Too much IRQ sharing?

[The Jeep]

I have just been rebuilding my trusty old Asus A7V133/Athlon 1.2 PC which was originally designed to run Matrox RT2500 / Adobe Premier video system. OS is Windows 2000 SP4.
This time round I am using onboard sound (AC97 - as opposed to separate sound card) and a WinTV card. I am still using additional 2 drives on separate Promise IDE controller. Actually, I've added a 3rd drive to the secondary Promise IDE, giving me a total of 4 drives plus 1 DVD. PSU is...can't remember, but possibly 300W.
However, after having the whole system running nicely for a day or two, it now completely crashes when I run Premier. I had a look at the IRQs and discovered an AWFUL lot of stuff sharing IRQ 9, though no conflicts are reported. IRQs 5,7,10 & 11 are unused.
I'm thinking that I could allocate the AC97 audio codec to IRQ 5 and stick the G450 graphics card, Promise & Firewire controllers elsewhere and this might ease the situation, or could it be a PSU problem?
How can I manually change IRQs without having to reinstall the hardware? (when I go into device manager / resources, the box to allow me to change settings is greyed out).

 

[eggplant]

Hi,

I woudlnt, theres no probs sharing irq's, not like the 95/98 era when we had to manually manage them. What version of premiere are you using? an associate of mine had probs with premiere 7 and a matrox (cant remember but could be x100?), went back to premiere 6.5 and all was fine, not sure if was a driver issue or a premiere issue though, I'll be speaking to him next wekk so I'll ask if he's made any headway, I know he was very anoyed as he paid a lot for premiere.

 

[2scoops0406]

No, IRQ sharing shouldn't be a problem with W2k, BUT excessive sharing can slow the performance of the devices sharing the IRQ. Firstly check that your video drivers are up to date.

Then look on both the adobe and matrox site to see if there are known issues.

BTW, what version of Premier are you using?

 

[The Jeep]

The s/w was state-of-the-art 5 years ago, possibly now state-of-the-arc...
It's a Matrox RT2500 video capture / processing card (i.e. pre RTX100 or whatever) with Adobe Premier 6 (Ver 6.02, which is, I believe, the last free upgrade before having to purchase ver 7 upgrade).
Actually, the program runs fine some of the time (so far this morning 1 out of 3 attempts). Once it's loaded, it's quite stable, but the other times it just crashes on completion of loading, bombing me back to a restart of the PC.
I'm surprised that the system's happy with the following on IRQ9 while 4 other IRQs are (seemingly) unused:
1. WinTV
2. Matrox RT2500
3. Matrox G450 graphix
4. USB controllers
5. Network adapter
6. Firewire controller
7. AC97 Audio (onboard)
9. Promise Ultra ATA100 controller (for extra drives)

I'll check for updates on Matrox & Premier sites. But could it be a power issue?
Thanks

 

[Igorian]

I assume this is the same system from this post?

Actually, the program runs fine some of the time (so far this morning 1 out of 3 attempts). Once it's loaded, it's quite stable, but the other times it just crashes on completion of loading, bombing me back to a restart of the PC.

Well, he says he's changed all the major components apart from the PSU, and I suppose that's a possibility because a failing one can affect the system in many ways. A BIOS reset might be a good idea too.

But, from what he's described, I wouldn't trust the state of the processor. It might work ok in one instance, but from experience, a processor of that class will become glitchy and you end up going through the whole process again.

Also, considering the amount of devices you have installed, I would address the issue of the 300W supply if that's what you have installed.

 

[eggplant]

I didnt realise this was the same machine.....

Actually, the program runs fine some of the time (so far this morning 1 out of 3 attempts). Once it's loaded, it's quite stable, but the other times it just crashes on completion of loading, bombing me back to a restart of the PC.
I'm surprised that the system's happy with the following on IRQ9 while 4 other IRQs are (seemingly) unused:

No suprise - as I just posted, might or might not be the cpu, but as already mentioned, 300w is pushing it somewhat.

 

[The Jeep]

Yes it's the same machine - still working on it!
I got a replacement CPU but haven't fitted it as the existing one has been OK since the BIOS reset. I thought the problem might be the IRQs as I remember a few years ago having to set them manually, but this must've been Win98 that I was using back then.
So, no need to do anything with all that gear on IRQ9: does seem strange that this isn't a problem. Did MS do something right?
I'll check out the PSU...could be an issue, especially as I've added a new hard drive.
Thanks for your help so far, though!

 

[eggplant]

I got a replacement CPU but haven't fitted it as the existing one has been OK since the BIOS reset

it now completely crashes when I run Premier

Which is it? it either runs right or it doesnt !
I take it after installing win2k you service packed it, did updates, installed drifers (other than m$ drivers) for your hardware?
You have a spare cpu, and it has been suggested that the cpu may be the (or part of) the issue, so it would seem logical to me that one of the first things to do would be to swap it out and see if the problem went away. Also if the machine was fine a while ago (prior to the fan issue) then I'd also think about running it as it was until you get to the bottom of it without adding extra hardware.
Have you done any memory/cpu/tests? could it be that the fact is that premier is system intensive and thats the problem - agian could be cpu/psu etc etc.

 

[The Jeep]

Thanks eggplant. I realise it seems illogical that I haven't installed the new cpu, but there is method in my madness! I guess since I sorted the BIOS by restoring the default values I don't really 'feel' it's the cpu that's a problem. Premier has been working fine most of today. Last night (and it wasn't an overly hot machine that had been on for hours), the computer crashed just at the final moment of installing Premier. It did this about 3 times in a row, before I went to bed in disgust...then this morning it did it once and since then is OK.
When I looked at the IRQs I thought 'a-ha, here's something odd', but it turns out that the IRQs are probably fine. I'll check the psu rating later and maybe it's time I upgraded it to 400W or so.
What's probably happenning is that, computers being computers, sometimes it's in the mood for playing, sometimes it's not. Not very scientific, I know, but...
(by the way, can I simply replace the cpu with all the cards, software & drivers in place, or would I need to completely reinstall everything?). Many thanks, you helpful peeps

 

[Igorian]

I don't want to appear rude, but why bother asking for advice when you aren't willing to accept it?

You may have built a PC, but anyone can buy bits and assemble them. Designing a system where all the components work in harmony without creating bottlenecks, have adequate power, and I don't mean from a poxy £8 PSU, have adequate cooling and monitoring is a different matter.

When you started your previous post, you failed to mention the cooked processor and then "suddenly" remembered.

Wait a minute...wait a minute....I am detecting a malfunction in the...OK, seriously, I remember last week the power to my CPU fan (and all other fans) failed and I got a hardware monitor alert. When I had a look in the BIOS I discovered that my CPU temperature was over 100 DegC (!!). I quickly switched off, opened the PC and blew air over the VERY hot CPU.

There is little point in upgrading your machine until you have established what the problem is. You need to strip out all the gubbins and get it running with the minimum setup. Then, once you are happy, you can start to add your accessories. I have already suggested that the processor could be UNRELIABLE and you dither on about IRQs without really knowing what you are talking about. A simple google would have produced this for you.

 

[The Jeep]

Thanks Igorian. Indeed, a 'simple google' would probably answer most questions anyone has, but it's nice to get the personal touch. However, I feel a bit 'told-off' by you, which is an odd feeling for me these days.
While I appreciate the help I've been offered and that some of my questions may seem ignorant (I have, perhaps surprisingly, a fair experience of building good, working audio/video PCs, though I'm no guru), you are not under any obligation to help me, nor am I to accept your help. Having said that - and I think I needed to - thanks to everyone, yourself included, who has offered me support and my appologies for any irritation I may have caused

 

[Igorian]

you are not under any obligation to help me, nor am I to accept your help.

Fair point. Good luck.

 

[The Jeep]

Thanks for that. No harm done