# [SOLVED] Nvidia 7600GS and RivaTNT2

## kuifje09

This question arose from using ubuntu and getting bored about ubuntu.

First, Riva-TNT2 is no longer supported by Nvidia so I think it want work on Gentoo.

I was not able to find a hardware-compatibility-guide  for gentoo?  can't be true, I missed it somewhere ?

Then the Nvidia 7600GS, will it work in the Gentoo system.

Maby even a solution for the riva-tnt card?

The big question here is, will changing from ubuntu into Gentoo  does help me.Last edited by kuifje09 on Sun Apr 07, 2013 9:18 pm; edited 1 time in total

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## Ant P.

This is one of the risks you take when supporting companies who only provide proprietary blob drivers. You might still be able to use those cards with the community reverse-engineered nouveau driver.

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## kuifje09

Thanks for your response.

Using the nouveau driver does not help much.  Both cards are not implemeted good enough.

Riva-tnt drops back to 1024x800  and 7600GS does work rather well, but not fast enough.

Thats all very clear why, but with ubuntu also the nvidia driver has problems. Maby the problem is ubuntu itself.

And that is exact what I want to know.

for example, the 7600GS,  the system says it is running 1280x1024 at 50 Hz.  while it is at 60 hz and could be 75 hz, 

but cannot be chosen.

The nvidia-driver cannot find which slot the card is plugged in?????  All very strange.

Would Gentoo do any better?

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## Gusar

 *kuifje09 wrote:*   

> for example, the 7600GS,  the system says it is running 1280x1024 at 50 Hz.  while it is at 60 hz and could be 75 hz,

 

Old nvidia drivers abused the freq parameter for a different purpose. It's well documented in the nvidia docs.

The 7600GS is still fully supported by Nvidia with the 304 legacy branch, current version is 304.88. The TNT2 hasn't been supported for a long time now, so using nouveau is your only choice on that card.

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## kuifje09

Okay I can try as a last chance the 304-version.

But "Old nvidia drivers abused the freq parameter for a different purpose" , what do you mean?

If my display/monitor says  50Hz or 60Hz or 72Hz or 75Hz, then is is that frequention. Just like the resolution is showed on the screen.  It cannot be faked at the monitor.   

Does it make sense to try a gentoo life cd/dvd  or are the "proprietry" drivers not implemented in those life-cd's like in [*]ubuntu.

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## Gusar

Like I said, it's documented in the nvidia docs. What is reported by X is not the freq of your monitor, it's some other piece of info the nvidia driver put there. They don't use this hack anyone in 300 an later versions of the driver.

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## kuifje09

I think we don't get each other. I mean to talk about the xorg or Xfree86 mode-lne in this detail.

When configured for a particular freq it wil run so. I can reed it from the monitor or have it shown by xvidtune.

as example :

Vendor: Samsung, Model: Syncmaster 910M

Num hsync: 1, Num vsync: 1

hsync range 0:  28.00 -  38.00

vsync range 0:  43.00 -  75.00

Then;  in ubuntu it is shown as running on 50 Hz while it is 60 Hz ( xvidtune is right -  ubuntu tools are wrong )

But that is not the goal of my question.  I would like to know if I would be better off , running Gentoo  or Ubuntu.

Then especialy looking at the video drivers.

I now get the idea it does make no difference. Both depend on the same drivers and kernel and so on...

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## kuifje09

A bit ugly to poat on gentoo for ubuntu but I think the same does for gentoo,

The 7600GS works perfect with the driver : NVIDIA-Linux-x86-304.88.run

xrandr -q

Screen 0: minimum 8 x 8, current 1280 x 1024, maximum 4096 x 4096

VGA-0 connected 1280x1024+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 376mm x 301mm

1280x1024 60.0*+ 75.0

1152x864 75.0

1024x768 75.0 70.1 60.0

800x600 75.0 72.2 60.3 56.2

640x480 75.0 72.8 59.9

DVI-I-0 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)

TV-0 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)

DVI-I-1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)

cat /etc/*rel*

DISTRIB_ID=Ubuntu

DISTRIB_RELEASE=11.10

DISTRIB_CODENAME=oneiric

DISTRIB_DESCRIPTION="Ubuntu 11.10"

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## Gusar

 *kuifje09 wrote:*   

> I think we don't get each other.

 

Err, you asked what I meant by "Old nvidia drivers abused the freq parameter for a different purpose". I answered. Ubuntu tools are not "wrong", they show info that the nvidia driver put there. It's not the freq of the display, it's a number that has special meaning to the nvidia driver.

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