AOpen AK97D-400VN + Connect3D Radeon 9600 = trouble?

[Joffer]

I'm having problems with my newly built computer (main specs):
AMD XP2500+ (Barton)
512 MB RAM - 2x 256 DDR333 Geil CL2,5
AOpen AK97D-400VN (nForce2- Ultra 400)
Connect3D Radeon 9600
Hyundai 19" Q910 Monitor
Windows XP SP1 (incl all WindowsUpdates)

I've installed WinXP incl. SP1. Then I installed the nForce drivers, then DX90b and then the Radeon drivers, tried both the one supplied on CD with my card, and the latest from your website. It always ends up with a black screen, and the computer probably hangs too. This happenes when I try to change resolution. It boots to 1024x768, but I want 1280x1024 on my 19" monitor, but changing to that results in a black screen as I said. If the then click the reset button, and the computer is rebooted, it boots up, but when I click on my login name it goes to black screen again.. Safe-Mode is the only way to use the computer after this.. (and to uninstall the drivers). Trying my old Geforce DDR card doesn't produce this error..

Any suggestion?

 

[Joffer]

Well.. I did not quite solve this problem.. but here's what I've got so far...

I seemed to be able to boot into Windows just fine with 1024x768.. I started 3DMark 2001 and pressed Benchmark. I got as far as 1 second of initializing the first game benchmark and everything went black. Perhaps a defect card I thought.

Well, I got a second computer, a Shuttle SS51G XPC with a P4-2,67GHz 533FSB with a Geforce 3 Ti500 card. So I deceded to swap cards, and everything worked just fine. The Radeon works just fine in the XPC box, giving me about 8900 3DMark 2001 points, while the GF3Ti500 gives me about 9100 points or something around that - the GF3 gave me at least 200 points more on the XP computer.

All I've been able to conclude from it at this time is that the AOpen AK97D-400vn is not compatible with the Radeon 9600 card, or perhaps it's the chip (nForce 2 Ultra 400) in all, that I don't know.

I guess the only thing to do left for me is to replace the Radeon 9600 card with another card, or replace the motherboard... I will talk to the guys where I just bought it to find a solution tomorrow.. This was quite annoying!

 

[mosco]

I have a radeon 9600 pro with my Abit NF7-S so its not a chipset problem, it must be the board.

 

[Joffer]

 

[Joffer]

Ok. I'll have it checked tomorrow anyway. BTW, the PSU is 350W, but only 200W in the XPC, so that shouldn't be a problem..

 

[RadicalTECH]

I was wondering if it was the board or what. I'm looking at buying one of these boards and I was hoping you could shed some light on whether it was just a bad motherboard or if Aopen has a problem!

 

[Joffer]

It was a the mainboard.. the supportguys where I bought the stuff said the AOpen motherboard was a bad board all together.. I ended up with a KT400.. but guess you probably should go for a KT600 or something.. at least not the same two components I had trouble with... The Radeon 9600 worked just fine in my other computers...