Starcraft 2 crash to desktop.

Kaarel_K · Mar 10, 2015

Hi

Hi have been having issues with Starcraft 2 multiplayer matches ocasionally crashing to desktop.
This has been only happening with starcraft 2.
Problems started after reinstalling Windows few weeks ago. Since then i have reinstalled GPU drivers and the game itself.

In the event viewer i can see 3-4 Warnings: "Display driver amdkmdap stopped responding and has successfully recovered."
Event ID : 4101

These warning are timed exactly with the crash.

My specs

CPU: AMD fx 8320
GPU: R9 280X
RAM: 8GB
HDD: Samsung EVO 840 SSD
PSU: Corsair CX750M

cats_Paw · Mar 11, 2015

Well, its a driver issue. That means you need to install different versions of the driver.

Kaarel_K · Mar 11, 2015

Reinstalled the game, reinstalled the drivers with driver sweeper. Still nothing

cats_Paw · Mar 12, 2015

Yes but have you tried with different versions of the driver?
Also, try to disable audio driver for the GPU, or dont install it at all (Audio throu HDMI). This is something that still works badly.

Kaarel_K · Mar 12, 2015

Installed drivers one version older, disabled audio via HDMI. Still not any better.

cats_Paw · Mar 13, 2015

You need to uninstall the drivers from HDMI audio, disableing them dosent change anything, the drivers are still there.
I also suggest you check GPU temps, sometimes temperatures are a good reason for this issue, as well as lack of power.
I know this sounds like a stupid question but, are you sure you connected the cables correctly from the PSU to the GPU?

Kaarel_K · Mar 13, 2015

I will uninstall the driver when i get home. I am currently out of town.
Problems started after reinstalling my OS(as mentioned above), before that the same setup worked fine.
I have ran Furmark and Games like: DA Inquisition and Battlefield fine. My PC is well ventilated and clean.
I will double check the cables but doubt this is the issue.

cats_Paw · Mar 16, 2015

If it started after OS reinstall it seems to be driver related.

Kaarel_K · Mar 17, 2015

Checked the cables. They are fine. I have ran the same drivers before OS reinstall.
Could crashing in Starcraft 2 only be a sign of GPU dieing?
Any chance that the OS install got corrupted somehow?

cats_Paw · Mar 17, 2015

GPU is less likely than CPU. Starcraft is a very CPU intensive game, so if you are looking for issues, look at CPU temps first.
Yes, the crash shows a GPU problem, but starcraft 2 is not that GPU intensive (other games are far more, and if those run stable, its ahrd to call that the problem).

The install normally checks itself, so few times its possible that a corrupted install would go undetected.
Did you install drivers like Silverlight, microsoft framework and similar?
Those are not always mentioned but they are required in many cases for other drivers to work properly.

Kaarel_K · Mar 17, 2015

Cooler is hyper 212 evo so it should be cooled fine. Will run prime 95 when i get home from work.
I have framework 4,5. Didnt know silverlight might be needed for games, will check that.

Edit: ran prime 95. Max temp was 55, no issues. Installed silverlight. Reinstalled .Net framework. Ran memtest.
Will test Starcraft 2. Sometimes i can play a game or two without crashing so it will take some time to test it fully.
Edit 2: Another crash today. This is driving me crazy.

cats_Paw · Mar 19, 2015

Hmm, Its getting to the point where it is very hard for anyone to guess waht might be wrong.
There might be some program interfiering with the software...
Now that I think aobut it, YOu checked GPU temps but, did you test GPU VRAM TEMPS?
Can you tell me what model EXACTLY is your GPU? Is it reference or branded by another company like gigabyte or similar?
Riva tunner is a program that can tell you your temps in every part of the GPU (but read the description carefully and even watch some videos in youtube, the program has a lot of advanced tools you DONT want to be messing with).

Check that first, if nothing helps, we will move on from there.

cats_Paw · Mar 19, 2015

Is your GPU overclocked?
It seems that the most common problem is a bad OC or lack of voltage in those kind of problems (I actually underclocked my GPU from a factory overclock to keep it stable, so this might be the problem).

Kaarel_K · Mar 19, 2015

I think it is factory overclocked yes.
http://www.gigabyte.us/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4793#ov
Will try reducing the GPU and memory clock. Bit of a waste of money then tho.

cats_Paw · Mar 19, 2015

Kaarel,
Its not a waste. Because on stock speed the GPU will be more stable than other models.

.
Also, you can try to return the GPU by saying the overclock is faulty, and if its still on warranty they would have to give you another model.

Finally, I will assume that you did not change he thermal paste of that GPU. If you are capable of doing so, I strongly recommend doing it anyway (I do it once a year).
If not confident in it, dont do it, I dont want to be blamed if you break something

.

Try reducing the speeds to the reference card speeds.
There is also a chance that your GPU is working just fine, but the Motherboard is not willing to send extra juice to the GPU (if the OC requires it).
However, try the speed reduction to stock clocks first, and see if that helps.

Kaarel_K · Mar 20, 2015

I can imagine that this getting frustrating for you but the game managed to crash again even with the clock speeds reduced.

Replace paste once a year? I havent ever changed my GPU paste, should I? Furmark raises the temps to 67C max. I have had this GPU for about 1,5 years.
And about being afraid to open up stuff, that should not be an issue. I have taken apart things since I was a kid, only thing is some of those things are still not assambled.

I have a feeling this is somehow software related, but i cant tell what. I could try amd beta drivers or something.

My motherboard is an Asus M5A97 LE R2.0. Should be a decent board.

cats_Paw · Mar 24, 2015

Not really frustrating, its more like a puzle or an enigma.
If it is software, id have to check your computer personally for about 5 hours to even have a clue of waht it can be (software interactions get exponentially more complex the more software that is running).
Thermal paste can help, even if tmps show 67C, thats not core temps, but rather sensor temps, so changeing thermal paste will be good anyway (even if they dont solve this particular problem).

Another issue you might be having is that te temperatures of the VRAM are going too high (futuremark dosent show temps of those I think, however riva tunner does).

The problem i have is that if the GPU works perfectly well with other games... it can be simply a SC2 issue (have you tried different gprahics settings in the game? Id start with lowest graphics quality, and slowly move up untill game crashes, maybe you can find out what specific thing crashes the game).

It might be a texture, It might be physx?
First thing that comes to mind is physx, try to disable it compleatly, after all you have an AMD card, so it might be having problems with it... hard to say.

cats_Paw · Mar 24, 2015

Oh and yes, I am kinda running out of ideas here

.

Kaarel_K · Mar 26, 2015

Replaced the paste. The vram had some pads or something. Couldnt improve those any way tho. Furmark showed same temps although the old paste looked like dried gum.
Also installed every older version of MS redestributable, net framework and other stuff like that as well. Also re-insatalled starcraft again.
Played a few games of starcraft succesfully. Will test some more if it works then i will pick this as a solution. If not then i quess i will be in touch.

cats_Paw · Mar 27, 2015

HAHA, yeah seems like it.
Lets keep our fingers crossed, but on your feet, you need all fingers from hand to play sc2

.

Kaarel_K · Mar 30, 2015

I think its fine now. Too bad you cant have a specific answer to your enigma. I think The MS redistributable or net framework are not as bacwards compatible as they should be. But its just a theory. So far i have played 8 games with everything maxed out, HDMI sound enabled, physx enabled, and factory overclock enabled and no issues.
Thank you for your help anyway.

PS: You dont happen to play SC2 yourself? You seem to know things about it.

cats_Paw · Mar 31, 2015

I do play sc2 from time to time, but its not a game I Like a lot (I came from the broodwar Era, and SC2 is a bit too easy/coinflip) for me.
What I mean by that is That when I played any seriously, I got to Masters in every format, and consistently beated Grandmaster players in 1v1.
I would not be at tournament level, but I never played more than 80 games per season.
Yet all games I lost were due to not scouting something, and being surprised by it with the wrong unit composition.
I still play it for fun from time to time, but I dont pay much attention to wins or improving.

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