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    Looking to update drivers on AMD 6990m

    Discussion in 'Sager and Clevo' started by b0b1man, Jun 27, 2012.

  1. b0b1man

    b0b1man Notebook Deity

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    I am satisfied with my current drivers (installed way back in 21.10.2011 when I first got the machine), but I want some new ones for Diablo 3.
    Reason is - Diablo 3 seems to be sucking out more performance than it needs from my card, pushing it WAY harder than StarCraft 2 (which should be 3x more graphics instense).

    Temps in StarCraft 2:
    --------------------
    ambient 20'C
    core temp 78'C
    ---------------
    ambient 25'C
    core temp 82'C


    Temps in Diablo 3:
    -----------------
    ambient 20'C
    core temp 86'C
    --------------
    ambient 25'C
    core temp 93'C (holy shhhh...!!!)


    When comes to computers, I have this in mind: "dont touch the drivers if they are working fine".
    But....I think those high temps in Diablo 3 are just ridiculous.
    My laptop is clean (getting cleaned every 3 weeks just for the sport, doesent collect nearly enough dust anyways).
    Laptop stays elevated 6cm above my desk (using long rubber feet, stacked and glued on top of one another), so it ALWAYS has the best air intake.

    Now, Im not a fan of the idea to reach 93'C every time I game on Diablo 3. Its just ridiculous, not to mention dangerous. No other game has ever cooked my GPU so hard.
    So, guys, what drivers are stable for the AMD 6990m that have Diablo 3 profiles in them?
    Im using 8.892.0.0 which are installed using Device Manager (so no Catalyst CP included).
     
  2. b0b1man

    b0b1man Notebook Deity

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    Downloading the 12.4 pack right now.
    Saw the latest one in the Clevo Driver Thread was the old 11.10.
    Gonna give the 12.4 a try....
    Read the Beta Driver Thread and got afraid of all the bugs that come with the betas.
     
  3. TR2N

    TR2N Notebook Deity

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  4. b0b1man

    b0b1man Notebook Deity

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    So far - these 12.4 feel great! Temps in Diablo 3 are @ 78'C!
    Im gonna do further testing and report the differences as compared to the old 11.10 drivers.

    One thing to note - windows experience index dropped down from 7.7 to 7.6 on the graphics section (both gaming and desktop performance).
    Weird....
     
  5. b0b1man

    b0b1man Notebook Deity

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    I found out the temps are actually the same as with the previous driver.

    BUT....

    I also found a way to reduce the temps. There are some video settings in Diablo 3, mainly the "Shadows". Here are the options:
    Low; Medium; High; Low (Smooth); Medium (Smooth); High (Smooth)

    When you set it to High (Smooth), the GPU gets stressed more. I didnt see any visual difference between smooth and non-smooth, so I set it only to High.
    Now temps are around 84'C - 86'C max.

    Blizzard did a poor job on optimizing.
    This is THEIR WORST game to come out like this. Bad optimization, badly done interface, poor Auction House interface, no PVP right at launch, tons of stuff bugged and missing (achievements and other stuff).