ATi Radeon 9700 Pro

[Kieran]

Hello all, I just bought this setup:

Asus A7N8X-X Mobo
Corsair 512 mb PC2700
ATi Radeon 9700 Pro
AMD Athlon 2500+ XP
All for 450$...

I had all the other parts, HD CD-ROM etc...

So I built and booted, it work, but the OS on (XP) and installed some updates and drive etc...

I ran 3d Mark 2001 once and it ran fine, got like a 10,700 or something, then noticed that my CPU was set to 1.4 Ghz, so I set it to 1.8, like it's supposed to be. I reboot, it runs great, and I had a friend over and I wanted to show him the benchmark (he didn't know what it was) so I ran it, and right in the middle, it just turned off. It wouldn't turn back on. I checked everything, all was fine, it just wouldn't boot. When I have the power connect and switched on, the Mobos little green light turns on, but my power switch just won't work. I've tried other power switches, and that doesn't work. I just bought a new Antec psu, it should be coming in the mail from zipzoomfly shortly. If that doesn't work, I don't know what will. I've heard a couple of people complain about the 9700 Pro + Asus Mobo lockup problems, is this my problem? Any help would be great,

Oh and I was looking for the specs on my card, meaning the core speed and the gpu, I'm having a hard time. Anywho would have it been better to get a 9600 xt or a 9800 pro?

Thanks

[pam123]

Take the side off the case and check that processor.

[TrippMyTrigger]

I am thinking CPU as well. When I did my first build I had to send the MOBO back because it wouldn't boot up to install the OS (I guess you can get a lemon in any product LOL). Any way, when I got the new one installed It kept shutting down right away. My problem was that I forgot to clamp one of the sides down for the CPU heatsink/fan. I am assuming that it was registering "too hot" and would shut down for safety. I went ahead and cleaned all the thermal "goo" off and applied some new, made sure it was clamped down and haven't had a problem since. Not sure why yours would shut down, but it sounds like a CPU issue.

[Kieran]

Thanks alot for all the replies. It turns out to be what I thought, I had a pretty old PSU. It was a no-name 300w, and just blew out after the computer overheated. So I bought an antec 350w from zipzoomfly and now it runs great. 12700 on 3dmark2001 :D . Thankfully I didn't ruin my proccesor and it's running now at 1.83 Ghz. Thanks for all your help!

If you don't mind, I'm trying to get on the next stage of development in my computer. What I plan to get next is:

Western Digital 80GB 8Mb buffer
Samsung CD/RW - DVD-ROM 52X32X52 Cd writer (8mb buffer)
Xoxiide X-Tubine Case (silver)

Is this a good next step? (right now I have two 5400 rpm hard drives and some REALLY old cd-rom drive, and the case doesn't have sides, I have a big fan blowing into it)

[ja83]

Originally posted by Kieran
and the case doesn't have sides, I have a big fan blowing into it


haha lol ghetto cooling- that must be funny, got any pics of that?

[glc]

Avoid Samsung optical drives, their reliability record is not that good. Lite-On and LG are the best for the money.

Be mindful of power supplies - if that case comes with no power supply, you have it made.

[Kieran]

Yeah I wish I had some pics of it, I acctually have 2 fans now. It keeps the system temp at around 30 idle and the cpu at 39, so it's not that bad. And yes the case that I want does not come with a psu, so that's good. So Samsung optical drives are not that good eh? Can you recomend any good CD-RW/DVD-ROMs? That's what I'm planning on getting... thanks alot for your support. :D

[glc]

I just did recommend a couple. LG's are quieter than Lite-Ons.

[homer15]

i'd second glc's recommendation... for the price of a liteon drive and the quality you get, it really can't be beat.

[nocturnx]

I just got a lite-on dvd+/- rw 8x drive from newegg and it works excellent so I would recommend it.

Heres the stats you were looking for:
comparison: http://apps.ati.com/ATIcompare/
specs: http://www.ati.com/products/radeon9700/radeon9700pro/specs.html