Alienware M17x R2 running a GTX 675MX

Well, after playing around a little bit, I've run into a problem. Three times now, I've been playing Civ5 and suddenly went to a Blue Screen. Not the traditional blue screen. This one says:

*** Hardware Malfunction
Call your hardware vendor for support
*** The system has halted ***

At that point, I have to manually shut down (hold power button). The system boots right back up and everything seems fine.
GPU Temp never goes above 75C (and it happened at 64C once), and I don't see any artifacts or anything funny before the crash.
GPU-Z log reports the fan running at 30% all the time, but HWInfo shows GPU Fan RPMs climbing from 2400 up to about 3275. I can hear the fan spinning at full speed, and since my CPU is under almost no stress (max 30%), I don't think I'm just hearing the CPU fan...

Do you think I have a bad card or GRAM, or should I just try a different driver version?
Should I try using HWInfo to control the GPU fan?
Any particular tests I can run to isolate the problem? I have 3DMark11 Advanced if that helps...

Thanks in advance!

-SloMoHolic

 

Try this for a more detailed analysis Free home edition http://www.resplendence.com/download/whocrashedSetup.exe click dump files>analyze>scroll down to conclusion.
It looks like a driver crash, better use latest v.313.96.

 

Thanks for the quick response. WhoCrashed only came up with crashes from my old ATI 5870 card/driver, which may or may not confirm my suspicion that my 5870 was bad. Oh well, too late for that thought.
In the limited amount of posts I found by searching that error on these forums, it seems to usually be a driver issue
I'll run DriverFusion and clear out the AMD/ATI stuff just to be thorough, and see if that clears it up. I uninstalled the basic ATI stuff before the upgrade but didn't "clean" them out.
I'll also try this in Win8 (which I still haven't set as my default boot OS ). I haven't tried the 675MX in Win8 yet.
Anyway, I am now much more confident that I don't have a bad 675MX card. I can handle a few driver crashes from time to time. Just gotta find the right driver version...

-SloMoHolic

 

Use this guide to clean install, upgrade default how to properly uninstall ATI/AMD Software Drivers for Graphics Cards.

Here you go nvcv.inf v. 313.96

GPU ID ?

Code:

10DE&DEV_11A7&SUBSYS_043A1028  

NVIDIA DRIVERS 313.95BETA

Windows 8 first disable driver signing.

1) Open command prompt (Admin) windows key + X
2) Type "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning yes" (without quotes) enter.
3) Type exit and reboot.
4) Install>reboot.
5) Repeat/replace with "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning no" reboot.

Driver installation.

.1 -Install Nvidia driver.

.2 -extract.

.3 -Installation failed "No compatible device found">close dialog.

.4 -Browse the extracted Nvidia folder (C:\Nvidia)>open Display.Driver folder> copy and replace with the provided nvcv.inf.

.5 -Run setup.exe within the extracted Nvidia folder. (green icon .exe)

.6 -Select custom install>next>Check clean install option>uncheck Nvidia update.

.7 -Reboot.

 

Thanks, that was a thorough guide, and I did find a bunch of that ATI/AMD junk in my system.

That particular INF didn't work on my system, but thanks for the link to the updated driver. I modded the factory INF to match my ID and got it installed.
(My DEV is 11A7).

I'll try Win8 this weekend. Thanks for the instructions to disable signing. I hadn't got that deep into Win8 yet.

For now, I've got 313.96 installed on W7x64, so I'll see if it solves my problem.

Once again, thanks for your help. +1!

 

Nope, I crashed again with the new driver (still Win7). Same error message. I hope it's still just a driver or software issue. I'll try some other games and tests this weekend. Any further advice is appreciated.

I hope I didn't get a dud. I'll contact the seller next week to see what they say.

Thanks again,

-SloMoHolic

 

nvdm.inf 10DE&DEV_1212 = GTX 675M updated with 11A7 = GTX 675MX
nvdm.inf 1028% = Dell the card is not listed.

nvcv.inf.

Code:

10DE&DEV_11A7&SUBSYS_043A1028

Update :

Stock clocks ?
Card from upgradeyourlaptop ? If so it's possible they flashed a Dell vbios onto a Clevo card and the card is not even listed nvdm.inf =Dell so it could be a modded dell vbios.1028%= Dell from a different card (there's no dell vbios for the GTX 675MX) resulting in issues due to a bad gpu flash. My M17XR3 clevo gtx 680m is recognized as dell card 1028, there's no need to flash a dell vbios

Go here NVIDIA Kepler VBIOS mods - Overclocking Editions, modified clocks, voltage tweaks they will help you.

 

Yes, this is the Hardware ID that I get from Device Manager.

Stock clocks as far as I know. I certainly haven't changed anything (yet). And yes, I got the card from upgradeyourlaptop.

I think I'm getting it. So basically, I have a Clevo 675MX, with a Dell vBios for a non-675MX Dell card. Does that sound about right? Also, I guess nvcv.inf=Clevo, right?

I'll jump into the TechInferno thread later and ask for their help. Maybe they can provide a vBios to reflash with.

Thanks again, j95! I'm learning a lot!

-SloMoHolic

 

GTX 675M 2GB Dell vbios(Version: 70.24.43.00.0D) VGA Bios Collection: Dell GTX 675M 2048 MB | techPowerUp launch GPU-Z check the Bios version and click the green icon for a vbios dump so svl7 can take a look at it. I could be wrong but there were Clevo GTX 680M flashed with Dell vbios. Alienware M17X/M18X upgrade kits.

Compare http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/...facturer=&model=GTX+675M&interface=&memSize=0

 

Thanks, but my card is GTX675M X 4GB.

Here's my GPU-Z screen. Note that the subvendor is Dell (1028) - does that mean it's actually a Dell card, or could it still be a Clevo?
Bios version = 80.04.58.00.05 (P2051-b004)

I didn't see any downloads available there for the 675MX, just the 675M.

By the way, I checked the logs for each of about four crashes, and couldn't find any definite correlations with the crash.

I contacted the seller to see if they have a specific driver/inf, or maybe a different vBios to try. I'm at work now, but I'll have some time this weekend to really dig into this. I love learning about this stuff. Thanks again everyone for helping me along. Hopefully this thread will help others, too.

PS I was using RDP to grab the GPU-Z screenshot. When I tried to get the vBios dump a minute ago, I guess my laptop crashed again, because it's offline now.

 

So they are not using a modded dell GTX 675 2GB vbios with a 4GB GTX 675MX those are 7x.xx.xx.xx.xx vbios it's okay, here http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...-m17x-r2-running-gtx-675mx-4.html#post9014975 he had some issues. Still svl7 will recognize the vbios and probably help you out.(if it's a vbios issue could be many things).

 

My god..... Those benchmarks. Going for a 675mx for my m15x.

 

I won an auction for a 675MX 4gb on eBay the other day. It's from an MSI. Is there a place to download the right dell vbios from? I'm also having a hell of a time searching for the 4mm thermal pads an earlier post talked about. Does anyone have a good step-by-step tutorial for how to properly get the pads and paste on without issues?

 

Hi Kuhlka,

Sorry I can't be very much help here. For vBios and such, others here will chime in and help.

My thermal pads came with my card package, so I'm not sure where to find them. I can say that my card never even gets close to overheating, and here's what I did:

The pads I received had an adhesive layer, so I just cut em, peeled the protective layer, and stuck em on. See earlier in the thread for a picture of my pad layout.

As for the paste, I literally squeezed the tube until I had a pea sized amount on the GPU. Then, I put the heat sink on (squarely), and tightened the X bracket screws. That's it!

Hopefully, some others here, who are far more knowledgeable than I, will jump on the thread and answer your questions.

Best of luck!

-Blake

 

Is there any difference between the 675mx x bracket and the one already on my radon 5870? I'm trying to get all of the bits I'll need sorted before the card comes in the mail. Do you remember if the pads were different sizes? I saw on post on here say 1mm and 4mm, then another person said 3mm. I'm having a hard time finding thermal pads, let alone any in 4mm, unless I get them from overseas on eBay.

 

Nvidia cards and AMD cards tend to have a different X-bracket.

In a pinch you can stack thermal pads.

 

From what I saw the difference will be fractional on the height of the posts to match the GPU core thickness so the pressure will be different. As Meaker says you can get away with it but it will affect the efficiency.

 

Hi SloMoHolic,

I wonder did you managed to solve problem you had with this GPU? What was the solution? Did Windows 8 changed anything?
I'm considering to get the same one for my R2 but seeing that you and another person had problems with it.

Thanks

 

Really debating picking one of these up. The price and performance seem to hit a sweet spot which appeals to my wallet and desire to crank up the FPS in my games. I imagine it would be a slight increase performance wise over my GTX285 sli.

 

Hey Chief

Thats really Great, have you gotten two of them running in SLI at all?

 

Hey Blueneon, :thumbsup:

Thanks.

Nope I haven't had the chance or gotten my hands on 2x 675MX GPUs. Not sure if anyone has tried 2 of them yet either. Well not in the M17x R2 anyway. I'm actually thinking about upgrading again soon so I will most likely be posting it up for sale in the not too distant future.

Cheers.

 

Does anyone have a good link for where I should be downloading drivers from for my M17x R2 with 675MX? I got the card installed, but windows won't let me install any drivers from the nvidia site, even with driver signing disabled via F8.

"This graphics driver could not find compatible graphics hardware."

The computer boots fine and I can run both video modes, but I'm having trouble getting an nvidia driver installed.

 

Nevermind. I used SloMoHolic's walkthrough on page 7 of this thread after downloading the latest nvidia driver from the nvidia website and all is well.

The card isn't getting very hot compared to my old 5870, and I'm now able to run Mechwarrior Online in full 1920x1200 with all settings set to high. That game is CryEngine-based, so it's a serious GPU sink like Crysis. I was also able to run Warframe on full settings, but it still starts to chug a bit in areas with tons of enemies and particle effects. That may just be the physx stuff, though.

Thanks for the awesome thread, guys. Btw, the card I found on ebay was from a clevo p150em. It had the exact same hardware ID as SloMoHolic's.

 

@ kuhlka

Have you tried : LaptopVideo2Go: Drivers

You have to get their inf file separately and copy, the driver download is not moddified. I used these when my 675 was not included with the NV releases to get around 'hardware not detected' installation error.

HTH

 

Or you can use This Link

EDIT:
I don't know if my link is JUST for the R2 and 680m combination...

Sent from my iPhone.

 

Finally support for this GPU

TechPowerUp GPU-Z 0.6.8 Released | techPowerUp

Cheers.

 

Well, I have been back and forth with the vendor, trying different drivers, but I am STILL having problems.

Everything is fine as long as I don't play any games or do any video editing (the two reasons I bought this card).

Once I get into anything heavy, it's only a matter of minutes before I get a "Hardware Malfunction" (W7) or "NMI_HARDWARE_FAILURE" (W8) message and a hard crash.

It doesn't matter whether its Win7 or Win8, or what driver version I use, I'm still stuck with these crashes.

It's driving me nuts.

Any advice? Is there something wrong with my card? What can I do?

Thanks for your help!!!

(EDIT: to include pictures)

 

Hi, it is sounding like the card is faulty. If I remember right you took the card out and all was fine? You have reinstalled windows as well as drivers. From what I remember NMI is Non-Maskable Interrupt, which is hardware based. You call an NMI when you press ctrl-alt-del, and since it's in hardware it provides extra security to your username and password, but I digress, unless this is some 'glitch' in win 8 I'd say the card is giving up as soon as it is stressed

Edit: Just read better and you have tried both win 7 and 8 so even more reason to think the card is faulty

 

Well i am running the latest driver version (314.07) and did decide to buy the 680,
I received my 920xm yesterday and i spend this evening squeezing every bit of performance out of my setup.

End result = see signature
Seems i am the first person that managed to log this kind of data with my specific setup in Futuremark's database

So yes, the 680m costs allot more but in the end you get allot more when oc'ing compared to the 675MX.
Good luck getting your HW to work.

 

Same problem I ran into with my failed 670MX. Every time I ran a game, I got a BSOD (In W7) indicating hardware failure. After a few BSOD occurences, the card finally failed, which caused my M15x to fail POST on startup. I always took good care of the card, it it never has seen temps of 70c (used HWinfo to manually set the fans to high). I warn you, I think there is a high chance your card will fail on you. I'm uneducationally guessing it was caused by the drivers (use the ones shipped on the disk).

I currently have $500 saved up. I plan on obtaining one of these for my M15x.

 

what psu are u using? im planning on upgrading my m17x r1 to r2 soon. only psu i got is a 240w. would that be enough to power a 675mx and a 920xm or do i need more??

 

I just broke the 3DMark11 record again
Yes, a 240w is more then plenty (there is nothing better)
You can go crazy with the OC as long as you keep your temps in check.

You cant do 2 cards, and oc the cpu and gpu(s) that will pull way more power out of the socket then the PSU can deliver.

Mods have been made but as it turns out, it does not really work for the m17x series

 

so the dual 240w psu or the 330w chip mod wouldnt work for the m17x?

 

330w mod = nope
480w mod = unknown

The problem lies with the motherboards


Sent from my iPhone.