Pioneer 16X DVD-Rom problem

[mert_1965]

I've got a lot of problems trying to play DVDS with the new Pioneer 16X DVD-ROM 120 I just purchased. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I installed the drive this morning. Following installation I then installed the CyberLink Power DVD 4.0 software that came with it. I set up the software for Region 1 and got a DVD to test it. It started to play (I saw the Warner Bros. logo) and then the screen went black and I got a "Out of Phase" message or something like that, which caused my system to lock.

Upon rebooting, I tried again and this time it just crashed the system. I switched to another DVD to test. This time a message came up indicating that the DVD was "PC Friendly" and did I want to install the features. I said OK. So far so good, I got to a menu screen. As soon as I hit "Play," it crashes again.

I checked tech support on the CyberLink Web site and it said that you can't use the software if you have a hardware MPEG2 decoder. My video card is an Elsa Gladiac 511, however, I do not know if this has MPEG2 decoding. I also have a problem with the card in that it doesn't install the ELSA graphics toolbar in the display properties settings. When I double-click on the Display icon in Settings, I receive the following error: CoCreateInstance Failed. Class not registered.

My system:

Athlon 1.2 ghz
256 RAM
40 GB hard drive (33 GB free)
Soundblaster Live X-Gamer

I know this is a mouthful. Anybody have any ideas?

[ArcticFox]

OK, I don't have a DVD drive yet, so I'm not much of an expert in this field, but is their a place in the control panel of your DVD software to chose what DVD decoder you use? If their is one built onto your vid card, then it should show up their.

But may I suggest digging for pocketchange and purchasing a hardware decoder? I think somewhere I have a RealMagic Hollywood Plus PCI, and it's still one of the best. Try looking around for cards if you have a free PCI slot, as you may see a difference in quality.

[Nighthawk]

The hardware MPEG2 decoders they talk about are cards like the Hollywood Plus that sit in a PCI slot and do nothing but decode DVDs.

I've got the earlier version of that DVD drive and that version of PowerDVD working fine..

Some things to try:
-Update the drivers for your video card
-In PowerDVD, hit ctrl+c to get into the configuration. Click the Video tab and toggle the "Hardware Acceleration" checkbox.

[mert_1965]

It's a start, thanks.

Do you have any ideas about the second part of my problem, with the video card and display settings error? Elsa went out of the consumer graphics card business, so I'm kinda stuck for tech support.

[mert_1965]

HELP!!

I installed the latest reference drivers from Nvidia and now I can't play my recently-purchased Rise of Nations game. It worked prior to the installation of the new drivers. When I launch the game, it runs and completes the opening cinematic but then I get the following error message:

Graphics services failed to initialize. Please make sure that your video card and drivers are correctly installed, and are compatible with Rise of Nations.

Now what's going on?

[pickel]

Are you sure you installed the correct drivers ??? Check again at the manufacturer's site ( ie, Leadtec, Hercules. etc. )

[ArcticFox]

So you got the latest reference drivers, but... for the right OS?

nVidia makes two builds of drivers; the regular Detonators for Win98, ME and such; and DetonatorXP, for 32 bit OS's like WinNT, 2000 and XP. Which brings up the question, what OS are you running?

[mert_1965]

Yes, on all accounts. The right drivers, the right operating system (98 SE).