2370 Vista Drivers - any updates?

So, I've got this weird problem with the video driver on my 2370 crashing once and a while, running Vista Home Premium 32bit. I was looking @ the nVidia site, and they say that I need to contact Averatec for updated drivers - which they dont offer.....I was wondering if anyone knew what made the averatec ones special, if it was possible to make the new reference drivers compatible, and how do get the updated ones. I also have a problem with the audio quality going to the hopper after a resume from sleep/hibernate...playing DVD/mp3 or any audio will glitch/repeat/pause and just act strange till I reboot it....i'm thinking a driver update to fix that too....

anybody got something like that?

thanks

h

 

The current Vista driver for the 2370 is 100.65. While nVidia has released newer drivers, the Averatec specific driver also recognizes the monitor control function keys and lid open/closing.

I have not tried this... You might want to look over at Everex's site. They have posted drivers for the Twin to the 2371. It uses the same case as the 2370, same video. We know the BIOS from this PC works in the 2370. The core motherboard is not physically interchangeable, but suspect it is simply a matter of mounting points. Certainly all the daughter cards are interchangeable. In other words, I view loading drivers from that site on my 2370 as a worthwhile risk, but cannot guarantee what would happen.

The Vista drivers on the Everex site appear to be at least a generation newer than those posted by Averatec for the 2370. Again, I have no idea what you may gain or lose in the process. Do a Restore Point and be prepared to use the Rollback Driver function in the Device Manager.

 

For grins & giggles, I just compared the Vista driver versions for the Everex ST5340T <http://www.everex.com/support/downloads/downloads.htm#st5340t> with the versions I have running on my Averatec 2370. I have updated most of my drivers directly from the device manufacturers' web sites (except video - that's from Averatec).

In every case, I am running a slightly newer version than those on Everex's site, including video.

Unfortunately, Everex does not appear to post the BIOS firmware for the ST5340 on its site.

 

Jim,

Thanks for checking into that, I went with the TwinHead route, teh h12f if i remember right is the other other counterpart to the 2370....same drivers, somewhat older versions....so no go there.....guess I'll have to reload the system again to see if can take care of these problems.....

by chance, what would it take to make the new reference drivers compatible w/ the factory jacked ones?

h

 

If I understand your question... Except for video, you can use the drivers directly from the publishers' sites. Video you are stuck with the version specific to your PC. Averatec seems to have the latest version: 100.65

 

Jim: It seems I have been chasing you all over the web and you have taught me a great deal about my little Averatec 3270-eh1 in a very short time. I have seen you at the Averatec site, here at Twinhead, and at Everex doling advice to sundry souls in need of sustenance. What drivers do you deem are the most critical to update at the manufacturer's source and where would be a good place to begin looking for them? Thanks so much for your advice. Not just for me, but for everyone that you have helped. I know in helping them, you have taught ME a great deal. Thanks.

 

Chasing me? You mean you haven't caught up yet?

Please keep in mind that I don't own a 3270. I have owned several 3150p by choice, and through unfortunate circumstances, several 2370/ST5340T units.

Here is the deal with most current notebooks:
If a newer post-Vista BIOS firmware update is availalbe, use it. For better or worse, Vista operates more 'by the rules' than prior operating systems. Because older operating systems didn't take full advantage of those features, BIOS coders didn't realize the weaknesses in their code. I have heard of more than one PC released just prior to Vista that behaves much better with a newer BIOS after installing Vista.

Next, do a survey of OEM installed devices. Go to the manufacturer's web sites for the latest non-beta drivers. More than likely they are newer and less buggy than the drivers shipped with the PC. Also, I have found that the PC manufacturer may have deliberately installed device drivers that don't allow full use of the device - Dell is especially prone to do this. Why? If the function isn't installed, you won't have tech support calls about that function.

One BIG exception is notebook video drivers. As noted earlier in this thread, in notebooks the video driver must also detect the display's controls - lid open/close and keyboard special function keys. The video driver is customized by the OEM to support these functions. Installing a driver from the graphic chip manufacturer may disable your controls.

I would hope that hardware manufacturers would at some point agree on standard APIs for such non-video controls so that we could grab updated video drivers from the chip manufacturers too. Until they do, I can't recommend any portable PC as a gaming machine.

The final recommendation I have is to never install device drivers available through Windows Update. Microsoft's detection engine is in my opinion weak, the suggested drivers are very generic and may disable some device functionality. Instead, use Windows Update as a prompt to go out to the chip manufacturers' sites and see what's new.