Guillemont Xentor 16 TNT2...

[(Medieval)]

I am looking for a decent TNT2 card around here for under $200 (Cnd.) The Viper 770 is about $270, and the Asus cards are a little (290) more but they have tv in/out .

These are all retail prices btw.

I really don't want to spend that much.. the 16 meg TNT2 from Guillemont seems like a good buy for $189 and a 30 dollar mail in.. and it has pretty high normal clock speeds for it's class (140 and 166 I think, something like that.)

Most reports I see say there is not much diff. between the 32 meg and 16 meg versions, especially when AGP comes into play..

I'm not that FUSSY.. I mean, I have a 2 meg ATI right now... http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif Bought a new cel 366-412 at the moment, and 64 pc100, Asus p2-99. Now I need a new video card http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

Anyway, does anyone have this card (the 16 meg TNT2 Maxi Gamer Guillemont). Comments/Suggestions?

I need some heh.

[WhoKnowsWho]

I have the Guillemot Xentor16, really couldn't be happier with that and my Celeron 333@416. I am much happier with it than my 2 week stint with a Voodoo3 2000. I easily overclocked it, core to 150 and memory to 175. So an Ultra for Vanilla price, what could be better? Only "drawback" is there is no real game bundle, but it didn't matter much to me since I have all the games I wanted at the time, didn't need any more bundled games I wouldn't play anyways. Looking around, you should be able to find the card for around $130 after rebate or something like that. Just use www.pricewatch.com and www.pricescan.com

[(Medieval)]

Ummm... $130 Canadian , you sure?

And, Pricewatch and that blow for Canadian prices.. they don't have any listings at all.

[neo]

I can almost guarantee that is in $US. Have you looked into the Hercules TNT2 16MB? You can get it real cheap OEM.

-neo

[(Medieval)]

Hrmmm.. I haven't seen Hercules around here... Asus, Guillemont, Creative, and Diamond's cards..

Any good Canadian online shops? Pricewatch.com sucks for that. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[neo]

Yes, there are some listed on the hercules website. Here is one for sure:
http://can.futureshop.com/
I'm not sure if they have gotten the cards in yet, ask cust. service. The others are listed at
http://www.hercules.com/presale/us_retail.htm
Good luck!

-neo

[socalgal]

I have the Xentor 32mg TNT2 Ultra, and haven't responded to your post before this because I had problems with this card and thought the errors were caused by my own mistakes.

Also, please note that the review cited is for the 32mg. I don't know if this would apply to the 16mg to which you are inquiring.

I just came upon the following. Maybe the errors weren't caused (or all caused) by me after all.

Here's an excerpt from www.hardwarecentral.com/hardwarecentral/reviews/816/6/ (http://www.hardwarecentral.com/hardwarecentral/reviews/816/6/) :

"However...
I don't ever remember installing a video card that actually crashed my system bad enough to require me to re-install Windows, but the Xentor 32 managed to make that dream a reality. There is no way Guillemot should have shipped drivers that can damage a system like these ones did. Also of note is the fact that this card doesn't overclock well. What you get out of the box is pretty much what you'll get out of your card. There has also been a few complaints about the fans failing quite quickly on this card but I have no way tell if this problem is widespread or just a local issue."

Read the review further and it will tell you to not install the shipped drivers!

HOWEVER, in the install portion of the review it states:

"Do yourself a favor and download the reference drivers from Nvidia. The extra few minutes this takes will save you some time (not to mention you'll rip out less of your hair) in the long run. Don't worry, the reference drivers function the same as Guillemot's drivers except that they are faster and they don't crash your computer.

Of course after the driver situation was fixed and Windows re-installed, the card ran all my software with nary a problem to be seen."


Just to clarify - I don't know for sure if this is the reason why I had and am still having problems. But I sure wish I had seen this before I installed the card.



[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-23-99).]

[WhoKnowsWho]

Guillemot actually screwed something up bigtime in their first release of the card and drivers, both 16 and 32 meg versions. There is a comment about it on their web page, a file to download to prevent problems. I forgot about that, when I had installed the card and the drivers off the cd-rom... that was it for windows, it was dead. But Guillemot noticed the problem I suppose, and also the reference drivers don't 'cause a problem.

[socalgal]

WhoKnowsWho ~ If you wouldn't mind looking, what release version does it list on the Xentor CD? And do you have a label on the CD jacket that has a date on it? What date does it say?

Thanks!

[WhoKnowsWho]

I'll be happy to get that information and post it for you, once I find it, as for now, it's time for me to sleep since I have an odd working schedule, (6pm to 6am).

[socalgal]

WhoKnowsWho ~ thanks again, np. I was wondering if we had the same versions.

I downloaded the comctl32.dll "fix" for the drivers problem from the Guillemot site. but haven't tried it yet. This Explorer.exe fault is what's been happening with me. Hope it fixes without a reinstall of Win98, but even that would be 100x better than reformatting c:

Note: I could have saved myself alot of problems and time if I had thoroughly researched the reviews!

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-25-99).]

[baffled]

have a look at www.clarkcom.ca don't know if it helps but it is a Canadian site and prices

[WhoKnowsWho]

Hmm... as far as I can tell, this cd has driver release 4.11.01.xxxx and the cd itself says version 1.0 It was purchased the first week the card was released... I don't have the sleeve anymore, I threw it away when I put the CD in a jewel case, and I don't remember there being any label, or I would have taken it off and put it on the jewel case too.

Try download the new reference 1.88 drivers, they work much better anyways, and would hopefully get rid of the explorer.exe crashes. Use the method of removing the registry entry to make sure the old drivers are all removed...

[This message has been edited by WhoKnowsWho (edited 06-26-99).]

[slayer]

if i were you, i would buy an OEM of the
hercules TNT2 32mb card. you get better performance than the Xentor 16mb and it will
be cheap, but i don't know if it will be cheaper than the xentor. and if you can affort it, buy the OEM version of the hercules TNT2 ultra. i plan on buying the retail Hercules TNT2 ultra and that is the best card out there. i've done my research.
email me if you have more questions. feel free.

[neo]

Not to start a war or anything slayer, but there is no one card that is the "best" out there for every person. One should match the card to his/her needs, not the needs of the top of the line P3 550 system with 256MB of RAM. I very seriously doubt you could find a 32MB hercules TNT2 for under $200CND.

-neo

[socalgal]

WhoKnowsWho~~ I thank you for your reply.

I returned the Xentor after another, major problem. Downloading the comctl32.dll "fix" and using the reference drivers from nVidia didn't seem to help. Your registry suggestion is a good one, but by that time the explorer error wouldn't let me access my desktop.

I took a deep breath and purchased the Diamond V770 32mg TNT2 Ultra. It went in like a summer breeze. No errors. How wonderful. Maybe the G400MAX will be out before the end of 30 days.

Thanks again for getting back with me.

~Edit: Oh yeah, forgot to mention, I had to reformat.

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-27-99).]

[socalgal]

WhoKnowsWho ~ So you had to reformat also.

They should pull that card from the shelves until/unless they get their shipped software/drivers corrected.

I didn't have the mental resources to try it again, hence, the V770. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[WhoKnowsWho]

Sorry to hear you had to format and nothing fixed the problem. When I got the card, installed the drivers, that was the last I saw of Windows, even safe mode wouldn't start up, it just crashed once the screen came up. That was a week of reformats, (didn't even have a chance to reinstall Half-Life since I had to format earlier that week). But after the format and loading reference drivers straight, the card was fine, and so was Windows... Oh well, hopefully the G400 does come out within 30 days, you could enjoy the use of all major video cards of the summer, a large achievement http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[WhoKnowsWho]

Well, they did release a new version in the stores, but I don't think they pulled the old ones. I feel sorry for the people who get the older version and don't get a chance to check the web before loading the card and drivers... I didn't/don't have the money resource to get a V770, so I am really happy this card works now... and I would hate to have to go back to a Voodoo3 2000 like the one I used for a week before returning it to get the TNT2. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif


[This message has been edited by WhoKnowsWho (edited 06-28-99).]

[socalgal]

The Xentor was an impulse buy. It had the features I was looking for (TV-out, softDVD).
I failed to do the proper research, my fault for that one. I don't do that very often. See where it got me! Still shouldn't be on the shelf tho, IMO.

Did you see this post for us reformatters?
http://www.sysopt.com/forum/Forum1/HTML/000956.html Some good advice there, I think.

I'm glad the card works well for you, now. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 06-28-99).]

[WhoKnowsWho]

Actually, I did see that post (a week after the reformat) I should probably reformat AGAIN, and use that post's idea since I need to get rid of this stupid Windows 98 SE, my friend got it and asked me to try it first before he installed it, and me being the "jump head first" type of guy sometimes, I installed it. Now, it won't shut down, and it boots up at super snail speed... score another one for MS... oh well...

[socalgal]

I already have my WINBACK made. Fear is a great motivator. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif