Nvidia 290.36 Beta Driver

Saw this over in the M17x forum so I thought I'd pass it on.

Nvidia 290.36 Beta Driver

Haven't tested them yet but there doesn't seem to be many changes that will affect us. Happy testing!

Release Notes:

Spoiler

This is the first beta release from the Release 290 family of drivers.You can read more about this family of drivers on GeForce.com.

Product Support
This driver supports the following NVIDIA notebook GPUs (please refer to the Products Supported tab for exceptions):

•ION notebook GPUs.
•GeForce 8M, 9M, 100M, 200M, 300M, 400M, and 500M-series notebook GPUs.
•Quadro 5010M, 5000M, 4000M 3000M, 2000M and 1000M notebook GPUs.
•Quadro NVS-series notebook GPUs (only those that support DirectX 10 or higher).
•Quadro FX-series notebook GPUs (only those that support DirectX 10 or higher).
•NVS-series notebook GPUs (only those that support DirectX 10 or higher).
New in R290 Drivers

NVIDIA Ambient Occlusion

•Adds NVIDIA Control Panel ambient occlusion support for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. See the comparison screenshots on GeForce.com.
•Adds NVIDIA Control Panel ambient occlusion support for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. See the comparison screenshots on GeForce.com.
NVIDIA PhysX

•Updates PhysX System Software to version 9.11.11.07 for the best PhysX experience in Batman: Arkham City.
NVIDIA SLI

•Added or updated SLI profiles for Crysis 2, Heroes and Generals, Inversion, Stronghold 3, and Syndicate.
3D Vision

•Adds support for 3D Vision over native DisplayPort 1.1 connection - available on BenQ XL2420T and BenQ XL2420TX monitors.
•Added or updated the following 3D Vision game profiles:
◦Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – rated Good
◦Cang Sheng (苍生 – rated Good
◦Diablo 3 – rated Good
◦Fei fei (飞飞 – rated Good
◦Final Combat (大冲锋 – rated Good
◦L.A. Noire – updated rating to 3D Vision Ready
◦LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 – rated Fair
◦Qian Nv You Hun Online (倩女幽魂Online) – rated Good
◦QQ Xi You (QQ西游 – rated Good
◦Sonic Generations – rated Good
◦Xian Tu (仙途 – rated Good
◦Yong Bing Tian Xia Online (拥兵天下 Online) – rated Good
HD Audio

•Updates HD Audio driver to version 1.3.9.0.
Some Key Bug Fixes

•Fixes random flickering as Windows boot logo is loading or fading away.
•Fixes corruption in Crysis 2 with SLI and lower quality shadow settings.
•Fixes ability to set Surround resolutions to 5760x1080 using custom resolutions.
•Fixes some random instances of triangular artifacts when playing Battlefield 3.
•Fixes corruption seen in Settlers 7 with 275.33 drivers.
Other Details

•Supports multiple languages and APIs for GPU computing: CUDA C, CUDA C++, CUDA Fortran, OpenCL, DirectCompute, and Microsoft C++ AMP.
•Supports single GPU and NVIDIA SLI technology on DirectX 9, DirectX 10, DirectX 11, and OpenGL.

 

whats this mean:
•Adds NVIDIA Control Panel ambient occlusion support for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. See the comparison screenshots on GeForce.com.

have not seen this option there.

 

They have a cleaner website scary! i am trying lit you know how it works!

 

Sweet! Let us know how they are.

 

Do these result in any improvements for the 335m?

 

says it improves skyrim performance, any one tested this?

 

It does improve skyrim! overall 2+ fps all around and in areas where the card didn't like some lighted areas. OH and you have to think that they are working on optimizing optimus at the same time in which helps in the long run.

 

Thanks for testing BranMuffin. I'll download and install them when I get a chance.

 

I want to confirm this as well. Just installed these drivers, and my Skyrim framerate has definitely improved... as much as +5 FPS in some areas. I'm getting 35-40 (averaging at 40 most places + much higher indoors) outdoors now on high settings, low shadows with 4x AA + FXAA.

If you're playing Skyrim on the M11x... I'd say these drivers are a *must* ... These drivers seem to handle Skyrim much better for me.

 

Anyone know if this fixes Sonic Generations not picking up the 335m?

 

Still not picking up the GT 540m on my Alienware M11x R3 for sonic generations unless plugged into an HDMI compatible telly.
Granted BF3 and Skyrim DO run better after testing (Every frame really counts on our M11x's)

Running Nvidia 290.36 Beta Driver
Gt 540m Stock
i7 CPU overclocked

 

Man...what a GREAT news! Downloading. Thanks!

P.S.: hope it fix the BSOD problem that many people are having with the game, including me. To resolve this problem I have put the Lighting Fade Distance to the lowest number and, since then, I'm not having this problem anymore.

UPDATE: Yey! Looks like they have fixed this BSOD problem. More than hour of play and I hadn't even 1 BSOD, with a great overclock.

 

does it fix the LA Noire issue of not running under the 335m?

 

Today I had a fit of BSOD's with the 290.36 drivers... stuttering sound distortion, and windows logged the BSOD as:

"A problem with your video hardware caused Windows to stop working correctly."

I didn't get a chance to write down the BSOD, but it definitely had to do with the video card.

Both BSOD's occurred while playing Skyrim... first time after about 5-10 minutes of play. Then second one almost imediately after I rebooted, and restarted the game where I left off.

I know my overclock is stable, because I've never had issues with it until I upgraded to this driver. I also notice that Skyrim had a patch applied that many users are complaining about. I don't know if this the Skyrim patch or my new drivers.... I will post more after I've done some research.

 

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Try reinstalling the driver. Make sure to do clean install. And if you want have ccleaner dump the clean up. These work superb for both skyrim and bf3 for me.

 

I think it may be the Skyrim patch darkdomino. Heaps of people have reported that it has broken the game much more than it has fixed it.

 

@ darkdomino

To prevent automatic system reboot after a BSOD do this:

1. Click on the Start button and then on Control Panel.
2. Click on System and Security.
3. Click on System.
4. In the task pane on the left, click the Advanced System Settings.
5. Locate the Startup and Recovery section near the bottom of the window and click on Settings.
6. In the Startup and Recovery window, locate and uncheck the check box next to Automatically restart.
7. Click OK in the Startup and Recovery window.
8. Click OK in the System Properties window.
9. You can now close the System window.

From now on, when a problem causes a BSOD or another major error that halts the system, Windows 7 will not force a reboot

 

I agree with this, i find the game to be more faulty then before