9800SE Softmod

Hi guys.
A while back I got hold of a PowerColor 9800SE on the cheap. I had a 9600XT that had just blown up on me (been dodgy since it went out of warranty, never buying from sapphire again) and I'd heard of soft-modding 9800SE's and activating the extra four pixel pipelines - Thus giving you a 9800 at a cheaper price.
I wasnt really too confident that the softmodding would work, but even if it didnt I'd have a card that was as good as (if not better than) my 9600XT.
Anyway, I soft-mod it, and get a shedload of artifacts. I leave it like that, seeing as it gives me more FPS anyway (and a ghetto wallhack on CS, hehe) - Then all of a sudden it just stopped. I only noticed today, but thinking back, there hasnt been any artifacts for a while.
I check ATItool...Yup, still 8 pipelines active...
Anyone had anything like this? I always thought, once a broken pipe, always a broken pipe.

The only two things I can think of are when I upped the AGP voltage a few weeks back... and putting my CPU voltage up a notch today...
I'm pretty sure its not the latter. But could the AGP voltage help a broken pipe? :/

Please don't tell me I just have broken Omega drivers.

Response appreciated.
Cheers,
Russ.

I have a softmoddable 9500 and I always check that the softmod has worked by doing the fill rate test on 3DMark 2001. With no softmod I get a score of 1000-ish (Mtexels/s or whatever it is) in the multi-texture test, with it enabled I get over 2000. An 8-Pipe 9800 running at 380MHz should score close to 3000.

Hmm :/ Don't have 2001, but 3DMark 2000 gives me this:

Fill rate (Single-texturing): 1189.3 MTexels/s
Fill rate (Multi-texturing): 2534.0 MTexels/s

I would've thought I'd get more for Single-texturing :/

Anyway, what you reckon? Is that 8 pipes or 4? Bearing in mind its only got the 128-bit memory interface... (Whoops)

Edit: BTW, thats in 1024x768, 16-bit colour, 16-bit textures - If that makes any difference.

The single texturing score is always lower. If those results are comparable to 3DM2001 then yes it looks to me as if the softmod is still working:).

How long have you had it? I suppose something could have burned in... Maybe the thermal pad / grease has cured...? I would pretty much have thought a broken pipe would stay that way but hey - maybe anyone with a 'broken' 9800SE should leave it running 3DMark looped until it learns how to behave itself! ;)

(John Cleese thrashing his car in Faulty Towers springs to mind... Much smaller stick required for a 9800 obviously... "Right you - I've had enough of your checkerboard patterns! You're going to get a good thrashing!")

Ahem... Move along folks... Nothign to see here...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by malfunction

How long have you had it?

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Around 3-4 months. It's been doing it's funky checkerboard thing for at least 3 of those.

I'm thinking it must be the AGP voltage. Maybe this particular core was put in a 9800SE because not all of its 8 pipes would work at the standard voltage?

I dunno. I'm just guessing.

It should get its power from the auxilliary connector. Dunno.....it's an odd one for sure, good for you though:).