rcarkk wrote on 2025-07-05, 12:12:

Hi guys. […]
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Hi guys.

I recently got this card, but for now, i´m unable to make it work. It doesn´t send signal to the monitor.
I have placed a missing 2.2uF 16v tantalum capacitor at the back and inspected all the traces. Found 2 traces were cut, they are fine now. Resistors seem to be fine.
Voltage regulator shows 5v in and 2.2v out if i´m not mistaken. I think this should be normal.
I tried to find this particular card Vbios, but no avail. If the vbios is corrupt, can i simply flash a reference banshee AGP SGRAM vbios in it?
Any ideas?

Not sure about using a reference vbios...Leadtek had differing versions depending on SGRAM chips used (can't find a live dl link to elite.zip atm)... https://web.archive.org/web/20010215023133/ht … .tw/CS310DL.htm

There should be 3.45...3.6 Volts at the "+" C24
I think any standard BIOS will work, for example 1.00.03-ET. But the original sm512.rom looks better.

PC Hoarder Patrol wrote on 2025-07-05, 16:45:

rcarkk wrote on 2025-07-05, 12:12:

Hi guys. […]
Show full quote

Hi guys.

I recently got this card, but for now, i´m unable to make it work. It doesn´t send signal to the monitor.
I have placed a missing 2.2uF 16v tantalum capacitor at the back and inspected all the traces. Found 2 traces were cut, they are fine now. Resistors seem to be fine.
Voltage regulator shows 5v in and 2.2v out if i´m not mistaken. I think this should be normal.
I tried to find this particular card Vbios, but no avail. If the vbios is corrupt, can i simply flash a reference banshee AGP SGRAM vbios in it?
Any ideas?

Not sure about using a reference vbios...Leadtek had differing versions depending on SGRAM chips used (can't find a live dl link to elite.zip atm)... https://web.archive.org/web/20010215023133/ht … .tw/CS310DL.htm

Thank you. unfortunately, i wasn´t been able to find any bios for download...it will be dificult to revive this card, if vbios is the problem.

Postman5 wrote on 2025-07-05, 20:13:

There should be 3.45...3.6 Volts at the "+" C24
I think any standard BIOS will work, for example 1.00.03-ET. But the original sm512.rom looks better.

Is that card yours? Any possibility to backup the vbios so i can flash it?
In the event of not finding a leadtek bios, can i use an SGRAM eliteMT reference vbios?
I did manage to measure all resistors in the card, and they are all fine. I will test the voltage regulator once again, and the C24 capacitor you refered. Is it guaranted that i should see 3.45/3.6v in that cap?

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 14:10:

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Thank you for you help. So if i flash the attached vbios in this winfast S310, chances are that it can live again if the voltage regulator is good? I suspect it is. I measured 5v on the "V in" gate and 2.2v on the Adj/Ground gate. I didn´t know the middle one was the V out. I guess i will measure on the C24 and see what is the voltage running in it.
Regarding the flash tool, do you recomend the standard 3dfx flash tool for the voodoo banshee? I will use a PCI card to the flash process, if the voltage regulator is fine.
EDIT: I unziped your file and i see you have the flash tool in it. Should i use this one? Is the method of flash, similar to the one on the Voodoo 3?

Yes, this is early 3dfx flash, the process is exactly the same as with Voodoo3

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 14:10:

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 16:12:

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 14:10:

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 16:39:

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 16:12:

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 14:10:

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

Didn´t know the card is rare at all. I thought it is uncommon though.

https://youtu.be/mLfkqqW5rvc?si=gViYSfGrCdsr07it&t=295

Should i do this exact process? I see in the video that the save.rom will be the backup of the old bios in the eeprom of the card. Will this file be created on the folder of the 3dfx flash utility?

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 16:39:

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 16:12:

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 14:10:

All Banshee video cards are manufactured according to a standard scheme. Models with SGRAM memory use chips with an organization of 256K x 32 Bit x 2 Banks. For example, M32L1632512A or KM4132G512Q, or KT512Kx32, or VG4616321AQ, or HYB39S16320TQ, or SM512G32 and so on. They are all interchangeable. Therefore, the BIOS from Banshee AGP with SGRAM will most likely work well on yours. I flashed another BIOS into my Axle Banshee (650-0043-01) instead of the standard BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310 - file sm512.rom. And it works fine, showing a beautiful multi-colored running line at startup. But first of all, you definitely need to make sure that the supply voltage after the AME1085 regulator is correct.

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

I only now understood that the "SM512.rom" you shared is the Winfast S310 BIOS but with diferent type of SGRAM manufacturer. Our cards, have EliteMT SGRAM. Can this winfast rom, be flashed with the 3dfx flash utility or is the utility provided in your zip file, from leadtek? I´m confused, sorry.

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 18:00:

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 16:39:

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 16:12:

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

I only now understood that the "SM512.rom" you shared is the Winfast S310 BIOS but with diferent type of SGRAM manufacturer. Our cards, have EliteMT SGRAM. Can this winfast rom, be flashed with the 3dfx flash utility or is the utility provided in your zip file, from leadtek? I´m confused, sorry.

Yes, sm512.rom is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
Everything you need to update the firmware is in the sm512.zip file.
EliteMT memory and SM memory are the same chips in architecture, don't pay attention to it.
You need to type the command in DOS:
flash.exe sm512.rom

Ok. Thank you. When i type "flash.exe sm512.rom", will the rom that is on the card be automatically saved on the sm512 folder?

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 17:49:

Didn´t know the card is rare at all. I thought it is uncommon though. […]
Show full quote

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 16:39:

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 16:12:

Your Axle Banshee had the Leadtek BIOS 1.00.03-ET - Banshee Winfast S310- file sm512.rom?

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

Didn´t know the card is rare at all. I thought it is uncommon though.

https://youtu.be/mLfkqqW5rvc?si=gViYSfGrCdsr07it&t=295

Should i do this exact process? I see in the video that the save.rom will be the backup of the old bios in the eeprom of the card. Will this file be created on the folder of the 3dfx flash utility?

Everything is correct, except for this fragment. I think this is a mistake by B&B when editing the video.

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 18:57:

Ok. Thank you. When i type "flash.exe sm512.rom", will the rom that is on the card be automatically saved on the sm512 folder?

Yes.
The name of this file is save.rom
Please post it here.

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 19:08:

rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 17:49:

Didn´t know the card is rare at all. I thought it is uncommon though. […]
Show full quote

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 16:39:

No, my card had BIOS 1.00.03-ET. I replaced it with sm512.rom for the sake of experiment - this is the Winfast S310 BIOS.
I have a request: if you update the BIOS, save and post here the save.rom file - this is the old BIOS. Your card is rare, and it will be interesting to look at this BIOS.

Didn´t know the card is rare at all. I thought it is uncommon though.

https://youtu.be/mLfkqqW5rvc?si=gViYSfGrCdsr07it&t=295

Should i do this exact process? I see in the video that the save.rom will be the backup of the old bios in the eeprom of the card. Will this file be created on the folder of the 3dfx flash utility?

Everything is correct, except for this fragment. I think this is a mistake by B&B when editing the video.

I´m not sure if i understand. In that frame BuB was refering that the flashing process of a GF 2 MX from Leadtek was more visually interesting than the 3dfx flash utility process. Just for comparison.

Will the flash process in the Leadtek file you attached, be more similar with the standard 3dfx flash utility or with the Leadtek GF2 MX flash utility tha BuB showed in that frame?

Postman5 wrote on Yesterday, 19:09:

Yes. The name of this file is save.rom Please post it here. […]
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rcarkk wrote on Yesterday, 18:57:

Ok. Thank you. When i type "flash.exe sm512.rom", will the rom that is on the card be automatically saved on the sm512 folder?

Yes.
The name of this file is save.rom
Please post it here.

I will 😀

I watched the video without sound and didn't realize that different programs were being compared. I thought it was a random clip that got into the video.

Postman5 wrote on Today, 11:34:

I watched the video without sound and didn't realize that different programs were being compared. I thought it was a random clip that got into the video.

Ok. Understand. Lets see if i get some time at the end of the day, so i can check the C24 cap. If the voltage is fine, i will try your file. Fingers crossed. I would be very happy to see this card working