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Hi! First of all forgive me my lawzy english  I have some questions about the VA-503+. I've Googled the INET and the NewsGroups and didn't find an accurate answer, so I hope some of you maybe may had had the problems that I'll further describe. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've the folowing setup: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Mobo : FIC® VA503+ v1.2a with 1MB L2 cache (2 x 512Kb chips) * BIOS : JE4333 BIOS * CPU : AMD® K6-2 400 (CXT core) * Memory : 1 x 256MB Infineon® PC133 CL3-3-3 @ PC100 CL 2-2-2 * VGA : ELSA® GF2MX AGP on AGP * LAN : Realtek PCI 10/100 LAN card (RTL8139) on PCI #2 * Sound : SB128PCI (model CT4810) on PCI#3 * HDD : WD1200JB (yes, that's an abuse -- 120GB / 8MB / 7200rpm) * Optical : LG52x32x52 * FDD : 1x Samsung 1.44Mb *PSU : ATX 300W (fan silent modded by termistor) *removable USB devices: #1 : DSL modem (500mA) ; #2 : Pen Disk TwinMOS 512Mb (100mA) It's my old "silent PC": WD1200JB is nearly inaudible; 300W generic no brand ATX PSU is "fan quiet modded by a termistor", very quiet; and CPU Fan...well it's the "noisiest" component (CoolerMaster - ball bearing) but I have an quieter replacement at another location ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've the following software: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm running XP Pro SP2 and W98SE (dual boot) * On W98SE, I've installed ---------------------------------------- - VIA 4-in-1 v4.43 ( AGP + IRQ Routing + INF driver); - DirectX 9.0c (way faster than the version 7a that came with NFSPU game) - Nvidia Detonator 45.23 for W9x (seems to be the fastest drivers I've seen so far) - Creative SB128PCI (model CT481x) drivers - USB Filter Patch v1.10 (to fix VIA USB problems) - PCI ZeroLatencyPatch (to fix "clicking" sound problems) - Nero 6 with ImageDrive - NFS PorscheUnleashed game It's a bit heavy, but I can manage toplay it at 30-40FPS, with another opponent, on another PC * On XP, I've installed ------------------------------- (already installed : VIA 4-in-1 on XP SP2) (already installed : DX9.0c on my distribution of XP SP2) - Nvidia Detonator 45.23 for XP (seems to be the fastest drivers I've seen so far) - Creative SB128PCI (model CT481x) drivers - PCI ZeroLatencyPatch (to fix "clicking" sound problems) - Nero 6 with ImageDrive - NFS PorscheUnleashed game It's a bit heavy, but I can manage toplay it at 20-30FPS, with another opponent, on another PC - NFSPU patch for XP ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Problem 1 (latest Nvidia drivers on XP) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Question 1 ------------------- After I install the latest Nvidia drivers (tried v81.98 and v71.22), when I try to run NFSPU the computer halts with a BlueScreenOfDeath (BSOD). If I install the v43.45 or the v45.23 that won't happen. Any idea why this happens with the latest drivers? How to correct this problem? What Nvidia drivers are you using? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Problem 2.1 (USB Filter v1.10 on XP) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Question 2.1 ------------------- USB Filter v1.10 states on its README and on VIAArena that it's for using on W98, ME, 2K and XP, but I can't manage to properly install it on XP SP2! It stops the installation with the "Cannot update original INF" message! Maybe SP2 includes this FilterPatch and prevents it from being "re-installed"? Maybe VIAArena meant XP without no SP1 nor SP2? * Anyway, the USB seems to work fine, if I connect ONLY one device at the time ------------------------------------------------- Problem 2.2 (USB devices on XP) ------------------------------------------------- Question 2.2 ------------------- Can you connect 2 USB devices SIMULTANELY draining about 600mA on the 2 USB ports and still manage them to work? In W98SE I can do it, but on XP I only can do that in a certain order, e.g., 1st the 100mA part, then the 500mA part. On the reverse order (1st 500mA part then 100mA part), the 1st device --a DSL USB modem-, will stop working! I guess that XP when I 1st connect the 500mA part "recognizes" that there is no more power on the 500mA hub and "prevents" and if any more devices will be connected it will shutdown the 1st device? On W98SE that does not happens, so i'll assume that XP is "smarter" and prevents "overcurrent" of the USB hub? Or might be because I can't install USB Filter Patch on XP? (Question 2.1) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Problem 3 (Overclocking) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've an AMD K6-2 400 CPU (CXT core, that I suppose its very good overclocker). I've got it @ 4x100=400MHz/2.2V. Tried 4 x 112MHz = 448MHz @ 2,4V (I don't want to go above +10% default Vcore). @ 4 x 112MHz = 448MHz @ 2,4V the computer only starts reliable if I disable the onboard L2 cache, so I gave up about the 112MHz setting But I'm still thinking on a way to circunvent this, because: - higher FSB = better perfomance, - because the PCI cards seem to be OK at 1.12 x 33MHz = 37MHz (no sound distortion), - AGP card seems OK also at 74MHz (no visual artifacts) , and the HDD seems also OK (no data corruption so far) Question 3.1 ------------------- Is there any way to increment the L2 cache voltage? Any resistor mod trick or something?Anyone knows what voltage feeds those L2 cache chips? 3.3V? 5V? Tried 4.5 x 100MHz = 450MHz @ 2.4V but BSOD sometimes on XP, so I guess I'm stucked with 400MHz with stabilty and 450MHz with minor instability (still I would prefer the 4 x112MHz setting) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Problem 4 (BIOS ...) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Question 4.1 ...and Standby ---------------------------------------------- On W98SE if I enter the mobo into "Standby mode" (via Shutdown menu > Standby), it won't resume to desktop if I press the keyboard (event#1) neither if I move the mouse(event#2), but on XP any of those events (#1 or #2) will resume the VA-503+ from Standby. On W98SE the only way to "resume" from Standy is by pressing the Soft_Off_(ATX PSU)_Power_Button, but althought I select the "Delay4Sec" on BIOS this procedure "resume" the mobo to shutdown it Did you notice this "strange" behavior on your motherboard, on any of your current OS's? Question 4.2 ...and RTC alarm resume ------------------------------------------------------------- I can't manage to get the "RTC alarm resume" to work! Did you tried it out? It won't Power Up the motherboard, althought I'm using a brand new 300W ATX PSU. I tried with the accurate date and time I would like the mobo to Power Up, several tries, but it seems to be a "no go" for this item. Question 4.3 ------------------- Because of these problems I remembered why I want to reflash the JE4333 BIOS I want to see if on early BIOS versions the following items will function correctly (or on another words, these are my "minor" problems). I'm looking for tecniques to "unsolder/desolder" (?) VA503+ BIOS chip (don't know the exact word). That way, if I can unsolder the BIOS chip I will put a socket to socket (duh) the BIOS chip. Then, case I flash the BIOS wrong, I'll take BIOS chip off and replace it with a "good" BIOS chip. But this opperation might be risky and maybe I can damage the motherboar and the BIOS chip itself, because of the heat needed to be applied to unsolder... Anyone tried this before? Well that ALL folks! If you, by now, are not sleeping (because of this long post)...well I hope to hear from you soon! Kind regards, Mikeluz P.S: I understand your "nostalgia thing" about this board.. I'm nostalgic also: 386SX16@20; P60@66MHz;P100@133, etc, etc |
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Pigdos: ----------- I'm using 503+ at 100MHz...I'll leave that way... When oveclocking I can't manage to use the 112 MHz FSB, so I'll leave it at 100MHz FSB... By the way, when going from 4x100MHz=400MHz to 4.5x100MHz=450MHz, that 12% increment in CPU speed only increase about 1FPS/30FPS on NFSPU (i.e. an 2-4% increase on FPS), so I'll leave the 400MHz setting --it's more stable than 450MHz. That little increase on FPS would be expectable since it's better to increase FSB rather than multiplier as you probably know  I want to use the FIC VA503+ to play old (network) games. Since I have coleagues at home occasionaly, I play with them, 1/2 hour or so. It's only just for play from time to time, so I do not need to purchase a dedicated (more expensive) solution I've played on it NFSPU, althought on the low quality @ 640x480 on a 15'' CRT at about 30-80 FPS. Could have better quality, but FPS rate decrease...to play ocasionally it's enough... By the way i live on Portugal, and money it's not abundant here, so I need to keep the budget tight I've an main system, but it's givingme troubles so I need to backup all files and to work on the 503+ if necessary. Also it's nice to play with coleagues Farmuse: -------------- This computer was offered to me by someone, so I don't intend to spend money on it Altought you were right about the Promise controler. It'sa waste to have the WD1200JB on the 503+ *per se*, but I don't have any smaller disk (nor quieter) to put on the 503+ *quiet* system, so I'll leave it there. I'm trying to squeeze the most from the computer spending the minimum money Unfortunelly there is not much more to squeeze... LOL Do you know any more tweakings I could use to improve performance? I noticed as increase of about 10FPS from the 20FPS NFSPU (NFS5) *on XP* to the 30FPS *on W98SE*. Unfortunely I can't manage to play NFSHS (NFS4) any faster than NFS5 on this system. Unless there are any more tweak I can't use. Kind regards Mikeluz |
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Farmuse
I suppose I don't explained myself well : NFSPU runs faster on W98SE (30FPS) than on XP (20PFS) With an GF4 Ti4200 AGP card the game (NFSPU) won't give me any more FPS, it's CPU bottlenecked -- it's not entirely true, but I'll explain below. I suppose that "car simulation/arcade games" are very CPU demanding rather than GPU demanding, in general. Shoot'em up games from the NFSPU era I suppose were less CPU demanding games... I tell this because with a GF2MX, with game effects on medium, the FPS rate don't change when I pass the screen resolution from 640x480 to 800x600, so it's the CPU the limiting factor at those resolutions -- this because game effects are CPU demanding; At 1024x768 the FPS rates goes down -1~ -2FPS, so the GPU starts becoming ALSO a limiting factor, and overclocking will do it the trick, but on a slower system like this one, it won't give me real benefits, because the CPU is the major bottleneck I bumped the voltage to 2.4V @ 450MHz (I tried also @ 2,5V for increased stability) but I found out, that for the games that I play the most (NFS3, 4, 5) --on this system, well understood --, the FPSincrease of about 1FPS on every 25PFS won't make a real difference over the * base FPS rate @ 400MHz* of 30FPS (i.e. an effective increase of 1 ~2FPS), so I give up on the idea of overclocking by bumping the multiplier from 4x to 4.5x... Case the L2 cache was up to the FSB 112MHz that would make a noticeable difference (about 10% increase) over the mere 3% increase on FPS gived by bumping only the multiplier. If anyone knows how to tweak L2 cache voltage or decrease L2 cache latency, tell us! Maybe that will do the trick to use the 112MHz FSB. Until then, I'll use the default setting (4x 100MHz @ 2.2V) Kind regards, Mikeluz |
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Question 2: (USB)
------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 1.10 USB filter patch at VIA is meant to fix certain specific issues. To be honest, there was so much confusion about the patch, that VIA got sick of answering the questions. Instead, they made the patch available to all newer versions of Windows, but it only installs if it is really needed. That way, VIA can say, "Here, run this program. It will detect your operating system and install only what is needed. Now leave us alone." http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx...0&SubCatID=121 A USB hub is only supposed to support 500mA total, maximum. As you correctly guessed, Windows XP is "smarter" about this. Question 4: (standby) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Since standby works with Windows XP but not Windows 98SE, the problem is with the drivers in Windows 98SE (or maybe Windows 98SE itself), not with the motherboard. Unfortunately, there is not really much you can do about this, except hope for new drivers. One question, though... is that 100mA USB device a USB mouse? If so, that could be part of the problem, if you are overloading the USB hub with 600mA. Remember, Windows XP is smarter about USB power than Win98SE. I am not sure what to say about the RTC alarm. Is the VA-503+ BIOS chip really soldered to the motherboard? I did not know that. I would have thought it was one of those long computer chips with two rows of teeth (DIP/DIL chip). DIP chips you can extract using a tool that looks like a gigantic pair of tweezers. If the BIOS chip really is soldered, then yes, it is possible to desolder/resolder the chip, but you need to know what you are doing. Here are a couple of links to places that specialize in BIOS chips and replacements. Even if you do not use their services, you can at least see what is available: http://www.badbiosflash.com http://www.flashbios.org --Alex Mikeluz wrote: > Hi! > > First of all forgive me my lawzy english > > I have some questions about the VA-503+. I've Googled the INET and the > NewsGroups and didn't find an accurate answer, so I hope some of you > maybe may had had the problems that I'll further describe. > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > I've the folowing setup: > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > * Mobo : FIC® VA503+ v1.2a with 1MB L2 cache (2 x 512Kb chips) > > * BIOS : JE4333 BIOS > > * CPU : AMD® K6-2 400 (CXT core) > > * Memory : 1 x 256MB Infineon® PC133 CL3-3-3 @ PC100 CL 2-2-2 > > * VGA : ELSA® GF2MX AGP on AGP > > * LAN : Realtek PCI 10/100 LAN card (RTL8139) on PCI #2 > > * Sound : SB128PCI (model CT4810) on PCI#3 > > * HDD : WD1200JB (yes, that's an abuse -- 120GB / 8MB / 7200rpm) > > * Optical : LG52x32x52 > > * FDD : 1x Samsung 1.44Mb > > *PSU : ATX 300W (fan silent modded by termistor) > > *removable USB devices: #1 : DSL modem (500mA) ; #2 : Pen Disk TwinMOS > 512Mb (100mA) > > > It's my old "silent PC": WD1200JB is nearly inaudible; 300W generic no > brand ATX PSU is "fan quiet modded by a termistor", very quiet; and CPU > Fan...well it's the "noisiest" component (CoolerMaster - ball > bearing) but I have an quieter replacement at another location > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > I've the following software: > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > I'm running XP Pro SP2 and W98SE (dual boot) > > * On W98SE, I've installed > ---------------------------------------- > - VIA 4-in-1 v4.43 ( AGP + IRQ Routing + INF driver); > - DirectX 9.0c (way faster than the version 7a that came with NFSPU > game) > - Nvidia Detonator 45.23 for W9x (seems to be the fastest drivers I've > seen so far) > - Creative SB128PCI (model CT481x) drivers > - USB Filter Patch v1.10 (to fix VIA USB problems) > - PCI ZeroLatencyPatch (to fix "clicking" sound problems) > - Nero 6 with ImageDrive > - NFS PorscheUnleashed game It's a bit heavy, but I can manage to> play it at 30-40FPS, with another opponent, on another PC > > * On XP, I've installed > ------------------------------- > (already installed : VIA 4-in-1 on XP SP2) > (already installed : DX9.0c on my distribution of XP SP2) > - Nvidia Detonator 45.23 for XP (seems to be the fastest drivers I've > seen so far) > - Creative SB128PCI (model CT481x) drivers > - PCI ZeroLatencyPatch (to fix "clicking" sound problems) > - Nero 6 with ImageDrive > - NFS PorscheUnleashed game It's a bit heavy, but I can manage to> play it at 20-30FPS, with another opponent, on another PC > - NFSPU patch for XP > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Problem 1 (latest Nvidia drivers on XP) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Question 1 > ------------------- > After I install the latest Nvidia drivers (tried v81.98 and v71.22), > when I try to run NFSPU the computer halts with a BlueScreenOfDeath > (BSOD). If I install the v43.45 or the v45.23 that won't happen. > > Any idea why this happens with the latest drivers? > How to correct this problem? > What Nvidia drivers are you using? > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Problem 2.1 (USB Filter v1.10 on XP) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Question 2.1 > ------------------- > USB Filter v1.10 states on its README and on VIAArena that it's for > using on W98, ME, 2K and XP, but I can't manage to properly install it > on XP SP2! It stops the installation with the "Cannot update original > INF" message! > > Maybe SP2 includes this FilterPatch and prevents it from being > "re-installed"? > Maybe VIAArena meant XP without no SP1 nor SP2? > * Anyway, the USB seems to work fine, if I connect ONLY one device at > the time > > ------------------------------------------------- > Problem 2.2 (USB devices on XP) > ------------------------------------------------- > Question 2.2 > ------------------- > Can you connect 2 USB devices SIMULTANELY draining about 600mA on the 2 > USB ports and still manage them to work? In W98SE I can do it, but on > XP I only can do that in a certain order, e.g., 1st the 100mA part, > then the 500mA part. On the reverse order (1st 500mA part then 100mA > part), the 1st device --a DSL USB modem-, will stop working! I guess > that XP when I 1st connect the 500mA part "recognizes" that there is no > more power on the 500mA hub and "prevents" and if any more devices will > be connected it will shutdown the 1st device? On W98SE that does not > happens, so i'll assume that XP is "smarter" and prevents "overcurrent" > of the USB hub? Or might be because I can't install USB Filter Patch on > XP? (Question 2.1) > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Problem 3 (Overclocking) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > I've an AMD K6-2 400 CPU (CXT core, that I suppose its very good > overclocker). I've got it @ 4x100=400MHz/2.2V. > > > Tried 4 x 112MHz = 448MHz @ 2,4V (I don't want to go above +10% default > Vcore). > @ 4 x 112MHz = 448MHz @ 2,4V the computer only starts reliable if I > disable the onboard L2 cache, so I gave up about the 112MHz setting > > But I'm still thinking on a way to circunvent this, because: > - higher FSB = better perfomance, > - because the PCI cards seem to be OK at 1.12 x 33MHz = 37MHz (no > sound distortion), > - AGP card seems OK also at 74MHz (no visual artifacts) > , and the HDD seems also OK (no data corruption so far) > > Question 3.1 > ------------------- > Is there any way to increment the L2 cache voltage? Any resistor mod > trick or something?Anyone knows what voltage feeds those L2 cache > chips? 3.3V? 5V? > > Tried 4.5 x 100MHz = 450MHz @ 2.4V but BSOD sometimes on XP, so I guess > I'm stucked with 400MHz with stabilty and 450MHz with minor instability > (still I would prefer the 4 x112MHz setting) > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Problem 4 (BIOS ...) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Question 4.1 ...and Standby > ---------------------------------------------- > On W98SE if I enter the mobo into "Standby mode" (via Shutdown menu > > Standby), it won't resume to desktop if I press the keyboard (event#1) > neither if I move the mouse(event#2), but on XP any of those events (#1 > or #2) will resume the VA-503+ from Standby. > > On W98SE the only way to "resume" from Standy is by pressing the > Soft_Off_(ATX PSU)_Power_Button, but althought I select the "Delay4Sec" > on BIOS this procedure "resume" the mobo to shutdown it > > Did you notice this "strange" behavior on your motherboard, on any of > your current OS's? > > > Question 4.2 ...and RTC alarm resume > ------------------------------------------------------------- > I can't manage to get the "RTC alarm resume" to work! Did you tried it > out? It won't Power Up the motherboard, althought I'm using a brand new > 300W ATX PSU. I tried with the accurate date and time I would like the > mobo to Power Up, several tries, but it seems to be a "no go" for this > item. > > Question 4.3 > ------------------- > Because of these problems I remembered why I want to reflash the JE4333 > BIOS I want to see if on early BIOS versions the following items will > function correctly (or on another words, these are my "minor" > problems). > I'm looking for tecniques to "unsolder/desolder" (?) VA503+ BIOS chip > (don't know the exact word). That way, if I can unsolder the BIOS chip > I will put a socket to socket (duh) the BIOS chip. Then, case I flash > the BIOS wrong, I'll take BIOS chip off and replace it with a "good" > BIOS chip. But this opperation might be risky and maybe I can damage > the motherboar and the BIOS chip itself, because of the heat needed to > be applied to unsolder... Anyone tried this before? > > Well that ALL folks! If you, by now, are not sleeping (because of this > long post)...well I hope to hear from you soon! > > Kind regards, > Mikeluz > > P.S: I understand your "nostalgia thing" about this board.. I'm > nostalgic also: 386SX16@20; P60@66MHz;P100@133, etc, etc > |
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Alex Zorrilla wrote: > Question 2: (USB) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- > The 1.10 USB filter patch at VIA is meant to fix certain specific > issues. To be honest, there was so much confusion about the patch, that > VIA got sick of answering the questions. Instead, they made the patch > available to all newer versions of Windows, but it only installs if it > is really needed. That way, VIA can say, "Here, run this program. It > will detect your operating system and install only what is needed. Now > leave us alone." > > http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx...0&SubCatID=121 > > A USB hub is only supposed to support 500mA total, maximum. As you > correctly guessed, Windows XP is "smarter" about this. > Thank you Alex for your answer. Well I guess that's why USB Filter Patch v1.10 won't install (correctly) on XP, althought it says on its "Readme.txt" that will install on XP (maybe on XP first release before SP1 or SP2). I was told by coleagues that USB1.1 specification is 2ports/500mA limited and USB2.0 has no limitation on current (I've to investigate this latest info on www.usb.org). That's why I made the above guess about W98SE vs. XP. The 100mA device that I connect in 2nd place is a USB drive ("pen disk"). > > Question 4: (standby) > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Since standby works with Windows XP but not Windows 98SE, the problem is > with the drivers in Windows 98SE (or maybe Windows 98SE itself), not > with the motherboard. Unfortunately, there is not really much you can > do about this, except hope for new drivers. > > One question, though... is that 100mA USB device a USB mouse? If so, > that could be part of the problem, if you are overloading the USB hub > with 600mA. Remember, Windows XP is smarter about USB power than Win98SE. The 100mA device that I connect in 2nd place is a USB drive ("pen disk"). I understand your põint here but I tested Standby functionality without any USB devices attached...new drivers for W98SE... I guess MS won't bother...neither do I...I disabled Standby on W98SE, i.e., it's on the "Never enter standby" setting > > I am not sure what to say about the RTC alarm. Someone told me that this RTC thing is a plague of the MPV3 implementation, that RTC never had correctly functioned on this chipset? I don't know. however a friend of mine has an ASUS P3 mobo that after a BIOS update won't boot from RTC anymore... I might try to revert the BIOS on this motherboard to some earlier versions, to see if this problem is still present (MPV3 bug theory) or not(BOS bug problem). That lead us to my next question...BIOS flashing... > > Is the VA-503+ BIOS chip really soldered to the motherboard? I did not > know that. I would have thought it was one of those long computer chips > with two rows of teeth (DIP/DIL chip). DIP chips you can extract using > a tool that looks like a gigantic pair of tweezers. If the BIOS chip > really is soldered, then yes, it is possible to desolder/resolder the > chip, but you need to know what you are doing. > > Here are a couple of links to places that specialize in BIOS chips and > replacements. Even if you do not use their services, you can at least > see what is available: > > http://www.badbiosflash.com > http://www.flashbios.org ....BIOS flashing I done it for years, and I've learned how to recover "dead motherboards" via another motherboard with a similar BIOS chip type (same socket & same memory size wise). But on this case, in fact, all VA503+ BIOS are not socketed to motherboard, so in case of a bad flash... kaput! .. well it's not entirely truth, because I think that if I don't force the programming of the boot block, then I can use the "Boot block feature" with an FDD drive and an ISA VGA card to see the procedures to correctly BIOS flash again the mobo. Still, I'm more confortable with BIOS chip swapping than with this procedure, but I guess rhis procedure evolves less risk than "hot-swap-programming", so I guess I'll leave the "socket VA-503+ BIOS chip project" in the drawer By the way, had someone tried the recovery BIOS flash procedure? Was it sucessfull? Thank again ALL for your feedback! Kind regards, Mikeluz |
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Hey, Mikeluz.
I just went to http://www.usb.org myself and downloaded the USB 2.0 spec at http://www.usb.org/developers/docs/usb_20_02212005.zip . Looking at Table 7-7 (DC Electrical Characteristics) on page 178, the supply current for a high-power hub port is listed as 500 mA, minimum. This is 500 mA per port. This means that having a 100 mA device and a 500 mA device *should* be possible when they are plugged into different ports. However, the high-power function input (what is actually used by the USB device) is listed as 500 mA, maximum. In other words, USB 2.0 devices still have the same 500 mA current limit as before. There are two basic device classes, low-power (100 mA) and high-power (500 mA). According to section 7.2.1 on page 171... "All devices default to low-power. The transition to high-power is under software control. It is the responsibility of software to ensure adequate power is available before allowing devices to consume high-power." In other words, when you first plug in any USB device, it will act like a low-power 100 mA device. Only after the device and the computer "talk" to each other will it increase to 500 mA, if it is a high-power device. It sounds like Win98 and WinXP do not "talk" in the same manner! Moving onto the BIOS flash, I have done several of those "recovery" flashes. Sometimes they actually do work. It depends more on why the old BIOS went bad in the first place. If the boot block is still working, then it will probably work. Of course, this also assumes that other bad things have not happened. For example, if the floppy disk drive is bad, then the recovery method will not work very well. --Alex Mikeluz wrote: > Alex Zorrilla wrote: >> Question 2: (USB) >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------- >> The 1.10 USB filter patch at VIA is meant to fix certain specific >> issues. To be honest, there was so much confusion about the patch, that >> VIA got sick of answering the questions. Instead, they made the patch >> available to all newer versions of Windows, but it only installs if it >> is really needed. That way, VIA can say, "Here, run this program. It >> will detect your operating system and install only what is needed. Now >> leave us alone." >> >> http://www.viaarena.com/default.aspx...0&SubCatID=121 >> >> A USB hub is only supposed to support 500mA total, maximum. As you >> correctly guessed, Windows XP is "smarter" about this. >> > > Thank you Alex for your answer. > > Well I guess that's why USB Filter Patch v1.10 won't install > (correctly) on XP, althought it says on its "Readme.txt" that will > install on XP (maybe on XP first release before SP1 or SP2). > > I was told by coleagues that USB1.1 specification is 2ports/500mA > limited and USB2.0 has no limitation on current (I've to investigate > this latest info on www.usb.org). That's why I made the above guess > about W98SE vs. XP. > > The 100mA device that I connect in 2nd place is a USB drive ("pen > disk"). > >> Question 4: (standby) >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------- >> Since standby works with Windows XP but not Windows 98SE, the problem is >> with the drivers in Windows 98SE (or maybe Windows 98SE itself), not >> with the motherboard. Unfortunately, there is not really much you can >> do about this, except hope for new drivers. >> >> One question, though... is that 100mA USB device a USB mouse? If so, >> that could be part of the problem, if you are overloading the USB hub >> with 600mA. Remember, Windows XP is smarter about USB power than Win98SE. > > The 100mA device that I connect in 2nd place is a USB drive ("pen > disk"). I understand your põint here but I tested Standby > functionality without any USB devices attached...new drivers for > W98SE... I guess MS won't bother...neither do I...I disabled Standby on > W98SE, i.e., it's on the "Never enter standby" setting > >> I am not sure what to say about the RTC alarm. > > Someone told me that this RTC thing is a plague of the MPV3 > implementation, that RTC never had correctly functioned on this > chipset? I don't know. however a friend of mine has an ASUS P3 mobo > that after a BIOS update won't boot from RTC anymore... I might try to > revert the BIOS on this motherboard to some earlier versions, to see if > this problem is still present (MPV3 bug theory) or not(BOS bug > problem). That lead us to my next question...BIOS flashing... > > >> Is the VA-503+ BIOS chip really soldered to the motherboard? I did not >> know that. I would have thought it was one of those long computer chips >> with two rows of teeth (DIP/DIL chip). DIP chips you can extract using >> a tool that looks like a gigantic pair of tweezers. If the BIOS chip >> really is soldered, then yes, it is possible to desolder/resolder the >> chip, but you need to know what you are doing. >> >> Here are a couple of links to places that specialize in BIOS chips and >> replacements. Even if you do not use their services, you can at least >> see what is available: >> >> http://www.badbiosflash.com >> http://www.flashbios.org > > ...BIOS flashing I done it for years, and I've learned how to recover > "dead motherboards" via another motherboard with a similar BIOS chip > type (same socket & same memory size wise). But on this case, in fact, > all VA503+ BIOS are not socketed to motherboard, so in case of a bad > flash... kaput! .. well it's not entirely truth, because I think that > if I don't force the programming of the boot block, then I can use the > "Boot block feature" with an FDD drive and an ISA VGA card to see the > procedures to correctly BIOS flash again the mobo. Still, I'm more > confortable with BIOS chip swapping than with this procedure, but I > guess rhis procedure evolves less risk than "hot-swap-programming", so > I guess I'll leave the "socket VA-503+ BIOS chip project" in the > drawer > > By the way, had someone tried the recovery BIOS flash procedure? Was it > sucessfull? > > Thank again ALL for your feedback! > Kind regards, > Mikeluz > |
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