Contribute
Register

[SUCCESS] Gigabyte Designare Z390 (Thunderbolt 3) + i7-9700K + AMD RX 580

  • It's very strange but is literally invisible. I can interact with the apps window via mouse or keyboard but I just see the wallpaper.
  • Two monitors:
    • LG 4K HDR 27UL650-W -> HDMI
    • Samsung C24FG78x -> DP
  • No adapters
Big Sur 11.3 was officially released this morning. Although not guaranteed to fix this problem, it's worth upgrading because of continuous improvements to graphics drivers.

Have you been able to characterize the problem to determine the conditions under which it does and does not occur? For example:
  • When the problem occurs, does it always occur on the HDMI monitor or the DP monitor?
  • If it always occurs on HDMI monitor, then what happens if you disconnect that monitor? Does it ever move to the DP monitor? (And vice versa.)
 
Hey CaseySJ, thanks so much for your patience and the new OpenWireless EFI. I still had some issues with it on my system but I think I resolved it. First, it looks like the versions of the driver in the new EFI are the 1.3 version for Catalina and Big Sur, but 2.0 for Mojave. Was that intentional?
Ouch, I could have sworn I posted the right ZIP, but alas my mistake! I've taken your April 21 binaries and copied them into the ZIP.

Anyway, I was still having issues with getting both the Wifi and the Bluetooth to work at the same time with the new EFI. I had the same issue when I first started using the drivers though, so I implemented the same solution, which was to deactivate the IntelBluetoothInjector.kext in the config.plist. I updated the Catalina and Big Sur kexts with the version dated April 21st (Debug version) and it works properly now with the new EFI. Wifi speeds are greatly improved now that I'm connecting with the 802.11ac instead of 11n. Thanks!
Interesting. On both my Z390 Designare and Z490 Vision D I am able to activate and use both IntelBluetoothInjector and AirportItlwm at the same time. If there are no other WiFi and Bluetooth devices in the system, and if USB port HS14 is activated, then both drivers should work. Odd...
 
Big Sur 11.3 was officially released this morning. Although not guaranteed to fix this problem, it's worth upgrading because of continuous improvements to graphics drivers.

Have you been able to characterize the problem to determine the conditions under which it does and does not occur? For example:
  • When the problem occurs, does it always occur on the HDMI monitor or the DP monitor?
  • If it always occurs on HDMI monitor, then what happens if you disconnect that monitor? Does it ever move to the DP monitor? (And vice versa.)
I'm using both monitors and the problem always occur on both. To solve the problem I just close and open the apps again. Print Screen attached.
 

Attachments

  • window-invisble.jpg
    1.5 MB · Views: 47
Thanks, I will get the Thunderbolt adapter and report back. The old firewire card was recommended here around 2013, I think.
There's no guarantee that a different card will solve the problem, but I believe it's worth trying. Best to buy from a retailer that allows easy returns.
 
Hey guys,

Sometimes when I unlock my system all windows blink and get invisible. This already happened to anyone?

Open Core: REL-066-2021-02-02
MacOS: BigSur 11.2.3 (20D91)
Radeon Shapphire Nitro+ 5700 XT
Designare Z390
iMac19,1
Boot args: keepsyms=1 dart=0 debug=0x100 agdpmod=pikera alcid=11 shikigva=80 igfxfw=2
If Big Sur, no need for shikigva=80.
 
If Big Sur, no need for shikigva=80.
@fenrrir,

And because your CPU has no iGPU, igfxfw=2 is not needed. For DRM using AMD GPU, we can set shikigva = 128.

Screen Shot 2021-04-26 at 11.42.24 AM.png
 
@fenrrir,

And because your CPU has no iGPU, igfxfw=2 is not needed. For DRM using AMD GPU, we can set shikigva = 128.

View attachment 516457

DRM Compatibility on macOS 11​

Things to keep in mind:

  • All kinds of software DRM decoders were removed from macOS 11
  • All kinds of legacy hardware DRM decoders (e.g. NVIDIA VP3) were removed from macOS 11
  • WhateverGreen Shiki functionality is not planned for inclusion for macOS 11
  • AMD GPU video decoder preference can be chosen through preferences overrides for some types of DRM content (like Apple TV and iTunes movie streaming). This preference may not always be compatible with the rest of the operating system and may cause problems with other ways of hardware media decoding and encoding. For this reason such an override is not recommended for daily use and shall only be enabled on demand.
  • Only IGPU-free Mac models allow for full DRM content access given a compatible AMD GPU video decoder
  • For old CPUs (e.g. Xeons or Quad 2 Quad) and supported AMD GPUs injecting unfairgva with <01 00 00 00> value is required for streaming DRM
List of overrides:

  • defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA gvaForceAMDKE -boolean yes forces AMD DRM decoder for streaming services (like Apple TV and iTunes movie streaming)
  • defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA gvaForceAMDAVCDecode -boolean yes forces AMD AVC accelerated decoder
  • defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA gvaForceAMDAVCEncode -boolean yes forces AMD AVC accelerated encoder
  • defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA gvaForceAMDHEVCDecode -boolean yes forces AMD HEVC accelerated decoder
  • defaults write com.apple.AppleGVA disableGVAEncryption -string YES forces AMD HEVC accelerated decoder
  • defaults write com.apple.coremedia hardwareVideoDecoder -string force forces hardware accelerated video decoder (for any resolution)
  • defaults write com.apple.coremedia hardwareVideoDecoder -string disable disables hardware accelerated video decoder (in QuickTime / Apple TV)
 
FYI

I just successfully flashed the Thunderbolt FW; however... as a precautionary measure, after the "supposed" 'VERIFIED' flash, I decided to read back the flash three times... THE CHECKSUMS WERE ALL DIFFERENT!

I would recommend this as an added step. Triple check your initial read of the current FW, but also triple check your written FW!

I was able to flash for the 2nd time, then I did the triple reads, this time TRUE VERIFIED success!

NOTE: Getting the LEDs (on the Z390 Designare) to go red IS essential, as you know. However, to get them to go red, it is not necessary to move the clip. The issue seems to be in the wires leading directly into the clip. The connections do not seem to be very good. By touching, pressing on the black heat shrink tubing of the wires OPPOSITE the side of PINS 1-4, I was able to get to the red state much more quickly, and solidly. Moving the connector itself was a real pain, and I couldn't get success that way.

Now... I have ANOTHER Z390 Designare to do, so I am about to tear my main machine apart and do that one. The one I just flashed was sitting in a box on my shelf. I used it as my guinea pig!

Thanks once again goes to @CaseySJ for being worthy of award winning work and help! Thanks also to all the other many contributors! This is all just so fantastic!!!!
 
...

I just successfully flashed the Thunderbolt FW; ...
Welcome to the Society of Mad Scientists! This is a (dubious) distinction we bestow upon all those who succeed in flashing the on-board controller.

Here's to the crazy ones...

 
Back
Top