Horize/Clevo P150EM, AMD 7970M and CCC w/ Stock & 12.11b Driver Issues

Hello everyone,

Please forgive the fact that I am creating yet another thread relating to the Clevo 7970m issues, however, I am yet to find a thread that discusses the issues that I am experiencing.

Last week I purchased a Horize/Clevo P150EM. Upon arrival, everything seemed to work fine out of the box. I was able to view the Catalyst Control Panel and configure various options, and I was able to launch a game (in this case, Crysis) and configure the options in that.

However, once I launched the actual game's singleplayer, my entire system locked up forcing me to reboot, and since then, I have been unsuccessful in getting anything to operate correctly.

Follow the complete system lock up, I was unable to load my desktop as it would blue screen at every turn. So I decided to reformat and try again.

Following the reformat, I loaded the drivers from the Clevo disc in order; and upon installing the VGA/AMD drivers and rebooting, the system would not load past the Windows logo or the welcome screen (intermittently freezing on both).

I booted into safemode, removed the driver and reloaded into normal mode. This process continued after several reformats.

Yesterday, I contacted my system builder and they suggested that I use the 12.11beta drivers, which I installed. The problem now is that it intermittently refuses to load Windows, CCC refuses to detect the GPU and as such says "there are no configurable options / driver not installed".

I've seen a number of threads on the issues with the 7970m with mixed feelings towards the card. Some showing empathy for AMD while others have a pure distaste for the issues being experienced, all of which have been quite informative.

However, I have not yet found anything relating to the CCC refusing to detect the GPU. My builder says it could potentially be a faulty GPU (when he suggested the 12.11 drivers) and I'm starting to think this may be the case.

Could anyone please provide some insight on this? Thanks in advance.

 

When I had issues booting into Windows, it was not the GPU and should not be for you either. For this reason, your 7970M has nothing to do with bootup. That's your Intel HD4000. With switchable graphics your 7970M is not engaged until 3D app is used. Others who have BSOD on boot up here is because they use Afterburner and Overclocking, which is screwing up their bootup I think.

I wonder, if you are using an SSD? You may have a faulty SSD controller, that is screwing up. I had that issue with my mSATA, wonderful SandForce.

 

Funnily enough, I do. Using a Crucial M4 256GB mSATA. That may be the issue?

 

You can try AMD Catalyst 7970M Enduro Performance Driver because you have switchable graphics.
Or reformat again and try Win 8. I think Enduro is the cause of BSOD. I guess it's related to graphic card driver not SSD.

 

No it would not be the 7970M at fault. Doesn't make sense if the 7970M doesn't engage until you launch a 3D app. Since when was the Windows boot a 3D app? The only time I had that was when I was using AB on Win7 when AB was forcing the 7970M to the overclocked state. Disabling AB resolved my BSOD problems then, but with Win8, seems to be a non-issue D)

 

If so, then remove the msata and try another HDD. Also reset the BIOS.

 

Cheers for the responses guys. I didn't actually consider it to be the SSD.

I did notice that in my device manager, that the PCI device was highlighted with a warning symbol. After loading all other drivers (bar the VGA) from the disc, this still didn't change. Related maybe?

 

Hi,

I just bought a Metabox/P150EM with a 7970M and spent 4-5 hours re-installing Windows/Catalyst mainly trying to get Catalyst to use my 7970M card. While I didn't get blue screens I did at times run into issues where my drivers became stuffed and the laptop either froze or wouldnt let me boot into the desktop. Anyway I got it working, this is what worked:

1. Get the Windows Boot Menu up - Press Shift+F8 as soon as the BIOS finishes loading

2. Dig around in the Advanced Options and look for "Reset my PC" Don't choose the full mode option, that could potentially take 5-6 hours. It should ask you to insider the Windows DVD, code etc. Resetting your PC basically wipes the HD and re-installs Windows. So if this method doesn't work just do it any other way you can.

3. Windows should be installed, make sure its fine. Then install the Chipset drivers that should have come with your PC or maybe download it from Horize. I installed mine from Metabox but they may be all the same as Clevo. Reboot your PC

4. Install the AMD Graphics Drivers Setup that came with your PC or download it from Horize or from the CD. When installing click Advanced and make sure you see "Intel" as one of the options among the other AMD stuff, check everything and Install. You might notice that the Driver itself is missing from the list but don't worry about it. If you don't see "Intel" in the Advanced Options its probably the wrong installer.

(If you try to use Catalyst now you may get GPU not found errors because you haven't installed the driver, installing the driver later doesn't seem to help, so don't try starting Catalyst yet. )

5. Download "http://www2.ati.com/drivers/beta/AMD_Catalyst_12.11_Beta11_NET4.exe". Its the latest beta driver, for windows 8. Click Advanced, Click Deselect all, only click the "Driver" and "Catalyst Control Center", don't worry if you can't un-check everything

7. Install, now you might notice the installer asked you to reboot so reboot

8. Catalyst should be installed in the System tray, open it select High Performance if Plugged In, or create an application profile.

9. There is no way of really knowing if you're using the graphics card so download 3dMark11 or something similar and run it, make sure its set to high performance. You should see a good score...mine was 6445 3dMark11 which is very good for non overclocked 7970, if I set it to Optimize Power Savings the score goes to 1995 or so, so I know its using the card. Otherwise try running a game and see if things have improved.

10. Continue with installing your other drivers etc.

HTH

 

Hi Sludig,

Thanks for the comprehensive guide. I will be sure to give this a go tonight as it sounds like a sure winner.

Hi Sludig,

I noticed that you said to use the Windows 8 drivers - but I'm on Windows 7. I'm assuming that I use the Windows 7 ones, unless you actually meant to write to use Windows 8.

 

Yeah use the Windows 7 drivers

 

Actually, the 12.11beta11 is for both win 7 & 8, it will detect your OS automatically.

 

Yeah, I figured that out once I wasn't at work lol.

Anyway, last night I tried out the possible solutions to my issue in this thread, however, it seems I'm back to square one.

I also installed the latest Intel and AMD drivers available in the same order, which allowed me to use my laptop as a laptop, but not as a gaming machine.

I did have a few minor victories in getting the system to acknowledge the AMD GPU, however, upon utilization, the screen turns black and the system crashes.

There appears to be no issue with the Intel GPU, but this is beside the point.

Once I managed to achieve a successful and stable boot, I attempted to test in 3D applications.

Furmark acknowledges that the AMD GPU is installed however once utilized in furmark, the screen turns black.

Zombie Driver acknowledged only the Intel GPU, and forcing the game to run using the performance GPU resulted in a system crash with BSOD, with extreme difficulty in getting back to the desktop.

I have done three reformats tonight and while I slowly made progress, I have determined that the GPU is not going to play nicely.

In either case, there is little more I can do without voiding the warranty, and as the notebook has only been in my hands for three days (and its been a problem with the GPU since day 1) thats not something I want to do.

I've spoken to my builder and he's willing to take it back to replace the 7970m or I can choose another card. Thinking of going GTX675MX. Whatch'yall think?

 

Well just for comparison sake - I also got a P150EM from LBO that i've had for a week & its worked flawlessly thus far...BF3/Far Cry3/BOPS installed & played....not 1 issue....... differance being after i read around here was to eat the extra expense & go 680M instead of what i normally would have bought - the 7970M.
Its a new laptop for **** sake....**** that ....Guess it could be some other problem but the amount of problem 7970 threads here was enough to drive me the other way.
I installed all the drivers from disc as in order - then for GPU's i just overwrote to the later ones a day later....no uninstall/no reg cleaner, i just let Intel & Nvidia do its thing...no issues.
Does that help you answer your question?

 

Thanks for your input, mate. Yeah, I purchased from LBO too and despite the issues with the notebook so far (which isn't their fault), they have been bloody fantastic.

I found out after the notebook arrived and powering it on for the first time, of all the issues associated between Intel and the 7970M.

Taking under consideration the amount I have spent on this unit so far, and the fact that I'm already over my budget for this, I don't think I can justify the extra $300.00 for the GTX680M for (from what I've read) a 15-20% performance increase; hence why I'm looking at the GTX675MX.

Could anyone provide some insight about the performance difference between the GTX580OC (desktop) and the GTX675MX?

I'm mainly looking to see if I can run the following games with full visual settings at 1980x1080 like I can with my desktop card.

> Battlefield 3
> Crysis
> Skyrim
> Guild Wars 2

 

Alright, so after some further troubleshooting, I'm confident that my actual AMD GPU is faulty.

I've done several clean installs over the last several days and used a number of different drivers from various locations - off the disc, amd download, modded etc - and once installed, the crashing begins, the blue screens happen at nearly every turn and I have extreme diffculty getting back to the desktop without needing to windows repair.

Now, I've done a fresh install of my unit with all drivers *except* the AMD ones, and its worked flawlessly. Not a single crash since. As soon as I install any AMD driver, it falls back to the same habits.

On the rare occasion I got it to work *without* it crashing, it crashed when I set games and apps to high performance and launching them.

So it seems as soon as the AMD GPU is used, the whole unit crashes.

Anyway, the bloke from LBO is going to be picking up my unit in the new year and either replacing the card or exchanging it for the GTX675MX - haven't decided what I want to do yet.

 

Did you try a full Win reinstall & just use the older GPU drivers off the CD?
assume you seen this http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/701124-prevent-bsods-startup.html

Also that version of win 7 u loading is it SP1?
- this from a earlier 12.8 CCC notes.
Sorry i haven't been following the 7970 threads too deeply if this is pointless.

http://support.amd.com/us/kbarticles/Pages/AMDCatalystSoftwareSuiteVersion128ReleaseNotes.aspx

 

I've definitely never heard of any symptoms like yours on a working 7970m, so it definitely sounds hardware-related. I hope you can get it sorted out, but it sounds like it needs an RMA and probably a gpu replacement. As for the 675mx, it's a good card, but you'll definitely be taking a large performance hit in most games compared to the 7970m. You'll need to lower settings in BF3, Far Cry 3, Crysis 2, etc, but Crysis and Skyrim will run fine in 1080p maxed out. If it were me, I'd stick with the 7970m as I'm one of the owners who has had nothing but great experiences (minus AC3, which is a travesty of a pc port) and 12.11 is stable for me.

Good luck!

 

Checked my OEM Win7 disc and yeah, it's got SP1 already included. I've done clean re-installations with every driver variant I've tried and it's always borked somewhere along the line when the GPU is used.

I've seen the thread you've mentioned, and while I've not yet tried it, I'm positive it won't help in my case.

Cheers mate. Yeah, I know it needs to be RMA'd, but as its a new notebook (less than a week old and giving me from day zero) my reseller/builder has offered to take it back and replace the GPU or exchange it. I'm pretty confident that its the GPU that is faulty, so I'm willing to replace it over exchanging it - but if it happens after the replacement, I'll probably go Nvidia.

All issues aside, I still love my new Clevo.

 

I think your problem is that there is some files left over from previous installation of drivers that caused the conflict of not recongizing ccc ,happened to me once . My suggestion is to unistall all amd-intel driver.

2. download driver fusion, that is after you reboot.
3. login to safe mode , preform cleaning by choosing amd and intel display (warning there is intel chipset don't choose that ). some files dont cleaned from first time, so you may restart more than once. if some files left (doesnt want to delete , then just don't try perform cleaning any more
4. install latest intel driver from intel website then restart.
5. download beta 11 with .net, but before that make sure that you have Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 only . no other other older version , you can check that from programs installed and search for .net. , other wise un-install any older version and download the newest one (4.5).
6. install latest beta driver ,restart , and report here to see if it worked or it didn't.

 

Cheers for your input, but I've already tried this. In an earlier post, I mentioned that I've done a clean install for each driver variant I've tried, and its got to a point where I'm no longer putting my OEM key in because of the amount of reinstalls I've had to do.

No driver has allowed me to use the card, at all.

 

sorry to hear about your 7970m issues. going with the 675mx is definitely a more stable choice but you do lose out on a lot of performance:
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX - Notebookcheck.net Tech

i really can't help with your issue but this is just FYI. perhaps your 7970m is just an unlucky faulty one or somethiing. i am using the 12.11 drivers with no issues on any games yet.
good luck. an yes, clevo's themselves are amazing

 

I have a framerate problems with my 7970m. While playing Black Ops 2 it drops below 20 fps randomly from 60+ but.. I found a wierd fix which only can work on BO2 i guess.

Instead of OC GPU I declocked it to 450 from 850 on MsiAfterburner. Now BO2 runs smooth like butter which I dont understand.. I dont think I can implement that method on other games since Witcher 2 or Far Cry are very demending.

What can be a issue here?
Im using 12.11p drivers.

 

So I am having the same problems as the OP. Received my laptop two days ago. Everything was fine until yesterday. Windows keeps crashing when ever I turn on the GPU. If I un install or disable my 7970m I can use the system no problem. Is my GPU faulty? Should I ask for a replacement?

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 2

 

So I tried everything. Every possible driver. If I use the system pluged in when ever I install the drivers the system hangs. If I install them on battery everything works great just that the GPU is not being used in any app. Tried furmark but it still uses de iGPU. If I plug it in as soon as I start Furmark the system hangs. I tried with both windows 7 and 8 both UEFI and non UEFI and also tried running it without the battery in. Also I switched out the ssd with and hdd and the memory with something else that I had lying around.
Is there anything here that would sugest that my GPU is not faulty. To me from what I have done so far it looks as if the GPU is dead. I need some confirmation from you guys so I can ask Eurocom to send me a new GPU. I don't want to send the laptop in because I would be forced to pay custom fees again and that would really hurt since it's 24%.

 

Hi guys,

Sorry about the *massively* delayed response. I keep remembering to post here but then I keep getting distracted by my notebook and other things. >_>

So I've had my notebook back in my hands for almost a month or so now after sending it back to Logical Blue One on a suspicion the GPU was faulty. LBO confirmed that the GPU was faulty but also, I had been using incorrect drivers at some point (individual installs for HD4000 and 7970m).

Jack from LBO ordered the unit to be picked up (outside of the terms of my RTB warranty) and sent it back less than a week later, with a brand new GPU unit and the 12.11b drivers installed.

It has worked like a charm since with absolutely no issues.

Jack informed me that the AMD Driver package (while it doesn't display it) contains the driver for the HD4000, which is designed to work with the Enduro. We were both thrown off by this, but accepted it because it actually worked.

I've been installing various games to test, and running them all with maximum settings and fantastic framerates (some might say acceptable, as there are certain games that dip in terms of FPS but not many).

Definitely mate, if you haven't already. This sounds exactly like the issue I was having.