Netflix AMD Crossfire Issues

[ithorox]

I am having issues using Netflix on my Windows 8 machine. Specs are as follows:

Gigabyte G1.Sniper3 Motherboard
i7-3770k @ 4.5GHz
16GB Gsklll RipjawsX @ 2133
7970 XFX Double D, 7970 Diamondtec reference both @ 1050 core, 1475 memory
AMD Catalyst 13.6 Beta
512GB Samsung 840 Pro
2x1TB Hitachi Deskstar Raid 0
1000W Rosewell Lightning PSU

I run a crossfire setup with my two graphics cards for gaming. When I first boot up into windows I am able to stream and watch Netflix just fine, however the moment I run any 3D application (Just Cause 2, BL2, 3D-mark, etc) it causes netflix to start throwing up errors while using any of the 32bit browsers including Chrome, IE10, and Firefox. Since it had been giving me Out of Memory errors, I went and got the 64bit version of Firefox and attempted to run that. This allowed the Netflix stream to run, however opening Task Manager, I found out that it was using over 14GB of my RAM. So using a 64bit browser does not solve the issue but alleviates it, and makes it so I can get most of the way through an episode.

Through some of my own testing I have been able to figure out that at start-up if I disable Crossfire it works fine and then re-enable it, it works fine. Any ideas as to why this is the case, or what is the root cause of this?

 

[Ketchup]

Hello ithorox, welcome to the forums! I am surprised you haven't had any feedback on this yet. I don't run crossfire, but on the surface this sounds like a driver issue. What drivers are you running? And are you running any third-party applications for your video card (overclocking, fan speed, etc)?

 

[ithorox]

I am running the AMD 13.6 Beta drivers, mainly to fix the HDMI Audio drop out issues and I use MSI Afterburner to overclock as well. I have found a way around my issue, if I use the Netflix metro application it works fine. However if I use any browser I still run into the issue. It seems to be a very specific problem only limited to a small set of conditions, very strange.

 

[jaedaliu]

I am running the AMD 13.6 Beta drivers, mainly to fix the HDMI Audio drop out issues and I use MSI Afterburner to overclock as well. I have found a way around my issue, if I use the Netflix metro application it works fine. However if I use any browser I still run into the issue. It seems to be a very specific problem only limited to a small set of conditions, very strange.

Offering a possible work-around: The HDMI dropout issue is fixed with a simple edit. If you increase the minimum GPU speed the HDMI audio won't drop out. While this isn't exactly the solution you were hoping for, it would allow for a non-beta driver that might fix your Netflix viewing issues.

 

[ithorox]

Thanks for the tip, I'll try it once I get home from work today!

 

[Ketchup]

Offering a possible work-around: The HDMI dropout issue is fixed with a simple edit. If you increase the minimum GPU speed the HDMI audio won't drop out. While this isn't exactly the solution you were hoping for, it would allow for a non-beta driver that might fix your Netflix viewing issues.

That very well could do that. Considering you are running Windows 8 drivers (which I have heard some folks are still having issues with, but I don't have anything concrete on that) combined with the fact that they are beta drivers above that, leads me to believe that the problem may go away with the latest approved drivers, or drivers that have you to be released.

Have you tested to see if the removal of AfterBurner makes any difference?

 

[ithorox]

I removed MSI Afterburner which was not successful in solving the issue, however I have not yet had time to test rolling back the drivers at all. On a side note, still no issues when using the Windows 8 metro app instead of the browser. Any idea on why that is?

 

[Tigerflower]

I'm not techie enough to follow all of this conversation but it might help to know that my brand new Dell XPS 8500 is experiencing the same issue. I have nothing else installed on the system outside of Windows 8 (64), IE 10 (32), Mcafee, Java (32). Oh and Dell tech support patched in a new Start button on day 1 because I couldn't figure out how to turn off the computer short of killing the power.

Specs are:

I7-3770
Win 8 Pro 64 bit
32 GB RAM
Direct X 11
Nvidia GTX 660
DSL 7mps connection

Hmm did I forget anything? Anyway the error has occurred on two separate occasions now. It's proceeded by a black browser screen with no media player controls. There's no warning, the browser just goes black. I refresh or close the browser and restart. The video runs for a bit then stops and the error message pops up.

I tried calling Netflix customer service and they don't have a clue. They tried to tell me it's probably due to accessing Netflix by clicking those big start tile buttons on the Windows 8 home page. The problem with that is I NEVER use those buttons. Since Dell installed the Start button patch my system goes straight to the desktop and stays there. I access Netflix via my saved shortcut in the Favorites menu.

Opening Taskmaster and looking at the little graphs after the problem occurs doesn't show anything atypical or alarming. Not knowing what to look for or on what tab probably doesn't help either.

And of course I forgot to look for an error number for documentation. Me bad. 🙁

BUT!! I Googled around and did find an error message with some troubleshooting steps on some Netflix support site I didn't know about. Some of these steps seem to be for Windows 8 so next time this happens I'm going to see if it helps. Here's the link. https://support.netflix.com/en/node/62

For me the error doesn't happen every time. Like last night I was watching Prison Break just fine. Tonight I was watching the most boring film ever, Brokeback Mountain and oopsie the error pops up. So maybe Windows 8 was bored out of it's little PC mind too? Who knows? Restarting my session seemed to dissipate the error so Netflix is claiming it's fixed. Sure Netflix. There's a reason why they're working in Customer Service.

Anyway I just didn't want you to think it was your PC. I'm guessing it will take a wave (make that a dozen) of Microsoft's magic wand to resolve the issue. Good luck!

 

[Ketchup]

... Tonight I was watching the most boring film ever, Brokeback Mountain and oopsie the error pops up....

The video card was saving you. If it could talk, it would have said "I will quit you" lol.

Seriously, is your Silverlight up to date?

Have you tried a different browser?

Oh, and don't waste time calling Netflix support for anything! All these guys do is say "I don't know/never heard of that" and pass the blame to someone/something else.

 

[Tigerflower]

Well I've never actually installed Silverlight. On the old XP system I think I had to do a Netflix download when I first opened the account but on this stinking pile of refuse that is Windows 8/IE 10 (can you tell it's not love?), everything seems to be integrated and patching whether I want it to or not. I accidentally landed on that tile start screen one day and noticed that the system had downloaded 18 updates to the Microsoft store in just a few weeks. Seeing as how I can't even connect to the store via the tiles and links included with the operating system, I thought that was kinda funny.

Anyhow, I tried Firefox on the old system when support was dropped everywhere for IE8, but they're having problems with it hogging CPU because of that shell they run it in. So I had all kinds of CPU issues streaming with Firefox. It seems to get bigger and bigger the longer you stream.

With Windows 8, IE10 is so integrated I think I might run into difficulties trying to NOT use it. It's a real nightmare running Win 8 because I can't find anything and even with Taskmaster open there's so much going on I can't tell what's relevant and what's garbage. They've tried to automate everything for non techies but all they managed was to make it less transparent. See now you got me started lol.

Thanks for the suggestions. If I keep having problems I'm going to call Dell tech support and cry on some poor guy in India.

 

[Ketchup]

Install Silverlight first, and see if you still have the issues. Silverlight for Netflix is what Flash is for Facebook games (and half the websites out there).

You may have received it in a Windows update, but it's good to be sure, and that you have the latest version.

 

[Tigerflower]

Thanks. It's worth a try at least!