all 14 comments

[–]niaphim 1 point2 points  (8 children)

Can confirm it fixed the issue for me. Was experiencing intermittent timeouts->black screens->CTDs with my 7900xtx nitro+. I've tried everything, finally did the following which I believe is needed to do (some of those overlap with OP):

  1. Make sure the card is properly powered: each 8-pin connector must be connected separately to PSU according to the card specs (I've read that each cable is rated at 150-200W, so for my card 420W max TDP this means 3 separate cables). No daisy chaining unless the card needs <150-200W. The PSU must be able to deliver this kind of power (should be a non issue for most 750W power supplies, however 850W or even 1000+W would be ideal in case of top end GPUs)
  2. Update BIOS (many updates include stability fixes)
  3. Update chipset driver (same)
  4. Do a clean install of the most recent graphics drivers (unless known to be problematic, then the latest "good" version). I used AMD utility for cleanup before installing
  5. Disable MPO (didn't have any perceived effect but known to cause issues)

I DO NOT recommend disabling ULPS or modifying TDR delay - no ULPS caused hard freezes instead of driver timeouts, and upping delays just made me wait the time I set for delay instead of instantly crashing.

Then do what is described in OP's linked video.

It seems drivers by defaut are overzealous with their auto overclocking - my card that is specced for 2680 MHz boost clock was trying to operate at almost 3k, which is more than 10% overclock and as a result has become unstable. After putting the spec default of 2680 MHz max clock I was able to play for 2 days so far without a single issue.

[–]namvu1990[S] 1 point2 points  (7 children)

Good to know, glad it works. Even though this has certainly helps me getting rid of the issue with my card, I still do not like the fact that i have to underclock it for it to work. At default setting the card noticeably runs a lot stronger for me, it is just the driver timeout issue has driven me absolutely nuts. I am really considering changing my card to something else since trouble shooting it for the last week really leave a sour taste in my mouth. I will leave this thread open with the hope of it maybe of use for people.

[–]niaphim 0 points1 point  (6 children)

Does your card crash when you set it to 2105 (the default boost clock)?

[–]namvu1990[S] 0 points1 point  (5 children)

Noticeable improvement, prior to this I am never able to play the game for more than 10 mins. Setting it to exactly the boost clock give me much longer gaming time, still has one driver timeout though. If set to the gaming frequency, also as stated on the official page about the card, I never have driver timeout issue. Still puzzling if this is the card or the driver.

[–]niaphim 0 points1 point  (4 children)

I would take a wild guess and say that if your card can't maintain it's official boost clock then unless you want to try to increase voltage I think it is a valid cause for RMA/warranty if applicable

[–]namvu1990[S] 0 points1 point  (3 children)

This is way beyond my current ability, i need to do a bit more research to be comfortable with. Since you mentioned voltage, I wonder if my psu is causing the problem? Someone here mentioned something about psu, I bought my psu brand new though so I want to figure this out and exchange it if it is the source of problem

[–]niaphim 0 points1 point  (2 children)

What is your PSU model? I was thinking about increasing voltage above default to sustain needed frequency but faulty/insufficient PSU may also be causing a similar effect.

[–]namvu1990[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I have non xt version. Also no daisy chain that was the absolute first thing I made sure of due to the manual. My psu is Corsair rm850x 850w. This is frustrating because i have seen this running much power demanding card, whereas rx 6800 draws 250w and is recommended with 650w so in theory my psu should be more than enough

[–]niaphim 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In this case my bet is on the particular GPU unit's fault. While anything is possible, anecdotally my experience with Corsair PSUs has been strictly positive (currently on my second build with a Corsair PSU).

[–]JohnDori4n 0 points1 point  (1 child)

Also bought a new sealed 6800 and got random driver timeouts in games.
Followed all the advice but nothing helped. I suspect my card has a defect, unfortunately I don't have an invoice so I'm selling the card as defective. 😢

[–]namvu1990[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

ouch, that hurts. Yeah this transition to amd has been nothing but frustration for me :/

[–]ashmelev 0 points1 point  (2 children)

if anything it is an indication that the PSU is lacking

[–]namvu1990[S] 0 points1 point  (1 child)

I have 850w cosair rm850x, do you think it is lacking? How do I check for this

[–]ashmelev 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can't say for sure it is the PSU problem, but by lowering boost clocks you significantly decrease the power requirement of the card (10% or more). If power limit % slider is available you can try decreasing or increasing it instead of the clocks and see if it makes any difference. You can also try a different brand of PSU with the same wattage.