Drivers for GTX 670

Dawn1113

Posts: 319   +71
I recently purchased two EVGA GTX 670s and am expecting them to arrive today.

I did some research prior to the purchase. Initially, it looked like I had made a good choice. But I'm now coming across a few forum threads that indicate problems with the new 301.42 drivers. The problems are particular to the 670. The reported symptoms include stuttering and crashing.

Can anyone out there confirm this? If so, what drivers should I use? I checked the release notes on the newest beta driver and it looks like it contains a few fixes. Will using beta drivers void the warranties?

I suspect most of the problems I've read about are related to improper driver installation, but I just want to make sure. The Nvidia forums are down and I can find no official word about the purported issue on the Nvidia website.

I also got myself a new monitor and will try gaming at 1920x1080 if my eyes can take it. Will be using the cards in SLI.

Thanks in advance for your advice and inputs.
 
None of the release reviews I read of the GTX 670 SLI indicated any stuttering or crashing, so there must be an older driver which won't have those problems. As you mentioned a lot of the time crashes are due to previous drivers not being uninstalled completely (especially when moving from AMD to Nvidia) but since you're running an Nvidia setup already there shouldn't be any problem.

Out of interest which eVGA 670 did you get?
 
Is there any reason you can't run the latest release (306.02 WHQL)?

Hey there, Matt. For some reason, the version of 306.02 specific to the GTX 670 is not Windows certified yet. I went to the nVidia driver downloads page, typed in GTX 670, selected WHQL, and got 301.42 WHQL instead. I installed those and immediately ran into problems launching Metro 2033. The prompt said my computer was missing a PhysX dll. I went through contortions trying to figure that one out as none of the tips offered at the eVGA website helped.

I tried uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers twice, each time using Driver Sweeper and CCleaner. Also deleted the old installation folders and cleared the registry. I tried the older drivers -- even those that came with the cards -- still no go with Metro 2033. I uninstalled and re-installed the game itself to no avail. I checked the beta drivers for the 670 and there was a version of 306.02 there. So I ended up using what the nVidia website says is 306.02 beta for the 670. That finally got Metro 2033 to work! Strange. Some glitch in the Nvidia website perhaps? :confused:

Out of interest which eVGA 670 did you get?

Hi, slh28. Thanks for the quick reply. I got myself two of these:

02G-P4-2678-KR_LG_1.jpg
I think they come with a slight factory OC.

I have them installed now. I had the BIOS set to PCIe 3.0 prior to installation, but they were running at PCIe 2.0 as per GPU-Z. I went to the eVGA website and found information indicating that -- for some reason -- PCIe 3.0 does not run automatically on X79 boards, even when Gen3 is enabled in the BIOS. After installing the 306.02 beta drivers, I tried installing a standalone PCIe 3.0 patch for the X79 platform from the Nvidia website. Nothing happened. GPU-Z said the cards were still running PCIe v2.0 I eventually found a registry hack on the eVGA forums website which worked. Both cards are now running smoothly at PCIe v3.0 x 16 (8.0 Gb/s) -- or so says GPUZ. (I really don't trust these registry hacks.)

I am not the kind that does benchmarks, but I might just do a few later today. I have to say, though, the performance boost you get by upgrading from GTX470 SLI to GTX 670 SLI is readily apparent. I had not thought it would be as obvious. I've tested BF3 and Max Payne -- both ran OK. Metro 2033 is running a good deal smoother with DX11 tesselation and advanced DOF enabled. Even the very demanding "amoeba" sequence runs noticeably better.

Can hardly wait until the new monitor arrives, though I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that nothing goes wrong until then. I get a bit anxious after installing new hardware.

Anyways, thanks, guys, for bothering to check out this thread. As I am still very much a big noob, I do value the advice you guys give me. Always much appreciated.
 
^Yeah, I'm baffled -- to be honest. I've checked and double checked since reading your post -- typing in GTX 670 each time. I get 301.42 WHQL without fail. But 306.02 (release date August 27) is in the list of beta drivers under the 670. I'm thinking someone at the Nvidia website was careless and there has been some kind of mix up. :D

PS: Here is a link to the page I'm getting: http://www.nvidia.com/object/win8-win7-winvista-64bit-306.02-beta-driver.html.
 
Good call on the 670 FTW edition cards, they have the longer 680 PCB which should allow for quieter and cooler operation and better stability if you decide to OC them.

Personally I've had pretty good luck with beta drivers, most of the time they'll run trouble free on popular setups and games.

I am not the kind that does benchmarks, but I might just do a few later today. I have to say, though, the performance boost you get by upgrading from GTX470 SLI to GTX 670 SLI is readily apparent. I had not thought it would be as obvious. I've tested BF3 and Max Payne -- both ran OK.
Only ok? BF3 should easily max out and run at 60fps on a single screen with your setup.
 
Yes. Heh-heh. BF3 is running very well, actually. And, yeah, I'm loving these cards. I'm amazed at the temps I'm getting. Having come from 470 SLI -- which idled at 48ºC and 44ºC, 34ºC idle is just fantastic.

But it was Metro 2033 that finally pushed me into making the investment. That game really punished my Fermis.
 
That's one heck of a rig you've got there now Dawn... I see the sickness has gotten a hold of you. Welcome to the club ;)
 
That's one heck of a rig you've got there now Dawn... I see the sickness has gotten a hold of you. Welcome to the club ;)

Yeah, I've got it pretty bad. :D If anyone had told me last year that I'd be spending as much on my PC as I have these past few months, I would have thought it a joke. Now my credit card bills say it all. I have officially become an entry level PC gaming "geek". It appears to be a progressive malady. I do hope it is incurable. I wouldn't have any other way, really. I'm having such fun!
 
I hope that 1080p monitor you ordered is 120Hz... to take full advantage of your GPUs
 
I hope that 1080p monitor you ordered is 120Hz... to take full advantage of your GPUs


[FONT=Calibri]No, I'm afraid not. For now, it's a Samsung S24B300HL LED monitor. I think the best I'll get is 60Hz. Maybe I can crank up graphics quality a little. I'm not even sure my eyes can take it, though. There is bound to be some bottlenecking until I can get a 120Hz monitor. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long. I'm due for a raise and I'm hoping the boss is amenable to the idea. Heh-heh. [/FONT]

[FONT=Calibri]The monitor I'm using now -- also a Samsung -- is ancient and should be just about ready to give up, I think. It's a wonder that it has lasted as long as it has. Quite sturdy. Never gave me any problems. [/FONT]
 
You'll get smoother gameplay from a 120Hz monitor, maybe that will be better for your eyes (or worse... depends on the person).
 
Yeah, I've got it pretty bad. :D If anyone had told me last year that I'd be spending as much on my PC as I have these past few months, I would have thought it a joke. Now my credit card bills say it all. I have officially become an entry level PC gaming "geek". It appears to be a progressive malady. I do hope it is incurable. I wouldn't have any other way, really. I'm having such fun!

Pretty sure I warned you 7 months ago right here https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/asus-p9x79-pro.177878/#post-1148545 ;)

Either way, I'm glad to have you with us.
 
Pretty sure I warned you 7 months ago right here https://www.techspot.com/community/topics/asus-p9x79-pro.177878/#post-1148545 ;)

Either way, I'm glad to have you with us.

Yes, you did. :) The truth is, I went to it quite willingly. :D

It's a wonderful distraction -- and also a bit more than just that. My brother is an enthusiast and my little adventure into these things has made us a lot closer. We are friends again, which makes it easier for me to keep an eye on him. Heh-heh.

That plus gaming on a PC is just plain awesome!
 
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