Someone from Matrox please help...

[Haig]

Why do you guys force me to do these things

Madman - Correct me if I have missed anything:

Kai:
detailed_explanation: For no apparant reason, my picture continuously gets corrupted in windows. The problem is intermittent, and I can't figure out what the cause might be. Maybe the drivers? Not sure.

Matrox:
I will need a complete list of IRQs used by your system. This can be done by clicking on Start => Programs => Accessories
=> System Tools => System Information. Then select File and save the file using your last name as the file name, then
email me this saved file.

How does the DVD decoder card connect to the video card.

Kai:
The decoder card is attached by a pass through cable.

Matrox: Dear Sir,
You have a IRQ conflict on 11 please move the SCSI card to another PCI slot so that your system can reassign it a new IRQ, the G400 and the IRQ holder for PCI steering must be the only two devices on this IRQ, also please make sure that there are no PCI cards directly below the G400.

Kai:
Hi, Thanks for replying faster than that last tech that I emailed. Why wasn't this documented in the manual? That would've saved me a lot more time than trying to find out what in the hell is going on. Also, why is the G400 Max not share IRQ friendly? Thanks.

Matrox: Dear Sir, It is the same tech as before, we are extremely flooded with emails so we are experiencing delays. There is no need to have this information in the manual as it is common knowledge that IRQs should not be shared.

Kai:
Sorry to sound so stupid but I do work at a local computer store myself and I am a technitian there. I know that it's common knowledge to AVOID sharing IRQs, but never did I know that it would cause so much problems with YOUR product. Not trying to sound rude or anything, but I'm sure you would be fed up the ass if you had as many problems as I did with this Matrox card.
I have never ever had this many problems before if it was Diamond, Creative Labs, or even a no-name brand like PC 100. If possible, I'd like to exchange my card for another one. Thanks in advance.

Matrox:
Dear Sir,
We are unable to issue a RMA for a IRQ Conflict.


Kai:
detailed_explanation: Intermittent Freezes and corrupted video. Please direct me to someone other than Daniel Lawrence. Thank you.

Matrox:
Dear Sir,
Please disregard the previous email, after looking over our previous email correspondences there is nothing that can be done as long as you have the IRQ conflict that we were dealing with previously. Also as I stated in our last email a RMA can not be issued for a IRQ conflict as when the replacement card is installed the same problem will result.

Kai:
Okay, you know what? Please issue me a RMA number before I call your manager and report you, and what a 'great' job you're doing. Oh btw, I don't have an IRQ conflict. Please read your email. I do recall informing you that I did what you told me to do and the card was still giving me the
same problem. Why is it that you people always REQUIRE us to send such a big file anyways? Do you take us as liars? Do you not believe us when we tell you that our hardware isn't working? Okay, in that case what if I want a refund? How would I go about doing that? Thanks in advance.

Kai


BTW, here's the new list of IRQs for your reference if you still think I'm lying.

Matrox:
Dear Sir,
Please try the G400Diag.zip file to test your card to see if it is working correctly. Also after running this test please try the TweakUtil.exe file to see if dropping the card to 1X AGP it helps the problems you are having.

Vermillion - Please correct me if I have missed something because judging from your comment, daniel should have more than 1 email from you:

Eric:
detailed_explanation: DVD software that was bundled with system does not function properly. Loads fine. I then receive the playback screen and the control panel for the playback. Then nothing. I can click on the buttons, it reads the DVD but does not perform any actions. There is nothing wrong with the dvd player (it meets all your criteria in the FAQ section). I have used it with other software dvd packages in the past (which were removed to try yours).

Matrox:
I will need a complete list of IRQs used by your system. This can be done by clicking on Start => Programs => Accessories => System Tools => System Information. Then select File and save the file using your last name as the file name, then email me this saved file.

Eric:
Per your request, the information is attached.
Eric

Matrox:
Dear Sir,
Your file came across corrupted please send me a complete list of IRQs

Haig

[Jorden]

Okay,

This is called **Revenge of Matrox Tech Support**

Don't know what to say, Haig...

Jorden.

[armyworm]

Kai... Madman,

I am sorry to say but I think that you were out of lines in your e-mail. If you are contacting tech support for assistance you at least need to try what they recommend.

If you work in a shop yourself you should know that cards that makes Bus Mastering such as sound cards, scsi, network, will need to be alone on their IRQ's!! I am sorry to say but I would not like to have one of the systems you put togheter yourself!!

Matrox cards use Bus Mastering a lot and hence it is very important for them not to share IRQ's.... same story applys to Nvidia and major cards (except ATI who does very little bus mastering... and are hence ... slower). You should also know that if your have a card in your first PCI slot underneath the AGP that you will have some sharing ressources...

So I think you should appoligize and start doing some real trouble shooting... Do you really thing that having an RMA and a replacement card will help you at all?

Ben

[Haig]

Hi Jorden,

No revenge at all. Just like to set the record straight if someone is going to dis-credit us, that's all.

Regards,

Haig

[Himself]

1. Most cards need a separate IRQ, just about every AGP card does really. I recall that my Riva 128 and my TNT both needed a separate IRQ, Matrox isn't special here.

2. Tech support in general is a useless thing, if you know your stuff that is. No offense, Haig. If you have to resort to tech support you might as well admit you're screwed.

3. Most problems are Windows artifacts, MS is to blame for just about any and all problems to do with PCs.

4. The easiest way to test a bit of gear is to use it in another system. That way you know that it's either a software issue or bad hardware. Can't believe someone who is a tech wouldn't have been able to isolate the problem themselves. I suspect from the description that the motherboard and the card just don't get along.

[SCompRacer]

SCSI drivers, settings in SCSI BIOS, PCI latency in BIOS, software conflicts including some mice, lots of areas to look at. Run System File Checker in Win 98, see what you come up with also.

I am fortunate to say that my MAX @ AGP X 2 shares an IRQ with my Live card, bus mastering enabled, with no trouble. Even taking the Live out and booting on another drive makes no difference. Have other devices that do need the seperate IRQ, so thats why it is the way it is.

Got SCSI, LAN, ZIP, burner, hardware DVD, IDE drives, scanner, Win 98 SE, bunches of software and they all get along. Even had Voo Doo II's in SLI with an OEM G400 16MB card before the MAX, no trouble. With present cofiguration, I can play Quake II (demo 1 @ 1024x768 70 FPS), Forsaken, Unreal, Expendable (with all latest patches of course), no trouble for as long as I want to.

So it can work, you just gotta find out why not.



[This message has been edited by SCompRacer (edited 20 October 1999).]

[Pelle]

Right, my G400 Max is sharing an IRQ with the H+, which works perfectly as well.



------------------
---
Asus P2B, P2-350, 128 MB, Matrox G400 Max, Sigma Hollywood Plus, Haupauge WinTV, Adaptec 2940, AVM A1, Soundblaster AWE 64
IBM DCAS, IBM DDRS, Quantum Fireball, Seagate Barracuda, Iomega Zip, Phillips 2600, Hitachi GD-2000, Toshiba 3401TA

[Haig]

No offense taken

"If you have to resort to tech support you might as well admit you're screwed."

I wouldn't go that far. Majority of Pc users
don't know enough about Pc's to configure them properly and don't know about forums and newsgroups. So to them, we are their saviours

For the more knowledgeable users, we are just there for any known issues.

Then you have a small amount of people who would question your every suggestion without trying anything. To them, we will always be considered to be useless and a bunch of idiot's.

Haig

[SteveC]

God! I hate users!

------------------
Cheers,
Steve

PS: Some or all of the above message may be wrong, or, just as likely, correct. Depends on what mood I'm in. And what you know. ;¬)

[Jorden]

Welcome to the family, Haig

It's how some of us felt the past week, here at alternative Tech Support.

Yet we keep on trying, right?

Jorden.

[Brian R.]

I have had a few (4 or 5) contacts with Matrox tech support and have found them reasonable and knowledgeable. Unfortunatley, my most difficult problem has not yet been solved and I bet it has been forgotten since it does not involve lock-ups or detectable incompatabilities.

I would give them a five-star for quality. Not every problem can be solved.

[motub]

Sorry, Haig, guess my innocent helpfulness to these poseur newbies has led us all astray... well, now I know better. Thanks for telling the rest of the story... you're the best!!!

Btw, I'm more than happy for you to be a savior to those who don't or don't want to know about the innards of their computers (an attitude I can readily understand, if not follow)... in fact, I'd be ecstatic to see you hailed as the savior of the vast majority of Geekdom (Kingdom of the Geeks-- a bad movie with Wm. Shatner??)... but we're probably not worthy...

--------------------
Holly

[Himself]

No offense taken

Good.


"If you have to resort to tech support you might as well admit you're screwed."

I wouldn't go that far. Majority of Pc users
don't know enough about Pc's to configure them properly and don't know about forums and newsgroups. So to them, we are their saviours

Oh, I don't doubt that there is a place for tech support, I have just found that for me in most instances I don't have the time to teach the person on the other end about computers.

For the more knowledgeable users, we are just there for any known issues.

I find in general that if it's not mentioned in a text file somewhere on the web site the tech support won't know about it. Getting a lot of questions like "Did you insert the CD?" or "Is the computer turned on?" is mildly amusing but unproductive in the end. Makes you want to reply with "How do I do that?" over and over again.

Then you have a small amount of people who would question your every suggestion without trying anything. To them, we will always be considered to be useless and a bunch of idiot's.

Haig

"idiots", not "idiot's".

The last time I contacted tech support was for the game RollCage, I wanted a list of known joysticks that worked fully in analog mode since the generic 4 button variety weren't supported, (I have 2 wallmart jobs here, using the generic windows drivers, neither would work with forward as accelerate), and asked if there would be a patch forcoming. 20 emails later, they admited they didn't know anything, so I was still no wiser.

Worst tech support experience was with Diamond Multimedia, you don't even get a human until about 3 emails along and a week later, amazing.

[orangejulius]

A few words in support of Matrox's Daniel Lawrence..

Mr. Lawrence has given me superb support in the past -- often answering e-mails within *TWO MINUTES FLAT*. Of course not every response is so fast but this is a 100% turnaround from a few years ago.

At the very least they are actively trying to get the issue resolved -- even if it isn't the card's fault.

Good job Matrox!

[This message has been edited by orangejulius (edited 20 October 1999).]

[Madman]

Okay Mr. Haig:

Here's the missing thread:

Hi,

My computer just froze twice again with the same problem that I described
after I did what you told me. I took out my Intel NIC and moved the SCSI
card to the NIC slot. The only way to avoid the problem is to disable my
bus mastering on my Matrox card. Any more suggestions? Thanks.

Kai


Maybe your tech deleted this one by accident? I think this was the cause why I got upset. Besides, I still derserve a right to RMA. He keeps on dodging the question and still didn't answer my question of returning the card. Thanks in advance.

Kai