Australian in need of your help !

hey guys...

umm, i've had an ongoing problem for a while. I've posted in a local forum and found this forum on google.com.au.

setup:

1ghz athlon t-bird
-thermtake superorb
msi kt7pro2 motherboard
256/133 apacer ram
2x voodoo2's
1x tnt2 32 meg
soundblaster live
30 gig HDD ibm dtla
Window 2k & Window ME (<-- happens in both OS's)

problem:
when i play games, sometimes, my monitor/mouse and keyboard will turn off. My HDD will keep going (i know cause the light is still on - if thats an incorrect indication... well, it turns off aswell).
The monitor will just blink... turn itself off.. and i have to kill switch it to restart
this only happens when i play games

what i've tried:
- i thought it was voodoo cards. i've tried heaps of drivers.. nothing works. I installed a tnt2 (with v2's still in there...) same problem, removed the v2's and same problem.
- Taken everything apart, the CPU therm grese looked like it was lacking.. so i regreased it... still happens.
I've just stopped short of uninstalling dx8 (as i cant be fux0red atm reading how to do it).
i've jiggled everything, i've dusted everything.. nothing works.
This has carried on through reinstalls aswell... so i am unsure if it is a software issue.
- installed the latest VIA chipset drivers (4.29v(a)) - i checked thae site and they have a new sections:

AMD - 429v.zip
i havent installed these.

I also installed an AGP driver for AMD from http://www.reactorcritical.com for win 2k

AMD AGP-driver for Windows 2000, version 5.22
miniport_522_win2k.exe ( bytes) - 21 February, 2001

order of install -
via chipset 429v(a) - reboot
amd miniport driver - reboot
2d/trio card - reboot
voodoo/sblive/network card - reboot
- Someone suggested power supply.
I brought a new 300watt PSU + new ATX apon case.
same problem.

the only thing i can think of is i have to many pci cards in there which are sharing irq's.

setup:

AGP - s3/trio
pci - voodoo 2
pci - voodoo 2
pci - empty
pci - scsi card
pci - sblive
pci - dlink network card


anyone got any guru advice ?

Sorry if my explination is a little vague... i copy and pasted some of it from another thechnical thread i've been gettinghelp in.
if you wanna see what help i've had so far, check:
http://www.snaggs.com/cgi-bin/Ultraboard...6&SID=27872

Thanks to anyone who helps me out... i'm at the stage of throwing computer out the window
cheers

As much as I like 3dfx cards, I have to say, get a different video card(s). The voodoos are a major bottleneck right there, and could be the source of your problems. See if someone will be kind enough to you to let you borrow a GeForce 2--at least an MX.
The only thing you need from AMD is a registry patch for their Athlon and Duron processors under Win2k. That other stuff is for AMD CHIPSETS ONLY! (Look on AMD's site)
As far as the IRQs are concerned, that's not the problem, so dont fool with them. I did, or attempted it, and ended up reinstalling everything. Win2k automatically assigns most things to one IRQ.
Remove the AMD drivers, and just have the latest final Via 4-in-1 drivers installed. Also, get that AMD registry patch asap!
Hope this helps.

can you point me in te direction of the AMD reg patch ?

cheers.

/me checking confusing AMD site.

grandpipe@othersdietrying.com

found :
http://www.amd.com/products/cpg/bin/

but i cant see any registry patch.. only agp drivers and the like...
can you see the rego patch ?

*update*
i think i got it :p
http://www.amd.com/products/cpg/athlon-duron/amd_win2k_patch.html

Cool.
I probably ought to bookmark that and remember it. A lot of people dont seem to know about it.

Hope it works for ya.