White dots on my 9800pro not hardware related?

Magician Lord · Feb 21, 2005, 11:39 PM

Hmm, I made a post about my problems with white dots in DOOM 3 and Final Fantasy XI.
I was very close to sending it off for a RMA, but now I am having second thoughts. Mostly due to some research I've been doing. I have come to realize that maybe, just maybe, the white dots are NOT hardware related. When you turn shadows off in Doom 3, the white dots are gone, simple as that. Also, I have heard that the white dots where textures connect in Final Fantasy XI have been noticed with otherwise perfectly working cards. Now, here is the big question. Is there ANYONE with a 9800 pro 128mb that...

A. Has no white dots with shadows turned ON in Doom 3...

or

B. Has no white dots while playing Final Fantasy XI...

Quite frankly, if this stuff is normal behaviour for the 9800pro and those games, then I don't want to waste 15 days of my life waiting on a RMA. But if anyone has a 9800pro and DOES NOT have the problem with white dots in those games, please reply because I am getting sick of the smell of lemons.

redsolar · Feb 22, 2005, 02:08 AM

A. I do. (9800 non pro, flashed to pro, overclocked)
B. I never played FF XI, but the graphics test they publicly released looked fine.

Quite often you can see the dots where textures are connecting, however this is more likely engine related, and not hardware.

Do the white dots reproduce on screenshots?

crapman777 · Feb 23, 2005, 04:09 PM

I had dots to start off with on my original 9700pro. Then i had artefacts , you know like lines appearing all over the screen. Took it to get tested at the local wholesaler and they found the card was faulty, worrying cause at that point i had had it for three months. Anyway i had it replaced and now i have had my 9700pro for two years. Maybe you could get someone to test it, or try it on another machine???

Exceededgoku · Feb 23, 2005, 04:18 PM

Why don't you try uninstalling all ati files and reinstalling what ever driver that you use and if you still have the problem then its definitely hardware related, and did you have the same mobo when you had the 9700 because maybe its your ram or something go to www.memtest86.com to test whether your ram is faulty (PS the damn memory test takes forever but its worth the wait- I however have never completed it and waited for errors near the beginning of the first couple of tests)

I hope I have helped you

Judas · Feb 23, 2005, 08:18 PM

the finalfantasy test i run has some on occasion white dots were textures met.... or it seemed......

this occurs on my 9800 pro... my 9600xt aiw... a 8500le as well...

matrixt89 · Feb 23, 2005, 08:39 PM

i get white dots sometimes in Doom 3. I have a 9600 XT. The dots are usually on the edges of the texture though.

agenthex · Feb 23, 2005, 10:57 PM

The white speckles that appear in shader-intense scenes (and tend to only appear where a shader is being applied) are a result of overclocking or excessive heat. If you are overclocking, then back down the core frequency. If you are not overclocking, then it may be wise to invest in a better cooler -- especially if you live in a warm region. The default ATI coolers for the 9500 and beyond are typically pretty skimpy, and if you overclock, it is almost a requirement to get a better cooler.

If you increase AGP voltage, you MUST have a better-than-stock cooler or you risk frying your card. If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't overclock.

EDIT: I've seen white speckles on verticies where two polygons meet (aka a "corner"), and it's usually a result of enabling FSAA (Anti-Aliasing).

itchy5 · Feb 23, 2005, 11:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by agenthex

The white speckles that appear in shader-intense scenes (and tend to only appear where a shader is being applied) are a result of overclocking or excessive heat. If you are overclocking, then back down the core frequency. If you are not overclocking, then it may be wise to invest in a better cooler -- especially if you live in a warm region. The default ATI coolers for the 9500 and beyond are typically pretty skimpy, and if you overclock, it is almost a requirement to get a better cooler.

If you increase AGP voltage, you MUST have a better-than-stock cooler or you risk frying your card. If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't overclock.

EDIT: I've seen white speckles on verticies where two polygons meet (aka a "corner"), and it's usually a result of enabling FSAA (Anti-Aliasing).

yep "the snow" as i call it is heat related

FelipeFL · Feb 8, 2006, 01:03 AM

I have the same problem , and I tried Overclocking and Underclocking my 9600xt... tried also enabling and disabling the AA, and everytime a get those white dots on the edge of textures and where they
meet each other... I also tried a lot of different drivers, and a lot of different combinations between AA and AF...

I am almost 100% sure that this is not a heat related problem... my core temp is 45 C at the most.

Has anybody some ideia of how can I solve this issue?

Thx

FelipeFL · Feb 15, 2006, 07:10 PM

somebody help me plz!

Feb 21, 2005, 11:39 PM	#1
Magician Lord DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 18 Rep Power: 0	White dots on my 9800pro not hardware related? Hmm, I made a post about my problems with white dots in DOOM 3 and Final Fantasy XI. I was very close to sending it off for a RMA, but now I am having second thoughts. Mostly due to some research I've been doing. I have come to realize that maybe, just maybe, the white dots are NOT hardware related. When you turn shadows off in Doom 3, the white dots are gone, simple as that. Also, I have heard that the white dots where textures connect in Final Fantasy XI have been noticed with otherwise perfectly working cards. Now, here is the big question. Is there ANYONE with a 9800 pro 128mb that... A. Has no white dots with shadows turned ON in Doom 3... or B. Has no white dots while playing Final Fantasy XI... Quite frankly, if this stuff is normal behaviour for the 9800pro and those games, then I don't want to waste 15 days of my life waiting on a RMA. But if anyone has a 9800pro and DOES NOT have the problem with white dots in those games, please reply because I am getting sick of the smell of lemons.

Feb 22, 2005, 02:08 AM	#2
redsolar Off duty Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Iowa, USA Posts: 1,242 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	A. I do. (9800 non pro, flashed to pro, overclocked) B. I never played FF XI, but the graphics test they publicly released looked fine. Quite often you can see the dots where textures are connecting, however this is more likely engine related, and not hardware. Do the white dots reproduce on screenshots? __________________ Real_Men_Do_Not_Use_Space_Bar Main rig: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 3.6 GHz (Zerotherm Nirvana NV120) \| 2x2GB Mushkin + 2x2GB Corsair DDR2-800 5-5-5-18 \| Abit IP35 Pro \| XFX 8800GTS 512 800/1100 \| 2x160GB Seagate 7200.9 RAID1 + Hitachi 1TB 32MB \| NEC SATA DVD+RW + Xbox 360 USB HD DVD Drive \| Antec TruePower Quattro 850W PSU \| Antec Nine Hundred Case \| 3x 24" LCD (Dell 2407WFP + 2x StarLogic) \| Logitech Z-5500 \| Vista Business x64 Laptop: Dell Vostro 1500 \| Core 2 Duo T7500 \| 2.5 GB RAM \| nVidia GeForce 8600M GT \| 200GB 7200 RPM \| DVDRW \| 15.4" 1680x1050 LCD \| XP Pro

Feb 23, 2005, 04:18 PM	#4
Exceededgoku DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Lincolnshire, UK Posts: 87 Rep Power: 0	Why don't you try uninstalling all ati files and reinstalling what ever driver that you use and if you still have the problem then its definitely hardware related, and did you have the same mobo when you had the 9700 because maybe its your ram or something go to www.memtest86.com to test whether your ram is faulty (PS the damn memory test takes forever but its worth the wait- I however have never completed it and waited for errors near the beginning of the first couple of tests) I hope I have helped you __________________ Vista Ultimate x64 edition rocks my world! Makes XP (and lower) look like dried poo stains on the wall! Core 2 Duo E6600 @ 3.2Ghz (400Mhzx8) 1.52V (set in bios, 1.47v real) \| 2GB GeIL PC6400 4-4-4-12 @ 1000Mhz 5-5-5-15 \| Gigabyte DQ6 @ 1600Mhz \| Sapphire 512MB X1900XTX @ 689/774 \| Enermax Liberty 620W \| Silverstone TJ07-B with custom watercooling \| Dell 2005FPW 3dmark05 - 13140 \| 3dmark06 - 6698 \| SuperPi 1M - 15s

Feb 23, 2005, 10:57 PM	#7
agenthex HardwareHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 66 Rep Power: 0 System Specs	The white speckles that appear in shader-intense scenes (and tend to only appear where a shader is being applied) are a result of overclocking or excessive heat. If you are overclocking, then back down the core frequency. If you are not overclocking, then it may be wise to invest in a better cooler -- especially if you live in a warm region. The default ATI coolers for the 9500 and beyond are typically pretty skimpy, and if you overclock, it is almost a requirement to get a better cooler. If you increase AGP voltage, you MUST have a better-than-stock cooler or you risk frying your card. If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't overclock. EDIT: I've seen white speckles on verticies where two polygons meet (aka a "corner"), and it's usually a result of enabling FSAA (Anti-Aliasing). __________________

Feb 8, 2006, 01:03 AM	#9
FelipeFL DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brazil , SP Posts: 13 Rep Power: 0	I have the same problem , and I tried Overclocking and Underclocking my 9600xt... tried also enabling and disabling the AA, and everytime a get those white dots on the edge of textures and where they meet each other... I also tried a lot of different drivers, and a lot of different combinations between AA and AF... I am almost 100% sure that this is not a heat related problem... my core temp is 45 C at the most. Has anybody some ideia of how can I solve this issue? Thx Last edited by FelipeFL; Feb 8, 2006 at 01:10 AM.

Feb 23, 2005, 04:09 PM	#3
crapman777 DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Perth, Western Australia Posts: 155 Rep Power: 0	I had dots to start off with on my original 9700pro. Then i had artefacts , you know like lines appearing all over the screen. Took it to get tested at the local wholesaler and they found the card was faulty, worrying cause at that point i had had it for three months. Anyway i had it replaced and now i have had my 9700pro for two years. Maybe you could get someone to test it, or try it on another machine???

Feb 23, 2005, 08:39 PM	#6
matrixt89 HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: USA Posts: 4,153 Rep Power: 0	i get white dots sometimes in Doom 3. I have a 9600 XT. The dots are usually on the edges of the texture though.

Feb 15, 2006, 07:10 PM	#10
FelipeFL DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Brazil , SP Posts: 13 Rep Power: 0	somebody help me plz!