XFX 6950 1GB Flash testing

padrino · Jun 5, 2011, 05:43 PM

I purchased a couple of XFX 695X ZNDC cards with the hope I could flash the bios because some had successfully flashed them, it seems the version of the card has a lot to do with it. Mine at VA.3 cards with flash M25P10/C and do not have the BIOS switch.

After many failed attempts in both windows and DOS I decided to take the card apart and see if bridging the absent BIOS switch for position 1 would help. I bridged the two traces for position 1 and sadly the card is reporting the same errors when trying to flash, essentially the ROM cannot be erased and flashed no matter what I do (unlockrom, etc.). Since I have seen a few people ask about bridging the missing BIOS switch I thought I would report my findings.

padrino · Jun 5, 2011, 11:40 PM

If anyone has any further ideas or options to hack the hardware it would be much appreciated. I wonder how hard it is to swap chips these days, that would definitely solve my problems however I need to dig back into the card to figure it out.

gazorp · Jun 6, 2011, 11:09 PM

I have the XFX 695X ZNFC and cannot flash either. I get the error cannot erase flash.

Surely there must be some way to unlock the flash to get a custom bios on there!

Please w1zzard! Help us XFX owners out with a fresh hack!

Since i just got the card, i will most likely return it in the next couple of days and get one from a vendor who isnt locking them down...

cadaveca · Jun 6, 2011, 11:11 PM

Both erocker and I have 695X ZNFC 2GB cards we flashed, working fine. Maybe restricted to 2GB cards only?

erocker · Jun 6, 2011, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cadaveca

Both erocker and I have 695X ZNFC 2GB cards we flashed, working fine. Maybe restricted to 2GB cards only?

Mine are 1gb, but I have the switch.

cadaveca · Jun 6, 2011, 11:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by erocker

Mine are 1gb, but I have the switch.

I thought you had 2GB cards. My bad!

Hmmm. You have a switch, mine do not.

Yours are 1GB, with switch, flashed fine, mine 2GB without switch, flashed fine.

Can you tell us the ver. of your cards? OP has A3...I have A1...you have....A2, perhaps?

erocker · Jun 6, 2011, 11:27 PM

Version A.1

cadaveca · Jun 6, 2011, 11:32 PM

Hmm. I wonder what version other cards that have been successfully modded are. Perhaps ver A.1 is the one to get...

gazorp · Jun 7, 2011, 02:24 AM

Mine is version A.3, no switch, 1GB. The error is always cannot erase rom.

I have tried in RBE, where the error is unknown. Then i tried in winflash and get the cannot erase error. Then i tried w1zzards directions of running from admin cmd prompt manually to unlock and flash. There is nothing returned from the prompts and the card still has default rom.

I have a full lab to make any mods necessary, but have little experience with cards this new. I am not sure if the flash is encrypted or locked now or perhaps just needs to be added for support in winflsh. I will tinker for a few more days, but it looks like its going back for a better brand next week.

padrino · Jun 7, 2011, 10:52 AM

The flash is a standard chip but it looks like they are using hardware write protection, the datasheet indicates that if W is 0 then hardware write protection is enabled, looks like W needs to be 1 so it can be unlocked with unlockrom command. http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/data...cs/mXuvyxs.pdf

gazorp · Jun 8, 2011, 04:02 AM

So you are suggesting shorting write protect to VCC then boot or perhaps should we install a switch and only activate before flashing, after boot.

Either way, definitely use a pull up resistor!

padrino · Jun 8, 2011, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gazorp

So you are suggesting shorting write protect to VCC then boot or perhaps should we install a switch and only activate before flashing, after boot.

Either way, definitely use a pull up resistor!

From reading it that looks like it might be the case, I'm no expert so looking for more confirmation before I give it a shot.

padrino · Jun 8, 2011, 10:53 AM

The table of write protect modes has a 0, 1, or X depending on the mode used. In that context does X mean unconnected, can one clip that pin and get the desired results? Just exploring the easiest mode, I've built basic circuits in the past but never tried to mess with something like this before so I'm hesitant without being sure.

padrino · Jun 10, 2011, 05:11 PM

Still looking for additional feedback if anyone has any insights.

ChuckyD · Jun 16, 2011, 02:27 AM

Padrino -

The BIOS chip must have pins 3 and 8 bridged to enabled writes. This can be done by soldering a jumper in place, or more easily by using a circuit writer pen sold at radio shack.

On the ZNFC model the BIOS chip is located on the front face of the PCB to the lower left of the GPU under the heatsink. See the red arrow in the picture. Pin 1 is the pin located closest to the dot on the top of the chip and the pins are numbered counterclockwise thereafter.

I performed this mod earlier this week and have since flashed sucessfully many times. Still have not been able to unlock the shaders though - not sure if the BIOSs are edited correctly or if i have a hardware limitation. If anyone has a BIOS that has worked on a ZNFC model, then the help is appreciated!

Enjoy!

snipes420 · Jun 16, 2011, 02:39 AM

I just picked up a XFX HD-695X-ZNDC 1GB card like mentioned in the original post.
Mine is VA.2 and it does not have the dual bios switch. I have tried everything possible to get it flashed with a modded bios but atiwinflash just disappears like mentioned in previous posts. Or errors about flash not erasable.

I don't have the chutzpah to disassemble mine yet but I really hope someone can sort out how to flash these units.
Good Luck!

Edit: Cool ChuckyD. Is that a picture of your card?

padrino · Jun 16, 2011, 03:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChuckyD

Padrino -

The BIOS chip must have pins 3 and 8 bridged to enabled writes. This can be done by soldering a jumper in place, or more easily by using a circuit writer pen sold at radio shack.

On the ZNFC model the BIOS chip is located on the front face of the PCB to the lower left of the GPU under the heatsink. See the red arrow in the picture. Pin 1 is the pin located closest to the dot on the top of the chip and the pins are numbered counterclockwise thereafter.

I performed this mod earlier this week and have since flashed sucessfully many times. Still have not been able to unlock the shaders though - not sure if the BIOSs are edited correctly or if i have a hardware limitation. If anyone has a BIOS that has worked on a ZNFC model, then the help is appreciated!

Enjoy!

Great information! I will try it when I get back home at the end of the week and post the results.

snipes420 · Jun 16, 2011, 05:17 AM

I sucked it up and voided my warranty

The procedure works exactly as ChuckyD said. I saved then modded my cards bios and then flashed it. The flash procedure went all the way this time, I do not get errors about not being able to erase the chip. But like ChuckyD said, after rebooting and checking gpu-z the extra shaders are not enabled. To double check it, I saved the bios out of the chip again and checked md5sums for all the files and Yep if definitely flashed the modded bios but it looks like that patch does not work.

It sure sucks that this card doesn't have a dual bios because it may make it hard to test patches to the bios. [easy to brick

]

snipes420 · Jun 16, 2011, 08:36 AM

I literally tried unlocking and flashing every 6950 1024MB bios available on techpowerup.com's 'vga bios database'. I bricked it a few times but my trusty S3 Trio32 pci VGA card was always handy. Still hope some video card bios hacking guru needs a challenge and picks up this ones trail

Edit: sorry for double post

jzv · Jun 16, 2011, 08:51 AM

A quick heads up my XFX HD-695X-ZNDC cards are of the XXX variant the 830 mhz versions. And they have the bios switch and unlock shaders fine.

SlaveOnDope · Jun 16, 2011, 09:59 AM

Did this the other day without issue

XFX HD-695X-ZNFC VA.3 Radeon HD 6950 1GB
Pm25LV010

ChuckyD · Jun 16, 2011, 10:43 AM

SlaveOnDope - Can you send me a copy of your BIOS?

SlaveOnDope · Jun 16, 2011, 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChuckyD

SlaveOnDope - Can you send me a copy of your BIOS?

Unlock using RBE. Good luck.

gazorp · Jun 17, 2011, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SlaveOnDope

Unlock using RBE. Good luck.

Can anyone confirm that this bios worked for them? Thanks Slave for the upload! I will try it on my card next week.

ThaSpacePope · Jun 17, 2011, 05:33 PM

Oh man I have 2 of these coming from newegg. Really have to remove the HSF to get the bios to reflash?

ChuckyD: How would you suggest using a circuitwriter for this? removing the chip and writing between the pins, then resoldering?

Jun 5, 2011, 05:43 PM	#1
padrino Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	XFX 6950 1GB Flash testing I purchased a couple of XFX 695X ZNDC cards with the hope I could flash the bios because some had successfully flashed them, it seems the version of the card has a lot to do with it. Mine at VA.3 cards with flash M25P10/C and do not have the BIOS switch. After many failed attempts in both windows and DOS I decided to take the card apart and see if bridging the absent BIOS switch for position 1 would help. I bridged the two traces for position 1 and sadly the card is reporting the same errors when trying to flash, essentially the ROM cannot be erased and flashed no matter what I do (unlockrom, etc.). Since I have seen a few people ask about bridging the missing BIOS switch I thought I would report my findings.

Jun 6, 2011, 11:11 PM	#4
cadaveca My name is Dave Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: The Great White North Posts: 10,766 (4.15/day) Thanks: 4,473 Thanked 5,187 Times in 3,197 Posts System Specs	Both erocker and I have 695X ZNFC 2GB cards we flashed, working fine. Maybe restricted to 2GB cards only? __________________ Gadgets, Phones, Tablets, Cameras, TVs, HiFi...NextPowerUp -Only real men play games THIS way.

System Name:	Eyefinity Gamer
Processor:	Intel i5 3570K @ 4.6 GHz
Motherboard:	ASUS Maximmus V Formula
Cooling:	Corsair H100
Memory:	16 GB G.Skill F3-2666C11Q-16GTXD
Video Card:	AMD Radeon HD7950 3GB x2 w/AMD Catalyst 12.10
Hard Disk:	OCZ Nocti 60GB mSATA, Crucial M4 120GB x2
Optical Drive:	LG BluRay/HD-DVD
CRT/LCD Model:	3x Dell U2412M
Case:	LianLi T60
Sound Card:	N/A
PSU:	Silverstone Strider 750W GOLD
Software:	Windows 8 Pro
Benchmarks:	Benchmarking is for suckers. ;)

Processor:	Intel i7 3770K @ 4.6ghz 1.256v
Motherboard:	Asus Maximus V Formula
Cooling:	Water
Memory:	2x4gb Patriot Viper 2133mhz 10-11-10-25 2T 1.55v
Video Card:	Sapphire HD 7970 1125/1575 1.14v
Hard Disk:	Crucial M4 128Gb / Corsair Force 3 120Gb / Samsung 240Gb / 2Tb Seagate
Optical Drive:	None
CRT/LCD Model:	Acheiva Shimian 27" IPS 2560x1440
Case:	Corsair 500R White
Sound Card:	Onboard
PSU:	NZXT Hale90 1Kw
Software:	Windows 8 x64

System Name:	Eyefinity Gamer
Processor:	Intel i5 3570K @ 4.6 GHz
Motherboard:	ASUS Maximmus V Formula
Cooling:	Corsair H100
Memory:	16 GB G.Skill F3-2666C11Q-16GTXD
Video Card:	AMD Radeon HD7950 3GB x2 w/AMD Catalyst 12.10
Hard Disk:	OCZ Nocti 60GB mSATA, Crucial M4 120GB x2
Optical Drive:	LG BluRay/HD-DVD
CRT/LCD Model:	3x Dell U2412M
Case:	LianLi T60
Sound Card:	N/A
PSU:	Silverstone Strider 750W GOLD
Software:	Windows 8 Pro
Benchmarks:	Benchmarking is for suckers. ;)

Jun 5, 2011, 11:40 PM	#2
padrino Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	If anyone has any further ideas or options to hack the hardware it would be much appreciated. I wonder how hard it is to swap chips these days, that would definitely solve my problems however I need to dig back into the card to figure it out.

Jun 6, 2011, 11:09 PM	#3
gazorp Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 12 (0.00/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I have the XFX 695X ZNFC and cannot flash either. I get the error cannot erase flash. Surely there must be some way to unlock the flash to get a custom bios on there! Please w1zzard! Help us XFX owners out with a fresh hack! Since i just got the card, i will most likely return it in the next couple of days and get one from a vendor who isnt locking them down...

Jun 6, 2011, 11:27 PM	#7
erocker Senior Moderator Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Milwaukee, WI. Posts: 31,889 (12.77/day) Thanks: 2,779 Thanked 12,257 Times in 7,809 Posts System Specs	Version A.1

Jun 6, 2011, 11:32 PM	#8
cadaveca My name is Dave Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: The Great White North Posts: 10,766 (4.15/day) Thanks: 4,473 Thanked 5,187 Times in 3,197 Posts System Specs	Hmm. I wonder what version other cards that have been successfully modded are. Perhaps ver A.1 is the one to get... __________________ Gadgets, Phones, Tablets, Cameras, TVs, HiFi...NextPowerUp -Only real men play games THIS way.

Jun 7, 2011, 02:24 AM	#9
gazorp Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 12 (0.00/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Mine is version A.3, no switch, 1GB. The error is always cannot erase rom. I have tried in RBE, where the error is unknown. Then i tried in winflash and get the cannot erase error. Then i tried w1zzards directions of running from admin cmd prompt manually to unlock and flash. There is nothing returned from the prompts and the card still has default rom. I have a full lab to make any mods necessary, but have little experience with cards this new. I am not sure if the flash is encrypted or locked now or perhaps just needs to be added for support in winflsh. I will tinker for a few more days, but it looks like its going back for a better brand next week. Last edited by gazorp; Jun 7, 2011 at 02:31 AM.

Jun 7, 2011, 10:52 AM	#10
padrino Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	The flash is a standard chip but it looks like they are using hardware write protection, the datasheet indicates that if W is 0 then hardware write protection is enabled, looks like W needs to be 1 so it can be unlocked with unlockrom command. http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/data...cs/mXuvyxs.pdf

Jun 8, 2011, 04:02 AM	#11
gazorp Join Date: Mar 2005 Posts: 12 (0.00/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	So you are suggesting shorting write protect to VCC then boot or perhaps should we install a switch and only activate before flashing, after boot. Either way, definitely use a pull up resistor!

Jun 8, 2011, 10:53 AM	#13
padrino Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	The table of write protect modes has a 0, 1, or X depending on the mode used. In that context does X mean unconnected, can one clip that pin and get the desired results? Just exploring the easiest mode, I've built basic circuits in the past but never tried to mess with something like this before so I'm hesitant without being sure.

Jun 10, 2011, 05:11 PM	#14
padrino Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	Still looking for additional feedback if anyone has any insights.

Jun 16, 2011, 02:27 AM	#15
ChuckyD Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 5 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts	Padrino - The BIOS chip must have pins 3 and 8 bridged to enabled writes. This can be done by soldering a jumper in place, or more easily by using a circuit writer pen sold at radio shack. On the ZNFC model the BIOS chip is located on the front face of the PCB to the lower left of the GPU under the heatsink. See the red arrow in the picture. Pin 1 is the pin located closest to the dot on the top of the chip and the pins are numbered counterclockwise thereafter. I performed this mod earlier this week and have since flashed sucessfully many times. Still have not been able to unlock the shaders though - not sure if the BIOSs are edited correctly or if i have a hardware limitation. If anyone has a BIOS that has worked on a ZNFC model, then the help is appreciated! Enjoy! Attached Thumbnails

Jun 16, 2011, 02:39 AM	#16
snipes420 Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 5 (0.01/day) Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	I just picked up a XFX HD-695X-ZNDC 1GB card like mentioned in the original post. Mine is VA.2 and it does not have the dual bios switch. I have tried everything possible to get it flashed with a modded bios but atiwinflash just disappears like mentioned in previous posts. Or errors about flash not erasable. I don't have the chutzpah to disassemble mine yet but I really hope someone can sort out how to flash these units. Good Luck! Edit: Cool ChuckyD. Is that a picture of your card? Last edited by snipes420; Jun 16, 2011 at 03:06 AM.

Processor:	Intel Core2Duo E8500@3.16GHz
Motherboard:	Asus P5K-VM
Cooling:	2 80mm case fans
Memory:	8GB DDR2 PC6400
Video Card:	XFX Radeon HD 6950 1GB DDR5
PSU:	Corsair TX950W

Jun 16, 2011, 05:17 AM	#18
snipes420 Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 5 (0.01/day) Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	I sucked it up and voided my warranty The procedure works exactly as ChuckyD said. I saved then modded my cards bios and then flashed it. The flash procedure went all the way this time, I do not get errors about not being able to erase the chip. But like ChuckyD said, after rebooting and checking gpu-z the extra shaders are not enabled. To double check it, I saved the bios out of the chip again and checked md5sums for all the files and Yep if definitely flashed the modded bios but it looks like that patch does not work. It sure sucks that this card doesn't have a dual bios because it may make it hard to test patches to the bios. [easy to brick ]

Jun 16, 2011, 08:36 AM	#19
snipes420 Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 5 (0.01/day) Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	I literally tried unlocking and flashing every 6950 1024MB bios available on techpowerup.com's 'vga bios database'. I bricked it a few times but my trusty S3 Trio32 pci VGA card was always handy. Still hope some video card bios hacking guru needs a challenge and picks up this ones trail Edit: sorry for double post

Jun 16, 2011, 08:51 AM	#20
jzv Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 10 (0.01/day) Thanks: 1 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	A quick heads up my XFX HD-695X-ZNDC cards are of the XXX variant the 830 mhz versions. And they have the bios switch and unlock shaders fine.

Jun 16, 2011, 09:59 AM	#21
SlaveOnDope Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 8 (0.01/day) Thanks: 1 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Did this the other day without issue XFX HD-695X-ZNFC VA.3 Radeon HD 6950 1GB Pm25LV010

Jun 16, 2011, 10:43 AM	#22
ChuckyD Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 5 (0.01/day) Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts	SlaveOnDope - Can you send me a copy of your BIOS?

Jun 17, 2011, 05:33 PM	#25
ThaSpacePope Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 46 (0.07/day) Thanks: 7 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Oh man I have 2 of these coming from newegg. Really have to remove the HSF to get the bios to reflash? ChuckyD: How would you suggest using a circuitwriter for this? removing the chip and writing between the pins, then resoldering? Last edited by ThaSpacePope; Jun 17, 2011 at 05:49 PM.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Quick Undressing of XFX HD 6950 1GB Video Card.	20mmrain	AMD / ATI	3	Jun 16, 2011 03:16 AM
6950 1gb and 6870 1gb Same PCB??? Maybe be able to use Same water block???	20mmrain	AMD / ATI	8	Mar 28, 2011 02:58 AM
Stress testing a 6950?	LAN_deRf_HA	AMD / ATI	0	Jan 18, 2011 10:48 PM
XFX HD 4870 1GB BIOS FLASH reason Stutter	danikaix	AMD / ATI	4	Mar 1, 2010 08:04 PM
XFX HD 4870 1GB - £84.99 inc TAX @ XFX UK	kylzer	Hot Deals	1	Sep 5, 2009 03:40 AM