AMD has released the first graphics driver software package offering support for its popular code-name Phoenix mobile APUs. This range of AMD Ryzen processors is particularly attractive for compact form factors as it offers some of the best iGPUs in the industry (the RDNA 3 architecture Radeon 700M series), plus the benefit of the newest Zen 4 CPU cores. Until today, with the release of AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 23.7.2, folk buying PCs with these AMD Ryzen 7040 series processors had to rely on a system vendor-supplied driver.
Phoenix Support, and an Unannounced Processor
PC makers are often quite slow at delivering graphics driver updates when it is their responsibility, so it is good for consumers that Phoenix chips are now within the scope of the freely available Adrenalin driver. As of July 2023 there are a growing number of laptops, mini-PCs, and PC gaming handhelds featuring AMD Phoenix.
The new driver folds in support for the Ryzen 7045 Dragon Range family, as well as other Ryzen 7000 chips on mobile and desktop.
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A couple of interesting support exceptions have arisen, though. The Asus ROG Ally exclusive Ryzen Z1 series isn't mentioned in the new Adrenalin driver. But curiously, there is mention of an unannounced chip that has gained support — the Ryzen 7 7840S.
Fixed and Known Issues
There is a typical array of fixed and known issues with Adrenalin Edition 23.7.2, with some games and specific graphics card models mentioned. The fix that will likely have most widespread appreciation is for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, where stuttering when Radeon Anti-Lag is enabled should now be cured. A close second may be the fix for audio sync issues when using AVC or HEVC video recording with your Radeon hardware.
As for known issues, the widely reported high idle power issues remain in some multi-display setups with mixed high-resolution and high refresh rate displays, when using a Radeon RX 7000 GPU.
Last but not least, Tom's Hardware regulars may have read our Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart with DirectStorage article yesterday. Released today, this game is also going to be stuffed with Nvidia supported tech like Nvidia DLSS 3, Reflex, RTX IO, and DLAA. It supports ray tracing on Nvidia GPUs, with this graphical splendor applied to shadows, ambient occlusion, and reflections. Sadly, AMD's new driver released on the same day, lists Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart as being somewhat unstable with RT on Radeon graphics.
Specifically, AMD says that "Application crash or driver timeout may be observed while playing Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart with Ray-Tracing and Dynamic Resolution Scaling enabled on some AMD Graphics Products, such as the Radeon RX 7900 XTX." AMD seems to have its driver team focused upon this wrinkle, as it adds that it is working with the game's developers on solutions.
