Issues with Nitro 5 AMD/RADEON? - I have a fix

SavioGeorge
SavioGeorge Member Posts: 13

Tinkerer

edited November 2023 in 2018 Archives
I opted for the AMD variant of the Acer Nitro 5 to give it a shot since i most of my systems are now Ryzen & FX series (don't get me wrong i love intel but i kinda wanna keep the budget low) .

Specs:
AMD FX 9830p
GPU RX 550
8Gb Ram 
256gb SSD
 
Started up a brand new laptop, finished setup.. and ran all updates from windows... i had problems... driver issues mostly and getting games to recognize the dedicated GPU instead of the APU. So being the tinkerer that i am i decided to go with a fresh installation of windows 10 and here is what i did.

Note: Please remember that the below steps include a fresh installation of windows 10  and re-installing windows means you have to re-install the Acer Quick Access app, which does not have cool boost (Still looking for a solution) 

1. Download a fresh copy of windows 10 directly using their tool - https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
2. Get a USB thumb drive (4gb or more)
3. Create an installation disk using the thumb drive as the external media.
4. Restart the device and boot to thumb drive.
5. Complete installation (You will have to delete all partitions of your main drive)
6. Once installed do not download any drivers from Acer support. 
7. Just run windows update and let it update (do not do anything with the laptop, as this will take some time depending on your connection)
8. Windows update takes a while as it will install everything including the latest stable Radeon Graphics drivers (switchable version). Be patient as it takes a while.
9. Once all updates have been installed restart your laptop (you might require to restart your laptop after some updates in between, do not worry just restart and run windows update again and make sure you keep running windows update until there is nothing else left to update)
10. You will see a lot of difference running a fresh copy of windows 10, smoothness and stability is one of them.
11. Games will automatically select the Discrete GPU on your laptop (Be sure to set it in high performance mode when plugged in)
12. The only Software you have to download from Acer is the Acer Quick Access App.
13. Tested the game Overwatch before and after the installation and found less stuttering (Enable windows game mode for better performance) 
14. To take advantage of this APU it's recommended you add another stick of ram (DDR4 2400Mhz) - I got a Patriot Viper 8Gb 2400Mhz from amazon that works just perfect with the ram that was already installed. Adding the second stick of ram improved performance in gaming (Since the bandwidth doubled) and made a huge difference in DX12 games too.

So there you have it , this was what i did with my laptop, hope it helps you guys out there too.

Savio


Answers

  • ven98
    ven98 ACE Posts: 4,073 Pathfinder
    Great info Savio! About quick access application, I am also not sure how to make it work after fresh install. What I know is that these laptops get some custom copy of windows by Acer, without which software like quick access can't recognise the model of your Acer and detects it like a laptop without these features. After installing generic copy of windows features like dust defender, fan boost will be lost.
    Always post the following characterisitcs of the device:
    -Model number
    -Part number(not required, but helpful)
    -CPU
    -GPU
    -Operating system

    Helios 300 and Nitro 5 users DO NOT update the BIOS to version 1.22 if you don't want the keyboard's backlight to turn off after 30 seconds even when the device is plugged in.


    Hit 'Like' if you find the answer helpful!   
    Click on 'Yes' if the comment answers your question!

  • SavioGeorge
    SavioGeorge Member Posts: 13

    Tinkerer

    Oh... i hope there is a fix for this... cause this laptop supports cool boost. ACER SUPPORT please fix this! it would really make a huge difference! Thanks for the reply though, please do let me know if you come across a fix later in the future ven98. 
  • hussein995
    hussein995 Member Posts: 6 New User
    hi i have the same device but i have another issue which is the device is very slow when i open google it takes alot of time .....i switched to ssd drive still the same problem i tried everything but nothing worked out  the windows drivers ....everything is up to date pls help
  • SavioGeorge
    SavioGeorge Member Posts: 13

    Tinkerer

    hi i have the same device but i have another issue which is the device is very slow when i open google it takes alot of time .....i switched to ssd drive still the same problem i tried everything but nothing worked out  the windows drivers ....everything is up to date pls help
    You need to download AMD SATA controllers . Look up lenovos website or google it. Lenovo has one that works and it's generic ( meaning it can be used on any brand of amd laptops )