post subject:

Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2005 1:23 pm Post subject:

Hello again Viche,

The configuration of drivers that I described to you in that post is what works for ME on MY system. Just download Catalyst 5.4 and install the drivers. You shouldn't have to delete anything. I realize other versions have been released, but I've tried them as well. Version 5.4 is the most effective for my card. I wish you the best of luck, and let me know how it goes Very Happy

I'm curious as well..... Wink

Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2005 7:31 pm Post subject:

Download and install, without deleting anything. I understand. I shall proceed and give you the results ASAP.