M17x : Dual 4870s flickering when running games

Hi,

I just got my m17x today and tried running Mass Effect 2 with 4870 crossfire but when the game loads up it flickers very badly.

I wanted to benchmark my machine using Call of Pripyat and it also has the same flickering effect.

Turning off crossfire on Catalyst seems to solve the problem.

I'm currently on Bios A02 and my 4870 drivers are 8.680.2.0

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks guys!

 

Have you tried any other games?

 

Seems like the old M17 quad-core problem all over again...

 

Your crossfire cable may have come loose and you might have to reseat it.

 

Spent 2 1/2 hours on the phone with Alienware Tech support doing this. It did not fix my flickering issue. Then again, I had more going on than just flickering....green screens (instead of black) and major slowdowns in the game menus.

I will find out tomorrow or monday next week if a replacement secondary card w/ new crossfire cable fixes the issue.

 

Bad GPU(s)

 

More awesome ATi quality at work.

 

Looks like I've got to get in touch with Dell support to re-seat the cards then! sigh.. you would at least expect the laptop to be working right out from the box for the price!

Thanks for your replies!

I'll let you know further once I've spoken to Dell.

 

Just spoke to them and asked me to do a clean Windows installation. If not, will have to reseat the cards.

 

Guys,

Does anyone know if Mass Effect 2 support Crossfire?

I was told my the Alienware support that the flickering could be caused because the game does not support Crossfire.

I was skeptical with his answer as I ran 'Stalker: Call of Pripyat Benchmark' and it still had the flickering problem.

 

Googling Mass Effect 2 brings up links to a "crossfire hotfix patch" for Mass Effect 2. You might want to try that before reinstalling windows. It might fix your issues. I don't own Mass Effect 2 so I couldn't try it out for myself.

 

My card is being mailed out today so chances are I will get the replacement 4870 in the mail Monday. *sigh* I don't want to really dig into this machine until crossfire works right.

 

PsiPr0, yea. I did google it. Will have to try applying it and see if it works. The patch is for antialiasing problems though, not sure if it's related to the crossfire problem as a whole. but will try.

Gonna run 3dmark vantage as well (as suggested by the Alienware). if that still has problems. then they'll have to send over a technician to have a look at it.. which I'm hoping that's not going to happen!

 

Had the same flickering problems running 3d mark vantage and called AW. was told that they will send technician over to sort out the card and possibly crossfire cable.
talk about poor quality control!
deeply dissappointed!

 

It's a possiblity that the cable could be loose or the card not seated properly but I doubt it in this case. It seems like they are getting more strict in giving out replacement cards, probably because their supply is running thin. Hopefully that tech confirms what we suspect (bad gpu) and they mail you out some replacements. Good luck to both you and psipro.

 

thanks Joker!
It was either that or I sent the unit back and wait for a replacement to be sent in 2 weeks time!

 

i had similar issues with my 4870's in xcrossfire.

Run a furmark test on it...first single gpu then the multi gpu to pin point which one is bad...if it still flickers...call into dell and have them replace the secondary 4870 and cable if the reseating of cable doesnt work.

Mine is running top notch right now after swap.

*I had a dell tech come out and perform the swap.

Also send the tech home if he starts to unscrew your badge to open the system...LOLOLOLOL

 

Disable the XFire and run your games again. If there's no flickering - The secondary GPU and/or the CF cable is the culprit.
It appears that a huge number of the secondary GPUs affected by this plague.Shame on AMD and shame on Dell for letting those cards in.

 

yea. tried that. looks like a defective secondary graphics card.
Funny though, when i run Furmark in window it seems to run fine. but when i run it full screen the flickering comes back!

 

Bingo!
I had the same exact issue with my R2. It's a very widespread problem with their secondary GPUs(or cables)
The secondary+CF cable had to be replaced and the issue was fixed,...but they replaced it with a used and whacked card. It's getting warmer by 3-5C on average and the cable is almost ruined.
Will probably call them again in a few.

 

That's great news that at least my crossfire will start working in games now. Just hope I don't get the used card and temp problems. Next week is looking to become a great week.

 

Thanks for the headsup Aikimox.
Yea.. can't wait for them to sort out the card and cable, then i can unleash the beast!

 

I disabled Crossfire and played Bad Company 2 and didn't get flickering

 

Yes, disabling the CF will of course eliminate the flickering but the problem is there and it's the bad connector on the secondary GPU (IMO).

 

I will be calling Dell tomorrow about it, hopefully it can get fixed in a timely manner

 

Yes, don't wait too long. They should replace the card/s in 3 days.

 

Looks like my motherboard is going to be replaced next, but the rep seems to be letting me decide if I want a new card or motherboard.

 

Go for the card (secondary again)

 

Yeah, waiting for an update on whether or not the secondary can be replaced again. I think it should be.

 

On hold again......

 

Let's not split between the threads. We can continue in the other one if you don't mind.

 

Well, only makes sense to keep it in this thread. The other one is "owner's thread"

 

ugh, still on hold waiting for that second opinion.

 

Right you are, let's stay here.

 

Got the replacement secondary GPU. It will ship tomorrow and a tech will come install it again. Should be ready for the weekend.

 

I practically freaked out when he said "motherboard needs replacement"

 

Good news! Let's hope second time is the final.

 

I will be following your path tomorrow, PsiPro

 

deltawing:
Do you happen to play WOW or GTA4? I wonder how good is the 620M. I'd like to upgrade to that CPU in the future.
What's your feedback?

 

hi i have the problem unning gta iv somtimes also crysis which i fixed by turning down one of the settings everyother game seems ok for me ill ring dell i want a refund and get the area 51 alx

 

i thought bios a02 fixed this

 

myn flickering isnt like what u see in the youtube videos on gta iv and crysis it does it the most like i said gta ive stoped most of it by playing with the shadows settings, eg in gta parts of the roofs or shadows flicker or sky normally stops after min of play

 

Everything runs beautifully, honestly.

 

Also, I do no play GTA4 or WoW, sorry

more like Batman and BC2

 

Calling now, here goes nothing

 

I finally get forwarded to the Alienware department after 15 minutes of waiting

THANK YOU FOR CALLING DELL ALIENWARE SUPPORT I AM BLAH BLAH I DO NOT HEAR YOUR VOICE I AM GOING TO DISCONNECT HAVE A GREAT DAY THANK YOU

 

This dude says its a software problem, not a hardware problem so far, but he's gonna COME BACK TO ME IN A QUICK TIME AND RESEARCH IT

 

I am getting forwarded to the solution station, apparently, cuz it's a software problem and they can help me better there

 

I hung up cuz something came up and I have to go do stuff, but wasn't sounding too promising

 

Update: Same tech is going to install the 2nd replacement GPU. Still in shock about the rep trying to replace the motherboard. He started to say other crazy things like fresh install Windows on the laptop. I knew something was up. I just hope I don't get another defective card here tomorrow. It's scheduled for 03/31/10 in the morning. I will be at work once again, however there will be someone there to monitor the install again.