*** Official Clevo X170KM-G/Sager NP9672M Owner's Lounge ***

It reminds me of something, such an error occurred on older models with HD7970m video cards when the GPU chip was dumped, but in this situation I am more inclined towards software problems

 

When you say "dumped" do mean defective/in need of replacement?

 

Yes, such a problem arose when the GPU chip malfunctioned, but it was after long-term use, but here everything is new, so I think that the problem is rather software

 

Perhaps these are conflicts between a discrete video card and a video card built into the processor, since at x170km there is a choice from which card to display the image on the display and this laptop starts on the processor video even without a discrete card installed, you just need to select a video adapter in the BIOS menu.

 

I thought the X170's was igp hardware disabled aka not wired.

Sent from my SNE-LX1 using Tapatalk

 

it's ok. appreciate the thot.

 

No it is not, the built-in video works on this laptop

 

That's an interesting idea. i'll dig around in bios & device manager.

 

Really well I found a load of Var's for IGP etc and Hybrid for display. But if the IGP works and displays that means there is a MUX switch surely.

Sent from my SNE-LX1 using Tapatalk

 

This tab for selecting the video adapter appears after unlocking the BIOS as far as I remember

 

Yes, most likely this is implemented through MUX

 

Ohh...

Anybody here with the i9-11900KF? Are you having any video issues?

 

It does appear that the bios defaults to looking for the NVidia card. Windows Device Manager doesn't see any other display adapter.

 

Yes, it should be so, because you have a processor without an integrated video core, as I understand it

 

Perhaps you are on the right track, it would be nice to collect statistics from the owners of x170kmg on such malfunctions, perhaps this is somehow related to the use of processors with a disabled video core of the KF or F series

 

Forcing the IGP as a primary will be a great way of potentially bricking your system and at best force you to navigate the bios blind.

 

I have a Non F SKU CPU and it the IGP doesn't show thats why i was sure it wasn't wired for IGP as if it was there would be an Switch be it software or hardware normally.
As my system is in warranty for upto 3 years i am not going to take it to bits other then for maintance of thermals or SSD / RAM upgrades as to keep inside the ToS with PCSpecialist (The ODM/SI of my laptop).

On that note, i have done a repaste job and them pads look flimsy as hell @Meaker@Sager @Mr. Fox or the other overclockers (not going to overclock but want better thermals), also Suggestions on thermal paste thats non conductive for 2021. Thank you

 

No one is trying to convince you to use the iGPU, I just reported the fact that it works on this model and works without any failures, information about this is taken from a reliable source, at least on the original BIOS from Clevo

 

I know your not trying to convince me to use the IGPU i was merely pointing out for me in its stock configuration it doesn't show the IGP in Device Manager with a CPU that has an IGP.

 

Yes, it is, igpu will not be visible until you enable the option to use the video adapter in the BIOS

 

Didn't mean to open a can of worms. I was just wondering if there was some hardware crossed signals between onboard & NVidia graphics, and if people without it had fewer crashes.

 

I have KF version and no trouble with the graphic card. Only trouble was caused by Dell D6000 dock and DisplayLink.

 

Can you show it showing on device manager and apply a load to it?

Genuinely curious as I've not taken a multimeter to the phases on the motherboard, it would mean the IGP has a couple of power phases hooked up to it.

 

I had the exact Error with:
\Device\000000b6
CMDre 00000003 00000200 00000000 00000005 0000002c
I have the laptop for about 2 months and got a black screen a couple of times (mostly when connecting external HDMI)
One time after the screen got blank I noticed that it still works, I could notice text on screen but it was so weak as it was almost black - the screen LED lamps were turned off and I had to hard reset for it to turn on again.
Do you have a solution?

 

I'm not 100% sure I have a fix for you but I do have steps I took to fix the problem for myself.

As a side note to anyone else on this forum, from what I'm seeing so far it seems this issue with random black screening is only affecting people running a pairing of an 11th Gen Intel CPU and the RTX 3080m. Can't know for sure unless more people come forward reporting the problem, I'm just noting my observation so far. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one running into the problem though; initially I was considering RMAing with my seller but from what I'm seeing now it highly improbable that we all have faulty GPUs, it's most likely the problem lies within software/driver issues. Unfortunately we all do have the same SKU, so we can't necessarily rule out that the fault could have something to do with the manufacturing/firmware etc. of the 3080m that's made for this laptop. Who knows at this point..... not enough data.

Anyways, onto steps I took to fix the problem for myself:

1. Download DDU if you don't have it already https://www.guru3d.com/files-details/display-driver-uninstaller-download.html. Boot into safe mode. Run DDU and first make sure the option in the middle right of the UI is set to "stop windows update from installing drivers" or similar wording before you do anything. Uninstall Nvidia drivers and restart normally.

2. Install your preferred version of Nvidia drivers using NVCleanstall https://www.techpowerup.com/download/techpowerup-nvcleanstall. On the step in NVcleanstall where it asks you what optional components you want to install I ONLY check marked: HD Audio via HDMI (you can 100% not check this box if you don't need audio output to the device connected to your HDMI or mini DP ports) and the Microsoft Visual C 2017 Runtimes if you think your system doesn't have them already (unlikely).

3. Open registry and navigate to:
"HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\GraphicsDrivers", create DWORD (32-bit) key and name it "TdrDelay" with a value of 10 as (click decimal value, not hexadecimal value). Research what this does if you decide you're not sure you want to try it blindly just cuz some random person on the internet told you to make changes in your registry lol.

As far as my issue was concerned, the regedit tweak OR slimming down the Nvidia components on my system by using NVcleanstall seems to have fixed my problems (6 weeks and counting no issues so far, fingers crossed). Unfortunately I did both of those fixes on the same day so I don't know how to narrow down which step actually had an impact :/

Additional info: If you're on a balanced power plan check the advanced power plan settings and check to make sure the PCI express Link State Power Management option is set to Off. MY event viewer DHEA errors specifically didn't point to the GPU itself but the PCIE Bridge device named "Intel PEG10 - 4C01". But then in turn if you dig into viewing hardware by connections the only device connected to the bridge is the GPU itself, which narrows down the faulting hardware to the GPu. The monitor is in turn registered as being connected/dependent to the GPU.

I also don't advice overclocking the GPU until we know the root cause of this issue. I outright uninstalled the GPU overclocking component from Clevo Control Center just in case it was having a weird interaction with the GPU.

I'm running the latest EC, BIOS and CC from here: https://download.schenker-tech.de/package/xmg-ultra-17-id-xul17e21/

 

Thanks for all the Data!
I already did the 2 steps the third one i will investigate.
Keep in mind 2 out of 3 time that it happened to me was when I connected external HDMI / Displayport monitor (might help for the investigation)
Is your laptop originally XMG? or you just flashed their BIOS/EC?

 

My laptop is actually from HIDevolution, but their support tab for drivers just takes you to Sager's website and Sager hasn't updated downloads for the XMG since April's release drivers

Only noticeable difference using XMG's bios is that when you boot the laptop you are greeted with an ugly puke green logo that says "XMG" but other than that I have no complaints lol

To add to some previous discussions on what might cause the screen to go nearly all black (as mentioned previously, it's actually not completely off - if you look really closely at the monitor and say, press the windows key, you'll still be able to see trace outlines albeit really dark, of the windows start menu pulling up. When I was getting the black screens I just hit Alt F4 till all windows close and windows pulls up the shutdown options menu, then hit enter on the keyboard so laptop at least gets a clean shutdown.

About the possible interference from the processor's integrated (but deactivated) GPU (as discussed previously): if your CPU is a 11700KF and you're encountering the issue, we can rule out the IGP as the source of the problem, seeing as your CPU doesn't even have one. We can also rule out the HDMI ports and DP ports as the issue, since I and someone else have encountered the problem regardless of whether or not an external display was connected. It's appearing more than likely to be a software, or worse, a hardware problem directly related to the GPU itself.

I'm leaning towards saying that for the moment, the problem lies within the laptop's firmware or directly with the GPUs firmware or even the GPU integrity as a whole. When the issue was occurring for me I had by that time tried several iterations of Nvidia driver releases and it still happened. When I upgraded to newer bioses I noticed that the WHEA errors pointing to the PCI Bridge connecting the GPU became less and less frequent as I flashed a newer version. Right now I get a WHEA error pointing to the GPU only 1 time every day or every 2 days, and nothing really happens as far as user experience is concerned, you can't even tell when the error occurs. The bigger issue of screen going black hasn't happened since I tried the "fixes" I mentioned earlier. Keeping fingers crossed but I suspect it'll happen again eventually if the issue really is deeper rooted.

 

Any chance you could check your event viewer to see if you've ever had WHEA errors pointing to the GPU? You wouldn't really know you've had them unless you dig for it because it doesn't impact usability whatsoever. I'm trying to see if GPU errors are being reported for all 3080s or if possibly the GPU just doesn't play nice with a different component in the system, i.e the RAM or a type of SSD.

Any chance you could also share your operating system environment? Are you using CC? Overclocking the GPU at all? On Windows or Linux? etc

Thank you in advance!

 

@BillR @ shmutus

I'm also highly suspicious that the RAM used and the configuration (how many sticks, which slots are filled) might have something to do with the GPU errors / black screens. I can't remember where in the forums someone mentioned it, but IIRC there was an XMG owner who was having RAM issues and when they would plug 2 or even 3 sticks their system would boot up and run perfectly. But when they added a 4th stick the computer would record "bug checks" saying that the faulting hardware / software was the GPU or the Nvidia control panel, I can't recall correctly but it was something to that effect. Wish I could find the post, my brain's already hurting from all the speculation.

A lot of the issues overall that were reported so far with the KMG were in the majority RAM related. Earlier on people had separate BSODs issues using CC but I think that problem is mostly fixed now (the likely culprit there was the older iterations of CC and/or the BIOS being used at the time would undervolt the CPU too steeply when you switched over to "performance mode" in CC, BSODing the system almost instantly in most cases).

More food for thought...

 

Yeah, after digging, i see some WHEA errors in the event viewer.

Sorry - first part is in german.

Code:

Protokollname: System
Quelle:        Microsoft-Windows-WHEA-Logger
Datum:         12.08.2021 07:48:41
Ereignis-ID:   17
Aufgabenkategorie:Keine
Ebene:         Warnung
Schlüsselwörter:
Benutzer:      Lokaler Dienst
Computer:      clevo-notebook
Beschreibung:
Es ist ein korrigierter Hardwarefehler aufgetreten.
Komponente: PCI Express Root Port
Fehlerquelle: Advanced Error Reporting (PCI Express)
Primär Bus:Gerät:Funktion: 0x0:0x1:0x0
Sekundär Bus:Gerät:Funktion: 0x0:0x0:0x0
Primärer Gerätename: PCI\VEN_8086&DEV_4C01&SUBSYS_77151558&REV_01
Sekundärer Gerätename:
Ereignis-XML:
<Event xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/win/2004/08/events/event">
  <System>
    <Provider Name="Microsoft-Windows-WHEA-Logger" Guid="{c26c4f3c-3f66-4e99-8f8a-39405cfed220}" />
    <EventID>17</EventID>
    <Version>1</Version>
    <Level>3</Level>
    <Task>0</Task>
    <Opcode>0</Opcode>
    <Keywords>0x8000000000000000</Keywords>
    <TimeCreated SystemTime="2021-08-12T05:48:41.9074943Z" />
    <EventRecordID>23181</EventRecordID>
    <Correlation ActivityID="{4c662bd5-cca7-44f1-9ccc-67bfcf6a01ee}" />
    <Execution ProcessID="4172" ThreadID="3076" />
    <Channel>System</Channel>
    <Computer>clevo-notebook</Computer>
    <Security UserID="S-1-5-19" />
  </System>
  <EventData>
    <Data Name="ErrorSource">4</Data>
    <Data Name="FRUId">{00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000}</Data>
    <Data Name="FRUText">
    </Data>
    <Data Name="ValidBits">0xdf</Data>
    <Data Name="PortType">4</Data>
    <Data Name="Version">0x101</Data>
    <Data Name="Command">0x10</Data>
    <Data Name="Status">0x407</Data>
    <Data Name="Bus">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="Device">0x1</Data>
    <Data Name="Function">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="Segment">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="SecondaryBus">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="SecondaryDevice">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="SecondaryFunction">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="VendorID">0x8086</Data>
    <Data Name="DeviceID">0x4c01</Data>
    <Data Name="ClassCode">0x30400</Data>
    <Data Name="DeviceSerialNumber">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="BridgeControl">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="BridgeStatus">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="UncorrectableErrorStatus">0x0</Data>
    <Data Name="CorrectableErrorStatus">0x81</Data>
    <Data Name="HeaderLog">00000000000000000000000000000000</Data>
    <Data Name="PrimaryDeviceName">PCI\VEN_8086&amp;DEV_4C01&amp;SUBSYS_77151558&amp;REV_01</Data>
    <Data Name="SecondaryDeviceName">
    </Data>
  </EventData>
</Event>

My system:
Windows 10 Pro
Intel Core i9-11900KF
64GB (4x16GB) DDR4 Samsung 3200Mhz
Nvidia RTX 3080M | 16GB
17.3 Zoll Ultra HD 3840x2160 | 100% AdobeRGB
Samsung 980 PRO 2TB | PCIe 4.0 x4 | NVMe
Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB | PCIe 3.0 x4 | NVMe
Samsung 980 1TB | PCIe 3.0 x4 | NVMe

I'm using the CC in the newest version (3.46) but i dont use overclocking for CPU and GPU.
Bios version 1.07.04 from Clevo.

 

Thanks for sending over the info. Still a mystery to me what it is exactly that causes the error to trigger but from what I'm seeing in my logs the WHEA errors on my side dropped drastically when I flashed the latest EC and the one before that too. I get them once every few days now. In the past when I had them happen more frequently I noticed they'd trigger mostly when I was away from the computer and the screen was on power save mode i.e. black screen but PC still on. Overall though they don't in themselves cause degraded user experience but I feel like they might be an indication of a deeper problems that needs looking into, especially since at least 3 people have come forward saying they've experienced the monitor suddenly dying on them.

If you ever get severely bored and want to try to remove the RAM from the 2 slots under the PC bottom cover (seems like those 2 slots usually cause the most problems on a 4 RAM stick config), to see if it makes the WHEA errors go away completely, please don't hesitate xD. I'm still open to the idea of the type of RAM and/or where it's slotted being a possible source of GPU errors, not ruling it out completely just yet.

 

I will test it in the next days. I cant upgrade to the newest bios because of ram configuration. Maybe I'll throw them out and upgrade the bios and ec.

Its really a shame. I ordered the X170KM-G with 2x32GB. After one week i get a call - the 2x32GB are not in stock. If its ok, they will install 4x16GB. It was ok for me, but at this time i had no idea about the problems with a 4x16GB configuration...

 

No WHEA errors for me.
using cc 3.46 (+ WIndows store 3.48 update) Performance mode, No overclocking. (CPU overclocking menu is disabled at bios)
RAM 16x2
using latest nvidia driver.
* Now cleared all events and starting clean, will be easier to diagnose.

 

What is the right way to upgrade the bios from Sager bios to XMG's bios?
1st EC & then Bios or backwards?

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...reseller-thread.656776/page-172#post-11105121

 

Today with a lot of rendering work, two hard shut off without event viewer entry...

The system freezes and just shut off.

 

Thanks for checking this, hopefully updating BIOS/EC will at least help alleviate your black screen issues till Clevo or someone else figures out the actual issue.

I'm not sure if there's a correct sequence but I did the BIOS first and then the EC every time there were new versions. No issues.

 

Oh wow holy cow, thank you for finding that and quoting. I think for a re-seller to outright say they won't even sell the laptop due to RAM issues is quite telling. Tbh at this point I'm going to go out on a limb and say that the issues pretty much everyone is having (save from legitimate RMA problems like bent pints or a defective component) can probably be traced to or solved by figuring out why the laptop goes kaput the moment you try to run 4 pieces of RAM at the correct max speed of 3200MHz, which the laptop should be able to do without issues whatsoever.

See above, tbh I think I can personally stop speculating at this point and I would highly suggest you take out 2 of your RAM pieces and see if you get more stability. You even said you can't use certain BIOS version because they won't work with your RAM setup - that in itself if pretty telling that it's likely a key to your issues. I feel like your reseller should be able to honor your original purchase intention of 2x32 but I don't know their policies, worst case scenario if you really need the 64GB for your work you might want to consider getting a pair from Amazon.

I just went to browse through a lot of the re-sellers marketplace pages and as of now most of them don't even let you purchase a 4 RAM stick config at 3200Mhz, they instead changed it to max speeds of 2933Mhz or 2666Mhz depending on the store.

Clearly a lot more people having issues with RAM than we see on this forum. We can't assume everyone who's bought the laptop and had RAM issues came on here to give their feedback hahah. Forum would probably be at 300+ pages by now

 

I'll second that. And kudos to @Donald@zTecpc

I kept the 4 sticks in mine. I'd rather live with an occasional crash than give up the ram.

 

Since my bios update I haven't had a crash or post issues with 4 sticks of ram installed.

I think its could be a timing voltage issue.

Sent from my SNE-LX1 using Tapatalk

 

Question to Group,

I am picking up a X170 in the next week or so. I am looking at multiple resellers. Some (HIDevolution) is offering Prema bios but other are offering much cheaper options (some with LM repaste). How important is Prema for tuning? I will be running it in some scenarios where I want solid gaming performance but the laptop relatively quiet. Something like 40 or so decibels. Is this possible without Prema? I am fine with using XTU or Throttlestop to control the CPU.

Thank you!

 

The Prema bios isn't out yet but if it ends up being as good as his previous work when it does eventually come out, it's definitely worth it imo.

For my configuration (see my signature for specs) when I want the laptop to be tolerably quiet I have a custom fan profile that's way less aggressive but you'll be experiencing CPU throttling in titles that are really heavy on the CPU if you just stick to defaults clocks combined with low fan speeds. For gaming or heavy work load when I have family around and I don't want them to feel like they're at an airport terminal (lol) I purposefully downclock the CPU a little off of defaults (in my case this ends up looking like a downward curve to a max of 4.3GHz when all 8 cores/16 threads are going full blast on the 11900k - the default clock speed for all cores active is 4.8GHz but if my fans are running on low I would experience some pretty hefty CPU throttling leaving it on default speeds).

I haven't noticed it really affecting my gameplay either at that lower speed - most of my games tend to be GPU intensive from what I can see so overall I get great thermals (Average temps on GPU is usually 60c or less, CPU average temps in the 60c range too. You get the occasional spike up to 80c+ when you boot up a game or execute something chunky but you generally look for average temps in gaming since it's a long time span type of activity).

Since you mentioned HIDevolution I should disclose I bought my system from them, and as far as recommending HIDevolution as a seller is concerned my experience was 9/10. Your experience could vary of course. They gave me regular updates, once they had the system in their hands they put it together pretty quick, shipping was also fast. Customer service was easy to get a hold of. I only say 9/10 because I've had to get BIOS and other updates from European re-sellers driver repositories (Schenker/XMG) since HIDevolution hasn't updated theirs since release of the X170KM-g.

 

How did you do that
Can you please walk me through doing it

 

Thank you for the reply. Very helpful. HID have been great to interact with in the past. I ended up purchasing elsewhere both times I talked with them but not any fault of theirs. Really challenged by the pricing at HID though. It is a solid $600 more.

Do you mind sharing why the Prema BIOS are so good? I will only be trying to get the machine under control (noise and heat). No plans of overclocking outside of normal thresholds.

 

The point is to have extra control for those who like to tweak, if you wont change anything then it wont make a big difference really.

 

Thanks Meaker,

Xotic or Gentech in the states?

 

@Meaker@Sager have you been noticing that the fans are getting stuck at 25%

 

Not one I have heard, still running my NP9877 for now. Got a 9900KS for it.

 

Just ordered a Sager from Xotic. No taxes.

 

Do you mean you want me to type out a quick guide on how to flash new bios and EC or what were you referring to?