Gigabyte GV-NX84G256HE User manual

Nov. 1, 2007
VGA Card
GV-NX84G256HP

VGA Card
Nov. 1, 2007
GV-NX84G256HP

Oct. 8, 2007
VGA Card
GV-NX84G256HE

VGA Card
Oct. 8, 2007
GV-NX84G256HE

GV-NX84G256HP /
GV-NX84G256HE
GeForce™8400 GS Graphics Accelerator
User's Manual
Rev. 201
12MD-NX84G2HE-201R
Copyright
© 2007 GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD
Copyright by GIGA-BYTE TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD. ("GBT"). No part of this manual may be reproduced or transmitted in any from
without the expressed, written permission of GBT.
Trademarks
Third-party brands and names are the property of their respective owners.
Notice
Please do not remove any labels on VGA card, this may void the warranty of this VGA card
Due to rapid change in technology, some of the specifications might be out of date before publication of this booklet.
The author assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions that may appear in this document nor does the author make a
commitment to update the information contained herein.
Macrovision corporation product notice:
This product incorporates copyright protection technology that is protected by U.S. patents and other intellectual property rights.
Use of this copyright protection technology must be authorized by Macrovision, and is intended for home and other limited viewing
uses only unless otherwise authorized by Macrovision. Reverse engineering or disassembly is prohibited.

GV-NX84G256HP/256HE Graphics Accelerator - 2 -
English
Table of Contents
1. Introduction ......................................................................................... 3
1.1. Features ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2. Minimum System Requirements ................................................................... 3
2. Hardware Installation ........................................................................... 4
2.1. Board Layout .............................................................................................. 4
2.2. Hardware Installation ................................................................................... 7
3. Software Installation .......................................................................... 11
3.1. Windows®XP Drive Installation ...................................................................11
3.1.1. Operating System Requirement .................................................................................. 11
3.1.2. DirectX Installation ........................................................................................................ 12
3.1.3. Driver Installation .......................................................................................................... 13
3.1.4. Taskbar Icon ................................................................................................................. 15
3.1.5. Display Properties Pages ............................................................................................ 16
3.1.6. nView Properties pages .............................................................................................. 27
3.2. Windows®2000 Driver Installation ............................................................. 32
4. Troubleshooting Tips ........................................................................ 33
5. Appendix .......................................................................................... 34
5.1. How to Reflash the BIOS in MS-DOS Mode ............................................... 34
5.2. Resolutions and Color Depth Table (In Windows®XP) ............................... 35
Regulatory Statements .......................................................................... 37

Introduction- 3 -
English
1. Introduction
•Powered by NVIDIA®GeForce™8400 GS Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)
•Supports the newest PCI Express x16
•Integrated with 256 MB GDDR2 memory
•Supports DirectX 10
•Supports AV / S-Video / TV-Out output
•Supports 1 Dual-Link DVI-I connector (For GV-NX84G256HP only)
•Supports 1 DVI-I connector (For GV-NX84G256HE only)
•Supports 1 D-Sub connector
•Supports HDTV output (by adapter, optional)
•Supports HDMI connector (For GV-NX84G256HP only, by adapter, optional)
1.1. Features
•The graphics card supports NVIDIA TurboCache technology, which enhances
graphics card performance by allowing the graphics processing unit (GPU) to
dynamically share the available system memory. The total effective VGA memory
differs depending on system memory. See the following table for details:
System Memory 256 MB 512 MB 1 GB or above
Onboard Graphics Memory (a) 256 MB 256 MB 256 MB
Allocated System Memory (b) 0 MB 0 MB 256 MB
Total Effective Graphics Memory (a)+(b) 256 MB 256 MB 512 MB
1.2. Minimum System Requirements
•IBM®or 100% PC compatible with Intel Pentium®III 650MHz or AMD Athlon
650 MHz class processor or higher
•One PCI Express x16 slot
•Operating Systems Windows®2000 / Windows®XP / Windows®Vista
•256 MB system memory
•100 MB of available disk space for full installation
•CD-ROM or DVD-ROM drive
•A PCI Express compliant motherboard and power supply

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2. Hardware Installation
TV-Out
DVI-I Connector
D-Sub Monitor
Connector (15-pin)
TV-Out
DVI-I
Connector
Digital LCD Monitor
DVI Output
D-Sub
Connector
(15-pin)
DVI-I to D-Sub
Adapter
S-Video Output
Pb/AV Output
Pr
Y
NTSC / PAL TV Projector
HDTV
or
NTSC / PAL TV Projector
or
DVI-I to HDMI Adapter
HDMI Monitor
Analog LCD Monitor Analog CRT Monitor
or
Analog LCD Monitor Analog CRT Monitor
or D-Sub Output
D-Sub
Output
2.1. Board Layout
1. GV-NX84G256HP

Hardware Installation- 5 -
English
TV-Out
DVI-I Connector
D-Sub Monitor
Connector (15-pin)
TV-Out
D-Sub Monitor
Connector
(15-pin)
DVI-I Connector
D-Sub Output
Digital LCD Monitor
DVI Output
S-Video Output
Pb/AV Output
Pr
Y
NTSC / PAL TV Projector
HDTV
or
NTSC / PAL TV Projector
or
Analog LCD Monitor Analog CRT Monitor
or DVI-I to D-Sub
Adapter
D-Sub
Output
Analog LCD Monitor Analog Monitor
or
2. GV-NX84G256HE

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Expansion cards contain very delicate Integrated Circuit (IC) chips. To
protect them against damage from static electricity, you should follow some
precautions whenever you work on your computer.
1. Turn off your computer and unplug power supply.
2. Use a grounded wrist strap before handling computer components. If you do not have
one, touch both of your hands to a safely grounded object or to a metal object, such as
the power supply case.
3. Place components on a grounded antistatic pad or on the bag that came with the
components whenever the components are separated from the system.
The card contains sensitive electric components, which can be easily damaged by static
electricity, so the card should be left in its original packing until it is installed.
Unpacking and installation should be done on a grounded anti-static mat. The operator
should be wearing an anti-static wristband, grounded at the same point as the anti-static
mat.
Inspect the card carton for obvious damage. Shipping and handling may cause damage
to your card. Be sure there are no shipping and handling damages on the card before
proceeding.
DO NOT APPLY POWER TO YOUR SYSTEM IF IT HAS BEEN DAMAGED ON
THE CARD.
In order to ensure your graphics card working correctly, please use official
Gigabyte BIOS only. Use none official Gigabyte BIOS might cause problem
on the graphics card.

Hardware Installation- 7 -
English
2.2. Hardware Installation
Installing Your graphics card.
Now that you have prepared your computer, you are ready to install your graphics accelerator
card.
To remove the existing graphics card:
1. Power off the computer and monitor, then
disconnect the display cable from the back
of your computer.
2. Remove the computer cover. If necessary,
consult your computer's manual for help in
removing the cover.
3. Remove any existing graphics card from
your computer.

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English
You are now ready to proceed with the installation of the graphics card driver. Please refer
to next chapter for detailed instructions.
2. Replace the screws to fasten the card in
place, and replace the computer cover.
To install your new graphics card:
1. Locate one PCI Express x16 slot. If
necessary, remove the metal cover from the
slot; then align your graphics card with the
PCI Express x16 slot, and press it in firmly
until the card is fully seated.
* Please make sure that the gold edge
connectors of the graphics card is securely
inserted.
3. Plug the display cable into your card; then
turn on the computer and monitor. If your
graphics card came with a DVI-I connector,
you can connect a flat panel display to the
appropriate connector, as shown below.
To TV/VCR
To Flat Panel Display To D-Sub Monitor

Hardware Installation- 9 -
English
(1) Connecting HDTV
Connect your HDTV cables to the video adapter
according to the corresponding color.
(Y= Green, Pr= Red, Pb= Blue)
(2) Connecting S-Video
If your TV has a S-Video connection, connect the S-
Video cable from your TV to the S-Video Out port on the
adapter.
(3) Connecting AV Output
If your TV has a Composite video connection, you can
connect the RCA cable from your TV to the AV Out port
on the adapter.
Connect to the TV-Out port
on the graphics card.
S-Video Out HDTV Component
(Y+Pr+Pb)
AV Out
GIGABYTE VideoAdapter (Optional)

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GIGABYTE Thermal Solution Guidelines:
1. GIGABYTE established the use of silent pipes on graphics card's thermal solution, and has been
the leading company for silent thermal solution. GIGABYTE's passive thermal solution allows
system to work perfectly in chassis with 40~50 degrees Celsius through the air flow of the system.
Please beware of the other excess component or insufficient system thermal design that may
cause high system temperature. Excess high temperature will affect the passive thermal design
and thus compromising system stability.
2. GIGABYTE TECHNOLOGY's passive thermal design effectively implemented heat exchange,
radiation and convection to improve stability of the system. Please maintain passive thermal sink
at a normal and clean environment. Extra dust on heatsink may decrease the effectiveness of the
thermal design.
Silent Thermal Technology Passive Thermal Design

Software Installation- 11 -
English
3. Software Installation
In this manual, we assume that your CD-ROM Drive letter to be Drive D:
The installation of Windows®2000 / Windows®XP drivers is very simple. When you insert the
driver CD into your CD-ROM drive, you can see the AUTORUN window (if it does not show
up, run "D:\setup.exe"). Then you can follow the guides to setup your graphics card driver.
(Please follow the subsection 3.1.3 "Driver installation" to install the driver for your graphics
accelerator.)
3.1. Windows®XP Driver Installation
3.1.1. Operating System Requirement
•When loading the graphics card drivers for the system, please make sure your system
has installed DirectX 9.0c or later version.
•If you install the graphics card drivers for the motherboard, which consist of SIS or VIA
chipsets, please install the appropriate driver program for that motherboard. Or please
contact your motherboard nearest dealer for motherboard driver.

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3.1.2. DirectX Installation
Install Microsoft DirectX to enable 3D hardware acceleration support for Windows®2000 or
Windows®XP to achieve better 3D performance.
0Note: For software MPEG support in Windows®2000 or Windows®XP, you must install
DirectX first. Users who run Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or above do not need to
install DirectX separately.
Step 1. When autorun window show up, click the
Install DirectX 9 item.
Step 2. Choose I accept the agreement
and click the Next button.
Step 3. Click the Next button.
Step 4. Click Finish to restart computer.
Then the DirectX 9 installation is completed.
Installing the components.

Software Installation- 13 -
English
3.1.3. Driver Installation
A. New hardware found
After the graphics card is inserted into your computer at the first time, the windows will
automatically detect a new hardware in the system and pop out a "New Hardware Found"
message. The following is the step-by-step installation guide.
Step 1: Found new hardware wizard: Video controller (VGA Compatible)
Click the "Next" button to install the driver. (There
is a driver CD disk that came with your graphics
accelerator, please insert it now.)
Or click the "Cancel" button to install the driver
from AUTORUN window.
Step 2: Found new hardware wizard: Searching and installing
The wizard will search for the driver and install it automatically.
Step 3: Found new hardware wizard: Finish
Click the "Finish" button to finish the installation.

GV-NX84G256HP/256HE Graphics Accelerator - 14 -
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B. Driver installation (Autorun Window)
Insert the driver CD disk into your CD-ROM, and then you can see the AUTORUN window.
If it does not show up, please run "D:\setup.exe".
Step 1. When autorun window show up,
click Install Display Driver item.
Step 2. Click "Next" button.
Step 3. Click "Finish" button to restart computer.
Then the driver installation is completed.
Windows installings the components.

Software Installation- 15 -
English
After installation of the display drivers, you will find a NVIDIA icon on the taskbar's status
area. Click this icon to open the control panel.
3.1.4. Taskbar Icon
Right click the icon.
You can adjust the properties of
the graphics accelerator from
here.

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3.1.5. Display Properties Pages
To access Display Properties pages, right-click on desktop and then select Properties. The
Display Properties dialog box shows the information of display adapter, color, the range of
display area, and the refresh rate.
Settings (Resolutions and Color depth for Windows)
You may adjust the screen resolution and color quality settings in this dialog box.
You can click the item to change the color quality.
Click the Advanced button for adapter and setting.
Access the GeForce 8400 GS tab page to launch
the NVIDIA Control Panel
All of the NVIDIA control panels have been
consolidated into a single application, the
NVIDIA Control Panel. Click the Start the
NVIDIA Control Panel button to open the
NVIDIA Control Panel.
To access more advanced options, click the Advanced button.
NVIDIA Control Panel
After pressing the Advanced button in Settings, you'll see the Plug and Play Monitor and NVIDIA
GeForce 8400 GS Properties dialog box. Click the GeForce 8400 GS tab. (You can also click the
NVIDIA icon on the taskbar and select NVIDIA Control Panel.)
You can move the slider to change the resolution.