Problem with NVidia Quadro FX 4000 on MSI K8T Master2-Far

Question

Hello everyone, I am new to the forums here.  I cannot figure out what is causing my problem.
I have been having performance issues with my new Quadro FX 4000 on my system.  I have been in communication with Nvidia tech support for a while now.  Here is the discussion I have been having with them.  It explains my problem in detail.  Be sure to read it from bottom to top though.
*Update*
I have a feeling that my PSU might be causing the low performance, seeing that the Quadro requires two power connectors to attach to it: (http://www.pny.com/support/quadro/install/FX4000AdditionalPowerRequirements.pdf)
Here is my PSU:
http://www.xpcgear.com/500wseepsubl.html
I do not know much about PSU's, so any input is greatly appreciated.  Thanks.
Response (GL)
Pat,
I have checked the NVBug Database and although there has been Bugs submitted where a MSI Master2-Far motherboard was used, none of the issues were caused by the motherboard. They just happened to have a MSI Master2-Far motherboard.
We have seen conflicts when both ATI and NVIDIA drivers are both installed, but I would hope that the Driver Cleaner software removed the lines in the registry as well.
Did you try the FX4000 in the other system (the one that had the MX 440) ?
I believe you are taking to right steps in resolving this issue.
Looking at the Windows Error Reporting, it seems you have had some app problems.
Looking forward in hearing your results
Best regards,
NVIDIA Customer Care.
 Customer (Pat Miller) 02/07/2007 12:19 AM 
OK I completed my tests and got some interesting results.
-I installed the GeForce Mx 440 on my computer and it yielded similar poor performance just like the Quadro did (terrible window scrolling, stuttering, horrible gaming).
-I then installed the Quadro on the computer I yanked the Geforce MX 440 from.  I installed the most recent drivers, and it worked WONDERFULLY.  There was no stuttering, no lagging, and Open GL gaming seemed even better than the MX 440 (I know the Quadro is not designed for gaming, but some Open GL counter-strike served as a nice little test.)  Unfortunately, that computer does not have Adobe Premiere or any high-end applications for me to really test the card with.
-After those two tests, I uninstalled the MX 440 from my computer and re-installed its ORIGINAL ATI 9600 SE.  It worked just like it did before I first received the Quadro.  No window lagging, no stuttering, and adequate gaming.
All of these test yield a few conclusions to me:
1. The Quadro FX 4000 card is not defective, it does indeed work.
2. My computer seems to dislike Nvidia cards and/or drivers (seeing as the Quadro and GeForce gave me terrible results while the ATI worked fine.)
It would seem to be a driver issue, almost like my original ATI driver files are still running.  That would explain everything.  However, I completely removed the ATI driver AND ran Driver Cleaner to clear all ATI files from my system before attempting to install the Nvidia card.
I cannot think of a reason for these inconsistencies. Tomorrow I plan on preparing to completely crash my computer. Backup my files and completely format my HD's and reinstalled Windows XP Pro, my Mobo software, all drivers, ect.
I will await any ideas or suggestions before I format my computer.  I hope these tests along with my system info helps.  Thank you very much.
 Customer (Pat Miller) 02/06/2007 07:51 PM 
Ok,
Here is my system info.  I realize that the Quadro FX 4000 has a conflicting IRQ with my onboard gigabyte ethernet, but my old ATI card was the same way, and it never caused a problem.  Also, I am unsure how to fix that anyways.  Hopefully this info helps us determine the problem.
I am going to try a few tests of my own.  I am going to install a GeForce MX 440 AGP card(from my other computer) and see how it performs.  Then I will try re-installing my old ATI 9600SE card.  If I get similar low performance, than it must be something else besides the card.  Otherwise, the card is the issue.
Thanks for the help.
 Response (GL) 02/06/2007 12:15 PM 
Pat,
Maybe the system info will shed some light.
Please perform the following steps:
1) Click on the Start button
2) Select Run
3) In the Open field, type in "msinfo32" and then press the OK button
4) This will bring up the Microsoft System Information Utility. 
    Click on File and then Save to save this information to your hard drive. You may give it any name you choose.
5) Once the file has been saved on your hard drive, attach it to this support request so that we may review your system configuration.
Looking forward for your response.
Best regards,
NVIDIA Customer Care.
 Customer (Pat Miller) 02/02/2007 05:19 PM 
I completely uninstalled my old ATI and Nvidia drivers.  I went into safe mode and ran Driver Cleaner also.  I freshly installed the new Nvidia driver and I still have low performance.
I am trying to download Viewperf, but it is downloading at about 30k/s, which will take about a day to finish.  What else could be causing this?  It is possible its a bad card? I got it new on Ebay from a legitimate seller, but it came with the card only.
 Response (GL) 02/01/2007 06:00 PM 
Thank you for contacting NVIDIA Customer Care
There should not be any performance drop browsing the internet or moving windows across screens.
Since you did have an ATI card installed, you may want to verify that all files have been removed.
This also includes the registry since there are applications known to leave files behind.
Once all ATI files have been removed, please run a benchmark software such as ViewPerf.
Viewperf 9.03 can be found on the following location:
http://www.spec.org/gpc/downloadindex.html
Best regards
NVIDIA Customer Care
 Customer (Pat Miller) 02/01/2007 01:35 PM 
I recently upgraded to a Quadro FX 4000.  I do a lot of video editing on Premiere, and from what I read, it seemed like the best card to get.  However, I am getting very poor performance with this card.  For example, just browing the internet and moving windows around yields a very stuttery picture.  And I do not notice any different using Premiere.
I uninstalled my old video card (ATI 9600 SE) and uninstalled the drivers for it as well.
I have tried 3 different versions of drivers for the Quadro 4000, including the most recent.
I have checked the power connections, and the card is receiving power on both the ports.
I really have no idea what could be causing this bad performance.  Is this how the card works?  Did my ATI 9600SE yield better performance for internet browsing than this card does?  The only thing I can think of is that the card is not getting enough power because it connects to 2 seperate power cables from the PSU which already power lots of other things (HD's, Disk Drives, Fans).
Any help is greatly appreciated.  Here at my system specs:
Custom built PC
MSI Master2-Far Mobo
2x AMD Opteron 244
2G Transcend DDR 333 Registered Ram(1 stick)
2x WD 74G Raptors (RAID 0)
1x Maxtor 250G
2x DVD burner
1x DVD Rom
Quadro FX 4000 AGP
*Update*
I have a feeling that my PSU might be causing the low performance, seeing that the Quadro requires two power connectors to attach to it: (http://www.pny.com/support/quadro/install/FX4000AdditionalPowerRequirements.pdf)
Here is my PSU:
http://www.xpcgear.com/500wseepsubl.html
I do not know much about PSU's, so any input is greatly appreciated.  Thanks.

Answer 1

Hi there, welcome to forum.
"*Update*
I have a feeling that my PSU might be causing the low performance, seeing that the Quadro requires two power connectors to attach to it: (http://www.pny.com/support/quadro/install/FX4000AdditionalPowerRequirements.pdf)
Here is my PSU:
http://www.xpcgear.com/500wseepsubl.html
I do not know much about PSU's, so any input is greatly appreciated.  Thanks."
your PSU is good one and should be powerfull enough.
Output    +3.3V@28A, +5V@30A, +12V@34A, [email protected], [email protected], +5VSB@2A
can't be power related, since at 1st your PSU must be enough, 2nd same issue happend with your old mx 440 VGA. card malfunction are dismissed as possibility as well since its work fine in another machine.
think its drivers mess. ATI drivers(or part of them) still exist, guess is not completely removed. same symptoms happend many times when switching between Ati to NV, lagging 2D scrolling lag and etc, caused by ATI Smart (part of ATI Drivers) sometimes remain(survive after driver cleaner).
suggest you a new clean fresh OS installation. like Nv support already directed. also ensure in BIOS, in "Integrated Peripherals", "Init Display First" are configured to AGP.
let we know how its going, if problem persist we a ready with a tips to resolve your issue.