Sapphire HD 7870 OC crash with black screen and sound loop

[terryble]

Originally Posted by rumpltumpskin

it isn't just diablo 3 but it does happen more often for me when playing newer games (2012) but i have also had it happen occasionally while playing older stuff like prototype 1 and mass effect 2 and just now with shogun 2 on the campaign map which is not demanding at all. i didn't try 12.8 but after installing 8.982.0.0 RC1 the problem does seem to happen less.

Yes becoz it cuts 20% of the card's performance~~
u can try down clock ur card (some say 998mhz some say 950 mhz)..you should have the same result

[Zahlokhnir]

Guys, try gaming without a browser open, This has been the most reliable way to stop the crashing for me, I want to know if it also works for others experiencing the same types of crashes as me.

[deathfrag]

black screen today in diablo , with gpu clock at 950 mhz

[Genesis]

I don't know why you people suggest to downclock, it doesnt help at all. The crashes even occur when the card is at idle clocks, so please... AMD ****ed up soooooo hard with this card, I'm so sorry that I bought it. I doubt it will help us at all when they resolve the XSplit issue, I've given up hope after 2 months now.

[rumpltumpskin]

Originally Posted by Genesis

I don't know why you people suggest to downclock, it doesnt help at all. The crashes even occur when the card is at idle clocks, so please... AMD ****ed up soooooo hard with this card, I'm so sorry that I bought it. I doubt it will help us at all when they resolve the XSplit issue, I've given up hope after 2 months now.

hope is all there is for those of us who have kept the card past our vendor's return period. you could always sell it but i'm not enough of an ahole to pawn mine off to someone who might end up with the same problem. for anyone who has this problem and still has the option to return it to your vendor: get rid of it!

[Richkill]

As previous posters have stated 12.8 has not resolved the issue with my little brothers setup with the Sapphire 7870 OC.

[sykozis]

Originally Posted by vladamir

Alot of people on different forums have noted the negative voltage readings from GPU-z with this card. I have left GPU-z running almost non-stop trying to find the problem causing the black screens but the negative readings happen too often without a black screen going along with it for that to be conclusively the problem.

I actually contacted the GPU-Z dev about it a few months ago to see if it was possibly some error in the software or if possibly whatever sensor is simply reporting wrong. The response I got was rather negative....

Originally Posted by rievhardt

besides Sapphire there are reported XFX, MSI, Gigabyte 7870 black screen issue too. No reports of ASUS and the reference card version of 7870. It's either they don't want to make threads or aren't really having any issue at their end.

Are those reporting problems all using custom PCB cards??

[RecluSe]

Same thing happens with my power color. Mine only crashes in games, had it crash 3 times last night during Sleeping Dogs

[rievhardt]

Are those reporting problems all using custom PCB cards??

do you mean non-reference cards?

mines a Sapphire 7870 non-OC.

OC or non-OC cards have the same issues...
there are no reports with reference cards yet.

sadly there's a ASUS 7870 user that is having the same issue too...(look at Vanadium's comment on my video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8C4P...&feature=inbox

so I guess this isn't a brand issue.
reported brands experiencing the issue...
XFX
Sapphire
MSI
Gigabyte
ASUS
PowerColor

Go here so that AMD would know our problems with the 7870.
http://forums.amd.com/game/messagevi...&enterthread=y

[terryble]

Guys...!!
Support the post in the AMD forum~~!!!
Bring the issue back to AMD Forum!!

http://forums.amd.com/game/messagevi...&enterthread=y

anyway i did swap the card with my fren (Ati 5870) for 1 week..
my system function perfectly alright with 5870~~
SURPRISINGLY after 1 week of running the crappy Sapphire7870 OC on his system~~WITH OVERCLOCKING sometimes to stress out the card for a week on games like Diablo 3, DOTA 2 and others...NO PROBLEMS occurred on his system~~was thinking if it is compatibility issue~~he is using an Asus X58 Rampage Mobo, with i7 930 and a dual channel RAM setup (weird guy)...

[alexstail666]

Hello I'm from Russia and I do not know much English (translating into Google Translate)
I have the exact same problem with my 7870 card from Sapphire also at different times takes off a black screen and have to restart the computer as I understand now there is no solution to the problem. But can somebody knows at least approximate dates of solutions for this problem? And then I am afraid of such frequent reboots (well in my case is a black screen once a day since the game is not much, and the computer all day can used to surf the Internet) may suffer other components including HDD. I have a card without factory overclocking. Perhaps the strangest thing that I was Battlefield 3 without black screen. While playing sometimes for 1-2 hours.

[DW75]

Hey Guru3D,

Thanks for having me. Long time lurker, first time poster here. I have been a computer tech/electronics tech for 11 years. I do many customer builds. I have to say I am glad I have not installed an HD 7870 in any client machines. If this was the case, I would be getting non stop complaints regarding system crashes and instability. There is no question about it. Unfortunately though, I own a Gigabyte HD 7870 OC. Like many of you, I also have the following issues with this card.

- black screen with 100 percent fan and sound freeze in various games.
- 2D/3D clock switching in game causing stutter, crash, and blue screens
- HDMI audio dropouts (card is connected to Harman Kardon AVR 3600, and audio drops out for 2-3 seconds every few minutes with 12.3-12.8, including betas.
- artifacting and slow down in older games such as RTCW.

I bought this card from NCIX. Being a VIP member, they have allowed me to return this card for a refund. I will be getting either a GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 instead. I am not a fanboi of either company. I simply go with the best card available for the price offered. Right now, Nvidia is offering much more stable products, and drivers. I have installed 4 GTX 670 cards, and 1 GTX 660 ti card in client machines. All of them are stable, with none of the issues present with the HD 7870. I have contacted AMD 2 times. They have informed me that they are well aware of these issues with the HD 7870. I was told that they do not know when these issues will be resolved. To be honest, I got the impression they will never be resolved.

In my professional opinion, this is not just driver issues. I believe this is a combination of hardware, and software defects. I do not think these problems will ever be 100 percent resolved. All of us deserve a refund, or the option of getting a different card. An HD 7950, GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 would all be good choices. At the present time, I do not want an HD 7950 though. These constant issues with the HD 7870 have turned me off of accepting another AMD card this generation. I look forward to talking tech with all of you in the future. My HD 7870 card will be returned to NCIX today. I am looking forward to getting stability with the GTX 660 ti or GTX 670. I am not decided on which I will get just yet.

[deathfrag]

Originally Posted by DW75

Hey Guru3D,

Thanks for having me. Long time lurker, first time poster here. I have been a computer tech/electronics tech for 11 years. I do many customer builds. I have to say I am glad I have not installed an HD 7870 in any client machines. If this was the case, I would be getting non stop complaints regarding system crashes and instability. There is no question about it. Unfortunately though, I own a Gigabyte HD 7870 OC. Like many of you, I also have the following issues with this card.

- black screen with 100 percent fan and sound freeze in various games.
- 2D/3D clock switching in game causing stutter, crash, and blue screens
- HDMI audio dropouts (card is connected to Harman Kardon AVR 3600, and audio drops out for 2-3 seconds every few minutes with 12.3-12.8, including betas.
- artifacting and slow down in older games such as RTCW.

I bought this card from NCIX. Being a VIP member, they have allowed me to return this card for a refund. I will be getting either a GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 instead. I am not a fanboi of either company. I simply go with the best card available for the price offered. Right now, Nvidia is offering much more stable products, and drivers. I have installed 4 GTX 670 cards, and 1 GTX 660 ti card in client machines. All of them are stable, with none of the issues present with the HD 7870. I have contacted AMD 2 times. They have informed me that they are well aware of these issues with the HD 7870. I was told that they do not know when these issues will be resolved. To be honest, I got the impression they will never be resolved.

In my professional opinion, this is not just driver issues. I believe this is a combination of hardware, and software defects. I do not think these problems will ever be 100 percent resolved. All of us deserve a refund, or the option of getting a different card. An HD 7950, GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 would all be good choices. At the present time, I do not want an HD 7950 though. These constant issues with the HD 7870 have turned me off of accepting another AMD card this generation. I look forward to talking tech with all of you in the future. My HD 7870 card will be returned to NCIX today. I am looking forward to getting stability with the GTX 660 ti or GTX 670. I am not decided on which I will get just yet.

its not always good in the other side !!! her we try to find a solution and help , and all you say in this huge post is : go and buy 'nvidia' card !
plz try to remove your green glasses when you write another post

[DW75]

Originally Posted by deathfrag

its not always good in the other side !!! her we try to find a solution and help , and all you say in this huge post is : go and buy 'nvidia' card !
plz try to remove your green glasses when you write another post

Thanks for the reply. You make a good point. Honestly, I am just rather fed up with these black screen, sound loop, lock up, crashing, and hdmi audio dropout problems. At present, there is no solution to these issues. When there is no solution, the only option is to go with the other company. People expect a 300 dollar graphics card to work as advertised. The HD 7870 is riddled with issues. AMD has no idea when, or if these issues can be completely resolved. Personally, I do not want to wait 6 months to find out either. We all buy our PC gear with the expectation that the hardware will work as advertised. These present issues with the HD 7870 are unacceptable in this regard. I was simply stating facts. The GTX 660 ti and GTX 670 do not have these issues, and have far more stable drivers right now.

[terryble]

Originally Posted by alexstail666

Hello I'm from Russia and I do not know much English (translating into Google Translate)
I have the exact same problem with my 7870 card from Sapphire also at different times takes off a black screen and have to restart the computer as I understand now there is no solution to the problem. But can somebody knows at least approximate dates of solutions for this problem? And then I am afraid of such frequent reboots (well in my case is a black screen once a day since the game is not much, and the computer all day can used to surf the Internet) may suffer other components including HDD. I have a card without factory overclocking. Perhaps the strangest thing that I was Battlefield 3 without black screen. While playing sometimes for 1-2 hours.

hey there~~try this driver~~it significantly reduce the black screen rate~~
BUT it comes with a 20% performance cut~~

http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=366295

[terryble]

Originally Posted by DW75

Hey Guru3D,

Thanks for having me. Long time lurker, first time poster here. I have been a computer tech/electronics tech for 11 years. I do many customer builds. I have to say I am glad I have not installed an HD 7870 in any client machines. If this was the case, I would be getting non stop complaints regarding system crashes and instability. There is no question about it. Unfortunately though, I own a Gigabyte HD 7870 OC. Like many of you, I also have the following issues with this card.

- black screen with 100 percent fan and sound freeze in various games.
- 2D/3D clock switching in game causing stutter, crash, and blue screens
- HDMI audio dropouts (card is connected to Harman Kardon AVR 3600, and audio drops out for 2-3 seconds every few minutes with 12.3-12.8, including betas.
- artifacting and slow down in older games such as RTCW.

I bought this card from NCIX. Being a VIP member, they have allowed me to return this card for a refund. I will be getting either a GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 instead. I am not a fanboi of either company. I simply go with the best card available for the price offered. Right now, Nvidia is offering much more stable products, and drivers. I have installed 4 GTX 670 cards, and 1 GTX 660 ti card in client machines. All of them are stable, with none of the issues present with the HD 7870. I have contacted AMD 2 times. They have informed me that they are well aware of these issues with the HD 7870. I was told that they do not know when these issues will be resolved. To be honest, I got the impression they will never be resolved.

In my professional opinion, this is not just driver issues. I believe this is a combination of hardware, and software defects. I do not think these problems will ever be 100 percent resolved. All of us deserve a refund, or the option of getting a different card. An HD 7950, GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 would all be good choices. At the present time, I do not want an HD 7950 though. These constant issues with the HD 7870 have turned me off of accepting another AMD card this generation. I look forward to talking tech with all of you in the future. My HD 7870 card will be returned to NCIX today. I am looking forward to getting stability with the GTX 660 ti or GTX 670. I am not decided on which I will get just yet.

I am not a fans of both side either~~
i kind of agree some points that he mentioned~~
it might not be a pure software (driver) issue~~and likely will be a hardware problem that they might not able to fix~~
Hmm but AMD never give an official statement of acknowledging the problem~~and promise a viable fix~~some how i start to doubt that they will do so as well~~

[terryble]

Originally Posted by DW75

Hey Guru3D,

Thanks for having me. Long time lurker, first time poster here. I have been a computer tech/electronics tech for 11 years. I do many customer builds. I have to say I am glad I have not installed an HD 7870 in any client machines. If this was the case, I would be getting non stop complaints regarding system crashes and instability. There is no question about it. Unfortunately though, I own a Gigabyte HD 7870 OC. Like many of you, I also have the following issues with this card.

- black screen with 100 percent fan and sound freeze in various games.
- 2D/3D clock switching in game causing stutter, crash, and blue screens
- HDMI audio dropouts (card is connected to Harman Kardon AVR 3600, and audio drops out for 2-3 seconds every few minutes with 12.3-12.8, including betas.
- artifacting and slow down in older games such as RTCW.

I bought this card from NCIX. Being a VIP member, they have allowed me to return this card for a refund. I will be getting either a GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 instead. I am not a fanboi of either company. I simply go with the best card available for the price offered. Right now, Nvidia is offering much more stable products, and drivers. I have installed 4 GTX 670 cards, and 1 GTX 660 ti card in client machines. All of them are stable, with none of the issues present with the HD 7870. I have contacted AMD 2 times. They have informed me that they are well aware of these issues with the HD 7870. I was told that they do not know when these issues will be resolved. To be honest, I got the impression they will never be resolved.

In my professional opinion, this is not just driver issues. I believe this is a combination of hardware, and software defects. I do not think these problems will ever be 100 percent resolved. All of us deserve a refund, or the option of getting a different card. An HD 7950, GTX 660 ti, or GTX 670 would all be good choices. At the present time, I do not want an HD 7950 though. These constant issues with the HD 7870 have turned me off of accepting another AMD card this generation. I look forward to talking tech with all of you in the future. My HD 7870 card will be returned to NCIX today. I am looking forward to getting stability with the GTX 660 ti or GTX 670. I am not decided on which I will get just yet.

I am not a fans of both side either~~
i kind of agree some points that he mentioned~~
it might not be a pure software (driver) issue~~and likely will be a hardware problem that they might not able to fix~~
Hmm but AMD never give an official statement of acknowledging the problem~~and promise a viable fix~~some how i start to doubt that they will do so as well~~

[masterserg]

Have the same problem with no solution yet Sapphire 7870 GHZ OC edition randomly blackscreens... Mostly in League of Legends and D3, seems to kinda be related with online applications...

[vladamir]

Originally Posted by masterserg

Have the same problem with no solution yet Sapphire 7870 GHZ OC edition randomly blackscreens... Mostly in League of Legends and D3, seems to kinda be related with online applications...

Asder's July 19 drivers at http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=366295 fixed the blackscreens completely in LoL for me and drastically reduced them in D3 to the point where I've been running for a week and a half without seeing one (though now I get screen tearing in D3 ). Try it out as a temporary fix, although you will notice that the card acts sluggish with this driver.

[Richkill]

Originally Posted by vladamir

Asder's July 19 drivers at http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=366295 fixed the blackscreens completely in LoL for me and drastically reduced them in D3 to the point where I've been running for a week and a half without seeing one (though now I get screen tearing in D3 ). Try it out as a temporary fix, although you will notice that the card acts sluggish with this driver.

That is the thing with these crashes, it can go for a week without crashing and come back worse than ever.
Unless it genuinely has fixed your issue.

[Genesis]

Did anyone try out windows 8 and 12.8?

[soxytony]

Originally Posted by vladamir

Asder's July 19 drivers at http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=366295 fixed the blackscreens completely in LoL for me and drastically reduced them in D3 to the point where I've been running for a week and a half without seeing one (though now I get screen tearing in D3 ). Try it out as a temporary fix, although you will notice that the card acts sluggish with this driver.

Those drivers stopped my crashes completly untill I updated hardware monitor pro to 1.14 then boom bf3, 2 crashes in an hour, went back to 1.13 and all good. I am willing to bet that all of us use some sort of monitoring software, as I posted earlier, how many of us use Trixxx or something else. Maybe ati arent at fault here, how many people who dont have problems dont use monitoring software or other 3rd party vid card software? Just a thought.....

Soxy

[nisbne]

hey all, well ive just built a new pc with one of these cards and am currently having the same issues, really regretting getting this card only grabbed it because they were out of gtx 570. is this issue something that will be fixed in upcoming drivers? or am i better at getting a new nvidia card ? having to restart pc all the time or restart the game is really annoying on a 2 week old pc

thanks

[rumpltumpskin]

Originally Posted by soxytony

Those drivers stopped my crashes completly untill I updated hardware monitor pro to 1.14 then boom bf3, 2 crashes in an hour, went back to 1.13 and all good. I am willing to bet that all of us use some sort of monitoring software, as I posted earlier, how many of us use Trixxx or something else. Maybe ati arent at fault here, how many people who dont have problems dont use monitoring software or other 3rd party vid card software? Just a thought.....

Soxy

probably just a coincidence, AMD has admitted that there is a problem with their drivers that is causing this issue.

Originally Posted by nisbne

hey all, well ive just built a new pc with one of these cards and am currently having the same issues, really regretting getting this card only grabbed it because they were out of gtx 570. is this issue something that will be fixed in upcoming drivers? or am i better at getting a new nvidia card ? having to restart pc all the time or restart the game is really annoying on a 2 week old pc

thanks

AMD hasn't given a specific time frame for when this will be fixed. they maintain that they are "working on it" but they just released their latest driver not long ago and it didn't fix the problem. i am guessing that it will be at least another month or two before they put out 12.9 and of course there is no guarantee that the problem will be fixed then either. if i were you i would return/exchange the card to your vendor while you still can.

the 7950 is a good deal right now, the price has dropped down to what i paid for my 7870 two months ago and, as far as i know, it isn't having the same issue. still, i am so pissed at AMD right now that i won't be giving them any more money for a while. going with Nvidia is going to leave you with a tough choice though because the 670 is almost twice as much as the 560 but in my book one of them would be the best substitute. if you are running a resolution less than 2560x1600 and don't plan to get there any time soon, you should be completely satisfied with a 560 Ti.

[vladamir]

From the AMD forums:
"One last thing that comes to my mind is to disable AMD Optimized Tesselation and this surface format optimization in CCC 3D game settings. That caused a few hickups and fps stuttering while zooming in BF3 for me.
This tends to occure mostly on mainboards with onboard realtek soundchips.
Update your realtek drivers to the latest provided by Asus, not the realtek generic ones and set your sound output format to the lowest setting (16 bit 44khz). If that doesn't help you could try disabling your soundcard in bios and see if you crash, if not you know you need a new soundcard -.-"

I'm giving this a try as I've seen on another forum where disabling the realtek adapter fixed this issue for someone who was using the HDMI connection (and left the person without any sound). Didn't get a crash in D3 last night using the official 12.8 drivers with this in place be you all know that doesn't mean its fixed