Newbie keeps hitting blue screen

mojo2000 · 03-04-2011, 08:54 AM #1

Hello. First experience with Dolphin emulator, trying to get Resident Evil 1 and 0 (GC) to work under WinXP. Pretty sure I have all the latest Windows updates and nVidia drivers for my EVGA 9800GTX+ SC. But each time I try to run RE1, at random points past the title screen, I hit a massive Blue Screen of Death quoting a problem with nv4_*.dll.

How can it be if I haven't had a BSOD or known driver conflict since my last install? Angry

Sure could use some suggestions instead of wiping my OS clean and starting over just to run an emulator cleanly. I'd rather just dust off my real GC in that case...

Can't run Dolphin under VMWare. Guess VM doesn't support DX9 or something.

Help appreciated, TIA.

**Runo** · 03-04-2011, 09:04 AM #2

Tried reinstalling your graphics driver fully? Could help. Also, do you use if other 3d applications?

mojo2000 · 03-04-2011, 03:18 PM #3

1) By "full install," do you really mean "full uninstall and then re-install"? No, I guess I could do that without too much trouble...

2) By "other 3D applications," do you mean PC games such as Mass Effect 1/2, Mirror's Edge, Race Driver: GRID, DiRT etc.? If so, sure, and with no BSOD...

**Squall Leonhart** · 03-04-2011, 03:32 PM #4

your cpu is unstable.

mojo2000 · 03-04-2011, 03:38 PM #5

(03-04-2011, 03:32 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: your cpu is unstable.

Seriously? How does one quantify that? I've never overclocked this CPU, and Speccy (diagnostic) leaves no clue that anything is out of the ordinary. As I pointed out before, anything else that passes for 3D on my machine works fine.

So you can understand a layman's first thought that perhaps it's the application at fault. But of course, no one ELSE is suffering the same problems....

**Squall Leonhart** · 03-04-2011, 03:47 PM #6

anything else isn't dolphin.

file this under "another idiot comparing pc games to emulation".

mojo2000 · 03-04-2011, 03:55 PM #7

(03-04-2011, 03:47 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: anything else isn't dolphin.

Granted.

(03-04-2011, 03:47 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: file this under "another idiot comparing pc games to emulation".

Is that language really called for? I would agree to "ignoramus" but you have been particularly unhelpful in pointing out exactly what causes the problem. Having experienced various types of emulation since 1998 including MAME, ElSemi Model 2, 8-bit consoles, PSX and Saturn, and never once experienced a BSOD that was obviously connected, perhaps I could be forgiven.

**Squall Leonhart** · 03-04-2011, 05:17 PM #8

just be thankful, i actually dialed the insults back considerably in your case.

anyway, speaking from personal experience, Dolphin will eat systems that are prime stable if even one clock cycle returns an unrecoverable invalid memory value.
actually, in my case it happened to be a fully loaded SATA controller and USB with an unstable ICH voltage, but thats besides the point.

Your system is not stable, and Normal applications are not stressing it enough to show it.

mojo2000 · (This post was last modified: 03-04-2011, 05:41 PM by mojo2000.)

(03-04-2011, 05:17 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: just be thankful, i actually dialed the insults back considerably in your case.

This makes me feel better... how?

(03-04-2011, 05:17 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: anyway, speaking from personal experience, Dolphin will eat systems that are prime stable if even one clock cycle returns an unrecoverable invalid memory value.
actually, in my case it happened to be a fully loaded SATA controller and USB with an unstable ICH voltage, but thats besides the point.

Maybe that's not far from my own situation. I have one IDE and two SATA HD's mounted internally, and two SATA HD's externally as well. 7.3 TB's total IIRC. Then there's the 7-port USB hub that's almost fully populated, plus three of the motherboard's direct USB ports taken up.

How did you diagnose and fix your problem? I might have to apply similar principles to my own system. Particularly if un- and then re-installing my video driver does not bring the desired results.

(03-04-2011, 05:17 PM)Squall Leonhart Wrote: Your system is not stable, and Normal applications are not stressing it enough to show it.

I read nothing in the ReadMe's or FAQ's that could have pointed this out. Perhaps this tidbit could be added in future packages and pages.

I suppose I should be thankful I'm finally getting somewhere... or that, in addition, I actually still have an actual GC and also kept my original RE0/1/4 games in a safe place...

**Squall Leonhart** · 03-04-2011, 07:02 PM **#10**

Quote:How did you diagnose and fix your problem? I might have to apply similar principles to my own system. Particularly if un- and then re-installing my video driver does not bring the desired results.

Years of training under a hard arse sensei.

Quote:I read nothing in the ReadMe's or FAQ's that could have pointed this out. Perhaps this tidbit could be added in future packages and pages.

its not dolphins job to inform you of this. besides its generally expected that emulating an entirely different architecture will be taxing on parts of the system.

anyway, basically i figured it out when i found the usb subsystem completely died or a hdd redetected at random.