Question about the 7970's

Hello everyone, it's been quite some time since I posted here and I'm not really sure if this is where I should post this question. I'm sure it's been asked many times but I would appreciate some feedback. I joined this forum years ago when I purchased an alienware m15x and was very dissatisfied with them. I've decided to get back into laptops and am very interested in the Sager np9150. I will be purchasing in the next 3 weeks or so. Anyways, to the point. I wanted to know if these issues with the 7970 drivers have been taken care of. And I don't mean 50% success rate, I mean totally fixed.. I want to get a really good card so that I can stay ahead of the curve for as long as i can. I'm really scared of getting a lemon again though and was wondering what the status of it was. I might have to shell out some extra money and get the gtx 680, but I would really rather save the money if at all possible. Any positive suggestions and information would be greatly appreciated

P.S. I will be using XoticPC as my reseller.

 

Currently you will have no issues with the 13.1 AMD drivers using the 7970m, they have drastically improved stability, resulting in close to zero BSODs in regards to either updating drivers or rebooting your laptop. Performance wise, we are also seeing many improvements, with rumours that the 13.2 drivers will increase memory efficiency to the point of being on par with a stock GTX 680m.

I would also like to recommend the GTX 680m for the Overclocking capabilities, it really overclocks like a monster.

 

Thanks for the quick response! I like to hear that it's getting better..However I do like the feeling of security when it comes to stability. If I get a gtx 680m, I don't really plan to overclock it because I don't see the point in risking it. Especially for this much money. From what I've read, it can run pretty much every game on high at stock. I'm wishy washy about it at this point..

 

Not on high. Maxed out.
My 7970m is an engineering sample, and I've never had any issues. Although to be fair, my notebook never had enduro. I personally prefer the red team, since every single nVidia GPU I ever had has had some issues for me. AMD never has.
Although, GTX-680m is guaranteed flawless on Clevos, but much more expensive too.

 

It's all about being maxed out these days haha.
I'm the opposite of sangemaru, I've never had an issue with an Nvidia product but I have had issues with AMD, this time round I was purchasing a laptop in June and it was obvious which to choose for less hassle and raw performance, most of my reasoning was because of the driver issues AMD were having moving to the new GCN architecture, where as Kepler was proven stable with the current drivers.

At this point in time, if you're not looking at overclocking and getting good bang for buck, I would go with the 7970M as it will only improve with driver updates.

I gave my reasons above as to why I chose the GTX 680m, but also I would like to add that in a year or 2, I am going to overclock this GPU quite substantially and (hopefully) still be able to max out most games.

 

This is really a tough decision because my budget is $2000, but the farther I stay away from it the better because I want to spend some money on a new mouse and headset. One question that's a bit off topic...Would it be okay to stick with the lowest option CPU, i7-3630QM ? Because the next upgrade is +140. I'm also going to stick it at 8gb of ram at 1600mhz because i dont see the need to upgrade that for just gaming. I just want to feel confident in my purchase since this will be one of my first times making a purchase this large.

 

Yes, the 3630qm is totally fine for today's gaming. It won't bottleneck the 680m unless you're running a massive overclock.

$2k is plenty to get an NP9150 with a 680m and still have cash left over for a good mouse and surround sound headphones. The Special Edition is a great deal at $1600; it's what I would get if I were in the market for another NP9150.

 

The bigger issue was with the Enduro - stay away from Enduro, and you'll have fewer headaches. AMD is still working out the kinks on that end.

Yep! Even the i5 has been established as a solid performer for gaming - even for games that are more CPU heavy, such as WoW or Skyrim. So that 3630 will not be a bottleneck nor a hindrance. :thumbsup:

 

True, the i5 is fine for mid-range gpus, but it would bottleneck the 680m/7970m pretty badly. It's not much more powerful than the A10 4600m in the GX60, and that thing really holds back the 7970m.

 

Wow, I never even took a look at that config. That really is nice! I wish I had a windows 7 key just laying around so i wouldn't have to pay for it, but still, A very nice deal. That's now what I'm leaning towards! Is the special edition just a pre-configured setup? Or is there anything else different about it that I need to worry about? i.e. motherboard. Just trying to get as much info as i can

 

It's just an NP9150 with a bunch of upgrades and a fat discount. Great deal if you ask me.

As far as the 7970m goes, it's a great card and I loved mine, but the 680m wins hands-down when it comes to stability, drivers, temps, and overclocking. The SE is totally worth it since it comes with the 680m imo.

 

Wow, thanks everyone! That really makes me feel good knowing that this forum is still as helpful as it was when I first used it. I'm sure as the date draws closer I will have more questions come up. But I think that's all I need for now, unless someone has a post worthy point to make I'm open for as much info as possible.

 

At that price, I think it's a no brainer, go with the 680M. I also recommend giving Larry at LPC a call and ask for his maximum discount. I wonder if it would work on the special edition, it may not, since it's already discounted a lot at that price. At least you'll get free shipping and the 3% cash discount with him.

 

When did you end up swapping to the 680m?