Hey all, I'm seeking help to a very strange problem.
I've had my HTPC- Intel i7 860, Asus P7P55D, 8GB DDR3, Crucial 256GB M4, Win7, Radeon HD5770 HDMI -> Onkyo TX-SR707 -> Samsung 720p LCD working perfectly for years, never ever had a problem.
I just bought a Sapphire Radeon HD7850 for summertime gaming because I plan on getting a 55" 1080p LED soon. I installed it a couple nights ago, ran 3D Mark 2011, scored great, then played some YouTube videos because friends were over...
and I discovered that in EVERY video I played, the audio would skip, or cut out/drop out for a second (and the receiver would show no audio signal) and then the sound would come back on just like that. Video is not affected.
At first I thought it might have been the Flash hardware acceleration, so I unchecked that. Still cut out. Then I tried a HTML5 video, still cut out. Then I looped music on iTunes, still cut out for a second, about every 2-5 mins. Then I tried Catalyst 12.3, 12.4, 12.5 beta, and 12.6 beta. Still randomly dropped signal for a second in anything I played.
Then I formatted, still same problem. Then I put my HD5770 back in, and viola, everything played perfectly.
Hmmmm, so it is a faulty 7850??? I then put the 7850 in my office comp (Intel E6600, Gigabyte P35-DSL3, 4GB DDR2), and the audio still skipped in everything I played. I put my HD5770 in this computer, and viola, everything plays fine.
--=So it has to be the 7850 right??? I then connected my 7850 HDMI directly to my Samsung LCD INSTEAD of my Onkyo. NO audio drops at all!!!!!!!=--
So is it my receiver or the 7850? I don't want to get a new 7850 only to discover my Onkyo 707 still has the same issue, and I'm hesitant to get a new receiver (although I want to get one that supports 3D for my soon to be new 1080p TV) only to find out that the new one also exhibits the same problem.
well, the easiest first step is to swap out the video card and get the new one replaced. If the problem persists, then think about a new AVR. I hear the NR818 from Onkyo is supposed to be fantastic. Even has Audyssey XT32 with SubEQ. (It replaces the NR809)
I've seen a lot of issues with Onkyo and HDMI, and I'm a big Onkyo guy.. I have 2 Onkyo AVRs, an Onkyo Integra pre/pro and amp setup, and 2 Integra AVRs, along with a ton of Onkyo components. The good news is, from my understanding, Onkyo has re-sourced their video processing board now, due to the high number of issues with the ones from prior model years, so the 2012 models like the NR818 should be free of the issues having plagued the prior models.
Yeah, unfortunately all of Amazon's 7850's are sold out right now except a couple from some no-name companies. I could get it from somewhere else, but I'd be paying tax and possibly shipping, in which case I would consider just stepping up to the 7870 from Amazon.
I emailed Onkyo, Sapphire, and AMD, so I'll see what they say during the week.