Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe & 7970

[HOkay]

Hi all, new to the forums here but thought I'd start off making it very clear I'm a total nub sometimes:

I just put together a nice little Bitfenix Prodigy build (the red one ) with an Asus P8Z77-I Deluxe and a Powercolor 7970 LCS. When attempting to boot off the GPU once I'd leak-tested and then connected the whole damn system up...nothing. Blank screen.
However, it works fine off the integrated GPU and with a GTX 470 that I temporarily stole from my gfs PC. I tried *everything* to get it to work; all outputs, all combinations of settings related to the integrated graphics in the bios and even got out the voltmeter and tested that the PCI-e connectors were at the right voltage! I tried everything except flashing the bios. I've returned the card now so cannot test whether it definitely was a problem with the bios, but it looks like it is since the card works fine in the original sellers machine after being in my machine. In fact, it was bought from the54thvoid and he's reselling it on TPU:
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=182508

I'm considering buying it off him again (if he'll let me after the grief I caused the poor guy by claiming that it arrived DoA!) but Paypal takes ages to action a refund so I'm in financial limbo at the moment.

Has anyone come across this before and was it definitely the bios update that fixed it?? Also, why on Earth would a motherboard bios dated July 2012 not support a card that was released in January 2012!!

P.S. the54thvoid is a great guy, he was nothing but helpful and courteous with refunding me for my purchase. I'm just so sorry I didn't try updating the damn bios whilst I had the card in the system! A lesson was learnt on that day.

Edit: To confirm to everyone: The GPU itself works fine, it has been tested in another board since. I guess I'll have to either just risk getting another/the same 7970 or go with something else.

 

[EarthDog]

Did you read that thread? Some Asus boards just straight do not like some gpus... If a flash doesn't take care of, I'm betting that is the issue.

 

[drdeathx]

If it works with 1 card and not the other, chances the card is dead.

 

[m1dg3t]

When switching between Nvidia & ATi were you booting in safe mode and using driver sweeper/crap cleaner to get out all the bits of code? Sometimes there is still something in the registry even after that, this could be a cause?

If it works with 1 card and not the other, chances the card is dead.

If you'd do some more reading, you'd see that you were wrong. Again.

 

[drdeathx]

When switching between Nvidia & ATi were you booting in safe mode and using driver sweeper/crap cleaner to get out all the bits of code? Sometimes there is still something in the registry even after that, this could be a cause?



If you'd do some more reading, you'd see that you were wrong. Again.

LOL, read the thread. He gets black screen. Drivers have nothing to do with booting the system to Bios. Looks like the wrong thing hits you up spanky.

 

[adulaamin]

LOL, read the thread. He gets black screen. Drivers have nothing to do with booting the system to Bios. Looks like the wrong thing hits you up spanky.

the card works fine in the original sellers machine. In fact, it was bought from the54thvoid

 

[m1dg3t]

I see the English classes in the Philippines are quite good!

 

[drdeathx]

Ya think it may have gotten damaged between machines?

 

[the54thvoid]

It works in my machine. There is an almost identical problem, a few in fact, over at (i think) hot hardware or tom's. If you google "7970 won't post" you'll see similar issues. Please stop saying the card i'm reselling is broken.

Link http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/371814-31-post-7970-does

 

[drdeathx]

It works in my machine. There is an almost identical problem, a few in fact, over at (i think) hot hardware or tom's. If you google "7970 won't post" you'll see similar issues. Please stop saying the card i'm reselling is broken.

Link http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/371814-31-post-7970-does

I was suggesting. No note as to it was tried again in your machine......

The tomshare post was fixed with a bios update. if he updated the bios and the card still does not work, I would point to the card may be bad unless it was re installed in another system to verify.

 

[the54thvoid]

Link in OP takes to fs thread where it is made clear.

I was suggesting. No note as to it was tried again in your machine......

 

[drdeathx]

Link in OP takes to fs thread where it is made clear.

The OP has not commented on anything yet, so lets be clear. He has not verified it does not work in another system. he may have damaged it some way.....I have had cards go bad before and so have hundreds of others. it would be the best thing to retest it in another system.

 

[the54thvoid]

Last reply before work It's my card. He sent it back to me. It posts perfectly in my machine. In the OP he links to my FS thread. My FS thread shows it in pictures posting in my PC. OP did not damage card.

He also did not update his mobo BIOS - it was the only thing he didn't do. You wouldn't think you'd have too. That card worked straight off back in April 2012 in my Asus x79 Pro. There are quite a few instances where working cards do not post in different mobos. What this thread is trying to figure out is what variables affect that - I'd like to know too.

But again - as for the card - it is my card, back in my possession and it does work. Appreciate your posts but he wants compatibility answers.

Cheers.

 

[drdeathx]

Last reply before work It's my card. He sent it back to me. It posts perfectly in my machine. In the OP he links to my FS thread. My FS thread shows it in pictures posting in my PC. OP did not damage card.

He also did not update his mobo BIOS - it was the only thing he didn't do. You wouldn't think you'd have too. That card worked straight off back in April 2012 in my Asus x79 Pro. There are quite a few instances where working cards do not post in different mobos. What this thread is trying to figure out is what variables affect that - I'd like to know too.

But again - as for the card - it is my card, back in my possession and it does work. Appreciate your posts but he wants compatibility answers.

Cheers.

OK. Roger!

 

[cadaveca]

Has anyone come across this before and was it definitely the bios update that fixed it?? Also, why on Earth would a motherboard bios dated July 2012 not support a card that was released in January 2012!!

Yes, this is a "known" issue right now, between VGAs having BIOSes not fully compliant with UEFI motherboard BIOSes. You'll find reports of the same issue with both AMD and Nvidia VGAs, it is not something that is confined to any brand as all brands have some sort of issue with this somewhere, VGAs and boards alike.

 

[the54thvoid]

Yes, this is a "known" issue right now, between VGAs having BIOSes not fully compliant with UEFI motherboard BIOSes. You'll find reports of the same issue with both AMD and Nvidia VGAs, it is not something that is confined to any brand as all brands have some sort of issue with this somewhere, VGAs and boards alike.

Funny thing is we both have Asus boards but the board it works on (mine) is a x79 board and HOkay uses a z77 board.

Another recent problem elsewhere in webland. http://www.tonymacx86.com/mountain-...essful-asus-p8z77-i-deluxe-build-amd-gpu.html - Seems that specific mobo doesn't like AMD 7970 cards?

 

[cadaveca]

Funny thing is we both have Asus boards but the board it works on (mine) is a x79 board and HOkay uses a z77 board.

Another recent problem elsewhere in webland. http://www.tonymacx86.com/mountain-...essful-asus-p8z77-i-deluxe-build-amd-gpu.html - Seems that specific mobo doesn't like AMD 7970 cards?

I believe it's a BIOS issue, maybe physical card revision is at fault, but I know the same problem is also on GTX670, although not so much right now(newer BIOS on cards helped there).


UEFI core changed to add Win8 support(fast boot, etc), so I am not sure how this incompatibility works...one of those UEFI versions, and one VGA BIOS version hate each other. Which they are...I dunno. Haven't played with that board. Maybe that's why ASUS wouldn't send me one, since I test with AMD GPUs. Dunno. But I do know there is an issue related to UEFI that causes this. The date of your board's BIOS matters in a huge way when it comes to compatibility now...VGAs, USB devices, drives, ram...all can be an issue, and more so now than ever before.

 

[HOkay]

Thanks for the responses all, just to reiterate: the GPU works fine as tested in another PC since my tests.
I've updated the bios so will consider whether to try another/the same 7970 or get a different card. I'll update when I've got confirmation of what the problem actually was!