Sapphire 9600 Pro SUCKS in Doom 3

[2003ZYMach1]

I am enjoying Doom 3 overall, but it has made me begin to question the integrity of my video card. I'm currently using the Rade 3D tweak program and I have to UNDERCLOCK my memory to prevent a large amount of black triangular artifacts from flashing around on my screen. I know this is usually related to heat or trying to force too much out of the memory, but I wouldn't think the stock settings could cause this type of problem. This is the first time I've run into this sort of problem with this card. I have the 4.8 catalyst drivers that just came out... does anyone have any suggestions on what I may be able to do (besides buying a new card?)

[A1Killer]

i am taking a wild guess but it could be the assorted cheap memory you say you have cheap memory aint really good for gaming. the vid card you have should be able to do doom3 ok but not great any thing under 9800pro i would say would be a little choppy in the heavy parts of doom3 if you can try and get some memory like corsair or some kingston if that dont work theres always ebay for your card lol ebay 101 uses and counting

[IR1]

What version ATI drivers are you running? This could just be simply an older version
that isnt totally compatible or something..... however that wouldnt explain why underclocking fixes it.

[Lifthanger]

A1Killer and IR1: did you really read his question? He said he's using catalyst 4.8 and he is underclocking his VIDEO memory. :burn:

I know I'm not helpful, too.But:

It could really be possible that doom3 stresses your video mem more than other games did. Maybe you should increase ventilation in your case (to check wether this is true, you may point a fan at your memory while playing doom3 at stock speed), or try some cheap ramsinks. I guess in your system, hot air from cpu, hot air from northbrigde, and some memory chips of your card are very close together. This spot should get good airflow.
and btw. As your card is no x800 series, cat 4.8 ist the best driver to use.

Hope this helped you out.

[deathman20]

I'd have to agree with A1Killer assorted system ram isn't always the best and can hinder preformance and have issues also. Never the less yes the video card is probley the biggest setback in preformance. I know I have this card in a system, havn't tried to use it in Doom3 or anything but I know its not going to play pretty.

Anyways some things you might want to consider is better cooling on the card. Some ram sinks would be a start to help the memory out. Maybe slapping a 80-92-120mm fan near the card to get more air movement would help also. Might want to consider that 4.8 Cats arn't the best for the card also even with the improvements (doesn't show much in the lower end cards).

Right now I'm running 4.6's on my card and they seem to be doing great. No problems so far with anything and im sure the 4.8's will increase preformance a bit but I'm not going to risk it right now til later drivers come. Might want to try other CAT's out to see what is the best for you.

[Lifthanger]

If you don't want to use cat 4.8 then use 4.6 as suggested. Just make sure that you don't use 4.7.. they sucked alot! :)

[2003ZYMach1]

i'm starting to wonder if it's a power issue... I'm running a 300w no name ATX PSU. I also notice what looks like some sort of residue collecting up on the capacitors on the motherboard I am using. This is turning into a real mess that's making me want to throw the whole computer in the local dump.

[itshondo]

my 9600 Pro AIW gets 45 fps timedemo trdemo2- you might need to change you 9600's cooler- my VGA Silencer works nicely with my overclock.

And during gameplay, I rarely see any choppiness.

[||Console||]

yea i got 54 fps time demo ,

it could defently be ur psu as part of the problem

[2003ZYMach1]

I took the card out today and cleaned up the fan/hs and took a look at the memory. It is some no name brand that I've never seen. I think it was etrontech or something similar. I'm going to put my money on that being the root of the problem... the only time I've ever seen broken textures outside of Doom 3 is when I was trying to OC the card and running Quake 3. The fps difference between the memory at 260 and 298(stock) is very little so I will just keep it toned down until I get a new card.

**DO NOT BUY A SAPPHIRE 9600 PRO WITH ETRONTECH MEMORY**

[Overclocker550]

I have heard of people needing to underclock their cards to get it to run doom3, its that intensive. Is this grounds for a rma?

[2003ZYMach1]

I've had this thing a while, I wouldn't consider it a worthwhile endeavor personally. It runs fine as it is now, but I do have plans to get something better in the near future. Possibly a Geforce 6600 or ATI X600. I refuse to pay $400 for a video card.

[Overclocker550]

x600s suck, you want the x700xt which is an 8 pipe on .11u and should oc like mad

[PottaCoola]

Yep you wont be going anyware with a x600xt as they run only a lil better then a 9600xt or maybe the run the same.

[2003ZYMach1]

Another example of ATI trying to ram $400+ video cards up everyone's ass.

[Kenshiro]

I will contact ATI for an RMA. If you see artifacts while playing doom 3, it is the manufacturers fault for not designing the card properly. Ask them to send you a replacement card.

[deathman20]

i'm starting to wonder if it's a power issue... I'm running a 300w no name ATX PSU. I also notice what looks like some sort of residue collecting up on the capacitors on the motherboard I am using. This is turning into a real mess that's making me want to throw the whole computer in the local dump.

The resadue on the capacitors are the electrolites that are inside that hold the power. In other words don't think about using it anymore. It could blow or just leak all over the place either way its not at all good for the system and whats left of that card.

[Terminat.]

Trust me, I have the same model as you - the 9600 Pro with a silent heatsink and no fan right? I ran it on a 300w power supply (unbranded) too, and it was fine.

The problem is the temperature! I thought it was fine until one day I bought an Aerogate II fan controller with temperature sensors. When I put the sensor in the video card, I found that after an hour of Far Cry, it reached 72C with NO OVERCLOCKING! That's your problem right there! Buy some pci coolers to put above and below it. That sorted it for me very quickly. :thup:

[Kenshiro]

It won't leak, because it is not an oil filled capacitor. but it may blow under electrical fault conditions.

[2003ZYMach1]

Mine actually has a tiny little fan on it, but I kind of question its effectiveness in keeping the chip cool. The thing I don't get is I've run assloads of other games on this card.... the only time I saw this is when I was trying to pull more fps out of Quake 3 timedemos by overclocking the video. Now I'm having to run this thing below spec to keep Doom 3 from looking horrible.