NVIDIA GTX 970 Drivers - Performance issues - Huge thread in NV Forums

[MrFox]

Op, what's the point of this thread?

That is clearly a ForceWare issue firmly in the realm of NVidia and their driver development.

TESV is a DX9c game that is three years old that should be getting blown away by this card. And the game is making the opposite of the card..

Are there others out there similar issue ?

 

[MrFox]

Mrfox: What BIOS is your mb running on? Is it possible that it needs to be updated for the 970?

2209 is the last BIOS that they offered I have that BIOS installed.

 

[Vesku]

Have you adjusted all the graphical options to see if the driver is failing with a particular setting?

 

[DaveSimmons]

It sounds like your overclock is not 100% stable, only 99%.

Other games in the past have made "stable" OCs start to show problems, for example Doom 3.

Long ago intel rushed out a new Pentium 3 CPU at 1 GHz to compete with Athlons. It was essentially factory overclocked. They had to recall it after Tom's Hardware got it to fail intermittently doing linux kernel compiles. It was stable in other tests.

 

[MrFox]

It sounds like your overclock is not 100% stable, only 99%.

Other games in the past have made "stable" OCs start to show problems, for example Doom 3.

Long ago intel rushed out a new Pentium 3 CPU at 1 GHz to compete with Athlons. It was essentially factory overclocked. They had to recall it after Tom's Hardware got it to fail intermittently doing linux kernel compiles. It was stable in other tests.

On 11-11-2011 TESV came out as did the about a month prior GTX 570 was launched and it was not until 290.36 drivers that TESV had better drivers. The same issues were experienced then with poor overall performance.

TESV is a three year old game and the odds are there is not a supporting profile in the current drivers. This is probably true of the other games that are effected.

There is nothing to indicate data corruption or any other form of instability by the current system. it has been done in divisors of 33 fairly simple math, and stable for years... PSU is Newer and stable.

I'm able to turn the issue on and off. pretty simple.

 

[Fire&Blood]

Mrfox: What BIOS is your mb running on? Is it possible that it needs to be updated for the 970?

I bet that's the issue here.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I'm able to turn the issue on and off. pretty simple.

By changing to a different card that puts a different stress on the CPU and runs different code. That isn't enough to rule out an almost-stable overclock.

Maybe it is the card or drivers. Or maybe it's the CPU.

 

[CakeMonster]

What about addons? Those are numerous and very popular and they change the game in ways that AMD/NV have no way of accounting for.

 

[Phynaz]

That is clearly a ForceWare issue firmly in the realm of NVidia and their driver development.

TESV is a DX9c game that is three years old that should be getting blown away by this card. And the game is making the opposite of the card..

Are there others out there similar issue ?

So if you know what problem is why are you posting here? If you're ranting just to vent then just say so and people will stop trying to help you.

 

[bystander36]

As someone with a 920@3.8Ghz (previously at 4Ghz), I can say that it can draw a ton of power. I had similar issues to what you described before, and it turned out that my system was drawing too much for my PSU, which eventually had to be replaced.

Trying it at stock settings actually fixed the issues for a bit, until I replaced my PSU.

 

[Phynaz]

Clean OS and Skyrim install, stock everything. Problem still exists?

 

[richaron]

Another person telling OP to rule out (among other things) a bad CPU OC and insufficient/worn-out PSU before jumping to conclusions.

OP you have already made up your mind to blame drivers but we can not help without more info; from you or elsewhere. Though I can tell you that being closed minded leads to being wrong a lot.

A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

 

[piesquared]

Definitely sounds like a driver problem. Judging from that huge thread, it looks like people having NV driver issues is really common. I'd suggest if no fix is found to just keep hounding NV, maybe at some point they'll listen to their customers. Likely the only way they'll admit to and fix their drivers is if enough people make it public (providing that it is fixable).

 

[DaveSimmons]

Not if the people claiming driver issues are running overclocked and refuse to try stock speeds because they know best. Devs will rightly ignore them.

"MS you need to fix IE. I know the problem is IE even though I have 15 add-on toolbars and 5 virus infections!"

 

[BD231]

Definitely had some game specific driver issues with this 980 as well as GPU not getting enough voltage in games that do not stress it. It likes to stay downclocked when its not breaking a sweat, could be your issue as well if you're seeing low performance.

 

[digitaldurandal]

Clean OS and Skyrim install, stock everything. Problem still exists?

Troubleshooting 101 right there.

If you have not attempted at the very least going to stock everything, checking for BIOS updates, and doing a clean driver install, then no one on here is going to be able to help you verify what the problem is.

It is possible that there is a driver issue, it is possible your card is bad and only showing in certain situations. It is possible that the hardware you have is not interacting well. It is possible that your overclock is very slightly unstable. It is possible that there is something peculiar about your Skyrim installation/mods.

To narrow that range you will have to invest time other than stating over and over again that you have driver issues. Help us, help you.

 

[CP5670]

The OP's problem may be unrelated, but that Nvidia forum thread refers to a real issue. I have seen it a couple of times on my 980 on different drivers, but it's rare. The card gets stuck at some low clocks and all games run like crap. I think it actually gets triggered by running some specific game I have, but I don't know which one. When it occurs, it affects all games, and returns to normal if I reboot.

 

[AznAnarchy99]

As someone with a 920@3.8Ghz (previously at 4Ghz), I can say that it can draw a ton of power. I had similar issues to what you described before, and it turned out that my system was drawing too much for my PSU, which eventually had to be replaced.

Trying it at stock settings actually fixed the issues for a bit, until I replaced my PSU.

Yeah but if his previous card was running stable and the new 970s are much more efficient and draws less power, it should not be the culprit.

 

[bystander36]

Yeah but if his previous card was running stable and the new 970s are much more efficient and draws less power, it should not be the culprit.

Not necessarily. His 570 is slower, which means lower FPS and less CPU usage as a result. The 970 is a lot faster and will allow much higher FPS and will require more CPU usage to keep up.

All of a sudden, the system is less stable. I also doubt the 970 and 570 are much different on power draw. The 970 may be efficient, but that is compared to current cards.

 

[ocre]

The OP's problem may be unrelated, but that Nvidia forum thread refers to a real issue. I have seen it a couple of times on my 980 on different drivers, but it's rare. The card gets stuck at some low clocks and all games run like crap. I think it actually gets triggered by running some specific game I have, but I don't know which one. When it occurs, it affects all games, and returns to normal if I reboot.

The problem is, the OP is not describing anything remotely like that. He also is blowing off any suggestions. There are many people here that have had all kinds of issues before.

OP, sometimes your issue ends up being the last thing you would ever expect.

You keep insisting "driver driver driver" but that came after u were claiming somehow that nvidia was running the ram out if spec. That it had to be a ram issue. The reality is, you do not know what it is. So calm down, people are trying to assist you.

First thing u are ignoring is that several others on this thread have skyrim and a gtx970 but no issue at all. I have an older motherboard like yours, it is an x58, socket 1366. I also have a 970 and skyrim. My son is playing at we speak. It is the same dx9c game u claim doesn't work cause nvidia doesn't care about it. I am running it locked at 60fps (internal game frame cap on) with full ultra, hd textures, and DSR 2x. Locked at 60fps. No driver issue here. No stuttering, butter smooth. This is with my GPU at 100% stock settings. No overclock

So, your issue is specific to your set up. Once you understand that, you can then see why people are suggesting you try things like running you CPU at stock speed. Because there is something with your current setup that is causing your issue. I don't have it so lets try to figure out what's going on with your system. It may be HW related or it could be software. It doesn't have to be the driver, there are hundreds of thousands of post on steam from people having issues with the game itself. The game has its own frame limiter and settings for threads and multicore CPUs.
So it can be anything.

First thing first, what version of windows are you running? Is it 64bit? Are u sure? Please do not take offense, we just have to get thru these basics. U need 64bit OS for a GPU with 4gb ram.

Also, you have a frame rate monitor. Can u also monitor your GPU speed and usage at the same time. Is it down clocked or running over 1000mhz. How bout your memory, how much ram is being used?

Please answer these questions

 

[MrFox]

Well it is amazing but there is an end to this thread....

With the release of 347.52, I now have the stability that I had in the past with the prior hardware.


I'm now able to game for hours without issues, and stream to YouTube or Twitch.tv.

Now that the cat is out of the bag, and NVIDIA has started down the road of getting better drivers, and admitting that they have LIED.

And this thread was so full of the "It's your problem".

Jonny Guru used to have a saying about the Shill Factor. This thread was so full of them, that you could not swing a dead cat, without knocking ones dentures out.

There were three or four people that were helpful, and twenty that had no clue.. But it can't be NVIDIA.. Well the idea of stealth has exposed your true colors. What you don't know can bite you !!

I have proven many times in many forums, that post count does not equal technical knowledge. When a NOOB is yanking out technical specs of VRAM, there is a reason behind that knowledge.


To the people that were helpful THANK YOU !

To the "stealth factor" - edited to maintain membership and professional decorum.

 

[3DVagabond]

How can drivers add back the missing specs? Drivers are a bandaid nothing is fixed.

 

[Kenmitch]

Well it is amazing but there is an end to this thread....

With the release of 347.52, I now have the stability that I had in the past with the prior hardware.


I'm now able to game for hours without issues, and stream to YouTube or Twitch.tv.

Now that the cat is out of the bag, and NVIDIA has started down the road of getting better drivers, and admitting that they have LIED.

And this thread was so full of the "It's your problem".

Jonny Guru used to have a saying about the Shill Factor. This thread was so full of them, that you could not swing a dead cat, without knocking ones dentures out.

There were three or four people that were helpful, and twenty that had no clue.. But it can't be NVIDIA.. Well the idea of stealth has exposed your true colors. What you don't know can bite you !!

I have proven many times in many forums, that post count does not equal technical knowledge. When a NOOB is yanking out technical specs of VRAM, there is a reason behind that knowledge.


To the people that were helpful THANK YOU !

To the "stealth factor" - edited to maintain membership and professional decorum.

Funny....But sadly true!

NVIDIA isn't all it's hyped to be.

 

[Kenmitch]

How can drivers add back the missing specs? Drivers are a bandaid nothing is fixed.

Seems like new drivers fixed his issue at least. Must have been something messed up in them.

 

[deanx0r]

The OP's problem may be unrelated, but that Nvidia forum thread refers to a real issue. I have seen it a couple of times on my 980 on different drivers, but it's rare. The card gets stuck at some low clocks and all games run like crap. I think it actually gets triggered by running some specific game I have, but I don't know which one. When it occurs, it affects all games, and returns to normal if I reboot.

I have run into this issues a couple times with my GTX970, except that it is not persistent and will last for 5-10 seconds at most. I saw it happen in StarCraft 2 and Skyrim. The framerate drop was very noticeable and a quick look in MSI afterburner revealed that the card was running at really low clocks.

I wasn't able to reproduce the issue and it seems very random. However my GTX970 also seems to downclock a lot during SC2 sessions which lead to game crashes. I have reinstalled windows, tried all drivers available and that crash in SC2 still occurs. I played countless hours of SC2 with my 6970 and never had stability issues with it.