Via AGP 4-in-1 problem..(KT133 &GeForce)

[Gizmology]

Does anyone have any suggestions for me. The situation I am dealing with is in this setup:

Microstar K7T Pro
Duron 700 (currently not OC'ed)
Win98SE
Via 4-in-1 Drivers (any release)
Asus GeForce v6800 Pure DDR

Every time I try to install the AGP driver(s) it goes through installation but upon reboot I get a funky looking splash screen (garbled) and no boot. It won't even boot into safe mode. This occurs with both Turbo and Standard modes. Now my computer is running but the AGP 4-in-1 is not installed so performance is rather lack luster. I was considering a GeForce Ultra. Are the new GeForce cards running into this type of incompatibily situations with the Via chipsets or not (I know they have been a problem in the past and I continue to see problems; not necessarily sayin everyone is having problems, just obviously certain configurations).

Just as a note. I have approved AMD junx up the wazoo and I have a very aggressive cooling setup so I think the problem is pretty much pinpointed.

Thanks in advance for criticism or comment.

-Giz

 

[Technonut]

I have not had that problem with my KT7. I ran an ASUS V6800 at first, and now a GeForce2 GTS (scores over 7100 in the default 3DMark2000 benchmark!) Do you have directX7a installed? You could also try to disable AGP4x in the BIOS if your mobo has that option. The only VIA driver that I install in Win98SE is the AGP driver in Turbo mode. The very stable setup I have is installing in this order with no cards installed at first except the video card;

1. DirectX7a reboot
2. VIA AGP drivers in Turbo reboot
3. video card drivers reboot

I then install the other cards 1 at a time starting with the modem, then sound card, etc. I have setup many VIA chipset boards this way, and all have been the most stable setups I have seen.

EDIT: I am using the VIA 4.25a AGP drivers, and the 6.26 video card drivers. I have also ran benchmarks with Sandra and HD Tach, and found that the busmaster drivers that Windows installs does a much better job with hard drive performance with the DMA box checked than the ones on the 4 in 1's.

 

[chottoed]

i believe there was a problem that sometimes occurs w/ detonator3 and the kt133...
r u using detonator3?

 

[ogn]

There is a known problem with the KT133 and Detonator 3 drivers. It is solved if you disable AGP Fast Writes. With the KT7, there is a bios option, "Increase Chip Performance," that when turned ON, enables you to use AGP Fast Writes with this combo. I don't think any other board manufacturer has this option. On my A7V, I had to turn AGP FW off. Turn it off in your bios and you should be able to boot just fine.
There's also no real conclusive evidence that AGP Fast Writes increases video performance, so it's not like you're taking a bit hit turning it off. On the other hand, the Detonator 3's give you a nice performance boost.