8800M GTX / 5793 Graphics Driver Issue

So my new to me 5793 arrive yesterday and has for the most part been exactly what I expected. There is, however, a seemingly major issue with the graphics functionality. I installed CODWaW and instantly started having graphics issues in the form of a little popup that says "Display driver stopped responding and has recovered." So I downloaded the latest nvidia driver, installed it, rebooted and still got the same problem. So I figured it might be something with the game and downloaded 3dMark06 and started it running, it crashed within 30 seconds and gave the following error, "IDirect3DDevice9: resent failed: Device lost (D3DERR_DEVICELOST). I googled and searched the forums here and there's as many different answers as there are members which is pretty frustrating.

Full Config:
Intel Core2Duo T9300 2.5ghz
4gigs DDR2 RAM
500gig 7200rpm HD
nVidia 8800M GTX 512MB
Vista 64, up to date

Any suggestions outside of "try to manually shut down background processes or fiddle with the native display resolution?"

I'll have a go at updating the DirectX components and see if that helps.

[edit]updated to the latest version of DirectX and it still crashes within 30 seconds of starting 3DMark06. Not pleased...

 

Update

I found lots of seemingly helpful advice and did the following:

1. uninstalled an OC'ing program that had come installed on the notebook.

Result - no change.​

2. unistalled virus software and tried running with none installed.

Result - no change.​

3. ran dxdiag in both 32 and 64bit flavors, it found no errors.

4. tried to run memtest86, it informed me that it is not compatible with 64bit OS's.

5. installed and updated virus protection (AVG) and ran a scan to make sure the notebook was clean and virus free. It's still scanning so we'll see what happens but since the OS install is 2 days old and it hasn't been exposed to much this seems unlikely.

The only other major culprit that seems to come up in searching is a corrupted OS. If I get really frustrated I may just throw windows 7 on it tonight and see if that cures what ails it.

 

I feel your pain.

Over the past weekend I've been fooling with a new barebones 5793, on Win7 64, and was getting the same exact error. What was unusual about my situation is that the problem was in 2d mode, not in games. I could play MWII with no problem at all. The I realized that the game was being played at 1680 x 1050, not in the native mode of the lcd WUXGA. I didn't think much about that until I reduced the windows screen rez lower to 1680 x 1050 and all problems went away. Very odd to me and I don't like that solution, scaling is the pitts.

I had better luck with older drivers like 188.42 (I think - I'm at work right now). I feel that it is a total system problem, not just the VGA. I do think it could be fixed with modified drivers. I changed the vbios to something newer with the help of GanGstaOne but it didn't help either (BSOD), so I flashed back.

I tried reinstalling Windows 7, didn't help. I'm using the latest bios and KB. There's a lot more to the story but let's see if anyone else chimes in.

Joe Martin

 

Thanks for sharing Joe, unfortunately it's not good news...

Since I own two Xotic notebooks (both this and my other Sager) I'm going to try giving them a call tonight to see if I can get a bit of tech support and see if it's something that they've run into before.

I'll certainly update the thread with anything useful I find out.

Nate

 

Well, unfortunately as predicted the upgrade to Win7 made no difference. It still crashes with the same error in the same place less than 30 seconds into 3DMark06. To say this is very disappointing would be a massive understatement and renders this notebook pretty much useless to me. How exactly is it that they have made a gaming notebook that can't play games?

 

hi mate soory to hear of your problems,can you try and use the other memory out of your other laptops,just as a a process of ilmination.Also try and reseat and aply the thermal paste on your gpu.It may not have any on it or it may have perished.
you should try the 167xx drivers i know they are old but.....its worth a try

 

I talked with Sager, they believe that it is an issue with the GPU and must be sent in for repair. Worst case if they have to replace the VC it's ~$350. So tonight I'll roll it back to Vista64 and send it out later in the week once I have an RMA number. It's either worth fixing or worthless.

 

So is this a used laptop then that you bought? If not why the $350? If so chances are the GPU going bad is why it was sold in the first place. The 8800 cards have a reputation for going bad when they get older. You can look around in the forums for many threads about it and some temporary fixes.

 

Yes, it was used. I purchased it from a good friend and he'll make right whatever needs to be done to get it working 100%. I've requested a call back from Sager service today to see if they have any bright ideas so we'll see how that goes. He originally purchased the laptop for work, used it very lightly and it's essentially been sitting unused for the last year. He never gamed with it so I doubt the failing GPU (if that's what it is) is the result of any type of abuse or misuse.

I also wanted to mention that the error appears to only be related to 3D performance. I tried playing a DVD on the notebook and it did just fine. But the minute that I launch anything 3D related it croaks.

 

Minor update - I spoke with Sager this morning and their opinion is that it is the card. So later today I'll get a RMA number and send it in for repair. The 8800M is discontinued so the first and cheapest option is to have them try to repair the card to the tune of ~$300.

That makes me wonder if there isn't a new replacement that I should look into rather than having a repaired card that has already failed once. Anyone have any suggestions for something that might offer similar performance and fit in the 5793 chassis?

 

This is what is crazy to me. My problems are in 2D mode. It errors when I am scrolling in FireFox but not when I am playing games. Also, the other night I ran 3DMark06 and it finished fine at 9300+. Yesterday my machine was stable all day and then this morning I get the error while browsing once.

Joe

 

It could simply be that a different part of your card is failing. All I know is that I've done all I can to rule out software conflicts but having a fresh Win7 install with the only other installed program being 3DMark06 and it still crashes hard within the first 30 seconds of the first test every time. The performance during the test is pretty bad too, you can see it hitching and catching and almost failing before the load finally increases and it just can't take it and fails completely.

I do wonder if the 9800 GT or GTS wouldn't be a better option but so far I can't find anywhere that sells them. Folks here have claimed that this series of cards is a direct drop in replacement and I'm thinking that I'd rather have a new card in there as opposed to a repair.

 

ebay has the 9800 GT, but the price around $600 is rather high. You might search there.

I don't think you ever said what version of system BIOS and KB bios you are running. I think the latest ends in .12 and .10. These can be changed easily with the proper instructions.

 

If they are only looking at repairing it for that kind of money you may want to try baking or heat gunning the card yourself and save the cash as that is most likely what they will do anyway. Or as you mention see if there are other compatible cards available for your laptop.

 

I may have spoke too soon. I tried playing another DVD today after Joe made the comment about 2D and it was not as smooth as I would expect given how much graphics horsepower this notebook should have. So I wouldn't swear to the 2D performance being up to par either.

 

Well this story has a sad ending. The repair estimate from Sager was triple their initial estimate so the notebook is officially toast. To say I'm disappointed would be a huge understatement even though I'll end up getting a refund from my friend.