ArcadeVGA driver install problem - MAKING PROGRESS

[Stobe]

Hello,

I've read a few other threads about driver issues, but coulnd not find an applicable solution to my situation.

[gingerone]

I had a nightmare installing the drivers for my arcadevga card.
In the end I used the instructions on the ultimarc website to force the drivers to install and it worked a treat.

[Stobe]

I tried to do that, but I could not read anything on the arcade monitor.

I might have to re-install my old AGP card to force this drive install, and then re-install the AVGA card.

Will this work, or does the card have to physically be in there when I force the install?

Thanks!
-Stobe

[dabone]

the card has to be present.

To try someting different, try booting into vga mode.

(Press f8 at boot to get to the boot menu)


After you boot into vga mode, then try loading the drivers.

If you get no display during boot or bios, it's not the drivers, look elsewhere for the problem, (monitor, cable, motherboard compatibility, etc.)


Later,
dabone

[Stobe]

If you get no display during boot or bios, it's not the drivers, look elsewhere for the problem, (monitor, cable, motherboard compatibility, etc.)

With the arcade monitor I do get good video for both the Boot/POST screen, and the windowsxp splash screen (text seems easier to read when white on black).

Once it gets to the desktop, it is totally unreadable.

Also, I just tried hooking it up to my TV using the Svideo port on the AVGA card, and the display is horrible.  I only get half of a screen (vertically) and there is a double image fhashing.  And all text is very unreadable.

My only next thought is to find a PCI card, and hook it up to a PC monitor to force the drivers onto the AVGA card.  So far, I have not found one in my office.  I'm pretty sure I just threw away a half-dozen PCI cards a couple weels agp.

-Stobe

[dabone]

Did you try booting into vga mode?

(640x480I on the arcadevga with 60hz)


It's worked everytime when I've had to reinstall.
(I've got 3 avga setups)


Later,
dabone

[Stobe]

Yes, it looks the same as safe mode, and booting normally into XP.

The 'START' icon in the bottom left has patches of green and grey, and parts of the screen look like scenes from the PS2 game Vietiful Joe.

The desktop is all there, but I just cannot read the screens enough to walk through a force driver install. 

-Stobe

[Stobe]

This is driving me crazy.

I'm fairly competent with computers, and have installed drivers for devices hundreds of times.  But if I cannot read the screen, I can't get very far.

The screen looks great all the way until WondowsXP hits the "Welcome" splash.

I have gone into the device manager and deleted all display adapters.  When the computer reboots, it auto installs 2 devices under the display adapter tree.  They both say Radeon 9200 blah blah blah... thats all I can read.

I've gone into both of them and tried re-installing a new driver (from disk), but its super hard when you are just gessing what you're looking at in the 'Browse" window.

I cant tell what folder I'm in, or what .INF file I've gotten hilighted.

Help

-Stobe

[Stobe]

I've run out of ideas now

I just installed a PCI video card in with my AVGA, in attempt to run off of a PCI card/ computer monitor, just long enough to step through the driver install for the AVGA.

But with both cards in, I do not get any display at all with the computer monitor hooked up to me PCI card.

I'm guessing that the computer still things the AGP card is the primary display.  And without being able to get into windows to setup the "multiple display' settings, I think I am stuck!

I find it hard to believe that this installation can be this hard.  Someone please tell me why my output from the AVGA card to both an Arcade monitor and a standard TV are so crappy.

I have nothing left to try.  Someone please help!

Thanks,
Stobe

[gingerone]

Ironically it's only crappy until you install the driver. I had trouble reading the display to force install the driver but just felt my way through it.
After the driver is installed the picture is excellent.
I sympathise with you mate, I nearly threw mine out the window!

[tristan]

You should be able to select the primary video in your motherboard's BIOS settings.

[Stobe]

You should be able to select the primary video in your motherboard's BIOS settings.

If I could only see my bios..

-Stobe

[mik]

I just installed the ArcadeVGA and had massive problems, but finally got it to work. XP would stop booting, so I had to go into safe mode. The 640x480 quality is pretty bad on my monitor, so reading the text is guessing. The drivers would never install. Finally I figured out that the computer had a variety of ATI cards installed before (it had 6 different drivers already loaded), which caused the driver setup.exe to fail.

So I googled up a way to remove all the ATI trash that is on the harddrive and in the registry. After that the setup would run, and XP would boot with ArcadeVGA.

Configuring those things on the arcade monitor is very difficult. I recommend PCAnywhere, Windows XP remote Desktop or VNC, and do it from a different computer. Anyway you might want to set this up for future purposes.

[StephenH]

Set the resolution to a non-interlaced one.  Remember Arcade monitors run at 300 vertical lines and lower, and to display 640x480 or 800x600, they MUST interlace them, which makes text unreadable.  If you switch to 640x288, the text should be readable.

[Stobe]

Good idea about the remote assistance, thanks.

Well, I've made some progress.  After hooking up a PC monitor to a PCI card, and the arcade monitor to the AVGA, then changing the video default to PCI in my bios (by squinting real hard until I could almost read the screen, lol).  I was able to install the correct drivers for the AVGA.

But....  After changing the bios back to AGP, the computer boots and displays fine until XP should go to the desktop, then it just goes black for a minute or two, then reboots....and then repeats and repeats.

I am able to get the computer to boot all the way to XP if I boot using the PCI card, and expanding the desktop to include both monitors.  I set the main display to the arcade monitor, and am able to start up Mamewah.  So I am getting there, I just want to be able to boot using the AVGA alone.

Also, some games in Mame look too green/yellow.  The color is all messed up.  Some games look just fine.  Any ideas on this?

Also, the vertical games take up the whole width of the screen, therefore losing the top and bottom part of the display.  Any clues on this.  I have never run the utility for screenres (or mameres, or whatever its called), will this help?

Thanks!
-Stobe

[AndyWarne]

Some general points:
Installing the drivers for the ArcadeVGA card should be no different to installing any other ATI card. Yes, sometimes there are snags. I think I have covered all of the possible pitfalls on the ArcadeVGA install web page www.ultimarc.com/avgainst.html.
For example, someone mentioned Googling to find out how to remove old ATI drivers. Why not look on the instruction page as it's all there.
If the monitor is unreadable without the drivers there is no point in going any further because it should be readable. Yes it is running in 16 colour mode but text, needed for the driver install, should be fine. You need to find out why it's so bad. Most older monitors can be improved by adjusting the focus control. If the screen is always still blurred, it might be a "tired" CRT which is not good news. The problem is, it won't be any better with the drivers if this is the case.
If you can describe in more detail what way the screen is poor, maybe I can help, for example is it a focus issue, dim screen or some other problem. That problem needs to be fixed before going any further.
Andy W

[Stobe]

Andy, thanks for looking into this.

But what you described was apparently not the case in my setup.

Without the drivers installed, the screen was unreadable.  Now that the drivers are installed, the screen is readable.  Perhaps my monitor just had a harder time with the 'driver-less' display.

I'll check the tray for the icon.  Maybe when I forced the driver install, the resolution utility didn't get installed, maybe I just didn't even notice it.

Either way, I'll try out the 640x288 resolution.

As far as my color issues, I'm thinking now it is maybe a byproduct of my vertical games not displaying correctly within mame.  I'll have to find the cause of that.

When I had my normal PC monitor hooked up, all the games were displaying correctly (vertical games taking full height of screen, with black bars on sides).  Now they are showing full-width of screen, with the tops and bottoms clipped off.  Would this cause a discolorization?

Thanks to all,
Stobe

[jimmybonsaville]

http://

Hi there fella. I too am very experienced in computers etc and it too took me a while to realise that.... when you install the drivers there is a colour setting in the advanced driver tab. Turn it right down and you will be able to see the text. Then you will need to find a fine balance between your contrast settings on your monitor and the colopur settings. Hope this helps

[lettuce]

Getting the Dirvers installed wasnt a problem for my setup, the problem i have now is i cant set auto pan up in windows, so i cant use 640x288 resolutions, as windows thinks that there is not a monitor connected in the display settings!