PCI ATI TV Wonder... Tunes, audio, but video is just blue?

[Phrederick]

Hey all!

Just installed an ATI TV Wonder PCI card into my machine. Software installed
fine. Followed the instructions on ATI's website to a tee. When the TV
program is started, I get the audio, but TV picture is just blue.

Symptoms...

- Every time I start the TV app, it gives me the Welcome wizard. The first
time through it wouldn't let me continue until a scanned for TV channels. I
did this and it found them fine.

- Once I've gone through this welcome wizard, the TV comes up and I can hear
audio, but the display is just blue.

I've tried in both 32bit and 16bit colour...

Win XP Pro with all updates
NVideo GeForce 2 GTS video card with recent drivers
VIA 4in1's installed.


Ideas?

 

[Phrederick]

Hey all!

Just installed an ATI TV Wonder PCI card into my machine. Software installed
fine. Followed the instructions on ATI's website to a tee. When the TV
program is started, I get the audio, but TV picture is just blue.

Symptoms...

- Every time I start the TV app, it gives me the Welcome wizard. The first
time through it wouldn't let me continue until a scanned for TV channels. I
did this and it found them fine.

- Once I've gone through this welcome wizard, the TV comes up and I can hear
audio, but the display is just blue.

I've tried in both 32bit and 16bit colour...

Win XP Pro with all updates
NVideo GeForce 2 GTS video card with recent drivers
VIA 4in1's installed.

Welcome Wizard problem was because I didn't reboot and reinstalling SBLive
drivers. This is fine.

Now the only problem is that there is no video displayed on the TV.

Any chance ATI's software just won't work at 1600x1200???

 

[John]

Any chance ATI's software just won't work at 1600x1200???

Well you could set the res lower and test it.

My neighbor boought that card and had big problems. I installed it for
him and it wouldnt work at all with a Savage 3d video chipset
/drivers. It kept totally corrupting the video. I gave him my old
VooDoo 3d and it worked perfectly.

 

[Phrederick]

Well you could set the res lower and test it.

My neighbor boought that card and had big problems. I installed it for
him and it wouldnt work at all with a Savage 3d video chipset
/drivers. It kept totally corrupting the video. I gave him my old
VooDoo 3d and it worked perfectly.

I have had the card working before.

I did try... Didn't go any lower than 1024x768 though. Still no video.

I downloaded latest video drivers from NVidia's site and installed them...
The TV app bluescreened when I started it. Going to try again, but at this
point I have all "today's" drivers installed...

- ATI driver and media center
- VIA 4in1's
- NVidia's latest official driver
- DirectX 9.0b
- MS Media encoder

.... Can't think of anything else to try and update...

Wish me luck! (Especially in getting a useful response from ATI)

 

[kony]

I downloaded latest video drivers from NVidia's site and installed them...
The TV app bluescreened when I started it. Going to try again, but at this
point I have all "today's" drivers installed...

- ATI driver and media center
- VIA 4in1's
- NVidia's latest official driver
- DirectX 9.0b
- MS Media encoder

... Can't think of anything else to try and update...

Wish me luck! (Especially in getting a useful response from ATI)

I would return the card, ATI is still horrible with drivers,
particularly for the AIW and TV cards. There are plenty of better
PCI alternatives.

Anyway, unless ATI's driver mentioned needing DX9, you probably only
needed DX8. MS Media Encoder is definitely not needed to display the
TV overlay, is only necessary to record in MS Media format. nVidia's
latest driver "shouldn't" be needed either, older drivers had working
overlay support, though you might go into the driver menu in Display
Properites and see if there's a "check this box if your TV isn't
working right", box (I forget the exact wording). That box appears on
Detonator 40 or 50 series drivers, IIRC.

You might check Device Manager to confirm that it isn't flagging the
drivers (for the ATI card) as a problem, and load up some other app
with WDM video input support (like the included(?) video editing
software) and see if it shows the TV picture.

Really I would just return the card, there are alternatives now that
even have the newer Conexant 10-bit encoder for < $70 USD. ATI has
had several years now to fix their MMC software and STILL hasn't got
it right... inexcusable for a company with the size and volume of ATI.


Dave

 

[Phrederick]

I would return the card, ATI is still horrible with drivers,
particularly for the AIW and TV cards. There are plenty of better
PCI alternatives.

Anyway, unless ATI's driver mentioned needing DX9, you probably only
needed DX8. MS Media Encoder is definitely not needed to display the
TV overlay, is only necessary to record in MS Media format. nVidia's
latest driver "shouldn't" be needed either, older drivers had working
overlay support, though you might go into the driver menu in Display
Properites and see if there's a "check this box if your TV isn't
working right", box (I forget the exact wording). That box appears on
Detonator 40 or 50 series drivers, IIRC.

You might check Device Manager to confirm that it isn't flagging the
drivers (for the ATI card) as a problem, and load up some other app
with WDM video input support (like the included(?) video editing
software) and see if it shows the TV picture.

Really I would just return the card, there are alternatives now that
even have the newer Conexant 10-bit encoder for < $70 USD. ATI has
had several years now to fix their MMC software and STILL hasn't got
it right... inexcusable for a company with the size and volume of ATI.

Believe me, this card would go back in a second if I had that option. It has
worked in various PCs before though. Can't remember which PC I last had it
working in though.

I've also had problems with Hauppage TV tuners a while back as well so I'm
not having much luck.

What really burns me is that I'm going to need two decent video cards and
ATI seems to be "the" card to get these days. Probably end up with a 9600XT
(don't know why they're cheaper that 9600Pro cards). I'm hoping to replace
this ATI and the Hauppage cards we have as well... but there are no "big"
names to watch for.

You mention the "if your TV isn't working" checkbox... I'm assuming it
should not be checked, so the software won't assume two displays?

Thx!

 

[Lane Lewis]

new:alt.comp.periphs.videocards.ati

Lane

 

[kony]

What really burns me is that I'm going to need two decent video cards and
ATI seems to be "the" card to get these days. Probably end up with a 9600XT
(don't know why they're cheaper that 9600Pro cards). I'm hoping to replace
this ATI and the Hauppage cards we have as well... but there are no "big"
names to watch for.

Their video card drivers have improved more than the MMC software, I
still prefer nVidia's drivers but ATI's Radeon cards aren't a bad
choice at all these days.

You mention the "if your TV isn't working" checkbox... I'm assuming it
should not be checked, so the software won't assume two displays?

No, it's not relating to multiple displays, just overlays. It's in
the Detonator 52 driver on this page:
http://69.36.189.159/usr_1034/det_tv_prob.gif

I also checked another system running Detonator 44 driver, it doens't
have that box at all, just zoom control and
brightness/color/contrast/etc, though that system is working fine with
a PCI tv tuner/capture card (Leadtek TV2000XP Dlx). I don't have a
Geforce 2 GTS (or any GF2 cards here) so I can't try one... sorry



Dave

 

[Phrederick]

You mention the "if your TV isn't working" checkbox... I'm assuming it

No, it's not relating to multiple displays, just overlays. It's in
the Detonator 52 driver on this page:
http://69.36.189.159/usr_1034/det_tv_prob.gif

Ah... Don't have that checkbox... My drivers are v5.2.1.6. Possibly a
registry tweak, or dependent of other stuff installed (DirectX?)

I also checked another system running Detonator 44 driver, it doens't
have that box at all, just zoom control and
brightness/color/contrast/etc, though that system is working fine with
a PCI tv tuner/capture card (Leadtek TV2000XP Dlx). I don't have a
Geforce 2 GTS (or any GF2 cards here) so I can't try one... sorry

I've uninstalled all the ATI stuff, clearing out the registery, and ensured
that everything was installed and up to date before reinstalling the ATI
software. Still no joy.

A couple things I've noticed while wasting hours trying to get this
working...

When starting the TV app, the window can come up blue or black or a
combination thereof. I've seen it split with the top blue and bottom black
and I've seen it black with random horizontal slivers of blue as well.

I *CAN* get a single frame of video if I do the following:
- I move graphics acceleration down two notches from full
- Reboot to ensure the setting sticks
- Start the TV app
- Move the graphics acceleration to full again
- Click apply. The desktop blinks and the TV app has a single frame of the
show

....of course the PC doesn't seem stable after this, sometimes bluescreening
when closing the TV app.

Next thing to try is some different versions of the Detonator drivers... I'm
sure it's some kind of overlay issue. I just wish I knew where to rightly
lay the blame - ATI or NVidia.

 

[Phrederick]

Joined!

Thx!

 

[kony]

Ah... Don't have that checkbox... My drivers are v5.2.1.6. Possibly a
registry tweak, or dependent of other stuff installed (DirectX?)

No idea. I just double-checked and that box is running the V52.16
driver, DX8.1, GF4Ti4200 on Win98SE. I suspect it has more to do with
it being a GF4 than anything else but I don't know that for sure.

I've uninstalled all the ATI stuff, clearing out the registery, and ensured
that everything was installed and up to date before reinstalling the ATI
software. Still no joy.

A couple things I've noticed while wasting hours trying to get this
working...

When starting the TV app, the window can come up blue or black or a
combination thereof. I've seen it split with the top blue and bottom black
and I've seen it black with random horizontal slivers of blue as well.

I *CAN* get a single frame of video if I do the following:
- I move graphics acceleration down two notches from full
- Reboot to ensure the setting sticks
- Start the TV app
- Move the graphics acceleration to full again
- Click apply. The desktop blinks and the TV app has a single frame of the
show

...of course the PC doesn't seem stable after this, sometimes bluescreening
when closing the TV app.

Next thing to try is some different versions of the Detonator drivers... I'm
sure it's some kind of overlay issue. I just wish I knew where to rightly
lay the blame - ATI or NVidia.

Since a GF2 should've been fully supported by the Detonator 20 series
I'd try something in that area, a later 20 series driver, then later
30 series, later 40 series.

On the other hand there might also be the possibility of earlier MMC
software? I was glad when I pulled the last ATI tuner/cap AIW card
out of a system here, the only thing even remotely interesting was
that a few years back they were one of the earlier adopters of a
"video desktop", IIRC. I do recall that the Matrox Marvel cards
couldn't do that at the time.


Dave