I am on the verge of refunding this machine and this will be my last GO-TO.
Hello, Ive been an avid follower of the Framework ever since the 13 got announced and was also following along for a while when i realised they announced a 16 powerhouse beast. Ive been following for quite some time and i’ve been meaning to purchase and get my hands on one to replace my desktop (which is a midrange - high range desktop, 7600x / 2060S) but ever since ive acquired this thing, it has gone from a nice cruise and flawless gaming experiences to a straight up crash up against a tree. Sorry about my horrible anecdote but its essentially what has been going on with this Framework. Ive got the 16” Framework with a 7840HS paired with a 7700S. My RAM is Crucial 4800MHZ 32x2 64GB and my OS is on a brand new drive aka the 2230 P310 Crucial 2TB Drive and my D Drive is my old Samsung EVO 970 Plus 2280.
Whats driving me crazy is that a few days ago, when i clearly disabled Windows 11 from updating, she ended up updating either way and ever since then, ive been having some horrible issues drivers wise. I would mainly be getting horrible static problems and then all of a sudden my iGPU would be the one doing the heavy lifting when in fact its suppose to be my 7700S. Ive figured out a fix for a few games to solve the problem but nothing within the BIOS or AMDs Software has worked. Ive tried everything and sadly enough as it seems, i might be (if not a few others) the only one suffering with this disaster that is driver corruption or iGPU priority. I REALLY want this laptop to work and i want to main it for a VERY LONG TIME but these drivers are causing such headaches, broken sleep schedules and overall just me wanting to crawl up into a corner and cry due to the dream machine not working and the fact that ive spent $3,700 AUD on this thing for it to sadly have driver issues a week or two later which is driving me mental. I have gone through the extension of practically everything CoPilot has told me, everything online with high-performance mode and memory optimizer. Ive reset my Windows 11 Pro a few times as well, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING IS WORKING. It works for a few hours and then its back to square one. Im genuinely going mentally insane over this and i really need some help. This is my last shot and if there are some extreme tech experts around, id really love some help because im at the end of the rope and if nothing works here then im Sorry Framework but i want out and a refund. Ill be willing to package everything the way it was and send it back. Please someone help me out, ill be willing to share as much information on the topic but this is really driving me insane and i HATE when im playing VR games like Pavlov or VRChat with some buddies just for my FW16 to say NOPE and drop me from a solid 120FPS down to 20FPS if not lower. Im at my end here and i really and desperately need some help…
i have a few more things id love to try but at the same time, if none of this works. Im genuinely going to be forced to wanting to refund. I hate what is going on and i really wish to get some insight on this issue and a fix ASAP. I don’t want to sacrifice more sleep due to this issue. I believe it has something to do with the iGPU taking priority more than the dGPU. Even if i have the system in High Performance for Power Options in control panel or if i toggle Memory Optimizer (ive heard it works a little better online) or even if i have the Power settings set to Best Performance through Windows Settings. It all eventually manages to come back to square 1. I really really REALLY want this to be my main daily driver but these insane instability issues are driving me insane and earlier today, it was my last draw to make this post and contact support after it failed to reach a comfortable 90 - 120FPS on Pavlov VR right after the stuttering and horrible lag occurred.
So you just said it here. Windows 11 ignored your settings and updated anyway…and yet somehow this is a problem with your laptop?
…SMH…a good 60% (being kind here) of what any AI tells you is fundamentally flawed, or just outright wrong. If you don’t have the ability to actually know when it is full of crap you should probably avoid using it for that subject. In this case troubleshooting an operating system.
The rest of your wall of text essentially presents multiple issues which all sound like they tie back to the fact that Windows 11 is defaulting to the iGPU. Just as an aside for most things it probably should. So to start with have you verified that you dGPU is actually visible to the OS. In your device manager verify the dGPU is showing and while you are at it verify nothing is throwing a yellow exclamation point.
Then compare the latest drivers from Framework Framework Laptop 16 BIOS and Driver Releases (AMD Ryzen™ 7040 Series) to the ones you have installed. My guess here at least is that you either have older ones, or newer ones…both could create a problem so you may want to lock to the last known good set…of course WIndows is going to make that a recurring maintenance task if that is the actual problem.
The most likely source of you problem is that you have not designated what application should use which GPU. Go to system→display→graphics and see if any applications have been configured. Start adding stuff and choosing which GPU to use.
I cannot state this strongly enough, this is a WIndows issue, and if it is driver related you can thank WIndows for that, not the hardware, or the hardware manufacturer.
Im glad to finally get some response. Sorry, but ive been trying to fix this issue for the past 5 days and ill do as you have said above this message. Im also going to be running a few benchmark tests to ensure it doesn’t happen again but i really hate how my FW16 really just defaults to the iGPU instead of the dGPU especially for gaming or emulation. It really loves the 780M and don’t get me wrong because on older titles, it smashes through it like nothing but thats not the point. I want to use the dGPU. Not only is this iGPU priority bs an issue and has been for a long 5 days, all day and night but also i get an audio issue according to LatencyMon that something called Wdf01000.sys is supposedly the direct culprit to my games lagging like ass especially when it needs to use a dGPU and not an iGPU. Or else im just going to be dying with a horrible framerate and lots of static-y audio or pops.
Once again it is not your FW16 that defaults, it is the OS in this case WIndows that is defaulting to the iGPU. iGPU is a sensible default simply because it will always be there no matter what. If the CPU is available the iGPU will be available. The dGPU is not a must have, also even on boards where they are soldered there is a long history of them dying. Ideally it would dynamically pick and chose, but it does not. So you have to tell it what to do.
I have all the drivers necessary. Ive tried literally everything. Im currently playing a car game called BeamNG Drive and its telling me that im getting a maximum of 60 FPS but im actually feeling around 15FPS. I don’t understand why it does this but in all fairness, i want out. I don’t want to use this machine anymore and i want a refund. Ive been trying for the past 6 days for every little change to make this right. Its just really weird… Ive done everything above this post and more and yet nothing. How tf is my dGPU at 100% utilization but only sitting at 30C??? Ive done everything and i give up. I want out.
From a consumer perspective, no new purchase should give you this much headache (regardless of what the reason / cause is). It’s just a bad match between you and the system (again, whatever the cause is. Not pointing fingers.). Just go with a refund and re-evaluate your options. No need to settle on anything.
Ram is supported towards 5600MHZ. Doesn’t mean the system will malfunction if i run without specifically 5600MHZ. Im using value ram that runs at 4800MHZ because its all i have and it works flawlessly with not only Framework but on my previous machine aka the Asus A15 TUF FA507NUR. It isn’t a RAM issue nor is it a hardware issue, it seems to be more software sided but ive tried absolutely everything to as far as editing the Registry and even factory resetting windows 3 times in the last 2 weeks. Ive given up entirely and would rather opt out. I have all the correct drivers and my Version of Windows 11 Pro is up to date to the very latest as of today. I really don’t know what it is and im tired of this entirely.
Nothing defaults to anything but what i have chosen aka the default settings. No eco or Hyper RX anything. Just running default settings thru Adrenaline. No matter what i play and no matter how many times i tell windows to run something through the dGPU, it will always ignore my choice and crap itself. Its okay man, im just gonna refund it. It was a nice ride whilst i had it but this is driving me insane. Best temps on any laptop ever though with how far ive pushed this thing but yeah no, this is driving me insane.
You say RAM is supported towards 5600, but it is well known now that 5200 RAM doesn’t work in either of the Framework AMD 7040 series processor laptops.
And how do you know that the 4800 RAM isn’t stuffing up your frame rate? It could well be causing a problem like that.
Typically, with other brands, I would say you’re right. However, in this particular case, you’re up against Framework’s engineering. After all, it has been your choices, beliefs with the hardware and software that led you to creating this thread. i.e. You’re re-enforcing why you’re having the issue you’re facing.
Next, regarding Windows update….is the lastest update starting to kill your SSD…or not?
…but…
Though at this point, I suppose you just want to return the laptop and call it a day for now.
It is not a good fit, clearly. The desire is to have it use the external graphics like a desktop PC and it is not as simple on the surface. Contacting support and working through the return is the simplest solution from the frustration voiced. It is ok, it just did not meet the expectations out of the box. Maybe in the future it will be different. Spending a pretty decent amount of money on a device and not having it meet expectations leaves a sour taste with anyone.
It is understandable the desire to get it to work however there are some other points that are impeding the progress. The issues being described can happen for a number of reasons. Here are the items that stand out different from a more isolated approach to diagnosing.
4800Mhz memory being used; it is plastered all over to use 5600Mhz. Use something from the tested list or the results will be unpredictable.
“Resetting” Windows is not the same as a complete wipe and reinstall. Even if the OS says it is clean; it is lying to the user.
Letting CoPilot guide any troubleshooting (or any “AI” model). Framework laptops are not a generic model from mainstream companies.
Loading anything other than the Framework driver pack after a cleanly formatted installation of Windows. This is well known to cause issues. If Windows Update “installs” something, then reinstall the Framework Driver pack to get it back to a baseline.
Registry editing is for very specific compatibility issues when a driver/software update is not available. None of which are commonly needed for any of the Framework Laptops.
Not contacting support to have them help with specific issues. They have the best knowledge of the machines. They built them and have a huge knowledge base of what works and what does not. The forums are just end users like myself who will try their best to give sound advice from what we have witnessed or experienced personally.
Just trying to give a constructive view and not place blame anywhere directly. (Tried not to use possessive pronouns? anywhere to emphasize this) Hopefully an acceptable end can come instead of continued frustration/time investment.
Im grateful for a response such as yourself but i have already given up. The laptop is back in its original box and ready to be shipped for a refund. Sorry that it had to come to this and i do plan to come back eventually and retry again. Sorry everyone but im out. Thank you for at least trying and being cheerful and nice about it all.
