780m GTX - M17xR3 integrated soundcard working again! NO MORE USB SOUNDCARD!

[link3rd 17]

OK, soooooooooo...I posted a comment on a thread totally unrelated to this, so i decided to start a new thread about it. i pasted in the one reply that i got and he said it worked for him. I just wana share what worked for me and hopefully will for others with the same problem.

This is what happened to me:

I was messing around with my laptop and I decided to buy an NVIDIA heatsink and replace the AMD heatsink I got installed, because I'm frightened to JB Weld the copper shim to the heatsink, because the gap is too small. Anyways, I decided to test out what would happen if i was to remove the card and re-seat it.

i.e. imitate me putting back in the card as practice for when I get the other heatsink. So I took out the card, put it back in and there was like 6 beeps/ 5 beeps/ 8 beeps WHATEVER...... I was frustrated... WTF DID I DO!?!!

So I decided to stick back in my old AMD 6990m to see if that would help... STILL 6 beeps. I re-seated the card like 5 times!!! STILL NOTHING!

I decided to pull out the mobo battery to reset the bios:

I pulled out the 6990m, pulled out the battery, waited 30 secs, put in the card, put in the battery, screw it back up, powered on and still beeping. Nooooooooooo!

So i decided that i will take out the 6990m card again! Take out the battery, put in the battery first, so it would get power without the card being in there, put in the card and screwed back everything and booted... It worked!!!!

I loaded the bios (F2) and disabled sound card, integrated graphics, set monitor thingy to peg, set workaround to always. etc... F10... On the reboot, I force powered down and swapped back in my 780m gtx. Powered it on and it worked! I was relieved. It booted up normal and into windows. NO SOUND!.................... Mind u, my sound was working before.

I shutdown, booted back up. Went into bios and re-enable the integrated sound card. Hit F10 and restarted... It booted up into windows with sound and everything. (This is what I did the first time round)

So my theory:

1/ beeping like crazy???: Pullout mobo battery, pull out card. Put back in card then battery (I think this will only happen with the A12 bios, because it never happened with the A08 bios before)

2/ With old card still in the system, disable whatever u need to , i.e. sound card, integrated graphics, whatever.

3/ Replace card with 780m gtx (mind you, my drivers were installed all the time, but first time, no drivers were installed)

4/ Let it boot up like normal... shut down...

5/ Boot into bios and re-enable the sound card and it should work.

(NOTE: This worked for me. I HOPE, but I can't say for sure, that it will work for everyone)

My theory is that for the first time the 780m is installed, i.e. no card in the system -> 780m in the system, the sound card needs to be disabled (along with everything else) and once it boots up like normal (and NVIDIA drivers are installed) then the sound card can be re-enabled.

I think if u going to take out the card again, u need to disable the sound card FIRST then take it out after shutdown.

Like I said, this is just a theory based on what happened to me just now. Someone, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Also, I read that it will not work for a fresh install of windows. I re-installed windows fresh from the windows 7 disc I got with my pc when I bought it. I downloaded all the drivers from Dell's site to get everything working. Please tell me if I'm right or not. I really want to make a contribution to this community.

I REALLY WANT SOMEONE TO CONFIRM IF THIS METHOD WORKS. SO PLEASE... ANYONE?

SOMEONE REPLIED:

I just got 780m installed on m17x-r3 3D and I followed the instructions of disabling IDT chip prior of installing 780m.

So after I installed NVidia drivers I enabled IDT back and the sound is working for me. It is not a clean Windows 7 install but it looks to me that once the NVidia drivers are installed there are no IDT driver issues.

BTW, I run into another issue that kind of got me scarred. My card was stuck at 324Mhz max. I'm not sure what caused this issue for sure but I suspect it was my power supply ID chip that had a hiccup. The bios was complaining I do not have original Dell power supply. So I unplugged my power supply and let it drain for 5-10 minutes. Then hooked it back in. No more warnings and 780m would start working properly within its full MHz range.

[widezu69 252]

That's good to know. I'm on a R4 at the moment but my favourite machine was still the R3. To me it was a more refined machine especially with the unlocked bios. Control of spread spectrum, bclk speeds and actually to my ears, better sound from the integrated IDT sound chip compared to the dedicated SoundBlaster sound chip in the R4 and WiHD actually working with nvidia GPUs. Thinking of downgrading actually.

[GandalfTW 10]

So, I picked up a new 1TB SSD and decided to reinstall Windows 7. I disabled IDT, installed Windows 7, installed all the drivers, reboot, bios, enabled IDT. Boom, I get White screen when booting into Windows 7.

After a bit of troubleshooting it seems there is an easy fix for that. I just booted into Windows safe mode F8. Uninstalled the NVidia driver using https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/550192/geforce-drivers/display-driver-uninstaller-ddu-v7-7-1/

Rebooted into Windows 7. Reinstalled IDT driver, reinstalled NVidia drivers.

You're done.

So it seems there are two issues with IDT.

1. The beeping issues described in this thread, which I avoided by disabling IDT before installing 780m and NVidia driver installation on Windows 7 setup with IDT drivers already installed.

2. The white screen issues on fresh Windows 7 installation, which is just some kind of driver conflict. Resolvable through IDT driver installation prior to installing NVidia drivers. Or fixing white screen through the steps I performed.

For issue #2 my Windows 7 installation is the professional version with SP1, audio driver R303928.exe, NVidia driver 331.40-notebook-win8-win7-64bit-international-beta.

[link3rd 17]

That's good to know. I'm on a R4 at the moment but my favourite machine was still the R3. To me it was a more refined machine especially with the unlocked bios. Control of spread spectrum, bclk speeds and actually to my ears, better sound from the integrated IDT sound chip compared to the dedicated SoundBlaster sound chip in the R4 and WiHD actually working with nvidia GPUs. Thinking of downgrading actually.

hey, I saw that your gpu is "DellnVidia GTX 780M 4GB with unlocked vbios @1006/3000Mhz" so the core runs at 1006MHz and they have 3000Mhz of memory right? Mine is 797Mhz for core and 1250Mhz for memory.... is 3000 really that safe? I have not flashed the bios yet. I using nvidia inspector for only the limited allowable overclock.

If i switch between stock clocks and oc clocks depending on what im doing on my laptop, will this damage my card or do i need to leave it at the overclocked clocks? Do you leave yours overclocked all the time of do you have profiles set up?

I read a thread for overclocking the 2920xm, and it looks pretty straight forward enough. I just haven't gotten the courage to mess with my gpu bios to unlock it.

I assume that an overclocked cpu wouldn't remain hot right? only when its under full load. So i assume that the gpu will be the same concept.

Also. for HWiNFO64... can you recommend some fan speeds i can set it at. thanks

I look forward to your reply... and sorry for all the questions

[link3rd 17]

So, I picked up a new 1TB SSD and decided to reinstall Windows 7. I disabled IDT, installed Windows 7, installed all the drivers, reboot, bios, enabled IDT. Boom, I get White screen when booting into Windows 7.

After a bit of troubleshooting it seems there is an easy fix for that. I just booted into Windows safe mode F8. Uninstalled the NVidia driver using https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/550192/geforce-drivers/display-driver-uninstaller-ddu-v7-7-1/

Rebooted into Windows 7. Reinstalled IDT driver, reinstalled NVidia drivers.

You're done.

So it seems there are two issues with IDT.

1. The beeping issues described in this thread, which I avoided by disabling IDT before installing 780m and NVidia driver installation on Windows 7 setup with IDT drivers already installed.

2. The white screen issues on fresh Windows 7 installation, which is just some kind of driver conflict. Resolvable through IDT driver installation prior to installing NVidia drivers. Or fixing white screen through the steps I performed.

For issue #2 my Windows 7 installation is the professional version with SP1, audio driver R303928.exe, NVidia driver 331.40-notebook-win8-win7-64bit-international-beta.

[J95 961]

So, I picked up a new 1TB SSD and decided to reinstall Windows 7. I disabled IDT, installed Windows 7, installed all the drivers, reboot, bios, enabled IDT. Boom, I get White screen when booting into Windows 7.

After a bit of troubleshooting it seems there is an easy fix for that. I just booted into Windows safe mode F8. Uninstalled the NVidia driver using https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/550192/geforce-drivers/display-driver-uninstaller-ddu-v7-7-1/

Rebooted into Windows 7. Reinstalled IDT driver, reinstalled NVidia drivers.

You're done.

So it seems there are two issues with IDT.

1. The beeping issues described in this thread, which I avoided by disabling IDT before installing 780m and NVidia driver installation on Windows 7 setup with IDT drivers already installed.

2. The white screen issues on fresh Windows 7 installation, which is just some kind of driver conflict. Resolvable through IDT driver installation prior to installing NVidia drivers. Or fixing white screen through the steps I performed.

For issue #2 my Windows 7 installation is the professional version with SP1, audio driver R303928.exe, NVidia driver 331.40-notebook-win8-win7-64bit-international-beta.

That was my first attempt but couldn't boot in normal mode/installed IDT in safe mode, upgraded the board without a single beep both SATA III ports + mSATA and audio working fine, tweaking latest XTU 4.2.0.8 sandy bridge supported with this board...

[link3rd 17]

That was my first attempt but couldn't boot in normal mode/installed IDT in safe mode, upgraded the board without a single beep both SATA III ports + mSATA and audio working fine, tweaking latest XTU 4.2.0.8 sandy bridge supported with this board...

Woah! what are some of the perks that the R4 motherboard have over the R3's... besides the 3rd gen and the mSATA?

Is it worth it?

[J95 961]

Yeah I need both SATA III Ports + caching/upgrading drives, the sound issue did speed up things.

[GandalfTW 10]

so after, u were able to get the sound card working again? as in, u re enabled it after everything was ok?

[widezu69 252]

So lemme get this straight: install OS etc with previous GPU, install audio drivers. Verify audio is working. Then disable audio chip in bios. Install 780m. Boot into windows and install nvidia drivers, then enable IDT in the bios and everything would be working right?

[R3dshift 10]

Also, would this work if I used my Intel IGP after pulling out the 780m, since my old card is dead?

[link3rd 17]

Also, would this work if I used my Intel IGP after pulling out the 780m, since my old card is dead?

Idk. I never re-enabled my hd3000... To be honest, I HARDLY even play games any more... I just watch netflix and go on YouTube and Facebook, lol... I only play mw3 sometimes and that's it. I not that much into games as before. Perfect timing right? Lol

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[R3dshift 10]

Haha, no worries. I only have time for one game at a time these days. I have too many other hobbies- music, watersports, driving, etc. And I'm thinking of getting married too, stupid idea right?

I'll give it a shot with the IGP and report back

[R3dshift 10]

Success! 780m and IDT soundcard working together with no white/black screen after boot

One tip to note: If you are doing it this way, make sure you don't forget to enable PEG as primary GFX and disable Intel IGP in the BIOS right before installing the 780m back inside again!

[link3rd 17]

Success! 780m and IDT soundcard working together with no white/black screen after boot

U brave enough to try the hd3000 now?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[R3dshift 10]

U brave enough to try the hd3000 now?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What do you mean- enable the HD3000 in the BIOS? I thought that there was no way to get both HD3000 and 780m working at the same time?

[J95 961]

U brave enough to try the hd3000 now?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

iGPU enabled only after removing the 780M.

[link3rd 17]

What do you mean- enable the HD3000 in the BIOS? I thought that there was no way to get both HD3000 and 780m working at the same time?

Well, in the beginning, everyone was using the USB sound card, sooo...

iGPU enabled only after removing the 780M.

Damn... No way to re-enable it like the IDT sound card?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[J95 961]

He has the Optimus model so removing the 780M and enabling HD3000 is possible -> uninstall Nvidia drivers (safe mode/DDU third uninstall option)-> Install IDT -> Disable IGP & Set display to PEG -> Install 780M.

[link3rd 17]

He has the Optimus model so removing the 780M and enabling HD3000 is possible -> uninstall Nvidia drivers (safe mode/DDU third uninstall option)-> Install IDT -> Disable IGP & Set display to PEG -> Install 780M.

I understand, but I meant to have both enabled like before the upgrade... So the graphics switching feature can be utilized again. I'm tempted to try, but I really don't want I have to take apart my computer again. I might get a stroke this time around.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[J95 961]

Nope, graphics switching won't work.

@link3rd signature *headache* *more headache* still...

[xflood 10]

He has the Optimus model so removing the 780M and enabling HD3000 is possible -> uninstall Nvidia drivers (safe mode/DDU third uninstall option)-> Install IDT -> Disable IGP & Set display to PEG -> Install 780M.

I have the M17x-R4, currently with a 780M, can i do that aswell to enable optimus on it? thanks

[Kephra 13]

I tried and failed to put optimus back in play on an M17xR3 with a nvidia 765m in it, and failed utterly. The fact that you have to do gymnastics with the drivers to keep the HD audio running suggests some serious address or resource contention issues that probably confuse the heck out of optimus... but that's a total SWAG.

[Jinx1337 11]

The method DOES INDEED work; however - I'll just quote myself from another forum:

"My sleep mode doesn't work. Whenever I power the notebook on from sleep mode, all I get is a white screen.

Anyone experiencing similar?

Other than these, everything works just fine. I'm getting great performance and really good temps with the 780m."

Now - after trying several things, I can also confirm that hibernation doesn't work either; no sleep mode / hibernate WITH the IDT soundcard turned on; once you wake/unhibernate the notebook, it gives a white/black screen - similar to the behavior before installing 780m's drivers.

It MUST be an IRQ problem; is there any way to change the DMA/IRQs of either the GPU/the IDT card?

I curse the Dell/Alienware for not supporting the R3 with a SINGLE BIOS update to make it all work.

[JoostvanBoxmeer 33]

The method DOES INDEED work; however - I'll just quote myself from another forum:

"My sleep mode doesn't work. Whenever I power the notebook on from sleep mode, all I get is a white screen.

Anyone experiencing similar?

Other than these, everything works just fine. I'm getting great performance and really good temps with the 780m."

Now - after trying several things, I can also confirm that hibernation doesn't work either; no sleep mode / hibernate WITH the IDT soundcard turned on; once you wake/unhibernate the notebook, it gives a white/black screen - similar to the behavior before installing 780m's drivers.

It MUST be an IRQ problem; is there any way to change the DMA/IRQs of either the GPU/the IDT card?

I curse the Dell/Alienware for not supporting the R3 with a SINGLE BIOS update to make it all work.

I have been "struggling" to install a GTX 780M in a Alienware M17X R3 (3D, 120HZ, so no optimus / IGP)

There where conflicts getting the IDT and GPU running together. White, Yellow, Pink screens

I found out the following using IDT Control Panel. Unchecking the option [Advanced>Enable Power Management], results in black screen and sound getting messed up.

@Jinx1337: I don´t know your IDT Audio Control Panel settings, but maybe this discovery, leaving Enable Power Management checked, can help.