Need help with a 8500LE BIOS (I'm trying it on a DFI K6XV3+)

[mamba]

Hi guyz,
maybe this forum is my last hope to obtain some clever answers...

I'm trying to put a 8500LE on a DFI board, and even if it is possible in theory, I know that it's a really hard challenge.
In fact I got a lot of memory conflicts in win98 and XP.

Even if I can load windows, it remains in VGA safe mode and what's worst, the memory on the card isn't detected by the query program on the driver CD. It correctly detects the R200 chip, but It can't detect the 128mbyte DDR sgram, showing 0.0mbyte.

Don't know why it happens but when I tried to flash another bios on the card, I found that the eeprom was 128k instead of 64k... Why??

Moreover atiflash don't recognize the card and the bios version ( UNKNOW is the result of the "-v" option)

The first thinking was about a MAC edition, but it load windows, even if in vga safe mode, so it is not I think.

Maybe someone tryied to flash a 64kbyte bios on the 128kbyte chip that was partially overwritten???

Anyway I tryed to force tha flash of a 8500LE BBA bios on the card, and I succeeded apparently, but once under windows, nothing changed.
Again VGA safemode, again a lot of memory conflicts and again the memory not detected.

Can you guys send to me a valid 128kbyte bios file form my card, so I can try this way.

It' a BBA ATI 8500LE 128Mbyte (infineon BGA).

[Jim]

Could try to clear up the memory conflicts and see if that helps. For help re clearing up memory conflicts under Win98, see thread "New Video Cards in Old Systems" by Shaddam on page two of this forum.

NOTE : If you read that thread right through, you will find he never did get his card working properly. I believe that is because he never understood that the assignments made by the method I outlined were not to some "General Pool" of resources; but rather to specific devices; and that in addition to "ADDING" the assigment of the correct resources to the card, you also have to "REMOVE" the assignment of incorrect resources from the card using the same method.

I have an ATI 8500 LE w/ 128 Meg of Infineon memory, but I haven't used it yet, cause its going into the SP2 rebuild when I get around to that. Don't know what the BBA you refered to is and don't know anything about video card bioses or how you go about flashing them. Is your card manufactured by ATI? Or is that where the "BBA" comes in? i.e. some other manufacturer using the ATI chips under license. If you can identify the card's manufacturer you should be able to download the proper bios for it I would think.

[DonPedro]

does the card work in any other system? I doubt that these problems are tied to the dfi- K6XV3+. in fact, it smells like a broken card ....

[mamba]

I had red the post of Shaddam before writing mine.
I'm not going to solve those problems like Shaddam did (or didn't), I don't think they can be solved.
I'm just trying to flash my card, cause I'm trying to solve the memory issues by flashing a 9100bios on it. Maybe it helps.

The card does work in other systems, and BBA stands for "Built By Ati".

It's a ATI reference card 8500LE 128Mbyte Infineon BGA (square chips) with a 128k eeprom on it.

Jim, to see if your is a 128K chip you can use flashrom:

Make a bootable disk and copy Flashrom (latest version from techpowerup).

Boot from that disk.

type flashrom -s 0 original.bin (original.bin is the name of the old bios you want to save)

If it is a 128kb bios you can attach here...

[mamba]

I tried to solve the memory conflicts by manually assign them.
I managed to solve the problems but only with the standard VGA drivers.
I simply put a "1" instead of the "0" on the first number of each range in conflict.

I.E. the conflict was for range 000000 - 000FFF
Changed to 100000 - 100FFF

Apparently all was ok.

Then I installed the catalyst and again manually assign the memory range, solving again the conflicts problems but:

First time I load windows it shows me a plug and plya problem overflow (?)
Second time it appears all ok, but the Radeon still showed no DDR memory on it...

Some suggestions?

[mamba]

I managed to flash other bioses with ATIwinflash 1.0.0.16
The 9100 one detects only 64mbyte DDR mem, even f it is designed for the 128mbyte one.

Again I solved the conflicts problems, but I think that it is a compatibility issue.

I know that 8500 is AGP 1.0 compatible but maybe the DFI doesn't give power enough, or maybe the L&C 235watt power supply isn't in specs.

It's an old and unstable power supply (only 3.05V on the 3.3V, data by the DFI's motherboard monitor).

[Jim]

My 8500LE is not in use in any machine right now. The machine it is slated for is up for a complete rebuild. Re your 64Meg of RAM issue, that is all my 9000 has. Not sure about a 9100. I think they are basically the same thing as an 8500 renamed; but the 8500 came in more than one type. Some, (the 8500DV All in Wonder), only had 64Meg of RAM, though I am told it was faster RAM than the 128Meg installed on the 8500LE.

Right now, I have one machine loaded and working, - SP5 (Radeon32MegDDR), while I am in the process of bringing SP3 (DFI K6BV3+/66 w/ Radeon9000aiw) back up and troubleshooting it as I go. SP2 (Getting the 8500LE) is down w/ damaged traces, awaiting the modding and installation of a new mobo. I don't think it is a case of not enough power supplied by the mobo, though your power supply output might be an issue. I'll see if I can find the bios you want at AMD's site, (since they bought out ATI), cause I don't think its a good idea to use the bios designed for another card however similar they might be.

EDIT : Went to AMD's site, and could not find any video card bioses whatsoever. Looks like I'll have to book a day off work and go up to ATI's office in Markham to see if I can get a bios out of them, and at the same time see if I can get any drivers for ArtX for Uranium 235; but don't hold your breath, cause that might take a while before I can do it.

[Jim]

K, Mamba, got up there today. See post "Paid a visit to ATI today".

[mamba]

Thank you Jim,
but I think that it's an issue of some cards, like 8500LE.
I'll try another one, maybe a 9500. (???)
I like Radeon cards and I'm trying to get Morrowind work on a SS7 system.
And Morrowind is optimized for Radeon cards (as well Oblivion).