Second RX 480 w no video after AMD drivers

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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pulling my hair out trying to figure out why this brand new card, like the very first 480 I bought, totally stops producing video--only after the AMD driver is installed. this is on a fresh install of windows 10 pro 64bit.

the same thing happened to the Sapphire NITRO card I purchased back in August... once the driver was installed, there was no signal from any of the ports to the monitor. I ended up replacing that card with the MSI one that I am using now (works fine) but this 4GB version I picked up for a friend is doing it now.

i5 4570
ASRock Z87 OC Formula
MSI RX480 gamingx 4GB
8GB kingston DDR3
1000w power supply

IGD graphics is disabled and the power supply tests good, so this is bizarre to me unless it's simply defective. I tried a GTX 970 in the same machine and it works perfectly.
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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Crimson ReLive Edition 16.12.2 and there is video during POST, but not after the Windows load screen (when AMD drivers are installed) and I tried DDU also in Safe Model. nada.

I ran the same drivers on the 8G version in another system and the card was fine... and that wasn't a fresh OS install

Supposedly a replacement card is arriving tomorrow, so that's fine, but wth
 

Elixer

Lifer
May 7, 2002
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That is odd, especially having 2 cards from different OEMs have that same issue and on a clean install as well.
I guess it could be a BIOS conflict of some type between them, or bad cards, or the cards need a firmware update. Hard to say for sure, without trying it on another motherboard.
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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Another oddity is the fact that I actually tried this card paired with my other 8G card on my Z170 board and the driver seemed to install fine (i.e. two RX 480 gpu in device manager). I didn't think to try the 4G card alone since the 8G was the primary but I'm wondering if the results would differ.

I have 30 days to return the apparently faulty card so I might experiment a bit, but I can't void the warranty so I can't mess around with it too much. When I ran into the same issue with the Sapphire last year, I changed nothing about my configuration and when I installed the MSI one it just worked without any issues whatsoever. I am almost wondering if some of the cards shipped with dead vram or something, because there was a shortage initially and perhaps the polaris chips were somewhat rushed out.
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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Ugh.

Upon installing the replacement card I still have the no video issue once Win10 initializes the graphics drivers, leading me to better scrutinize the motherboard firmware.

Turns out the BIOS was older than I previously thought, but after struggling to get any of the flashing methods to work (but successfully doing so)... the problem persists.

I will try one more fresh install of the OS and mobo chipset drivers, but if the 480 doesn't work after that I'm returning both and I'll just set him up with the GTX 970 or 980
 

itsmydamnation

Platinum Member
Feb 6, 2011
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These things are normally either PSU related or firmware related. If your running an OC on the CPU (or memory as well) back that off, maybe move the GPU power connectors to a different rail ( if your PSU has rails) etc.
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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No OC, and the GTX 970 works perfectly so I have no explanation. The BIOS update for the board suggested that it helped with VGA compatability and the power supply is a single rail unit.

During the last installation of Windows 10 I didn't even manage to initiate the AMD drivers before the card crapped out--indicating that perhaps it had nothing or little to do with the drivers.
 

Elixer

Lifer
May 7, 2002
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Don't suppose you want to try a live linux CD/pen drive, and test that way?
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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I probably would if it were my own machine, but it's being sold to someone with minimal PC knowledge. If I can't do a simple driver install without totally losing video I'm not real confident that they wont run into additional issues.

I already got the OK to return both cards, and I don't have any other use for them at the moment, so I'd rather just move on.
 

Bacon1

Diamond Member
Feb 14, 2016
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No OC, and the GTX 970 works perfectly so I have no explanation.

You mentioned you used DDU, but did you also remove all the old Nvidia drivers when using it or just AMD ones? Is there any other software installed on the machine like antivirus / malware protection? Very odd :(
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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Yes, remove NVIDIA drivers and shut down, the typical procedure. I was actually unable to install the AMD drivers on my last try because I lost video before I could get back into Windows.

There was no software on the computer aside from what came with the OS. Just drivers...
 

n0x1ous

Platinum Member
Sep 9, 2010
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Weird.....I am having trouble with an MSI reference 480 from launch day. If its in my 6 card mining rig in any slot the system bsod's on bootup. If i put it in my test bench as only card it shows the post screen but then sits at a black screen indefinitely and doesnt load windows. As a secondary card on a riser in my test bench it works fine (it was a secondary in the mining rig as well) Not sure if i should rma or what.....
 

jimbob200521

Diamond Member
Apr 15, 2005
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Very odd that I'm running across this thread as I'm having a very similar issue with a somewhat older system I'm working on. Specs are an FX8150, 8gb RAM, and an AMD Radeon HD6870. My issue is with multiple fresh installs of both Windows 7 & Windows 10. Installs fine, boots first time or two fine, but once I start installing AMD drivers (whether chipset or video card) I no longer get video output on my DVI ports. However, if I switch to HDMI, video works fine. If I use HDMI as my primary display and hook a second display up to a DVI port, it will recognize the display is connected and even extend the desktop to it, but I get no signal to the monitor. I'm also using AMD's latest drivers. Not the exact same problem, but still weird...
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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the only 480 i got to work post driver installation is the one I am still using... the other 3 all exhibited the similar no signal status just as the installer was getting to display driver. usually, the screen will go black and come back, but on those cards it would just stay off afterward. my 290x did something similar, but only with the DP at startup.

tried everything i knew to but unfortunately i wasn't able to come up with any concrete explanation.
 

richierich1212

Platinum Member
Jul 5, 2002
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Funny how I never ran into this problem until today when I installed drivers for my MSI RX 480 Armor 4GB today onto my new Ryzen build (Used same card on my 4790K system). I basically resolved the issue by letting the computer sit there idle for 10 minutes letting it do its thing. Then I just manually restarted using the restart button on my case.

Crossed my fingers, and voila, Windows 10 log in screen appears soon after.
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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I've been using a second monitor on DVI to tweak the BIOS with my Ryzen computer... I thought I was having the same issue again after the drivers installed when the screen when blank...

turns out the login screen was on my other monitor that I had turned off. :oops:
 
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EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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still having no video on DP when it's the only output used, but as soon as DVI gets hooked up everything works fine. wth is that AMD?

anyone good at modding VGA bios?
 

EXCellR8

Diamond Member
Sep 1, 2010
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yea the same cable that I used with the card on the Z170 with zero issues.
 

richierich1212

Platinum Member
Jul 5, 2002
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@EXCellR8 OK so I happened to be browsing around my Gigabyte BIOS today on my Ryzen system and I noticed under Peripherals > AMI Graphic Output Protocol Policy an option named, "Output Select."

I only am running one monitor off my DVI output off my MSI Armor RX480 but I can't help but think maybe this is the BIOS option you needed to toggle this whole time.