Freeze after/during (if not using safe mode) install...

JoseD · Feb 13, 2006, 12:26 AM

Hi. First of all I don't consider myself or this, a begginers problem (would be glad if it was). I tryed to install the card to record a few guitar riffs with a mate's new guitar.

I'm gonna be honest here, I never manged to install the Creative dirvers in my computer either, but I'm posting here cause nobody really helped on the general forum and I prefer Kx dirvers anyway (no really

).

/* The machine */
- Mobo: An old Asus K7M, one of the later ones, it has that SuperBypass mode thingy if any AMD users here remember that.
- Processor: Slot A Thunderbird 800Mhz (I had a rare 1Ghz but burned it

- Memory 192Mb
- Bus is at 100mhz (native speed, I unoverclocked it to make sure everything was standard)
- Gfx card: Riva Tnt2 model 64 (or something like that)
- No other boards, I took them all off and reinstalled Windows2K.
- Note: The southbridge is one of those Via 686B ones but I have the latest via driver that fixed it's problems and everything else's been working like a charm (hey 35MB/s for ATA66 is good

)

/* The problem */
The installation just freezes after starting to install the GamePort driver.
After that, last time I booted into safe mode and installed again, after removing the previous bad install. A requester complains that it can't find C:\WINNT\System32\MFC42D.DLL. I choose retry and it continued flawlessly (at least apparently) till the end (normally it goest till the end in safe mode, I've only attempted a few times).
But when I reboot in normall mode the computer just freezes at startup at random places when it's showing the "Win2K pro" screen.
Previously I've tried to install the creative drivers a million times, even attemped to move the card to different PCI slots (all 5), allways freezes at 95%.

[EDIT]
Before someone suggests, I've already tested the card on my friends PC and it worked!!! And on top of that my old SoundBlaster Live Value works well in my computer.

I'm left out of ideas guys, if you can please help (beg...).
José

Russ · Feb 13, 2006, 02:44 AM

What model is your sound card (are you sure it is kX compatible?)?
What version of kX are you trying to install (the latest version is 3538j)?

Make sure you have the latest version of DirectX installed.
Boot into safe mode, and check device manager and make sure you do not have any phantom devices listed (sound card listed multiple times, etc). Remove any phantom devices and then use DriverCleaner to remove any traces of KX and Creative drivers. Then try installing kX.

If that doesn't work:
Trying installing everything except the drivers (using the kx install) and then install the drivers manually (in Device Manager, choose update driver, and point it to the kx directory).

Sorry to hear about your 1 GHz T-Bird. I had one of those cook on me as well. Luckily I was able to find a used 1.3 GHz T-Bird on the internet for a decent price to replace it.

**dj_stick** · Feb 13, 2006, 09:46 AM

have you tried installing on a fresh format of windows?

JoseD · Feb 13, 2006, 10:15 AM

Hi. Same results with manual install. I've also made a complete fresh windows install and even turned off ACPI. The damn things hangs...

BTW the south bridge is a VT82C686A not the B one.

JoseD · Feb 13, 2006, 10:19 AM

The soundcard is one of the first Audigy2 ones BTW...
[EDIT] It's the basec retail version, model 2040 (or something...)

DirectX is 9.x.

Russ · Feb 13, 2006, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoseD

BTW the south bridge is a VT82C686A not the B one.

I have the same South Bridge, so I do not think that should be an issue.

Try disconnecting any USB devices attached to the computer.

Maybe you have some other faulty PC component(s).
How are your mobo voltages? (does your BIOS show the voltages?)
I once had a PSU on it's way out that caused similair behavior (low +5 voltage). You could also try fully disconnecting any addtional hardware that is not absolutley necessary (i.e. additonal hard drives / cd drives, expansion cards, etc), and see if it makes a difference.

JoseD · Feb 14, 2006, 09:14 PM

@Russ

"I have the same South Bridge, so I do not think that should be an issue."

Thanks for posting that, I was pretty convinced that the southbridge was the problem.

"Try disconnecting any USB devices attached to the computer."

Done

"Maybe you have some other faulty PC component(s)..."

PSU was replaced last year with a new 400W one, don't think that is the problem.
The only thing left I can disconnect is the DVD Rom (an OEM Samsung).

Maybe the audigy conflicts with my video card. I've also tried an (even older) Riva128Zx but got the same problem. I'm gonna try it with another brands Gfx card.

JoseD · Feb 17, 2006, 02:27 PM

Went to a computer store yesterday, they tried the card again in various PC's there and it worked. I also tried my computer with a ATI 9200 gfx card but didn't make any diference....

Russ · Feb 17, 2006, 04:05 PM

It is a tough one. There are so many possibilites.
Personally I have never used Windows 2000, so I do not know if that would make any difference (I do not think it should).
Did you try it in any other K7M mobos. I have the same South Bridge, but not the same mobo (mine is an Asus A7V, running the latest beta BIOS).
Have you tried searching the internet for any known problems with the K7M?
Did you check your mobo voltages in the BIOS? I know you replaced the power supply, but it would still be good to check your voltage levels.
Have your tried using different memory?
Have you tried resetting the BIOS?
Try disabling anything is the BIOS that you are not using (ISA support, on-board sound, serial ports, USB support, etc).
Make sure your sound card is in a PCI slot that is not shared.
Run MSCONFIG or a similair tool, and disable any startup items (AV software, etc), before installing, and see if it makes a difference.
You might try using a non APIC setup, and manually assigning the resources for your soundcard.
When it freezes, let it sit for a long time (nothing crazy, i.e. maybe an hour at most), to be sure it is actually frozen. I have seen cases when the system appears frozen (especially during boot), but if you let it sit long enough, it may eventually finish whatever it was doing.

Feb 13, 2006, 12:26 AM	#1
JoseD DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 8 Rep Power: 0	Freeze after/during (if not using safe mode) install... Hi. First of all I don't consider myself or this, a begginers problem (would be glad if it was). I tryed to install the card to record a few guitar riffs with a mate's new guitar. I'm gonna be honest here, I never manged to install the Creative dirvers in my computer either, but I'm posting here cause nobody really helped on the general forum and I prefer Kx dirvers anyway (no really). /* The machine / - Mobo: An old Asus K7M, one of the later ones, it has that SuperBypass mode thingy if any AMD users here remember that. - Processor: Slot A Thunderbird 800Mhz (I had a rare 1Ghz but burned it - Memory 192Mb - Bus is at 100mhz (native speed, I unoverclocked it to make sure everything was standard) - Gfx card: Riva Tnt2 model 64 (or something like that) - No other boards, I took them all off and reinstalled Windows2K. - Note: The southbridge is one of those Via 686B ones but I have the latest via driver that fixed it's problems and everything else's been working like a charm (hey 35MB/s for ATA66 is good) / The problem / The installation just freezes after starting to install the GamePort driver. After that, last time I booted into safe mode and installed again, after removing the previous bad install. A requester complains that it can't find C:\WINNT\System32\MFC42D.DLL. I choose retry and it continued flawlessly (at least apparently) till the end (normally it goest till the end in safe mode, I've only attempted a few times). But when I reboot in normall mode the computer just freezes at startup at random places when it's showing the "Win2K pro" screen. Previously I've tried to install the creative drivers a million times, even attemped to move the card to different PCI slots (all 5), allways freezes at 95%. [EDIT] Before someone suggests, I've already tested the card on my friends PC and it worked!!! And on top of that my old SoundBlaster Live Value works well in my computer. I'm left out of ideas guys, if you can please help (beg...). José Last edited by JoseD; Feb 13, 2006 at 12:54 AM.*

Feb 13, 2006, 10:19 AM	Thread Starter #5
JoseD DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 8 Rep Power: 0	The soundcard is one of the first Audigy2 ones BTW... [EDIT] It's the basec retail version, model 2040 (or something...) DirectX is 9.x. Last edited by JoseD; Feb 13, 2006 at 10:32 AM.

Feb 17, 2006, 04:05 PM	#9
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	It is a tough one. There are so many possibilites. Personally I have never used Windows 2000, so I do not know if that would make any difference (I do not think it should). Did you try it in any other K7M mobos. I have the same South Bridge, but not the same mobo (mine is an Asus A7V, running the latest beta BIOS). Have you tried searching the internet for any known problems with the K7M? Did you check your mobo voltages in the BIOS? I know you replaced the power supply, but it would still be good to check your voltage levels. Have your tried using different memory? Have you tried resetting the BIOS? Try disabling anything is the BIOS that you are not using (ISA support, on-board sound, serial ports, USB support, etc). Make sure your sound card is in a PCI slot that is not shared. Run MSCONFIG or a similair tool, and disable any startup items (AV software, etc), before installing, and see if it makes a difference. You might try using a non APIC setup, and manually assigning the resources for your soundcard. When it freezes, let it sit for a long time (nothing crazy, i.e. maybe an hour at most), to be sure it is actually frozen. I have seen cases when the system appears frozen (especially during boot), but if you let it sit long enough, it may eventually finish whatever it was doing. Last edited by Russ; Feb 18, 2006 at 02:56 AM. Reason: typos

Feb 13, 2006, 02:44 AM	#2
Russ HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5,563 Rep Power: 62	What model is your sound card (are you sure it is kX compatible?)? What version of kX are you trying to install (the latest version is 3538j)? Make sure you have the latest version of DirectX installed. Boot into safe mode, and check device manager and make sure you do not have any phantom devices listed (sound card listed multiple times, etc). Remove any phantom devices and then use DriverCleaner to remove any traces of KX and Creative drivers. Then try installing kX. If that doesn't work: Trying installing everything except the drivers (using the kx install) and then install the drivers manually (in Device Manager, choose update driver, and point it to the kx directory). Sorry to hear about your 1 GHz T-Bird. I had one of those cook on me as well. Luckily I was able to find a used 1.3 GHz T-Bird on the internet for a decent price to replace it.

Feb 13, 2006, 10:15 AM	Thread Starter #4
JoseD DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 8 Rep Power: 0	Hi. Same results with manual install. I've also made a complete fresh windows install and even turned off ACPI. The damn things hangs... BTW the south bridge is a VT82C686A not the B one.

Feb 14, 2006, 09:14 PM	Thread Starter #7
JoseD DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 8 Rep Power: 0	@Russ "I have the same South Bridge, so I do not think that should be an issue." Thanks for posting that, I was pretty convinced that the southbridge was the problem. "Try disconnecting any USB devices attached to the computer." Done "Maybe you have some other faulty PC component(s)..." PSU was replaced last year with a new 400W one, don't think that is the problem. The only thing left I can disconnect is the DVD Rom (an OEM Samsung). Maybe the audigy conflicts with my video card. I've also tried an (even older) Riva128Zx but got the same problem. I'm gonna try it with another brands Gfx card.

Feb 17, 2006, 02:27 PM	Thread Starter #8
JoseD DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: Jan 2004 Posts: 8 Rep Power: 0	Went to a computer store yesterday, they tried the card again in various PC's there and it worked. I also tried my computer with a ATI 9200 gfx card but didn't make any diference....