Help with S3 Pro Savage 32mg???

[sweeper2]

Ok, need help for a freind...this is the system specs I could get off this pc...problem first...runs sorta slow at standard windows operating...and also running bird hunter...(heavy graphic game) and it loads startupscreen etc fine, but when you actually enter game it is in black and white etc and you can't see anything very well...all blurred up etc. runs, but can't see much.

specs:
Compaq Presario
Athlon XP 2000+
1.67 ghz
256 ram...(not sure what type) couldn't find info on it.
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition ver. 2002 (no updates) since bought...they run 56K modem and I checked for updates for windows and it needs ALOT including service pack 1 but would take forever to load all the updates which they prob. wouldn't do.
Direct X 8.1
Sony CpD-100SX on S3 Graphics Pro Savage DDR
bios version for card 78.60 32 mb

this system shows odd info and not sure what the motherboard is and not to sure about this card or if it's on board or what. If anyone knows what type of MB or video this thing runs would appreciate it.

Seems the system has an integrated ProSavageDDR graphics accelerator. Do not expect much performance, though the game should still render correct, just at a low frame rate.

You can use WinS3ID.EXE to verify it is a ProSavageDDR chip.

http://www.viaarena.com/?PageID=34

Once verified, download the appropiate ProSavageDDR driver here....

http://ranger.s3graphics.com/viaarena/420drv/

139421Util.zip would probably be your best bet. I recommend installing DirectX 9 first.

http://www.microsoft.com/directx

Good Luck,
Robert Richmond

[Kruzin]

Given that it's a Compcrap, and a savage chip, this is the only tool you need:


(ok...I know, not really helpful, but really....you can't polish a turd)...

[sweeper2]

thanks...didn't expect much from the pc...will have to go over there and do the downloading...unless I can burn it on a cd off my pc. Didn't want to open it up, might void there warranty on it since they havn't had it but maybe 2 years...

if i take it correctly, are you saying it does not have a video card?
if not, will a compaq take a video card depending on mb?
it plays alot of games, but the new deer hunter and bird hunter require alot from a video standpoint...

if i take it correctly, are you saying it does not have a video card?

The video chipset is embedded within the motherboard's chipset; the northbridge controller to be exact.

Upgrading the video will depend upon the exact model. Some OEM systems offer an AGP slot. If that is the case with this system, then the upgrade path is easy.

If no AGP slot is present, a PCI upgrade may be possible depending upon several factors.

What model Compaq Presario system are you working on?

Robert Richmond

[Kruzin]

Years ago (ugg...nearly 20 years ago), when I was 17 years old, I was pulled over by a cop, because I was driving with expired plates (I had just bought the car...a $200 junker...that day, and hadn't had a chance to get current plates yet).
The cop let me go, but he said something to me that I will always remember...
He said: 'Nice gas cap. Maybe you can build it up from there'

My point?
It's a Compaq.
No matter what you do to it, it will always be a Compaq (IOW: POS)
Don't expect it to run anything that isn't bundled with it.

You can throw good money after bad at it, and things still just wont work right.

Pull whatever parts you can from it (proc, RAM, HDD, floppy), and built a real system from those parts.

Friends don't let friends buy Compaq (or HP, or Dell, or Emachine, etc)


(edit)
I have worked on literally thousands of PCs over the years.
Compaqs are among the worst to try to get working with software they where not intended to run, and second only to Emachines for upgrading.
They are alright for word processing, web surfing and email.
They are worthless for gaming. Trying to make them into gaming rigs is a futile endeavor.
In the end, you will spend less in the value of your time, if you just yank what you can for use in a real rig, and trash the rest.

[sweeper2]

ok...that's what I was leaning towards....back a few years ago, i myself, was not into pc gaming etc. I used an older 800 duron with a 32 mg gforce 2 video card , 5gig HD, 128 of ram etc.... , so when they bought there 2 pc's...actually, the other is a compaq also and he said it is even slower then the one I was looking at, I thought they had good pc's. Anyway, now In just a few years I have taken more interest in gaming pc's and all around decent home built machines. I was hoping to help him out on that pc...but all in all i think they just use it for online surfing etc. but there son trys the games on it. so i will leave well enough alone and maybe try to talk him into maybe parting it and rebuilding something else...

has a 40 gig HD
athlon xp 2000+
still not sure on type of mem...think....ddr2100
yank mb and try and go from there....?

thanks all you guys still seem to amaze me....

If it has an AGP slot, just slam a cheap entry-level video card in it and be done with the situation. A GeForce FX 5200 or similar low-end Radeon will work decently enough. Nothing any higher given Compaq tends to use relatively weak power supplies in its desktop models.

I have experienced more than enough headaches from dealing with friends after talking them into building a system to replace an existing OEM configuration, especially when harvesting parts from the original OEM system. If you want to be their lifetime free tech support hotline, then go right ahead with this plan.

Robert Richmond

[Xtreeme]

here here. I hear ya RobRich. Little advice and help, next thing your their 24/7 tech support. LOL.