Hello all,
I've been tinkering with my system since December to get Civilization 4 to work correctly, and more recently Dungeon Siege 2. My problem was that the game (Both) would dump to a black screen with the sound/music looping over the speakers until I reset. Ive been able to play other games (Rise of Nations, etc) with no problems or issues..
I had already followed all the other recommended steps:
1. Flashed BIOS to latest version
2. Updated video drivers (eVGA's latest)
- Used Driver Cleaner to remove any ATI & NVIDIA stuff before latest update
3. Updated sound card drivers
- Again, used Driver Cleaner before update
4. Changed RAM speed settings in BIOS to more closely match performance
5. Power Supply, 600W, no problem there (I hope!)
- 42A on the rails
6. Ran Memtest+, Prime95 and 3DMark03
- Everything checked out
- Memtest+ ran 8 hours, no errors
- Ran Prime95 and 3DMark03 & 05 at same time, no errors
7. Moved PCI sound card to slot furthest from Video Card
8. Double checked all relevant temperatures
- Within standard operating parameter, under load
Still could not get Civ 4 or DS2 to work for more than 10-20 minutes (many times much less).
Finally, used coolbits/tweak to allow me to UNDERCLOCK the card to 399/1.2Ghz from 430/1.3GHz (factory settings), and now the two games run great. In fact, I played DS2 so long the first night, my virus scanning software did a complete scan in the background (unbeknownst to me) with only a slight performance hit during the game. Im also running Civ 4 at the highest video settings with all the bells and whistles, default .ini file. Also running the latest patch. I've also played Civ 4 for hours, with no more crashes or hang ups.
Im sure this wont solve everyones problems, but maybe it will help one or two other Civ 4 die hard fans that are otherwise ready to give up. I hope this has not already been posted.
Quietman
Cleveland, OH
Win XP Pro, SP2
ASUS P4P-800E Deluxe (BIOS 1009, 26 SEP 05)
Intel Pentium 4, 3.2 with 1MB L2 Cache, Prescott
- NOT using Hyper Threading
eVGA 7800 GS (driver 91.31)
-P/N 256-A8-N506-AX
Creative Xi-Fi Fatality (driver 2.09.0001, 03 JUL 06)
2x1GB PC3200 DDR400, Dual Channel, Slots 1&3
1x Maxtor 160GB 7200rpm sata
1x WD 160GB 7200rpm sata
1x Plextor 740A 16x Dual/Double Layer DVD±RW
Silverstone ST60F 600w PSU
Dell 2007WFP LCD Monitor
Viewsonic G90F CRT Monitor
I've been tinkering with my system since December to get Civilization 4 to work correctly, and more recently Dungeon Siege 2. My problem was that the game (Both) would dump to a black screen with the sound/music looping over the speakers until I reset. Ive been able to play other games (Rise of Nations, etc) with no problems or issues..
I had already followed all the other recommended steps:
1. Flashed BIOS to latest version
2. Updated video drivers (eVGA's latest)
- Used Driver Cleaner to remove any ATI & NVIDIA stuff before latest update
3. Updated sound card drivers
- Again, used Driver Cleaner before update
4. Changed RAM speed settings in BIOS to more closely match performance
5. Power Supply, 600W, no problem there (I hope!)
- 42A on the rails
6. Ran Memtest+, Prime95 and 3DMark03
- Everything checked out
- Memtest+ ran 8 hours, no errors
- Ran Prime95 and 3DMark03 & 05 at same time, no errors
7. Moved PCI sound card to slot furthest from Video Card
8. Double checked all relevant temperatures
- Within standard operating parameter, under load
Still could not get Civ 4 or DS2 to work for more than 10-20 minutes (many times much less).
Finally, used coolbits/tweak to allow me to UNDERCLOCK the card to 399/1.2Ghz from 430/1.3GHz (factory settings), and now the two games run great. In fact, I played DS2 so long the first night, my virus scanning software did a complete scan in the background (unbeknownst to me) with only a slight performance hit during the game. Im also running Civ 4 at the highest video settings with all the bells and whistles, default .ini file. Also running the latest patch. I've also played Civ 4 for hours, with no more crashes or hang ups.
Im sure this wont solve everyones problems, but maybe it will help one or two other Civ 4 die hard fans that are otherwise ready to give up. I hope this has not already been posted.
Quietman
Cleveland, OH
Win XP Pro, SP2
ASUS P4P-800E Deluxe (BIOS 1009, 26 SEP 05)
Intel Pentium 4, 3.2 with 1MB L2 Cache, Prescott
- NOT using Hyper Threading
eVGA 7800 GS (driver 91.31)
-P/N 256-A8-N506-AX
Creative Xi-Fi Fatality (driver 2.09.0001, 03 JUL 06)
2x1GB PC3200 DDR400, Dual Channel, Slots 1&3
1x Maxtor 160GB 7200rpm sata
1x WD 160GB 7200rpm sata
1x Plextor 740A 16x Dual/Double Layer DVD±RW
Silverstone ST60F 600w PSU
Dell 2007WFP LCD Monitor
Viewsonic G90F CRT Monitor
