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Problems getting 2nd R9 280x to engage in Crossfire

Question asked by johnlr on Feb 21, 2018
Latest reply on Mar 17, 2018 by el_sauvageon

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Hi,

So - I have a crossfire set up of two R9 280x. When I purchased them they were constantly artefacting at stock speeds, after being given a 2nd for free, I proceeded to underclock/volt them to achieve stability:

My settings are: Stock for those that can't remember:

Voltage: 1150mV 1200mV

Core: 1040mhz 1070mhz

Vram: 1300mhz 1600mhz

However, for a while now (months) I have not been able to get the 2nd GPU to engage in crossfire - it is there, but stuck on 0% usage, 300mhz/150mhz clock/ram clock.

Does anyone have any ideas on what could be causing this? I have tried to include as thorough a set of things I've tested below.

Tested by disabling OverDrive through restoring factory settings - no success

Tested on: 18.2.1 - 17.7.2 - 16.12.2 - 15.12 - 15.7.1 - 14.12 - no success

Tested each card individually - both working

Tested with no AMD settings installed - no success

Tested by uninstalling and reinstalling Windows 10 - no success

Used new Crossfire cable - no success

As per AMD support advice, I have uninstalled MSI AB with Revo Uninstaller, uninstalled-reinstalled AMD drivers 18.23 (whatever the latest ones are 01/03/18), not installed MSI AB after:

Same problems, 1st GPU frequently getting stuck at 970/1600 (causing artifacts), 2nd GPU never being used beyond its 'parked' setting of 300/150, and all round hassle on what can only be assumed to be a driver issue.

Checked data using MSI Afterburner 4.4.2 and MSI Kombustor 3.0 - following complete removal of MSI and Windows reinstall, now only monitoring using AMD OverDrive

Checked playing on Warhammer: Total War, and MSI Kombustor 3.0

Please, if anyone is having similar issues don't hesitate to post your problems or solutions on here, the more data the better.

(Unless, of course, I'm the only R9 280x CF user with these issues, in which case I'm going to just blow my cards up with a shotgun and get a 1080).

At this point I'm assuming there is no help as I have scoured the internet to no avail, I've worked back methodically - even reinstalling Windows, and nothing has worked (despite both cards running fine). This must be a driver issue and, from what I'm gathering, no-one seems to have the problem themselves, or if they have they've already upgraded and ditched their old cards. I think it might be time for me to do the old switcheroo to green, sadly. Years of hassle with Crossfire will do this to a man.

Thanks for any help nonetheless,

DXDiag (short)

------------------

System Information

------------------

Time of this report: 2/19/2018, 17:40:31

Machine name: JOHN-RAPPOPORT

Machine Id: {96E2205F-78B9-4F67-AC88-905FDDEAA8D3}

Operating System: Windows 10 Home 64-bit (10.0, Build 16299) (16299.rs3_release.170928-1534)

Language: English (Regional Setting: English)

System Manufacturer: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd.

System Model: Z87X-D3H

BIOS: BIOS Date: 08/02/13 22:37:08 Ver: 04.06.05

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4670K CPU @ 3.40GHz (4 CPUs), ~3.4GHz

Memory: 8192MB RAM

Available OS Memory: 8148MB RAM

Page File: 5162MB used, 11384MB available

Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS

DirectX Version: DirectX 12

DX Setup Parameters: Not found

User DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)

System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)

DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled

Miracast: Available, with HDCP

Microsoft Graphics Hybrid: Not Supported

DxDiag Version: 10.00.16299.0015 64bit Unicode

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goodplay Feb 21, 2018 7:00 PM

No crossfire here, but you can disable/turn off wattman/overdrive by using the 'restore factory defaults' (do not reenable it). Some suggest you should then clean install the driver.

One thing to keep note of, is that amd changed/modified the wattman(overdrive ?) api in july '17 drivers. You need the newer msi-ab (may need to check for leftovers of older vers.). You may need to confirm if using older driver, will also need to use older msi-ab.

You could also post a query on 'guru3d.com' msi-ab forum section for suggestion on settings.

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johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 22, 2018 1:01 PM

Hi goodplay, thanks for getting back to me.

I will try this out, and failing this I will try out pre-July 2017 driver to see if that has any benefit (with a time-appropriate MSI AB). I will report back here on my findings in case anyone else is having the same issue.

Failing all of this I'm just going to find myself a single GPU set up from an unspecified alternative manufacturer.

Thanks again for your time.

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johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 22, 2018 4:07 PM

Disabling OverDrive through reverting to factory state had no effect after following the necessary steps to completely remove the software. Still sticking at stock speeds (although interestingly this time it is flickering between my settings and stock settings which indicates that there is a conflict that won't resolve between the software)

Will try the older driver and MSI AB tomorrow.

(I'm just putting these responses here if anyone is in the same position as me and needed this info)

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johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 25, 2018 6:49 AM

So, I uninstalled the latest driver and rolled back to 16.12.2 with no effect.

I tested each card individually and both are working.

I switched primary GPU, no change.

I have noticed, however, that they do not revert to stock settings so far which, I suppose, is an improvement.

I have tested using MSI Kombustor 3.0 and Warhammer: Total War

If anyone is having trouble with their Crossfire setup with R9 280x I'd appreciate if you shared similar problems/solutions here.

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el_sauvageon Mar 17, 2018 4:59 AM

hi,

for me every driver after 17.1 will fail with crossfire on my r9 280. I don't have test with last driver... wanna do it today but this thread stop me from test it. I know that every time i change for last drivers i have many problems to make it run again... Maybe you should use driver sweeper or amdcleanerutility (search on amd for last one... last time amd cleaner was the best solution for reinstall 16.12).

Have you test the other pci express (i see 3 pcie on that card) you can maybe losing little bandwith but if crossfire is enable you win some more...H&ave you the cd that is bundle with the card there can be some driver part for chipset that you can't find anymore...

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5 Replies

goodplay Feb 21, 2018 7:00 PM
Mark Correct
Correct Answer
No crossfire here, but you can disable/turn off wattman/overdrive by using the 'restore factory defaults' (do not reenable it). Some suggest you should then clean install the driver.
One thing to keep note of, is that amd changed/modified the wattman(overdrive ?) api in july '17 drivers. You need the newer msi-ab (may need to check for leftovers of older vers.). You may need to confirm if using older driver, will also need to use older msi-ab.
You could also post a query on 'guru3d.com' msi-ab forum section for suggestion on settings.
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- johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 22, 2018 1:01 PM
  Mark Correct
  Correct Answer
  Hi goodplay, thanks for getting back to me.
  
  I will try this out, and failing this I will try out pre-July 2017 driver to see if that has any benefit (with a time-appropriate MSI AB). I will report back here on my findings in case anyone else is having the same issue.
  
  Failing all of this I'm just going to find myself a single GPU set up from an unspecified alternative manufacturer.
  
  Thanks again for your time.
  Like • Show 0 Likes0
  Actions
- johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 22, 2018 4:07 PM
  Mark Correct
  Correct Answer
  Disabling OverDrive through reverting to factory state had no effect after following the necessary steps to completely remove the software. Still sticking at stock speeds (although interestingly this time it is flickering between my settings and stock settings which indicates that there is a conflict that won't resolve between the software)
  
  Will try the older driver and MSI AB tomorrow.
  
  (I'm just putting these responses here if anyone is in the same position as me and needed this info)
  Like • Show 0 Likes0
  Actions
- johnlr @ goodplay on Feb 25, 2018 6:49 AM
  Mark Correct
  Correct Answer
  So, I uninstalled the latest driver and rolled back to 16.12.2 with no effect.
  
  I tested each card individually and both are working.
  I switched primary GPU, no change.
  I have noticed, however, that they do not revert to stock settings so far which, I suppose, is an improvement.
  
  I have tested using MSI Kombustor 3.0 and Warhammer: Total War
  If anyone is having trouble with their Crossfire setup with R9 280x I'd appreciate if you shared similar problems/solutions here.
  Like • Show 0 Likes0
  Actions
el_sauvageon Mar 17, 2018 4:59 AM
Mark Correct
Correct Answer
hi,
for me every driver after 17.1 will fail with crossfire on my r9 280. I don't have test with last driver... wanna do it today but this thread stop me from test it. I know that every time i change for last drivers i have many problems to make it run again... Maybe you should use driver sweeper or amdcleanerutility (search on amd for last one... last time amd cleaner was the best solution for reinstall 16.12).
Have you test the other pci express (i see 3 pcie on that card) you can maybe losing little bandwith but if crossfire is enable you win some more...H&ave you the cd that is bundle with the card there can be some driver part for chipset that you can't find anymore...
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Problems getting 2nd R9 280x to engage in Crossfire

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