ATI Atom BIOS Question?

[ryanburnleyfc]

What the HELL is Atom Bios? I can't find anything on it, SystemRequirementsLab.com seems confused by it as it gives a '0' for all results such as Video Ram etc ( see Picture)

SiSoft Sandra also seems confused, As I don't know what I can upgrade to anyways, Which is one of my main concerns. I also think it's having problems with my games - ANY Game (Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2 & 4 Modifications for BF2 that run fine on the worse computer downstairs, Serious Sam 2, Star Wars Battlefront 2) they all flicker a black screen, and then crash to the desktop without an error message. Help!

 

[hang-the-9]

You talking abou tthis http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=NjA2NA?

You need to give some type of description of your issue, when it started happening, your hardware, driver setup, etc...

You can't just start in the middle of an issue and start talking about upgrading, something about SiSoft, etc...

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

Sorry, I've been a little lazy!

Specs -
Packard Bell IMEDIA 2579
Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU 6300 @ 1.86 Ghz
Packard Bell Cuba MS-7301 MotherBoard
2x Infineon (Siemens) 64T64000HU5A 512MB DIMM DDR2
Microsoft Windows 7 Business 6.01.7600

It's not a good computer by any stretch, but I just had NO idea what Atom BIOS is, As I thought BIOS and Graphic's Cards had nothing to do with each other.


I kinda tried Merging 2 threads into one, I'll make it a little clearer.

It's a 'new' computer I was donated to off my late Grandmother, Nothing wrong with it, and I wanted a new computer for my room so I thought I'd take it and buy a few new parts. I try to run games such as Battlefield 2 etc, It simply goes to a black screen, and about a split-second later it crashes. I've got all the latest driver updates as far as I know, And I don't know the root of the problem. My only guess is that ATOMBIOS isn't strong enough to even open a game properly. I'll go onto upgrading if I have to, but is there anything else you'd need?

 

[hang-the-9]

Graphics Cards to have a sort of BIOS, can call it firmware also.

So what is the video card in the system? Is it just the onboard one? The RAM and CPU will hold back playing many games at decent settings, but for now lets sort out the video card issue.

You also need to need to get 2 gig of RAM into that system for any type of modern games. The CPU is slow also, but RAM and video cards are the main issues right now.

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

I know, It's kinda a Work-In-Progress, the downstairs runs Pentium 4 and 2gb ram (Can hold a max of 4gb DDR2 on this), and that runs bf2 fine, I know I can't play many modern games, as why I stick to BF2 and older games.

Current GFX is Radeon X1600 Series, a X1650 I think.
http://www.amd.com/us/products/desktop/graphics/other/Pages/x1650-specifications.aspx

 

[hang-the-9]

Did the card get modded or overclocked at some point? Nothing with the firmware on it should cause issues unless the chips were damaged. Was this card added in by you or was it in the system already? Maybe the power supply can't run it well enough to be stable during load.

Before blaming the card though, does the P4 have a PCIe slot? If so, try to move the video card to that computer and try it there. If you see the same crashes, card is toast.

If it works there, do a Windows Update to get the latest MS fixes, go online and make sure you have the latest drivers for the video card, and check with Packard Bell for any new drivers.

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

I'll try in in the P4, I Don't know If it has a PCI-Express, I *think* so as my dad bought a GigaByte 8400GS 512mb for it, Which would be suitable for me, But my comp wouldn't run it as I guessed it needed more power from the PSU and it wouldn't work in his, even though my dad bought a 400w~ PSU for the p4. Perhaps If I buy a 500w~ PSU, I'll try and use the card, He said I can have it if I can get it to work, So It'd save me money. It's not the Ideal gaming card, but suitable for the games I'll be running I'd assume.

On a side note (partially linked) I'm pricing up -
4GB Ram (2x2GB DDR2)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kingston-4GB-RAMKit-2x2GB-DDR2/dp/B0012Y0QV6/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1299706590&sr=8-4

600W PSU
http://www.amazon.co.uk/600-Black-Storm-power-Supply/dp/B001QF19HG/ref=sr_1_2?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1299706809&sr=1-2

I'm looking for Cheap-And-Cheerful bargains, As you may tell

 

[Unolocogringo]

If you can afford it this is a much better power supply. And will put out more stable power than the 600watter.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Antec-0761345-06501-6-ANTEC-BP500U-GB/dp/B000JEF822/ref=sr_1_19?s=computers&ie=UTF8&qid=1299708231&sr=1-19

 

[hang-the-9]

If your power supply would not run a 8400, don't know how it ran a 1600, a 1600 needs close to 40 watts of power at load, a 8400 is under 30. Which may explain the crashes during games once the video card starts to draw power.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/geforce-radeon-power,2122-6.html

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

Thanks for the sugestion Rick, I'm on a budget but, I suppose I've got 80 quid in old Xbox games That I won't be needing now.

Like I said, I only 'Assumed' (not a good thing to do!) that my PSU was the issue, As the Motherboard isn't too bad age-wise. The only reason I figured it down to those two as the PB has a warning 'flashing' light, and i got the same symptoms of Motherboard / PSU Failure when I inserted the card according to my manual and various sources online.

Just had a quick moment of inspiration, Heres something for you to actually see my problem.. You will have download it, but It's 8 seconds long and Nothings Dodgy.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=V4V0BIRY

 

[hang-the-9]

That does not look like a video card issue, at least not the hardware. Install 3DMark (probably any version would do, but for your video card, do 03 or 05), run it, does it complete the tests OK?

Which driver versions are you using for the card? Have you tried older ones maybe?

If the card was doing a hard crash, like if it had a power or a chip issue, you would not see that nice message about the game crashing. It would just go black , or lock up the PC, or reboot the PC. At least that's what I see every time I dealt with a failing card, which was quite a few over the years.

If you are planning on using tht PC for a while, upgrade the RAM to 2 gig, get updated drivers for the BIOS, chipset, audio, etc... and then try the game.

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

Yeah, I've never updated the BIOS, but SiSoft suggests the (And I quote) 'Video BIOS is too old. Consider finding newest version', So I'll get onto that, The FH2 Message comes up WHENEVER the game crashes, So I don't think the card's damaged, just not up to the job. I'll crack on with the general updates, I think I'm getting 4gb as It's about 40 quid and may aswell. I'll report back in a while after some extensive testing!

 

[hang-the-9]

I meant the PC BIOS not the video card. But if you can get that, should not hurt to do both.

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

Yeah, I know what you meant, I was just also saying it mentioned Video BIOS - Another thing relating to AtomBIOS, Which seems to be some kind of Catalyst (Bad ATI Pun there :') ) for the GFX to work so much as I assume. I'll get working now on all the suggestions now, Thanks ALOT for your help mate so far mate!

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

YES! I've cracked it. it was all a simple driver update, Just had to find Vista x32 Legacy drivers to work with W7.. All well and good, It STILL needs upgrading though, thinking of a 8600GTS for a cheap upgrade!

 

[hang-the-9]

With the power supply, CPU and RAM you have, not worth upgrading from a 1600 right now. Unless you are getting a video card for 20-30, not worth going to a previous generation card. http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-gaming-graphics-card-geforce-gtx-590-radeon-hd-6990,2879-2.html

At LEAST you need a new power supply and more RAM to think about a new video card.

 

[ryanburnleyfc]

I know, But I'm still running PCIe x16, So I can't use the card downstairs, as it lied and said backward compatable because it's PCI 2.0.. The ram's a definite upgrade, and I can run quite a lot of games, company of heroes runs with no lag on high/ultra