Flash x850 Pro to x800XT PE

[xikut3r]

I am attempting to flash my PowerColor x850 Pro to a x800XT PE. I am using the most recent bios in the collection here.

What I've tried so far:

1) Boot to DOS and use flashrom -f -p 0 newbios.bin
2) Boot to DOS and use atiflash -f -p 0 newbios.bin
3) Use winflash to flash the x800XT PE bios using the [FORCE] option
4) Using the 3 previous steps with just the x800 PRO bios

All these steps give the exact same results, which are:

1) Flash completes successfully and upon reboot the card detects as x800XTPE (or x800 Pro)
2) Drivers install and request a reboot
3) After reboot from driver install I get horrible artifacts on my desktop when I click and drag to highlight things (I have a black desktop so it can been seen very easily)
4) Using ATITool I am still showing only 12 pipes being used. This is even so if I install the softmodded cracked drivers from this site.

I do not believe the artifacts are due to my card not being able to hand the core/mem speed of the x800XT PE because I can run this card perfectly with core/mem at 549/609.

Any ideas you guys have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

NOTES:
1) This is a VIVO card
2) Before I flash atitool shows my chiptype to be R480 but after the flash it shows R423 and still 12 Pipes


======System Setup======
AMD 64 3500+ Venice (Stock speed)
DFI LanParty nF4 Ultra-D
Corsair 2x512 Dual Channel
PowerColor x850 Pro (Cat 5.10 Drivers)
======System Setup======

 

[djbbenn]

So you used the modified flashrom form this site? (Just checking). Reinstall Atitool to confirm pipes, no softmode drivers are needed, as softmode is for another card.

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

I will re-install atitool and I will try offical cat drivers

 

[xikut3r]

I reinstalled atitool and it still shows 12 pipes active. I did this after reinstalling my 5.10 offical catalyst drivers and reflashing the x800XT bios.

Any other thoughts guys?

 

[xikut3r]

I was able to flash the x800 pro vivo bios for powercolor. It still did not unlock the additional 4 pipes though

 

[djbbenn]

Hold on a minute...your trying to flash a X850 to a X800? What do you have a X850 or X800?

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

Trying to flash a x850 Pro (12 Pipes) to a x800 XT PE (16 Pipes) because the soft mod didnt work for me in unlocking those additional 4 pipes.

 

[Lekamies]

Trying to flash a x850 Pro (12 Pipes) to a x800 XT PE (16 Pipes) because the soft mod didnt work for me in unlocking those additional 4 pipes.

Flash it X850XT or XT PE!

 

[xikut3r]

Flash it X850XT or XT PE!

I am attempting to flash my PowerColor x850 Pro to a x800XT PE

That is exactly what I said I did

 

[djbbenn]

Your card shouldn't even worked, your lucky... you can't flash a X850 with a X800 bios... they are two different cores. You need a X850XT PE bios. There is also a good chance of having laser cut pipes where it is PCI-E. You will have to bridge the cut togeather in order to get the pipes. There may also be a on-die lock.

-Dan

 

[Pheonix_789]

Sapphire X800 Fireblade

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I want to purchess the Sapphire X800 Fireblade card for my setup but iam wondering is the card really worth buying i have an HIS X700 pro 400mhz Core 500mhz mem (250mhz) i can only get a maxium overclock of 30mhz in the core! Will I notice any gain while playing games such as F.E.A.R?

(Ps this card sucks X700 only has DDR1 Mem if i over clock even by 10mhz in the mem the card fails!)

My Rig:

Sempron 3000+ 1.8ghz
ASUS K8N4-E DELUXE
1GB DDR 3200 (value ram)
200GB IDE HD
HIS X700 Pro

 

[djbbenn]

Pheonix_789 > Please start your own thread.

-Dan

 

[ShadowFlare]

Your card shouldn't even worked, your lucky... you can't flash a X850 with a X800 bios... they are two different cores. You need a X850XT PE bios. There is also a good chance of having laser cut pipes where it is PCI-E. You will have to bridge the cut togeather in order to get the pipes. There may also be a on-die lock.

-Dan

No, that's not true. A bios from any X800 series PCI Express card will work on any X850 series card (or other card with R480 chip). I've tested this myself. For example, I've flashed an X800 XT bios to my X800 GTO2 and it worked, but my max memory clock speeds weren't nearly as good (probably because of memory timings).

I wouldn't recommend using a bios for anything but an R480 on any card with an R480 chip even if it did get just as good max overclocks, though. R480's take a performance hit if they are not identified as an R480. At 472/492 (X800 GT clocks, not my max overclock) with 16 pipelines, my card gets about 5550 in 3dmark 2005 when identified as an R480 chip. At those same clock speeds, it only gets about 5250 when identified as an R423.

I'm still waiting to find out whether it works the other way around or not, though. I started a thread about this in the video cards section: http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=6081

 

[djbbenn]

I don't see how it would work, but it did, and I'll take your word for it. There must be support for R423 and R480 in the bios then. They are pretty much the same card, and I know the cores it pretty much then same. That must be why, same die different name or something. Time to do some research.

But anyways, he needs an X850XT PE bios, not a X800.

-Dan

 

[ShadowFlare]

I don't see how it would work, but it did, and I'll take your word for it. There must be support for R423 and R480 in the bios then. They are pretty much the same card, and I know the cores it pretty much then same. That must be why, same die different name or something. Time to do some research.

But anyways, he needs an X850XT PE bios, not a X800.

-Dan

Or X850 XT. Definately not anything X800, because of the performance hit I mentioned above.

It could be that they made the R480 backward compatible, but extended the instruction set to include some special ones that would get better performance when they get used.

BTW, it does kind of seem like something driver-related, since the performance will take a hit in the same way if you change the ID on an R480 bios to the ID on an R423 card and use it on an R480. Also the same performance difference if you change the ID to that of an R480 card on an R423 bios and use it on an R480; it will get the same performance as if you had used a bios intended for an R480.

 

[djbbenn]

Yeah... still get you 16pp (big one of the mod), just lacks some better timings and clocks.

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

Thanks for your responses guys. I'll try the x850 XT bios and see if I can get my hands on those elusive 4 extra pipes. If that doesnt work will I have to do a 'pencil mod' to bridge the laser cut?

EDIT:Well that didnt work either

 

[xikut3r]

Anyone else have any suggestions?

 

[djbbenn]

Theres a chance of a on-die lock, go into Atitool and press shift when you click settings, then scroll down a bit until you see fuse data. Then take a screen pic and post it. Also make sure you bridge is done correctly...

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

Heres my atitool screen shot:

Also make sure you bridge is done correctly...

And I dont know what that means

 

[djbbenn]

Looks like you have an on-die lock, in other words you can't unlock the pipes.

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

Well that blows, But thanks for your help.

 

[dolf]

Guys I need to know with what cooler originally is equiped X850PRO VIVO AGP? Is it the same like on X850XT? Please those of you that have such card to answer my question.

Thanks in adwance.

 

[djbbenn]

I believe its the great big one, like the one that comes on the GTO's. It's not the same as the XT's and XT PE's, well I haven't seen any like them when it's a pro.

-Dan

 

[xikut3r]

Its huge and completely silver on the powercolor (no sticker) the heatsink takes up 80% of the card. Fan is pretty large as well. I can set my card at 550/610 with default bios and it never runs higher than 65C when measured through atitool.