Radeon HD 7970 CrossfrieX Issues

[night_2004]

The problem with the 680gtxs, be they 4gb or 2gb is that their busses are only 256bit so they are not the better choice for monster resolutions like Dan wants to push....so no the 4gb 680gtx is NOT the superior card lol.

The bus bit count doesn't tell the whole story. If you're going to make a generalization based solely on the memory bus of a GPU you need to consider the total bandwidth the card has to offer. Not to mention you have to consider how effectively the core utilizes said bandwidth.

Its a shame Dan doesn't wanna try out another manufactures board, being a quasi journalist hardware editor you would think there would be an interesting story here if he could confirm whether or not the problem was with Asus or AMD....and if there was, then who better to get to the bottom of it than the [H]ards editor.

If the two boards are sufficiently different (differing chipsets, PLX chips, etc) there probably isn't much of a point in trying a third. That being said ASUS could be pushing the "in spec" envelope as far as PCIe specifications go and as a result there could be some interference or other cross talk occurring when two of these GPUs are put into an ASUS board. Unlikely sure but I suppose it is possible. If there were a story there the editors would have to examine far more than just two boards to come to a reasonable conclusion.

I love how Dan says swapping motherboards is too much hassle because he doesn't wanna do a swap monkey solution. Yet he seems to have no problem doing swap monkey GPUs from AMD to Nvidia. I am quickly loosing respect for this site.

Swapping a motherboard is a big pain compared to swapping a GPU. Maybe you could try the 7970's in a test rig at HardOCP? I'm sure Kyle has a system you could try?

 

[next-Jin]

Swapping a motherboard is a big pain compared to swapping a GPU. Maybe you could try the 7970's in a test rig at HardOCP? I'm sure Kyle has a system you could try?

I feel for the OP but to do this much troubleshooting then abandon a possibility would be a bit silly.

I can understand getting pissed off and simply making the switch but that usually happens at step # 3 not # 30.

A new OS install takes about an hour to get up and running. Hell I used to do a fresh install every month back in my XP days, and that took multiple hours.

 

[DooKey]

You guys need to get over the AMD butt-hurt. Dan has worked this problem long and hard. I know for a fact he isn't a fan-boi. GTF over it.

 

[shantd]

Ohhh this thread is turning into an AMD slammathon just like I said it would.

Don't be so sensitive, mate.

The problem with the 680gtxs, be they 4gb or 2gb is that their busses are only 256bit so they are not the better choice for monster resolutions like Dan wants to push....so no the 4gb 680gtx is NOT the superior card lol.

All things considered, yes they clearly come out ahead. Don't let it ruin your weekend, though.

I am quickly loosing respect for this site.

 

[Dan_D]

The bus bit count doesn't tell the whole story. If you're going to make a generalization based solely on the memory bus of a GPU you need to consider the total bandwidth the card has to offer. Not to mention you have to consider how effectively the core utilizes said bandwidth.



If the two boards are sufficiently different (differing chipsets, PLX chips, etc) there probably isn't much of a point in trying a third. That being said ASUS could be pushing the "in spec" envelope as far as PCIe specifications go and as a result there could be some interference or other cross talk occurring when two of these GPUs are put into an ASUS board. Unlikely sure but I suppose it is possible. If there were a story there the editors would have to examine far more than just two boards to come to a reasonable conclusion.



Swapping a motherboard is a big pain compared to swapping a GPU. Maybe you could try the 7970's in a test rig at HardOCP? I'm sure Kyle has a system you could try?

My thoughts exactly. I could say that I couldn't make CrossfireX work on the Rampage IV Extreme, but I could turn around and say that I could make it work on the Gigabyte X79-UD5. But that wouldn't tell me WHY it worked on one and not the other. It also isn't proof that ASUS is doing something wrong when they are building their boards.

And yeah, motherboard swapping is a huge pain in the ass. I'm actually considering it because it would actually be cheaper than swapping to 4GB GTX 680's. As for the memory bandwidth being an issue, that's not it. The 256bit bus of the GTX 680 isn't as much of a limitation as people think it is. NVIDIA has used a specific algorithm for transferring data over the memory bus that is unique. They've done it since the 8800GT days and while not always ideal, it's far from crippling.

 

[Final8ty]

Don't be so sensitive, mate.



All things considered, yes they clearly come out ahead. Don't let it ruin your weekend, though.

They certainly are portrayed as so on this forum at least, i have seen such views have changed on the other forums i go to .

 

[shantd]

My thoughts exactly. I could say that I couldn't make CrossfireX work on the Rampage IV Extreme, but I could turn around and say that I could make it work on the Gigabyte X79-UD5. But that wouldn't tell me WHY it worked on one and not the other. It also isn't proof that ASUS is doing something wrong when they are building their boards.

And yeah, motherboard swapping is a huge pain in the ass. I'm actually considering it because it would actually be cheaper than swapping to 4GB GTX 680's. As for the memory bandwidth being an issue, that's not it. The 256bit bus of the GTX 680 isn't as much of a limitation as people think it is. NVIDIA has used a specific algorithm for transferring data over the memory bus that is unique. They've done it since the 8800GT days and while not always ideal, it's far from crippling.

I agree with all that. Still, I have to say I agree with those who feel you should rule the mobo issue out. You've come this far. Do you not have access to a rig you can throw your cards into? Yes, it may not tell you 'why' one mobo works while another one doesn't, but it will at least bring you one step closer to figuring it out.

 

[l88bastard]

My thoughts exactly. I could say that I couldn't make CrossfireX work on the Rampage IV Extreme, but I could turn around and say that I could make it work on the Gigabyte X79-UD5. But that wouldn't tell me WHY it worked on one and not the other. It also isn't proof that ASUS is doing something wrong when they are building their boards.

And yeah, motherboard swapping is a huge pain in the ass. I'm actually considering it because it would actually be cheaper than swapping to 4GB GTX 680's. As for the memory bandwidth being an issue, that's not it. The 256bit bus of the GTX 680 isn't as much of a limitation as people think it is. NVIDIA has used a specific algorithm for transferring data over the memory bus that is unique. They've done it since the 8800GT days and while not always ideal, it's far from crippling.

A motheboard swap takes less than 15 minutes...unless your running watercooling of course. If your too lazy to try a motherboard swap, yet willing to spend hours and hours and days and days in frustration, then maybe you are in the wrong hobby or your on Asus's payroll. I hope I am wrong...I would love for you to prove me wrong so I can eat crow, but I'm pretty sure I'm right. I had problems with SLI on my Striker Extreme with 8800 ultras & gtx285s and I had Crossfire problems on my R3E, so for me Asus has a track record of problems with multi-gpu be it AMD or Nvidia.

Perhaps you need an easier case to work with. I picked up a mountainmods case for my watercooled rig and it is a dream to work with. They are expensive, but if you prefer to spend your hobby money on computers rather than budweiser or golfing, then its a must buy.

Don't be so sensitive, mate.
All things considered, yes they clearly come out ahead. Don't let it ruin your weekend, though.

My backup rig is running an evga gtx680 on a sniper 3 mini-atx mobo with a 3770k overclocked to 4.5ghz....basically the same hardware as my quadfire 7970 rig....and pound for pound one of my single MSI 7970 lightnings crushes the gtx680 @ 3240x1920...I love my gtx680 as it is the perfect card for 1080p gaming and netfix, but I don't let fanboism cloud my judgement. I buy the best product for my needs and I don't care what brand it is.

You guys need to get over the AMD butt-hurt. Dan has worked this problem long and hard. I know for a fact he isn't a fan-boi. GTF over it.

Blah, blah,blah...never said Dan was a fanboi, but I did call him out on the Swap Monkey bullshit.

 

[DooKey]

A motheboard swap takes less than 15 minutes...unless your running watercooling of course. If your too lazy to try a motherboard swap, yet willing to spend hours and hours and days and days in frustration, then maybe you are in the wrong hobby or your on Asus's payroll. I hope I am wrong...I would love for you to prove me wrong so I can eat crow, but I'm pretty sure I'm right.

Perhaps you need an easier case to work with. I picked up a mountainmods case for my watercooled rig and it is a dream to work with.


My backup rig is running an evga gtx680 on a sniper 3 mini-atx mobo with a 3770k overclocked to 4.5ghz....basically the same hardware as my quadfire 7970 rig....and pound for pound one of my single MSI 7970 lightnings crushes the gtx680 @ 3240x1920...I love my gtx680 as it is the perfect card for 1080p gaming and netfix, but I don't let fanboism cloud my judgement. I buy the best product for my needs and I don't care what brand it is.


Blah, blah,blah...never said Dan was a fanboi, but I did call him out on the Swap Monkey bullshit.

Nah, you're just a jerk who calls Dan a paid employee of ASUS. Seems to me you're (oh yeah, that's the proper spelling) a fanboi and can't stand it because Dan won't continue to waste his time.

 

[l88bastard]

Nah, you're just a jerk who calls Dan a paid employee of ASUS. Seems to me you're (oh yeah, that's the proper spelling) a fanboi and can't stand it because Dan won't continue to waste his time.

If I was a real jerk I would encourage Dan to buy the 4gb 680gtxs and then proceed to eat popcorn and watch him suffer as he clogs up the cards bandwidth with 12 million pixels.

As far as Dan being on Asus's payroll...I dunno I mean he seems to constantly be stating How Asus is #1 this and #1 that, which could lead one to the conclusion of some collusion. Fuck sakes, McDonalds is the number one restuarant in the US and their food is slop....just cause something leads in the sales doesn't make it the best....it just means theres a lot of suckers out there.

 

[DooKey]

If I was a real jerk I would encourage Dan to buy the 4gb 680gtxs and then proceed to eat popcorn and watch him suffer as he clogs up the cards bandwidth with 12 million pixels.

As far as Dan being on Asus's payroll...I dunno I mean he seems to constantly be stating How Asus is #1 this and #1 that, which could lead one to the conclusion of some collusion. Fuck sakes, McDonalds is the number one restuarant in the US and their food is slop....just cause something leads in the sales doesn't make it the best....it just means theres a lot of suckers out there.

Well since you feel so strongly about it I suggest you send a PM to Kyle and let him know that you believe Dan is in collusion with ASUS and that he is ruining the reputation of this site. I'm sure Kyle will agree with you and fire Dan.

 

[l88bastard]

Well since you feel so strongly about it I suggest you send a PM to Kyle and let him know that you believe Dan is in collusion with ASUS and that he is ruining the reputation of this site. I'm sure Kyle will agree with you and fire Dan.

I like Kyle and I like Dan...what I don't like is disinformation. Sloppy research & poor journalism leads to misinformed and uneducated consumers. I find it wreckless and irresponsible for Dan to say AMD cards and Drivers suck, when there are those of us who have systems working great. I find it hypocritical for Dan to talk me down for my solution of swap monkying the motherboard out only to find him leaning towards a GPU swap monkey solution.

So yes, just like Kyle and Dan do, I am going to call bullshit when I see it....

 

[DooKey]

I like Kyle and I like Dan...what I don't like is disinformation. Sloppy research & poor journalism leads to misinformed and uneducated consumers. I find it wreckless and irresponsible for Dan to say AMD cards and Drivers suck, when there are those of us who have systems working great. I find it hypocritical for Dan to talk me down for my solution of swap monkying the motherboard out only to find him leaning towards a GPU swap monkey solution.

So yes, just like Kyle and Dan do, I am going to call bullshit when I see it....

That isn't an answer. Are you going to PM Kyle and let him know that you think ASUS is paying Dan off? Seems the right thing to do.

 

[CommanderFrank]

This thread has lost its focus.

 

[FrgMstr]

l88bastard,

It is a shame that you would characterize what we do the way we do simply because we have had different experiences than you that generate different opinions. Neither Dan nor I are fanbois, far from it. But it is sad that your vision is so narrow that you cannot accept that others have had different outcomes with the hardware than yourself.

As for getting paid, the only entity that pays Dan to write about hardware is HardOCP. And I think he does some of the best motherboard coverage in the world bar none. We are lucky to have him.

Dan shares his trials and tribulations with video cards from a personal perspective. He BUYS his GPUs. I personally feel lucky to have someone that is so involved on a personal level that shares his experiences. I think the same about you. Sharing and opionions are what make HardOCP and it community so strong. It is sad that you don't see it the same way and can embrace differing opinions on our forums. I would ask from here forward that you think a bit more about what you post.

 

[Dan_D]

I'm installing the Radeon HD 7970's into another machine without an ASUS board because I'm left with fewer and fewer avenues of troubleshooting. This is an older rig, so I don't expect the performance to be on par with what it should, but I expect it to work properly if there is any credibility to the theory that there is something wrong with my motherboard(s) in my other two machines.

Specs:

Case: Silverstone TJ-09
Motherboard: EVGA X58 3X SLI Classified Edition
CPU: Intel Core i7 920 D0 (Stock)
Cooler: I can't remember, but it's Thermalright Ultra 120 like in a push / pull config.
RAM: Corsair Dominator DDR3 2000MHz (3x2GB)
HDD: Intel X25-M G1 80GB (AHCI mode)
HDD2: Western Digital SE16 500GB
Optical: $19.99 Samsung special from Microcenter (SATA)
PSU: Silverstone Strider 850Watt

And of course two reference designed Diamond Multimedia AMD Radeon HD 7970's flashed with GHz Edition BIOS ROMs. I didn't think I could duplicate the problem without my monitor setup which seems to be the sticking point at present. After flashing the BIOS ROMs of the cards I can game stable (thus far) on one monitor. I'm wondering if there isn't some kind of issue using these adapters and pushing so much resolution through the mini-DP ports. I know some people have done it, I'm sure. But there may be an issue doing this with my configuration. Part of the reason this stuff is going into this machine is because it has a lot of games installed on it including Mass Effect 3. Therefore it will be quick and easy to get it up and running with the new cards, then test some of the same games I've had trouble with. On the test bench using an LGA1155 rig, I'd get better performance, but I'd have to install games then move the whole testing station over to the other desk and connect it all to my monitors.

Not an appealing prospect.

Anyway, I'll find out shortly if this rig can do it. If it is actually an ASUS issue I'll be shocked but I've got nothing left to lose.

 

[Final8ty]

If I was a real jerk I would encourage Dan to buy the 4gb 680gtxs and then proceed to eat popcorn and watch him suffer as he clogs up the cards bandwidth with 12 million pixels.

As far as Dan being on Asus's payroll...I dunno I mean he seems to constantly be stating How Asus is #1 this and #1 that, which could lead one to the conclusion of some collusion. Fuck sakes, McDonalds is the number one restuarant in the US and their food is slop....just cause something leads in the sales doesn't make it the best....it just means theres a lot of suckers out there.

I remember an incident i had with an ASUS that it would give faint lines across the screen when there was load on the CPU in crossfire, everyone with that mobo and CF experienced it, swapped out then mobo to a DFI, no issues swapped out the mobo to an MSI no problems, a BIOS update came out for the ASUS, swapped it back in and same problem. the DFI stayed in the end.

 

[Blkout]

For what its worth on this theory of Asus MB's and crossfire, I had an Asus X58 board last year that was running two 5850's without any issues for a year and a half, then for a few months after I sold my 5850's, I had two 6870's in that motherboard without any issues either. Hard to believe it would be just an Asus issue. And I'm by no means an Asus fanboy.

 

[Dan_D]

For what its worth on this theory of Asus MB's and crossfire, I had an Asus X58 board last year that was running two 5850's without any issues for a year and a half, then for a few months after I sold my 5850's, I had two 6870's in that motherboard without any issues either. Hard to believe it would be just an Asus issue. And I'm by no means an Asus fanboy.

If I hadn't seen so many systems running cards in CrossfireX with ASUS motherboards I'd be more apt to believe the theory. Unfortunately, it appears that the PSU or at least due to the adapters required isn't up to the challenge of 7970 CrossfireX in the girlfriends machine. So I'll have to figure out another way to rule that out with the least amount of headache. The system very clearly looses power with both cards in and not one. I'm not going to troubleshoot that. I'm just going to yank the cards out of it and move on to something else.

 

[defcoms]

None of the site review journalist have a contact at AMD? Maybe they could ask them a few questions? I filled out a bug report on the new reporting page and got a email response. The issue was for a sleep issue prior to 12.6/12.7. But it does have contact info and a testing procedure for 12.7b. I have since filled out a report for every issue I have had hopefully I will get a response for the crossfire/trifire eyefinity issues I have

 

[Dan_D]

None of the site review journalist have a contact at AMD? Maybe they could ask them a few questions? I filled out a bug report on the new reporting page and got a email response. The issue was for a sleep issue prior to 12.6/12.7. But it does have contact info and a testing procedure for 12.7b. I have since filled out a report for every issue I have had hopefully I will get a response for the crossfire/trifire eyefinity issues I have

I actually detailed my issues in a bug report on the AMD website. I haven't heard anything back about it.

 

[Bees]

This headache is still ongoing? Sheesh.

It's incidents like this which have always made me way of multiple card configurations. Quite terrible that you're still having problems, Dan. Godspeed.

 

[shantd]

Yes, I believe it's always better to spend twice as much on one card than half as much on 2 cards. A lesson I learned the hard way, naturally. But for people with multiple monitor setups, that's usually not an option.

 

[Dan_D]

This headache is still ongoing? Sheesh.

It's incidents like this which have always made me way of multiple card configurations. Quite terrible that you're still having problems, Dan. Godspeed.

I've run multi-GPU setups since the 6800 Ultra days if you don't count the Voodoo 2 SLI setup. If you do, then I've done it ever since it was possible. Most of them have actually been fairly painless. Heat is usually the biggest challenge to overcome. I can only think of a few configurations that caused me a lot of trouble though. The 4870x2's in CrossfireX and this Radeon HD 7970 setup were by far the worst.An honorable mention for being a pain was the 9800GX2 setup. Nothing like this, most of it's issues were just performance problems in multiple games. 3-Way SLI'ed GTX 280's only sucked because of the fans and fan control issues. Other than that, it worked flawlessly.

 

[FearTheCow]

I cant help but checking this thread to see what you find out is the answer to your problems. Given the extent you have gone to troubleshoot things, I really hope you nail it down.

 

[novadaemon]

I just wanted to state that I have serious issues in CrossfireX on my 7870 setup. It produces glitches and a bunch of other crap, but I haven't had any crashing yet. Both cards work fine individually. I'm at the point where I might just sell off my cards, or keep a single 7870.

 

[Chrisroman]

You're a trooper Dan. This is like a mini-series... can't wait for the season finale

 

[shantd]

^

 

[Dan_D]

You're a trooper Dan. This is like a mini-series... can't wait for the season finale

I don't know if this one will have a happy ending. I'm running out of options.

 

[Phishy714]

I don't know if this one will have a happy ending. I'm running out of options.

There is still one option.

Go green.

Enjoy.

 

[Dan_D]

There is still one option.

Go green.

Enjoy.

That's probably where I'm headed. Not needing to use the active dual-link DVI to mini-DP adapters is practically reason enough to go with NVIDIA cards.

 

[Phishy714]

Quick question - just because I don't have the time to go through the entire thread here at work - have you put the cards together in a different rig? Its a bit of a tall order to have two Xfire capable systems just hanging out, but for someone who belongs to [H], I figure you might be able to pull it off.

Just to see if it might possibly be something wrong with your motherboard.

 

[Blkout]

Quick question - just because I don't have the time to go through the entire thread here at work - have you put the cards together in a different rig? Its a bit of a tall order to have two Xfire capable systems just hanging out, but for someone who belongs to [H], I figure you might be able to pull it off.

Just to see if it might possibly be something wrong with your motherboard.

When you get time, you may want to read the whole thread.

 

[Phishy714]

When you get time, you may want to read the whole thread.

That right there answered my question.

Have you tried Crossfiring each card with a different 7970?

 

[Dan_D]

That right there answered my question.

Have you tried Crossfiring each card with a different 7970?

No, but that is the next step. I'll have to return the one card to Microcenter and grab another one. If I had a third laying around I would have tried that already.

 

[Bees]

I've run multi-GPU setups since the 6800 Ultra days if you don't count the Voodoo 2 SLI setup. If you do, then I've done it ever since it was possible. Most of them have actually been fairly painless. Heat is usually the biggest challenge to overcome. I can only think of a few configurations that caused me a lot of trouble though. The 4870x2's in CrossfireX and this Radeon HD 7970 setup were by far the worst.An honorable mention for being a pain was the 9800GX2 setup. Nothing like this, most of it's issues were just performance problems in multiple games. 3-Way SLI'ed GTX 280's only sucked because of the fans and fan control issues. Other than that, it worked flawlessly.

I ran SLI 9800GTXs for a bit before upgrading to a GTX280. I didn't get the performance (or temps) I liked out of it. Might have to try again some day, but now is not the time.

No, but that is the next step. I'll have to return the one card to Microcenter and grab another one. If I had a third laying around I would have tried that already.

Hopefully it's one of the cards you have causing some weird sort of issue in Crossfire/Eyefinity, because this is ridiculous. 7970s are such good cards, it would be a shame to have to throw down more cash just to get the performance you want on different cards. [Disclosure - Not an AMD/ATI fanboi, just like their products. Nvidia has great offerings this generation.] But hey, on the bright side, those stock 670s/680s run generally cooler than the competition.

 

[valkrien]

Have had my 2nd 7970 in Xfire for about 2 weeks now. 1 display so none of the eyefinity issues being reported. My biggest struggle is crossfire disabling itself in the CCC requiring each cold boot that I go into the settings and check the ticker box. I've done all the driver cleaning etc. still cannot seem to fix it. Also, display port issues are pretty common. In particular, the 2nd card will not send out a signal to the monitor without powercycling the monitor/pc each cold boot. I have 2 DP monitors (samsung and asus) and both suffer the same so i'm leaning towards a driver/videocard error. Another odd thing is that while in xfire, web browsers (chrome) in particular takes longer to load and the page doesn't scroll smooth up and down.

 

[Dan_D]

Have had my 2nd 7970 in Xfire for about 2 weeks now. 1 display so none of the eyefinity issues being reported. My biggest struggle is crossfire disabling itself in the CCC requiring each cold boot that I go into the settings and check the ticker box. I've done all the driver cleaning etc. still cannot seem to fix it. Also, display port issues are pretty common. In particular, the 2nd card will not send out a signal to the monitor without powercycling the monitor/pc each cold boot. I have 2 DP monitors (samsung and asus) and both suffer the same so i'm leaning towards a driver/videocard error. Another odd thing is that while in xfire, web browsers (chrome) in particular takes longer to load and the page doesn't scroll smooth up and down.

With some drivers I had problems with the system losing the Eyefinity display group configuration after a hard lock. I did have occasional cold and warn reboot issues in which one of my displays connected to the mini-DP port would either not get a signal or would have a rolling image, or flashing image. All I'd have to do is unplug the cable and plug it back in and everything would return to normal.

At this point I think I'm done with this issue. I'm going to swap to NVIDIA GTX 680 4GB cards. I won't have to deal with the display port adapters. If I do have multiGPU problems once I get those then I'll know something is up with the board. Other wise I'll have to chalk it up to something being wrong with one of those cards despite them working fine by themselves. I want to know more specifics about this problem but at some point the investment in time isn't worth it anymore. And at this point, I just want things to work.

So my multiGPU saga continues, but I won't be rocking AMD cards this generation. I'm fairly certain I will down the line in another generation or so but for now I'm going to punch the eject button and go NVIDIA. I know some people will still argue I should swap my motherboard, but I honestly don't think that's it. And if it is a problem then it should do the same thing, or I should have some issues with multiple NVIDIA cards. CrossfireX and SLI basically work the same way as far as the motherboard is concerned. So if it is a board issue I'll find out anyway.

 

[Dan_D]

Kyle,

I know you and Dan are not Fanbois, I have been reading the [H]ard for many years. You both provide excellent reviews and have affected many of my hardware purchase decisions. Now with my suckupping out of the way let me be Frank.

My vision is not narrow...quite the contrary. I am aware of the many issues with eyefinity and have personally had broken crossfire setups while others with nearly identical rigs went on problem free. Its funny, way back when the AMD 5970s came out I had massive problems with crossfire and started a thread which is similar to Dan's thread here and YOU Kyle, yes you locked it and said something to the effect of “Take your crybaby bullshit somewhere else.”

I doubt Dan is being paid by Asus, but I find it troubling that he will not even consider a motherboard brand swap as a viable solution to his problems. I have personally had crossfire problems with 3 of my last 4 asus motherboards (Striker Extreme, Rampage III extreme & Gene V), but nobody is listening to that. All they can focus on is me being negative to Asus and that is not the case.

I embrace different opinions, however, I don't appreciate when my opinion and experience is downplayed and then insulted by being called a “Swap Monkey,” when I am only trying to help. I don't appreciate when an editor feeds the Nvidia fanboi trolls by not being completely open minded to solutions by users who have advanced eyefinity multi-gpu setups that are working well.

Tell me what happens if Dan gets the 680gtxs and still experiences crashing?

As I've told you before. I don't think the motherboard is the problem. And if it is I'll try another Rampage IV Extreme or another ASUS model before switching to another brand. If it is a board problem it should show up with NVIDIA cards as well. Again I doubt that's the problem given how little the board has to actually do with SLI or CrossfireX. Why don't I switch? Simple: I do not like Gigabyte or MSI's UEFI's. I spend more time than a lot of people tweaking my system and that's kind of important to me. I do not care for Gigabyte's storage configuration on most of their upper end boards. I'm not a fan of the Marvell controllers in general and I don't need two or three of them on top of the Intel controller. ASUS's ROG line also has features such as the ProbeIt contacts that I really like. I even like the ASUS AI Suite II for the most part. I can't say the same for everyone else's included software. Layout, aesthetics, all factor in. And it isn't even that any one feature puts the REIVE above other boards and brands. It is the total package that I prefer over other options.

The only real contender for replacing the Rampage IV Extreme for me is MSI's Big Bang XPower II. I liked that board despite the crappy UEFI. My issue with that board is that I'd have to get a different case to use it as mine doesn't support XL-ATX motherboards. ATX, E-ATX, etc. are fine, but not XL-ATX. It's another expensive I wish to avoid if I can. I can buy whatever computer hardware I want to, but I don't like spending money that I don't need or want to spend if it can be avoided.

 

[killernerd]

yeah, no. It's definitely not the motherboard. Both the help forums i visit and AMD's helpdesk talked me into the "defective mb" story.
Went from an asus p6t deluxe v2 to an asus rampage IV extreme. And i had the exact same issues.

I'm using 2 7970's and at this point i've pretty much given up hope. i got them to the point where they no longer hardlock my pc completely.

flash will still freak out from time to time
my display driver still crashes every now and then
i'm still afraid to play anno 2070
random artefacting will happen in pretty much every game at some point

And other random stuffz. The 12.6 beta drivers worked the best for me but i just had to be stupid and "upgrade" to the 12.7 beta drivers which were a step in the wrong direction.

It's been over 7 months and i still can't fully enjoy my crossfired 7970's.
I went through pretty much the same process of trouble shooting as you did and i could only conclude that it was the drivers.

- ran them in a friend's system
- switched primary with secondary
- tried other psu
- tried each gpu seperately (this is basically the only thing that will garantuee a 100% stable system)
- tried disabling cf in ccc (helps if you're lucky)
- ram test
- cpu stability test
- ... etc.

i wish you the best of luck and just maybe the next driver release might be something good.
this is the last time i'm going multi gpu though. Or perhaps i should just go with nvidia next time...