Trouble!

[k3ithrm]

I can't see the video screen throughout HL2, they're all black, I can't hear the people talking through the loudspeakers or the screens and my flashlight barely sheds a ray of light.

These would be my computer's specs:
504MB RAM
Realtek AC97 Audio
Intel 82845G Graphics Controller
Windows XP Professional

Can anyone one tell what graphics card i should get? Or if you have any other suggestions, please tell me.

 

[Xendance]

I've a NVIDIA Geforce FX 5200, but I think thats outdated now But hell, it worked well with Half Life 2, Episode One and Episode Two.

 

[MRG]

I can't see the video screen throughout HL2, they're all black, I can't hear the people talking through the loudspeakers or the screens and my flashlight barely sheds a ray of light.

These would be my computer's specs:
504MB RAM
Realtek AC97 Audio
Intel 82845G Graphics Controller
Windows XP Professional

Can anyone one tell what graphics card i should get? Or if you have any other suggestions, please tell me.

We are going to need some more info before going any further. We need to know what we are working with, hardware wise.

List the CPU's make, model & Speed. 504mb of RAM is very much on the low side. I "advise" a minimum of at least 1GB. Your video card is built in and is using "sharing" your system RAM for VRAM. Never a good thing. Also onboard video cards, are meant solely for basic multimedia uses, such as going online or basic everyday use. AC'97 is an old audio codec that is pretty much meant to play the "Beeps" & "Boops" that a PC makes when you turn it on & off & not much more. Sure you can listen to music through it, but it's abilities are extremely limited. I advise an add-in sound card.

Please run DXdiag & Save the report to your desktop. Then copy & Paste the first page here in a post so we can see what we are working with.

START--> RUN--> type "dxdiag" & hit enter. Click on the "Save all Information" tab at the bottom. Dxdiag will scan the hardware in your PC and then place it all in a file on your desktop. Open the file, copy & paste approx the first page or so.

-MRG

 

[Sedako]

The first thing you can try is to verify your Steam cache. Do this by right-clicking in the game in the "My Games" tab of steam and going to properties, then select the "Local files" tab and hit "Verify integrity of game cache..." If this doesn't fix the problem, chances are you either need to update your video drivers, or you may need to get a dedicated graphics card if your integrated GPU does not meet minimum specs.

 

[k3ithrm]

START--> RUN--> type "dxdiag" & hit enter. Click on the "Save all Information" tab at the bottom. Dxdiag will scan the hardware in your PC and then place it all in a file on your desktop. Open the file, copy & paste approx the first page or so.

-MRG

------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 10/16/2007, 17:47:36
Machine name: SHERI
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2 (2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.070227-2254)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Compaq Presario 061
System Model: PJ505AA-ABA SR1210NX NA440
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 2.66GHz
Memory: 504MB RAM
Page File: 335MB used, 894MB available
Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.2180 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: Intel(R) 82845G/GL/GE/PE/GV Graphics Controller
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel(R) 82845G Graphics Controller
DAC type: Internal
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_2562&SUBSYS_57781462&REV_03
Display Memory: 64.0 MB
Current Mode: 1024 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200
Driver Name: ialmrnt5.dll
Driver Version: 6.14.0010.3889 (English)
DDI Version: 9 (or higher)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 8/20/2004 16:11:36, 37951 bytes
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
WHQL Date Stamp: n/a
VDD: n/a
Mini VDD: ialmnt5.sys
Mini VDD Date: 8/20/2004 16:26:00, 737874 bytes
Device Identifier: {D7B78E66-6622-11CF-E378-7277A2C2CB35}
Vendor ID: 0x8086
Device ID: 0x2562
SubSys ID: 0x57781462
Revision ID: 0x0003
Revision ID: 0x0003
Video Accel:
Deinterlace Caps: n/a
Registry: OK
DDraw Status: Enabled
D3D Status: Enabled
AGP Status: Not Available
DDraw Test Result: Not run
D3D7 Test Result: Not run
D3D8 Test Result: Not run
D3D9 Test Result: Not run

-------------
Sound Devices
-------------
Description: Realtek AC97 Audio
Default Sound Playback: Yes
Default Voice Playback: Yes
Hardware ID: PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_24C5&SUBSYS_57711462&REV_02
Manufacturer ID: 65535
Product ID: 65535
Type: WDM
Driver Name: ALCXWDM.SYS
Driver Version: 5.10.0000.5730 (English)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
Date and Size: 10/1/2004 10:24:02, 2279424 bytes
Other Files:
Driver Provider: Realtek Semiconductor Corp.
HW Accel Level: Full
Cap Flags: 0xF5F
Min/Max Sample Rate: 100, 192000
Static/Strm HW Mix Bufs: 33, 32
Static/Strm HW 3D Bufs: 33, 32
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: Realtek AC97 Audio
Default Sound Capture: Yes
Default Voice Capture: Yes
Driver Name: ALCXWDM.SYS
Driver Version: 5.10.0000.5730 (English)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Date and Size: 10/1/2004 10:24:02, 2279424 bytes
Cap Flags: 0x41
Format Flags: 0xFFF

 

[k3ithrm]

Yeah, nothings happening. I guess I'm going to buy a new computer and get a good video and sound card.

 

[Sedako]

Yeah, nothings happening. I guess I'm going to buy a new computer and get a good video and sound card.

If you don't want to spend a lot of money, you probably only need a new video card to fix the problem, but another stick of RAM wouldn't hurt either. I believe the motherboard included with the Compaq 061 has two PCI ports. It wouldn't be optimal for any future games coming out though. This card would probably be your best option:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814129062

If you still want to buy a new PC, we can also offer you assistance there. All we need is a price you're willing to settle on and we can go from there.

 

[k3ithrm]

If you still want to buy a new PC, we can also offer you assistance there. All we need is a price you're willing to settle on and we can go from there.

I'm pretty sure I want to get a new pc, not sure what kind but have an idea.
It's cheap, but I'm going to upgrade it with a video card and sound card.
Acer T180
Creative Sound Blaster X-F1 Xtreme Gamer Sound Card
Nvidia 6800GT

Does this sound good, or do you know something really about about that computer?

 

[MRG]

Having taken a look at the specs for your PC, I would hesitate in advising you to upgrade your current PC with more powerful hardware. Regardless of the amount of RAM your computer may have or the video card thats installed, the Celeron processor, such as the one installed in your PC, is by no means a processor geared for gaming. It's going to be the biggest bottleneck in terms of performance. If the date listed on a few of the drivers are correct, (2004) then it's also a Single Core CPU, which is even less ideal, providing only minimal performance possibilities.

Now please don't get me wrong. I'm in no way trying to put down your current computer, i'm only being honest when I say that I don't advise you to try to make your current PC into a "Gaming" PC. Sure you can upgrade some of the hardware & as a result your performance will greatly increase, but only to a point.

If upgrading to a new PC is out of the question at this time, then I would advise at least upgrading the RAM to a minimum of 1GB. As for your Audio, an Audigy 2 ZS would be a cheap, though still viable upgrade. You could go with an X-Fi as well, which is a much better Sound Card, made by the same company, but for what your PC is capable of, it "might" be overkill, since you would not be using the sound card to it's full potential. The decision is of course yours.

Before throwing money at a PC built on older technology, you might want to build/buy a new PC all together. Such as Sedako mentioned, give us an amount that you have to spend & we'll be more than happy to offer some ideas.

I only ask that you list an amount that you have RIGHT NOW to spend & not an amount that you could save up in any period of time. Since hardware availability & prices are always changing, getting specs for a PC now, only to buy it in 3 months time, is more or less pointless.

Let us know how we can help.

-MRG

 

[k3ithrm]

So, the Acer computer is not a good choice?
Well, around new years I will have money for a computer. So I don't know if that's much help, but I'm looking for something in the 300-400 price range. A cheap computer so I can add a good video and sound card after saving up money for two months after I get the computer.

 

[MRG]

A couple of quick ideas. Both are SLI ready.

1) Asus M2N-E SLI Socket AM2 Barebone Kit - AMD Athlon 64 FX-62 OEM CPU, 1GB DDR2 PC4200, ATX Mid-Tower Case, 600 Watt SLI Power Supply
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3118955&Sku=A455-2340 B - $389.99

2) EVGA nForce 680i SE SLI Socket 775 Barebone Kit - TR Version, Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 2.20GHz OEM, 2GB DDR2 PC6400, ATX Full-Tower Case, Clear Side, 500 Watt Power Supply
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3366888&Sku=E145-2011 C $399.99

-MRG

 

[k3ithrm]

Thanks for the suggestions I'll definitely be thinking about this!
So, is my idea for a computer a COMPLETE fail?

 

[MRG]

I read a few reviews on the Acer T180. Somewhat mixed.

My own thoughts are that you could do better. Much better.

Either of the systems I listed are quite a bit faster, not to mention cheaper. The systems I linked to, were just a rough template of what you could get. There are many, many others you could choose from or you can make your own. I linked to them to give you an idea is all.

-MRG

 

[k3ithrm]

Okay, thank you very much!