NVIDIA GeForce 175.16 WHQL drivers

[maddogx 13]

Hi all!

NVIDIA has released the latest official WHQL drivers here. Thought I'd give everyone a heads up. Also, I'd like to use this thread for posting experiences and performance using the new drivers with ArmA.

I haven't gotten around to testing them yet, but will do later when I get home.

MDX

[M.Andersson(SWE) 4]

And here are Nvidia 8xxx series VISTA 32 drivers

175.16:

175.16 Drivers for VISTA32

[maddogx 13]

Just installed the new drivers.

I may be imagining things but somehow the image appears to be crisper/sharper/more clear. I can't really put my finger on it, but it's there. Didn't change any ArmA settings so it's definitely not that. Not sure about any changes in FPS. Seems to be the same.

[M.Andersson(SWE) 4]

Mmmm...Dont see any obvious changes in the game..

[kuIoodporny 45]

Thanks for info

EDIT: hell worth downloading - Half Life 2: Deathmatch and Lost Coast for free (I hope that I don't need to buy HL2 to play it!

[OrLoK 20]

Hello all

This driver still leaves me with the LOD streaming texture problem in 1.12 and also 1.11 (although 1,11 is not as immediately apparent but occours after a few mins play whereas 1.12 its almost immediate.)

rgds

LoK

[maddogx 13]

Hello all

This driver still leaves me with the LOD streaming texture problem in 1.12 and also 1.11 (although 1,11 is not as immediately apparent but occours after a few mins play whereas 1.12 its almost immediate.)

rgds

LoK

You've probably posted your system specs somewhere already, but could you do that here again?

- System hardware (CPU, Mobo, RAM etc.)

- Applicable drivers (sound card, RAID controllers etc.)

- Hard drives (especially system drive and the drive where ArmA is stored)

- Graphics card + driver version

- Operating system + service packs

- Any software that may be running in the background (such as antivirus)

Please make sure you state actual driver/SP versions, not just "the latest".

[Maverick806 0]

I'm testing them right now. They seem quite good...so far

[Yoma 0]

Have they fixed the .net 2.0 bug in the drivers?

(I you have very slow datagridview in .net 2.0 : it's nvidea driver screwing up). This is why i am still at 163.x!!!

(which works fine btw)

[Alex72 1]

Does the "datagridview" affect ArmA? I dont know what that is even though i read about it.

[OrLoK 20]

Hello all

I'll post the specs soon with driver details etc.

@ss9

yes, thats what I mean. It gets to the stage that whatever I look at needs to be reloaded even if i peeked a second ago.

Ie

If there's a vehicle behind me and i turn to look, it redraws through its Level of Detail models and then applies the full range of textures from low to high. which takes a few seconds.

I then look away and look back at it and it goes through the same process again.

Its almost as if the memory assigned to textures has filled up and then has to dynamically stream them on request.

I too, have 1 gig ram, but a 512mb Nvidia card.

This "streaming" issue "apparently" has also been affecting the new unreal engine also from what ive seen in my megre googling efforts. No idea if its a related nvidia issue or just a co-inkiy-dink.

Rgds

loK

ps isn't there a proggie that "dumps" all your system specs?, if you know what it is let me know, please.

this would save time and help make a level palying field when troubleshooting and would ensure correct details.

[mattxr 9]

They work great for me, good find.

[Yoma 0]

72 @ May 15 2008,07:58)]Does the "datagridview" affect ArmA? I dont know what that is even though i read about it.

It doesn't effect arma.

[maddogx 13]

ps isn't there a proggie that "dumps" all your system specs?, if you know what it is let me know, please.

You could give us a DXDiag dump.

How to:

1. Go to Start -> Run

2. Type in dxdiag and press enter

3. If a dialog pops up, confirm

4. DXDiag window should open. Click on the "Save all info" button.

5. Save the text file somewhere.

6. Best host it somewhere instead of posting the contents here, as it is usually quite a lot.

EDIT: btw, it appears there is an FPS increase after all. After installing the new drivers, I forgot to set ArmA to single display mode (better FPS). Framerate seems better now.

[CodeX 0]

I have Vista 32,Nvidia 512mb 7950gtx,4 gig ddr 2,Intel dual core @2.43Ghz.Mostly all maps i play run well with 3000 view distance and everything else set on medium.I have noticed this texture loading problem on some user made maps where there seems to be a lot of activity going on in the background as in troop spawning,choppers overhead,artillery going off etc.Certain addons seem to make this problem worse no patch has made much difference to me maybe its just some maps are unoptimized as i said i have only experienced this problem on certain large maps with heavy activity.

[Yoma 0]

The .net 2.0 slow datagridview bug is still in there...

The texture loading problem can mostly be solved by simply putting your textures to normal instead of high/very high.

[maddogx 13]

The .net 2.0 slow datagridview bug is still in there...

The texture loading problem can mostly be solved by simply putting your textures to normal instead of high/very high.

I second that. If you still want your textures to look good, I recommend setting anisotrophic filtering to maximum. It helps.

[OrLoK 20]

my dxdiag

There you go.

now just tried vanilla evo online with 1.08 and got the texture/lod problem within a few mins.

Im sure this was not the case a few months ago, so one assumes it's a driver thing as nowt else (except auto updates) has vbeen changed in the system

rgds

lok

[maddogx 13]

my dxdiag

There you go.

now just tried vanilla evo online with 1.08 and got the texture/lod problem within a few mins.

Im sure this was not the case a few months ago, so one assumes it's a driver thing as nowt else (except auto updates) has vbeen changed in the system

rgds

lok

Thanks for posting your DxDiag file. Just took a quick look at it, and I am somwhat confused.

The NVIDIA driver version is said to be 175.16, which is correct, but it says the driver is not digitally signed and thus not WHQL certified. This cannot normally be correct, unless you are using a beta driver.

The only other possibility I can think of is, that you installed this driver directly over an old one. Normally it is recommended to uninstall the old driver first, reboot and then install the new driver. Did you do that?

That aside, your hard drive seems to be good, so I'm assuming you're not experiencing problems there - though you might want to make sure all important partitions (windows and game location) are defragmented. You may also want to upgrade your RAM. I would generally recommend a minimum of 2GB for a gaming system nowadays. RAM was dirt cheap last time I looked, but make sure you get the same kind that you already have.  

Also as a general recommendation, download a program like SpeedFan and make sure your system isn't getting too hot. You say that the LOD problems occur after a few minutes, which may indicate an overheating problem - especially as it's getting warmer now due to summer. If your system is overheating, you might need to get some extra fans or other cooling gear.

To sum it up:

- uninstall and reinstall the NVIDIA driver

- defragment your HD

- consider getting another gig of RAM

- check system temperatures

I hope this helps.

[OrLoK 20]

hello there,

Ta for taking a peek,

I forgot, that the driver was a beta (got it the day before the full was released, so my apologies for not remembering that)

Defrag and temperature is a ok. No issues there.

RAM upgrade is unfortunatly out of the question as Im unemployed again so any cash i have goes on the nessesities (ie beer).

I did install over the old driver so that may an issue, ill try to scrape it out of my system and reinstall the new one.

This issue only appears in arma and Im quite capable of running high end apps like XSI and other games with no issues although Rainbow Six Vegas does have a slight texture streaming issue when it loads up but its cured within a second and never reappears)

Ill try the driver reinstall.

Thanks again and keep your fingers crossed.

Rgds

LoK

>>>UPDATE<<<

Well i used Drive Sweeper to clear out my old drivers and reinstalled the new whql ones and it's had a great impact.

FPS are up and LOD/Streaming effect much reduced.

Its still a pain in residential areas but at least the game is now playable (although far from perfect)

even though ive been using pc's since the 8088 days I never realised that one had to uninstall nvidia drivers before installing new ones. You learn something new everyday

Ill keep testing and will post here if i discover anything else.

Again thank you.

Rgds

LoK

[maddogx 13]

Well i used Drive Sweeper to clear out my old drivers and reinstalled the new whql ones and it's had a great impact.

FPS are up and LOD/Streaming effect much reduced.

Its still a pain in residential areas but at least the game is now playable (although far from perfect)

Well, a partial success is still a success .

Too bad you can't afford that extra RAM, because I think it would make a major difference. Maybe the maxmem parameter would help... I haven't actually used it myself, so I'm not sure what exactly it does - but I've read that it's helped a lot of people. Perhaps just try -maxmem=512 out and see if it makes any difference.

[OrLoK 20]

hello there,

I do use the maxmem 512 perameter, although Ive used it for such a long time I cant remember if it's improved things, same with the vm peram.

Now I have the driver issue sorted Ill run some comparative tests. Ill post any useful info if I stumble accross any.

Again ta for helping me out and pointing me in the right direction.

Rgds

LoK

[FritzDaKat 0]

IIR the maxmem parameter simply locks in the amount of virtual address space accessable by ArmA, basicly the thing keeping the "Out of memory" errors appearing on some systems.

As far as the LOD issue goes I found that the ECS mod cleared it up with the "Force local terraingrid" setting on and set to 50.000 but set that high it does shut grass off (Have not tried lower settings however) It basicly seems to take a radius of x meters and forces the close up LOD on them till you move out of range.

My only problem with the ECS mod is it seems to override the AI even when I have AI enhancements disabled, or it at least messes up the FSM controlled AI (In Quarantine)

[alpha125rbf 0]

Oh jea - new drivers, new fun... I have the feeling ArmA is not so good optimized: there are no serious benchmarks and a lot of bugs in the betas.

I experience performance drop with new drivers, and strande error yesterday:

http://img207.imageshack.us/my.php?image=arma2008051810350520xf2.jpg

Well, ArmA runs better as the 1.0 version, but it is still a big performance drop in the towns, which are not really optimized. And perhaps will never be.

<table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td>Code Sample </td></tr><tr><td id="CODE">------------------

System Information

------------------

Time of this report: 5/18/2008, 13:29:51

Machine name:ET-OPFOR

Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp.080413-2111)

Language: German (Regional Setting: German)

System Manufacturer: System manufacturer

System Model: System Product Name

BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG

Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 3800+, MMX, 3DNow (2 CPUs), ~2.2GHz

Memory: 1536MB RAM

Page File: 407MB used, 7023MB available

Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS

DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)

DX Setup Parameters: Not found

DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.5512 32bit Unicode

------------

DxDiag Notes

------------

DirectX Files Tab: No problems found.

Display Tab 1: No problems found.

Sound Tab 1: No problems found.

Music Tab: No problems found.

Input Tab: No problems found.

Network Tab: No problems found.

--------------------

DirectX Debug Levels

--------------------

Direct3D: 0/4 (n/a)

DirectDraw: 0/4 (retail)

DirectInput: 0/5 (n/a)

DirectMusic: 0/5 (n/a)

DirectPlay: 0/9 (retail)

DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)

DirectShow: 0/6 (retail)

---------------

Display Devices

---------------

Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT

Manufacturer: NVIDIA

Chip type: GeForce 8800 GT

DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC

Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_0611&SUBSYS_00000000&REV_A2

Display Memory: 512.0 MB

Current Mode: 1280 x 1024 (32 bit) (60Hz)

Monitor: Plug und Play-Monitor

Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200

Driver Name: nv4_disp.dll

Driver Version: 6.14.0011.7516 (English)

DDI Version: 9 (or higher)

Driver Attributes: Final Retail

Driver Date/Size: 5/2/2008 22:46:00, 6108160 bytes

WHQL Logo'd: Yes

WHQL Date Stamp: n/a

VDD: Nicht zutreffend

Mini VDD: nv4_mini.sys

Mini VDD Date: 5/2/2008 22:46:00, 6554496 bytes

Device Identifier: {D7B71E3E-4551-11CF-EC7E-0B2003C2CB35}

Vendor ID: 0x10DE

Device ID: 0x0611

SubSys ID: 0x00000000

Revision ID: 0x00A2

Revision ID: 0x00A2

Video Accel: ModeMPEG2_C ModeMPEG2_D ModeWMV9_B ModeWMV9_A

Deinterlace Caps: {6CB69578-7617-4637-91E5-1C02DB810285}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive

{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YUY2,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch

{6CB69578-7617-4637-91E5-1C02DB810285}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive

{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(UYVY,YUY2) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch

{6CB69578-7617-4637-91E5-1C02DB810285}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive

{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(YV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch

{6CB69578-7617-4637-91E5-1C02DB810285}: Format(In/Out)=(NV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_PixelAdaptive

{335AA36E-7884-43A4-9C91-7F87FAF3E37E}: Format(In/Out)=(NV12,0x3231564e) Frames(Prev/Fwd/Back)=(0,0,0) Caps=VideoProcess_YUV2RGB VideoProcess_StretchX VideoProcess_StretchY DeinterlaceTech_BOBVerticalStretch

Registry: OK

DDraw Status: Enabled

D3D Status: Enabled

AGP Status: Enabled

DDraw Test Result: Not run

D3D7 Test Result: Not run

D3D8 Test Result: Not run

D3D9 Test Result: Not run

-------------

Sound Devices

-------------

Description: NVIDIA(R) nForce(TM) Audio

Default Sound Playback: Yes

Default Voice Playback: Yes

Hardware ID: NFORCE_VAD

Manufacturer ID: 1

Product ID: 100

Type: WDM

Driver Name: nvapu.sys

Driver Version: 6.14.0465.0000 (English)

Driver Attributes: Final Retail

WHQL Logo'd: Yes

Date and Size: 7/26/2005 08:01:56, 415360 bytes

Other Files:

Driver Provider: NVIDIA Corporation

HW Accel Level: Full

Cap Flags: 0xF5F

Min/Max Sample Rate: 200, 100000

Static/Strm HW Mix Bufs: 20, 17

Static/Strm HW 3D Bufs: 16, 16

HW Memory: 0

Voice Management: No

EAX(tm) 2.0 Listen/Src: Yes, Yes

I3DL2(tm) Listen/Src: Yes, Yes

Sensaura(tm) ZoomFX(tm): No

Registry: OK

Sound Test Result: Not run

---------------------

Sound Capture Devices

---------------------

Description: NVIDIA(R) nForce(TM) Audio

Default Sound Capture: Yes

Default Voice Capture: Yes

Driver Name: nvapu.sys

Driver Version: 6.14.0465.0000 (English)

Driver Attributes: Final Retail

Date and Size: 7/26/2005 08:01:56, 415360 bytes

Cap Flags: 0x41

Format Flags: 0xCC0

-----------

DirectMusic

-----------

DLS Path: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\drivers\GM.DLS

DLS Version: 1.00.0016.0002

Acceleration: n/a

Ports: Microsoft Synthesizer, Software (Not Kernel Mode), Output, DLS, Internal, Default Port

MPU-401, Hardware (Kernel Mode), Input, No DLS, External

MPU-401, Hardware (Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, External

NVIDIA(R) nForce(TM) Audio, Software (Kernel Mode), Output, DLS, Internal

Microsoft MIDI-Mapper [Emuliert], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal

Microsoft GS Wavetable SW Synth [Emuliert], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, Internal

MPU-401 [Emuliert], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Output, No DLS, External

MPU-401 [Emuliert], Hardware (Not Kernel Mode), Input, No DLS, External

Registry: OK

Test Result: Not run

-------------------

[tophe 69]

It didn't change the problems I had with 1.12.

I'm back to 1.09 now, that works great...

1.12 starts to lag down really really bad after a few minutes, until it's unplayable. My friend has the same problem.

I have a AMD X2 6000+ with 2gb DDR2

And a GF8800GTS with 320mb.

All the latest drivers and all windows updates. Still 1.12 is slower than a dead badger.