NVIDIA’s latest GPU drivers seem to be giving a headache to GeForce RTX 40 series users, and even some with older models, with no official word from NVIDIA addressing the problems yet.
User Complaints Over GPU Driver 572.XX Affecting RTX 40 Series
Ever since the RTX 50 series hit the shelves in January, it’s felt like NVIDIA has been somewhat neglectful of the RTX 40 series when it comes to quashing bugs. It’s common for companies to prioritize their latest releases, and although the RTX 50 lineup faced its share of issues like dreaded Blue Screens of Death, the RTX 40 series was chugging along fine with older drivers. That is, until NVIDIA rolled out RTX 50-compatible drivers, bringing with them a slew of new complications for RTX 40 GPUs.
Reddit user Soctty1992 has been vocal about his battles with the newer 572.XX driver, highlighting numerous issues that seem to be echoed by other users. These problems range from hard system crashes and black screens to strange display glitches — setbacks that were almost unheard of before version 572.XX was unleashed.
PSA: Nvidia Widespread Black Screen or Hard OS Crash Issues on 4xxx (or older) Series Cards Need To Be Widely Known & Fixed. by u/Scotty1992 in hardware
Interestingly, many users discovered relief with the 566.XX drivers, which were available before the troublesome 572.16 driver was launched on January 30th to accommodate the RTX 5090 and RTX 5080. The introduction of the RTX 50 series brought exciting enhancements like DLSS 4, Multi-Frame Generation, and DLSS Override. However, while it’s not always these new features causing the chaos, it seems there’s a complex web of factors at play that needs untangling.
One user mentioned a frustrating experience where Cyberpunk 2077 on his RTX 4080 crashed immediately upon launching, a dilemma he resolved by reverting to pre-572.XX drivers. Meanwhile, another RTX 4090 owner faced black screens, freezing, and even monitors that refused to turn on, all of which were remedied by switching back to the 566.XX version.
Frustratingly, it feels as though NVIDIA is turning a blind eye to these bug fix appeals since they began pouring in at the end of January. While they eventually tackled the BSODs for RTX 50-series systems, it took several weeks to sort out. RTX 40 owners, meanwhile, have been left with little choice but to resort to older drivers, sacrificing the perks of the newest updates like the Transformer Model DLSS 4, enhanced Ray Reconstruction, and a fresh roster of DLSS-supported games.
