FS9 Unusable for me. Need some HELP!

[SteveLewis 0]

Well, another try at FS9 tonight. I was flying the PMDG 737-700 from Phoenix to Houston. The flight started out great. The scenery and weather (clouds) at PHX were really great! I thought I was on to something. I had applied all of the tweeks I read here that I could do (don't have WinXP so can't do a lot of them).After two hours I started my decent into Houston. Frame rates were still pretty good although the readings were still {1.4 9.6 14.6} with about a 5/8 cloud cover (nice puffy cumulous)....I was running Radar Contact along with the FS ATC in VFR mode. When I was told to Contact Arrival by RC the problems started. Decending to 6,000 ft my fps went sh*t. The readings on my fps meter were still {1.0 9.6 12.6} or such but I was obviously getting less than 1.0. Finally, RC quit working on me (it's a seperately running free-standing program). The only choices RC gave me were Cancel IFR or Terminate Radar Services!OK, I'll land using FS ATC. I'm cleared to land, right? Right. At about 3,000 ft my video froze. Yeah, only the video. ATC was still telling me to reply but the video was FROZEN. This is the third time this has happened to me out of 6 FS9 flights. Rediculous. Something in my set up isn't right.My set up is: P4 2.4Ghz 533 FSB with 512 MB of DDR333 PC2700 SDRAM Windows 98Se MSI GeForce 4200Ti w/128 Mb of DDR SDRAM nVidia 43.45 drivers from 3dGuru Soundblaster Live 5.1 (Sound acceleration set to Basic in DirectX 9.0b)I just can't seem to land in this sim in any a/c -- even the default Lear45. My questions are: If I upgrade one piece of hardware, should I a) get a new MSI GeForceMX 5600 128Mb Video Card :( get a new Soundblaster Audolgy sound card c) upgrade to Windows XP Home d) add another 512 Mb DDR333 SDRAM w/WinXP e) all of the above.Honestly, guys, if it's e I'll have to wait a while. And that means flying with FS2002. This FS9 is just toooooo frustrating. :-madThe clouds are fantastic and the ATC is much improved. It's just no fun to fly for 2-1/2 hours and have to view a freeze frame of the runway.......Steve

[John_Cillis 2,406]

Steve...As I've suggested to others here, the first thing I'd do is downgrade the video drivers to 30.82....I have a nearly identical setup, except for a far slower cpu and less RAM on my part. FS2004 is very stable and given my system, it shouldn't be. My last avail chipset update was several years ago, as an example.Can you show a small print screen of what's in your system tray? The only thing I have there is the "speaker" for the volume. I've killed every process that auto-starts on my system, and I think that contributes to stability.All I can say is your performance is not normal--you can't upgrade anything until you can at least stabilize what you're seeing out of the cockpit... That may require you ditch Radar Contact and other add-ons for a bit, in order to see if a bona-fide generic COF install is still a problem....-John

[Guest PaulL01]

>Steve...>>As I've suggested to others here, the first thing I'd do is>downgrade the video drivers to 30.82....Why?

[Guest SteveJ]

Paul - See my related post re: Ti4200 and older systems.Steve - Make sure AA is turned off as well as autogen and check the stutters before adding either back. Also, although I'm using 30.82s with WinXP Home, you can also find 30.82 drivers for Win98Se at guru3d if you want to give them a try. I'm sold on the 30.82s for my system. I hope they work as well on 98Se. Steve J.

[Guest SoarPics]

Jeez, Steve, you've had your hands full trying to get this sim to run on your rig.Something you mentioned about how your flight ended last night struck a chord with a recent problem I had on my machine. For several weeks I had the occasional video freeze while sound continues scenario. I only had in in FS2K2, and thought it mught be something corrupted in the sim. But then I had the same thing happen last week with FS9... time to do some testing. Checked numerous things, but then got to the memory. Tested it with MemTest, and sure enough it found my problem. My rig now has a Gig of Corsair XMS in it.You might give it a try before throwing more money at the problem. http://www.memtest86.com/Good luck,

[bobbyjoh 11]

Steve,I use to have those kinds of problems with FS2K2 also. In my case it was the video card getting too hot and would freeze up. I have taken my covers off and put a special turbo type fan right at my card and have never had a problem. With your system which is much newer than mine I don't think this is a problem.However it does sound like a card problem to me. My only question to you Steve, is why with your advanced system are you still on Windows 98? There is such an improvement with memory management with XP, and other system releated items. You should not be having the kind of problems you are.I too run the PMDG 737NG on my rig which is not up to your specs, P4 1.7ghz, with 512mb RAMBUS memory, GF4200Ti/64, and det 4523 drivers.AFter being kidded by a guy here on the forum I took my fps lock up to 25 and I am getting between 12-18fps most of the time, with pretty smooth action in FS9, even with clouds. I put the Chris Willis fix on my clouds which did make a big difference.I always use Radar Contact, and I have never had one peep of trouble with FS9 with this combo.Bottom line for your problem in my estimation is not FS9 or your HW, I think you have a conflict with the OS and the video card.Just my Two Cents, but worth a try to upgrade to Windows XPCheersBob

[SteveLewis 0]

Thanks, guys. I tried to reinstall the 30.82 drivers again tonight. I even removed every little evidence of nVidia in my PC with Detonator RIP, Detonator Destroyer, and nVidia Nasty File Remover all from guru3d. When my PC came up in Safe mode, it asked me to put in the Win98Se disk or my MSI disk for a driver. I tried both. I then attempted to load the 30.82 drivers. I received the following message: Unable to locate a detected device's PCI ID in NVAML.inf. This is really strange since I got my current 43.45 drivers from guru3d, also, and they installed perfectly. :-hmmm I think that I'll have to do two things: buy Windows XP Home and install the 512Mb of DDR333 SDRAM that I bought and couldn't get to work in Win98SE, and have my PC builder install the 30.82 drivers for me if he can. :-( This is rediculous. My set up should be able to run FS9 pretty well, and it mostly does. EXCEPT for the 1.0 fps interruptions that occur randomly and on landing!!! I have flown 8 flights in FS9 and have only completed 3 of them due to the landing freeze. :-erks I didn't have this much trouble with FS2002 on my AMD900! Steve

[SteveLewis 0]

John, When I run either FS2002 or FS9, I only have Explorer and Systray running in the background. Habit left over from the days of FS98 and End-it-All...... Steve

[SteveLewis 0]

Wellllll,,, Here's some news. I was able to download and install new 45.23 drivers in, oh, about 15 seconds. It apperars that my fps may be improved. Looking at KPHX with the weather downloaded I was getting in the upper 20s just now vs in the upper teens earlier with my 43.45 drivers. :-hmmm Verry Interessting..... I don't know why I can't download and install the 30.82s. Must have been before my card was produced....Another attempt tomorrow. Hopefully, better results.Thanks, guys.Steve

[John_Cillis 2,406]

Paul--The 30.82 drivers have proved stable w/Win 98, at least in my experience. Moreover, I've found the 4x.xx drivers poorer in overall performance. Just my viewpoint--I'm sure you have yours, but all we can offer here are our opinions, right? :)

[John_Cillis 2,406]

I don't know whether guru3d's being the source makes a difference.... My 30.82 driver set came with the card...and mine is a 4200 as well. If you still have the driver CD that came with your card, I'd be curious what driver ver. they contain...-John

[SteveLewis 0]

Installing the 45.23s late last night brought out an interesting fact. Sometime ago, I lost the tray icon for my nVidia drivers. You know, the one where you can pick the antialiasing, etc. Don't know where it went or why. After installing the 45.23s it's back. Maybe I had a corrupted driver set??? I will try once more to load up the 30.82s tonight and see what happens. Failing that, I'll fly with the new 45.23s and see if that improves my situation.I hadn't thought about the heat on my video card. I will also take off my cover tonight when I test and see if that helps.Steve

[bobbyjoh 11]

Steve,I am still curious why you are reluctant to install Windows XP. Just a better operating system than Windows 98SE. Fixed many of the bugs that were present then. While you are doing all the video driver update, just install SP. I will bet you that everything improves.Hope this helps you from an "old" Air Force Major (anything for you Navy guys).Bob JohnsonKDEN

[shermank 166]

>Thanks, guys. I tried to reinstall the 30.82 drivers again>tonight. I even removed every little evidence of nVidia in my>PC with Detonator RIP, Detonator Destroyer, and>nVidia Nasty File Remover all from guru3d. When my PC>came up in Safe mode, it asked me to put in the Win98Se disk>or my MSI disk for a driver. I tried both. I then attempted>to load the 30.82 drivers. I received the following message:>> Unable to locate a detected device's PCI ID in>NVAML.inf. This is really strange since I got my>current 43.45 drivers from guru3d, also, and they installed>perfectly. :-hmmm What's happened here is that detonator destroyer has removed all traces of the nvidia drivers, as it is meant to do.l..including a file which the self installer of the nvidia drivers looks for. I'm at work and not sure I can remember the entire procedure...but, a good place to start is by going into Control Panel, Display and from there look for the section where you can manually install drivers. Let Windows do the search, install what it recommends. Then, without using Det Destroyer, try to reinstall the 30.82. That should do it. And, according to the nvidia docs, the exe package of drivers can be installed over existing files and removes those no longer needed or which are updated.As one other note, I too am still wrestling with the FS9 demon. I have overtweaked and overtweaked, and think I have probably screwed up something. I think it is in my bios, and I'm still trying to work things out. btw, everything else on my system such as prodctivity apps, work fine. Sherm>I think that I'll have to do two things: buy Windows XP Home>and install the 512Mb of DDR333 SDRAM that I bought and>couldn't get to work in Win98SE, and have my PC builder>install the 30.82 drivers for me if he can. :-( This is>rediculous. My set up should be able to run FS9 pretty well,>and it mostly does. EXCEPT for the 1.0 fps interruptions that>occur randomly and on landing!!! I have flown 8 flights in>FS9 and have only completed 3 of them due to the landing>freeze. :-erks I didn't have this much trouble with FS2002>on my AMD900! >>Steve

[John_Cillis 2,406]

Bob...XP is without a doubt better than 98SE, but 98SE is still a stable, robust system when managed well. 98's failing was there weren't enough safeguards to prevent programs and/or users from replacing core components or deleting them. In my case, I can't remember the last time MSFS froze, let alone my system, but I've always held an admin's noose on my system.In Steve's case, I'd lay odds that he has an .inf file problem. The 30.82 drivers should recognize his 4200. Something got damaged in his 98 install, or in a previous driver uninstall. In that situation, even a reformat with 98 may yield better results than the rather inconsistent ones he's seeing now. I think many also balk at the cost in personal time of upgrading. I have a good two dozen apps I'd have to migrate..., and two or three of those (required for my work) won't migrate to XP. A fair eztimate of that is 10-15 hours of labor--in my case, time I could otherwise spend "for hire". My profession is in this type of work...I migrate OS's about efficiently as one can (although I also work off of images for my desktop users--only the execs with the laptops get the full blown migration treatment). When I'm not working at the office, local team members often hire me out to examine/upgrade/diagnose their home systems. I'm not knocking XP, but there hasn't been a 98 system--short of one with a HW problem, that I haven't been able to stabilize when I've been there in person. In a support forum, forget it--it often takes way too long to get to the root cause of the problem, and users get frustrated (naturally). That's where XP may indeed be better. There's simply less room in XP for users to deviate from a baseline standard, although it still happens.The best solution is a dual boot system. One of the best things I've seen recently for this purpose is a HD Caddy. HD's are so dang cheap these days, you can throw one in the Caddy dedicated to MSFS, and swap it out with a 98 HD dedicated to legacy apps. That's the route I'm going if we don't retire the apps I can't migrate soon.-John