P150EM GPU query

so I've recently purchased a 7970m clevo p150em barebones,

So I bought 8gb ram for it and 3630qm so it boots up fine etc recognises my USB and hdd etc however I'm struggling to install drivers for the 7970m I've read online about disabling intel gpu first then trying etc however whenever I try I get screen lock ups and have to restart and when I restart it's like my windows 10 partition isn't there it try's to start up but fails and then I have to reformat again.

Am I being stupid ?

 

Which drivers are you installing?

 

I tried the AMD auto detect I believe I was 15.9 or something I've tried a few though

People have mentioned windows 10 and switchable graphics can be problematic.

I've done a bit of research since but I just want to be sure the card isn't dead

 

I have the same laptop but my 7970 is dead. When you only have the intel drivers installed for the GPU and boot into windows do you see two video cards in your device manager, even if the AMD is currently disabled?

 

Yes they're both there.

7970m detected at bios level, I can disable the intel graphics and the 7970m hits in fine but it just won't take drivers

 

Right windows 10 was the issue some what.

Installed windows 7 thought I'd install the intel drivers first, then installed amd drivers it took fine it went to reboot and got stuck on shutdown for awhile so I thought that's the end of that I'll hard reboot it.

So the latest drivers took however gpu-z detects it but hwinfo64 doesn't. So thought I'm going to run heaven benchmark 4.0 see what happens does it switch to the 7970m and crash or run off the hd 4000.

I had msi afterburner in the background I could notice instantly the 7970m was driving the frames because it was decent frames, so came out of the app to see if msi afterburner started to read the device which it did 850 on the core 1200 memory.

Gpu peaked at 80 degrees however the fan is stuck at 20% so not sure if it's the gpu or the motherboard.

Seems the p150em doesn't have a command centre, any ideas if I can resolve the fan speed it'd be fine

 

@Prema I've looked around and by the looks of it p150em didn't support FN+1/FN+9 however you made a bios for this machine?

In my bios it states this P150EMx

Bios Revision 1.00.10
Firmware Revision 1.00.08

Do you have the bios for this machine still by any chance because currently I can't control the fans on my machine not sure why maybe faulty mobo but want to rule it out with a flash first.

If you have this available still or anything can point me to it i'll happily donate £5

 

https://biosmods.wordpress.com/p150em/

 

Thanks fella appreicate it do you think I'll be able to control fans after that?

If I go into a benchmark the GPU spins up and is at 100% however it's like none of the sensors are working see the images please.

@Prema

 

Also which bios is the best in your humble opinion?

 

That was nerve racking,

I booted done step 1 but didn't manage to get to f7 in time for step 2 however managed it then it finished the process then it turned off. Tried to start and it clicked and then nothing tried again and it worked perfectly

Fn+9 works perfectly even though the PC still has no idea what the gpu fan speed only hwinfo64 can get the readings I guess this is just a clevo p150em problem?

Guess just need good paste jobs to keep the temperatures good ?

 

For the life of me I can't get the 7970m temperatures down regardless of paste or the application??

Hate to do this @Prema but think I need to flash back to default so I can get this looked at by clevo.

 

So I love this forums - talking to myself here but anyhow.



Found this here - http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/clevo-bios-older-models-released-in-after-2012.740492/

Is it safe to just go straight from Prema bios to this or do I need to go through the bioses? like 1.00.03 then 1.00.04 until reaching this bios? or not?

 

https://biosmods.wordpress.com/stock/

 

Thanks @Prema

Just need to get these 7970m sorted then I'll be throwing your vbios on this how would I go about undervolting it

 

ok wow, slow down there buddy

what exactly is your current status with the prema bios? 7970m is recognized, properly activated, drivers installed, but fans go to 100% and even then the dgpu overheats? i thought the initial 80C were only cuz the fans were stuck at 20%, so now it should be running cooler with fans at max?

what about blackouts, freezing, bsods? everything fine besides temps?

what kinda paste are u using? what does your paste job look like when u take off the heatsink after repaste? did u check if all components are covered by thermal pads?

for reference sake, my 7970M in my previous P150HM ran max. at around 83-85C in msi kombustor with max fans. in games on auto fans, it was anywhere in the range of high 60s to low 80s depending on game intensity and ambient temps.

also, what helps: raise the back of your machine to improve air flow, make sure its sitting on a hard even surface, cool ambient temps, dustfree innards and especially heatsink fins and fan blades.

Sent from my Huawei Mate 8 NXT-AL10

 

Thanks for your reply Jaybee83

Well Prema Bios took so FN+1 or 9 works can't remember which one I did.

7970M is recognized in device manager not by HWINFO64 (I was worried about this) however after loading a 3D application on HWINFO64 reload it's activated.

On MSI afterburner it doesn't recognise the Driver version but it states the FAN speed is at 20% regardless of FN+1 but that's fine but on auto fans it does ramp the fans automatically.

No blackouts or BSOD just runs really hot. I used Gelid Extreme might be a really bad paste job by myself but I have loads of paste so can try again I suppose?

Ok I'll download MSI Kombuster to reference your temperatures I'll try a repaste.

The only issue I have is that I don't seem to have access to the 7970m really because of switchable graphics I guess? definitely works when I go into 3D applications. Just runs too hot.

 

your 7970m not being recognized is due to the switchable graphics. the dgpu is deactivated and thus invisible to monitoring programs unless u put load onto it via a 3D application.

sounds like msi afterburner doesnt read out the fan speed correctly. hwinfo64, however, should give u a readout on the fan speed in terms of rpm, but not in % of max speed.

to check your paste job, please post a picture next time u remove the heatsink. id like to see the paste residues on the heatsink and your gpu before you remove it. also, what pasting method do u use? pea? line? X/cross? gc extreme is totally fine as a paste, so no need to change it.

and yes, not being able to access the 7970m is due to switchable graphics. lil trick here: use gpu-z, click on the question mark button and run the integrated 3D rest. its not stressful but its sufficient to activate the 7970M u should then also see proper reading in gpu-z in the sensor tab (only as long as the 3D test is running!)

whats your ambient temp and your laptop setup? again, its important to get a look at your paste job since the temps seme to be tol high (what are they exactly, anyways? u say theyre too high but no actual temp values are given. please include test conditions!)

Sent from my Huawei Mate 8 NXT-AL10

 

Ok so nothing is wrong with my machine as far as I'm aware that's good news.

I go with the X Paste system but I will picture later

Yeah GPU-Z even if I do the render test the GPU temperatures don't come up nor do I get the core clock/memory clock maybe a problem with this specific gpu-z version?

Ambient temperature is like 21 Degrees C, Well on auto fan it got to 94 degrees and kinda stuck there. On max fan it maxed at 90 but this was only with Heaven Benchmark 4.0

I'll do another repaste job and picture it and I'll let you know probably the best thing to do.

The gpu news is I believe the 7970m is functioning just a bit weird and silly with switchable graphics. I think that was causing the crashes on windows 10 I would disable hd 4000 and install graphics driver but obviously the hd 4000 drives the screen so when the display driver installed it just crashed makes sense now.

 

hmmm, anything above 89C is definitely too high for the gpu, especially at longer time intervalls... i wonder if your heatsink if warped. did u check for dustfree heatsink fins and clean fan blades? its imperative that both are cleaned regularly. for the fans, u can remove the screws that hold the fan casings in place then open them via more screws, take out the fan rotors (theyre just held via magnets) and thoroughly clean out the casings and the rotors (for the rotors, i use warm running water, just make sure theyre completely dry before u reinstall them into tha fan casings!). also dont forget what i told u before about raising the back of the laptop for improved air flow. that has quite the impact on temps, dont underestimate that!

Sent from my Huawei Mate 8 NXT-AL10