# [SOLVED] Trackmania Nations crashes randomly



## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

Hi,

Simple story, been bugging me for months, haven't found a solution anywhere yet:

Trackmania Nations ESWC often crashes randomly. It could be after I've played for 45 minutes, or after just 2 minutes, there's no way to tell as far as I'm concerned. I haven't found anything that could cause it the moment it happens, either. It's not like I'm pressing more than 2 buttons at a time, and often when it crashes I'm only holding the forward key. There's no spinning of the camera, making it render more, or lots of sounds playing at once.

What happens is; the game freezes, putting the last few milliseconds of sound in a horrible loop, forcing me to push the reset button, since CTRL+ALT+DELETE and ALT+F4 don't seem to do anything at all.

My rig specs:

Windows XP Pro SP2
3 GHz CPU
1 GB RAM
NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT video adapter
ForteMedia FM801 Audio Controller

Sorry if there specs aren't enough, let me know if you need more. I followed the link that said "Posting System Specifications" in Gamerman0203's sig but it told me the thread wasn't there anymore. Besides, I'm not that much into hardware, so you might need to tell me how to find out about certain specs.

Any and all help is much appreciated!


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Also, I have a 352w power supply.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

try this http://www.techsupportforum.com/art...es/122161-how-use-install-sensorsviewpro.html post back your temps,and voltage readings.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

I attached a screenshot of the program running with this post. You'll have to tell me if those temperatures and voltages are normal or not, I wouldn't know.

NOTE: The game was running at the time the screenshot was taken. Before I opened the game, my GPU temp was about 5 to 10 degrees lower, slowly rising after I started the game.

Also, when I first ran the program, my CPU temperature reading was 128 degrees Celcius, constantly. I had a look in the settings, and found 3 sensors for my CPU. The third gives a 128 reading non-stop, while the other two give readings around 50. Could it be that the third sensor is simply broken, or not even there and the program is making it up? It's probably an error anyway, because 128 happens to be a binary number.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

yes ive had a board that gave a whacked reading like that before.no way anything in there is 128c it would have melted a long time ago:laugh: can you possibly enter your computers bios,and confirm that 12v reading?sensorsview is showing it way off at 7.49v if it really is power supply is your problem.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*



pharoah said:


> yes ive had a board that gave a whacked reading like that before.no way anything in there is 128c it would have melted a long time ago:laugh:


That's exactly what I thought ^^

I looked for and found the voltages in the BIOS. +12V was steady at 11.808V in there. I've checked the setting in SensorsView Pro, but all of the sensors I could choose from are around 7.5V or below.

The requirements for my current video card say I need a 350w power supply. I have 352w, could that mean that the power supply is only barely coping and sometimes just can't? (funnily only in this particular game)


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

i dont know what all games you do play so i will ask.would this game be the most graphics intense game you play?


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Hah. Hardly.

I play TMN (Trackmania Nations) with not too high settings, meaning Anti-Aliasing is off, no motion blur, nothing that intense. I've played Call of Duty 2 on max settings (DX9, 4x Anti-Aliasing, the lot) without any problems ('cept for an FPS I wouldn't even think of playing online with, of course). Oblivion has run perfectly on my machine (though, of course, far from max settings), and so has Fable, Company of Heroes, Overlord, and probably even more.

The only intense thing in TMN graphically speaking would be the speed, I guess, though I wouldn't know whether camera speed is an intense thing for a GPU to render or not.

I've looked at the power supply as the problem maker before, but even though I only just meet the requirements for the video cards with it, most people so far have said I should be fine.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

have you tried reinstalling the game yet?


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Yes, several times. I've abandoned playing it for a couple of months, I only picked it up again a few days ago and got reminded of the crashing issue. I've also reinstalled Windows in the months I didn't play the game.


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

*Posting System Specs link*

If this is the only game to crash, then it's probably not your PSU. To check this, enter your full system specs into this *power calculator*, and add 30% to the total to allow for PSU inefficiency. Post back with the results of this and the details from the PSU label (make/model, total watts, amps for +3.3V, +5V and +12V)

Any yellow flags in the Device Manager?

Which drivers do you have installed for sound and graphics? To find out, go to Start > Run > dxdiag > Display and Sound tabs. And while you've got dxdiag open, run the 2 tests in the Display tab and make sure the 3 Acceleration buttons are enabled.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

I'm unsure about a lot of the things that were asked on the link you gave me, but it should be roughly accurate. 321 PSU wattage was recommended for me.

PSU info on label:

Model: EG365AX-VE(G)
AC Input: 230v~, 50Hz, 2.6A
DC Output:
+3.3V = 32A
+5V = 32A
+12V = 26A
-5V = 1A
-12V = 1A
+5VSb = 2.2A
+3.3 & 5V = 185W
Total power: 353W
FMA: 8CM FAN SPEED MONITORING BY M/B AND ADJUSTABLE
S squared: Smart & Silent
FC squared: 2 Thermal Fan-Control Fans
A1: One Adjustable Fan (manual control outside)

That's it, I think. Unless you want to know what's on all the stickers and safety warnings, too.

I have 2 yellow devices in my Device Manager, one PCI device and one unknown.

I ran the two tests in the Display tab, they worked perfectly, except for the first part of the DirectDraw test, the part with the white and black square pattern. There was a gray line about halfway down from the center. The rest appeared as it should, as far as I could tell.

All 3 acceleration buttons are enabled.

My driver info in the Sound tab:
Name: fm801.sys
Version: 5.00.1319.0200 (English)
Date: 02/11/2001 14:33:18
Signed: Yes
Company: ForteMedia, Inc.

I've translated it from Dutch, so some of the headings might not be what they should be in the English version of Windows XP. Same goes for the Display driver info below.

Driver: n4v_disp.dll
Version: 6.14.0010.9424 (English)
19/04/2007 13:26:00
Signed: No
Mini-VDD: nv4_mini.sys
VDD: N/A
DDI-version: 9 (or higher)

Here's what I could find out from the list of things in the Posting System Specs link you gave me:

PSU: See top of post.
Motherboard: See attachment.
CPU: See attachment.
RAM: PC3200 CL3 (it was all I found out, nothing more on the label or anything AIDA32 could find, other than it being 64-bit)
Video card: NVIDIA GeForce 6700 GT, PCI-Express, 256 MB memory
Hard Drives: 2x Maxtor 6L160P0, 152 GB each, ATA.
OS: Windows XP Pro SP2


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

I have 2 yellow devices in my Device Manager, one PCI device and one unknown.


that may be part of your problem.why dont you try to get those things installed properly.right click those item,and hit update driver.you will get a prompt box allow it to search online for a suitable driver.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

If I knew what they were, I'd have installed the drivers ages ago. But I don't know, and Windows can't find anything for me either.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

well one says pci device what do you have in a pci slot that isnt installed?if you have nothing in a pci card slot then the bus itself must not be installed.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

I've opened up the case just to be sure, but the only thing I have in a PCI-E slot is my video card (that's in the only PCI-E slot that's on my motherboard anyway, so I'm assuming it can't be a faulty PCI-E slot), and my sound card in a normal PCI slot. Both are working fine, as far as I can tell. It was kinda hard to find drivers for my sound card when I reinstalled Windows, though, since it's pretty old. Maybe it's not functioning properly?


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

thats possible does the soundcard show in the device manager,and is it showing any conflicts?


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

The soundcard shows in the device manager (there's a list of several things concerning audio, two of them containing the name of the soundcard (FM801), I don't know what exactly should all be in there, maybe the yellow devices should be there, I dunno).

There's no indication of any conflicts as far as I can find in the properties. However, I sometimes notice (rarely, though) that the sound is strangely malformed or jittery while I'm playing a game. I've never had it with Trackmania Nations, though. Sometimes fooling around with the audio settings in the game helps for no particular reason, but not always.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

how old is that sound card?why not try the game without it.see if that has any affect on the crashing.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Would disabling the devices in the device manager be enough? I don't feel like going through the trouble of taking out all the plugs and unscrewing the thing just to disconnect it.

This is the original soundcard that came with this PC, which I bought about 3 years ago.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Okay, I've been playing Trackmania Nations for one and a half hours straight without any trouble at all (except for no sound, of course). I would've crashed about 5 times normally.

So now it's obvious my soundcard is not working properly. Are there any procedures I can try to fix it or should I just get a new one? They're pretty cheap, as far as I know.


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## koala (Mar 27, 2005)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

The total you got in the power calculator was approx 321W (including extra 30%?) and you have a 3 year old 350W PSU, which is close enough to consider a PSU upgrade. Removing the soundcard would have reduced your system's power requirements by about 10W.

If you have the latest sound driver installed and the game is still crashing, try another PCI sound card. You could also test your card in another computer, if possible, to see if it is faulty.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

If by the extra 30% percent you meant 30% extra on the PSU usage something, I put it up to a 100%. Or did you want me to add 30% to the final result?

I'm probably going to buy a new soundcard, though it might be tough finding one that still supports the plug I use for my 5.1 system, since it's considered pretty ancient by now, I guess. Dunno what it's called. Upgrading my PSU might also be good idea, since I'm pushing it already (it seems) and I might upgrade other components of my PC in the future it would be handy to have a PSU that can handle it.


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## pharoah (Aug 28, 2006)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

no koala meant to add 30% more to whatever the calculator said.that is to offset for the fact no component,or power supply is 100% efficient.


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*



In that case I am in dire need of a new PSU, because 321 and the added 30% is 417.3!

Thanks for all the help you've given me, I'm really grateful! And props to the fast reaction time!


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## Cricket (Aug 13, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Reinstall the game. I had the same problem except it would crash right when i started racing. Now i am a trackmania masta!


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## Zekko (Aug 7, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

I've already tried reinstalling the game several times. I even reinstalled Windows. The problem isn't even the same. The point at which the game crashes is vital; even if it's just a few seconds difference, the list of possible errors could be completely different.

The problem has been found and will be taken care of. No further assistance is necessary, thank you.


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## Cricket (Aug 13, 2007)

*Re: Trackmania Nations crashes randomly*

Sorry, i cant read.


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