Having Some Physx Problems...

ZaLiTH · 29 Apr 2011

I'm not sure how long it's been like this, but the Physx setup on my PC is poked and I'm running out of ideas to try fix it.

Up til recently, I was running a 8800GTS G92 512mb (most recently with 252 and 260 forceware drivers), and I wasn't aware of any problems because that card couldn't really handle physx in games very well anyway.. I got a EVGA GTX275 SC 896mb card the other day, and I wanted to compare physx performance (amongst other tests) between the two cards.

Anyway, no luck... "Ageia PhysX (32-bit)" in my Control Panel tells me there's no Ageia PhysX processor found; this I do understand may mean there is no Ageia-branded PPU in my box, which there is not. But GPU-z also tells me Physx is disabled, and FluidMark runs the test with software physx.

System restore is not an option because I clean up restore points regularly and I don't know when this started. I have tried cleaning my system with Driver Sweeper then reinstalling both 260.99 (with Physx 9.10.0512) and 270.41 (with Physx 9.10.0514) drivers, but nothing seems to fix it.

Also, I know it is not the graphics card, because when I put my 8800GTS back in, it does the same thing. I know for a fact that card's PPU still works fine, I had used it many times in test applications, just not for games.

What am I missing here? I don't see any logical reason for Physx not to be working... I'm using less than 40% of my GPU (EVGA Precision OSD) with Mirror's Edge maxxed out, I want to see if it can handle the Physx side of the game.

Edit Sorry, I meant 270.61, not 270.41.

Everlong · 29 Apr 2011

Have you gone in to the control panel and in the Physx section set physx to the GPU and not CPU?

And any reason you're not using the latest drivers?

And Mirror's Edge is pretty tame on Physx. Something like Mafia 2 uses heavier Physx.

ZaLiTH · 29 Apr 2011

Everlong said:

Have you gone in to the control panel and in the Physx section set physx to the GPU and not CPU?

Ah, sorry... I knew I left something out. I had tried both 'auto' and 'GTX 275' for Physx with the 260.99 drivers, it made no difference at all. GPU-z and FluidMark both still didn't pick up any hardware Physx support. With 270.61, I can't even get into the NVidia Control Panel.. :/ It either tells me there's an older version running that must be closed first, or it just hangs and I have to end task.

Everlong said:

And any reason you're not using the latest drivers?

And Mirror's Edge is pretty tame on Physx. Something like Mafia 2 uses heavier Physx.

I thought 270.61 were the latest...? I downloaded them about 7 hours ago... I know Mirror's Edge isn't the best Physx test, but I have it.. And I don't have Mafia 2.. :) I could get it...... But it wouldn't be too legal, so I think I'll avoid that alley this time hey.

Edit: My bad, made a typo.... I meant 270.61, not 270.41.
Edit 2: Stuff it, it's now 4am here... I need some sleep. I'll check again in the morning for any more replies... Thanks. :)

Everlong · 30 Apr 2011

Have you tried the Nvidia driver clean install option when installing 270.61? Never seen that problem myself before.

Try another full driver clean and re-install, then try installing the Physx driver manually after the graphics driver.

NVIDIA DRIVERS 9.10.0513

ZaLiTH · 30 Apr 2011

Everlong said:

Have you tried the Nvidia driver clean install option when installing 270.61? Never seen that problem myself before.

Try another full driver clean and re-install, then try installing the Physx driver manually after the graphics driver.

NVIDIA DRIVERS 9.10.0513

Yeah, I did try that.. More than once if I'm not mistaken. the 260.99 pack came with Physx 9.10.0512, and the 270.61 came with 9.10.0514, I wonder why the Nvidia site shows 9.10.0513 as the latest then...

Either way, here at home I use my phone as a GPRS modem, so downloading drivers at the moment is a bit of a mission. I'll get the latest standalone Physx installer on Tuesday (Monday is a public holiday here) and see what I can do.

To be honest though, I don't know if that will make much difference. I've tried with three versions of the drivers (the two I've mentioned, and 197.45 that I found in an old folder), and no matter the version, Physx simply doesn't want to work on either the 8800GTS or GTX275 anymore.

I'm also having an issue getting to the Nvidia Control Panel with 270.61, so I've asked for a bit of help over at the Nvidia forum for that. Let me get that working first and make sure the drivers are actually installing correctly, after that it should be a bit easier to figure out what the heck is happening to the Physx side... Heh, maybe it's actually just come time to format and reinstall, but I'd like to avoid that if posible.