ATI 690G/x1250 problems (10 Viewers)

[scirocco790]

using catalyst 7.2 resolved the gui freeze for my system too! thanks a lot

 

[kszabo]

using catalyst 7.2 resolved the gui freeze for my system too! thanks a lot

I still don´t think that an old driver would be the solution for the FlipY problem. The 7.2 does not work as it should (it does not show the reflections of the skins), it only does not freeze. And newer drivers are otherwise much better, especially for newer chipsets like the 690G.

Better solution is using modded skins without FlipY or using Vista.

 

[Spragleknas]

I agree with kszabo - using 7.2 is more of a simple workaround. But never driver + flipY removed does not show reflections either.

Have now tried thar HD3450 and (after fiddling around an hour) I am really happy with PQ! (Used registry tweaks from AVSForum).

I'll see if I start a thread about this later.

 

[scirocco790]

spraglekans, kszabo you are both right. today i found out that the gui freeze is gone using 7.2, but now i have a flickering tv preview...
now i´m thinking about buying a vista license.

 

[Spragleknas]

I would think getting a HD3450 would be a better idea ATM.

 

[scirocco790]

I would think getting a HD3450 would be a better idea ATM.

but a dedicated graphics card consumes more power than the integrated one...

 

[Lotsofjazz]

Since when do we worry about power ?

I have upgraded to Vista and have not regretted that for one moment (except the el cheapo WIFI card didnt work as it should)

But if you are stuck with XP there are some skins that work as is and do not use the flipY reflections. I used Project Mayhem III for quite a while and works great, and also looks nice if you ask me.

you must ask yourself the question what is more important.. a skin with reflections that you see for a few minutes before starting the movie, or suffer the poorer playback of HD movies you watch for hours.. I did, and made the choice to drop the reflection skins while using XP.

To improve HD playback even more and get all the features working of the ATI X1250, I made the decision to go over to Vista.

Lots

 

[kszabo]

but a dedicated graphics card consumes more power than the integrated one...

I don´t think so. Just look at the 780G chipset with onboard HD3200 and compare it to the HD3450. Both GPUs are produced with 55 nm technology, the onboard works with 500 MHz (you can overclock it up to 900), the dedicated version 600 MHz. The heat emission so the power consumption will be nearly the same (about 15 Watt).

A very good idea should be a 780G chipset with integrated HD3200, with a dedicated HD3450 video card as hybridXFire. At idle the system shuts down the onboard IGP, at hard gaming work both of them (performance boost about 30-60% against HD3450 alone). You have low power consumption watching TV, DVD etc but enough reserve for GPU hungry games, bluray and HDTV. An this for about 100 € (mainboard+HD3450). But you need Vista for this.

 

[D3tritus]

For reference, the new versions of the Revision/Replicant skin (1.7) do not use FLIPY. Useful if you're the unfortunate owner of an x1250 gfx chipset.

On a different tack, I'm considering getting an ATI HD3450. I've got my x1250 stable @ 720p and am very happy with it. However, I'd like to use skins with FLIPY and I'd also like to run @ 1080p (yes my TV supports it). They're cheap (~£25 GBP for a passive Sapphire card with HDMI onboard) and purportedly good. I have a couple of questions before I buy one:
- Do they work with XP. Vista is extremely pricey and I don't fancy the rebuild.
- Does 1080p work (sounds like a silly question but 1080p was supposed to work with the x1250!).

There's a lot of talk here about Vista vs. XP. Assuming I buy the HD3450, what advantages will running on Vista give me over running on XP?

Thanks for your help guys. Between SPCR and here, I've managed to put together a 720P capable HTPC that is totally silent-running for ~£300 GBP. That's awesome, I'm just hoping to iron out the last few niggles to make the system perfect (well, at least in my eyes!).

 

[Spragleknas]

I would think getting a HD3450 would be a better idea ATM.

but a dedicated graphics card consumes more power than the integrated one...

If I remember correctly, the X1250 is really a X700 which have a fabrication process of 80 nm.
The 3450 is has a fabrication process of 55 nm, so even if it might cause more power consumption, my guess is that it is not much - and it would certainly provide better "performance per Watt".

kszabo: I believe that the HD3200 is not a real 3000-series (like the X1250 is not a real X1000-series), but probably a HD 2400 remake (?). (It is based on 65 nm - not 55. That would exclude a 3x00-series).

This is the same as nVidia does - they might call it 7050, 7025 or 7150 etc - but it is mostly a gForce 6200 or similar.

Oh, and:

DID ANYBODY CONFIRM WHETHER THE FLIPY-BUG FOR XP ALSO GOES FOR THE 780G (HD 3200) !?

I think this might be of interest to many forum users.