*OFFICIAL* Alienware 17 R4 Owner's Lounge

If you are going to repaste with Grizzly Kyronaut (traditional paste) you wont need any electrical tape at all, that's only necessary if you're repasting with liquid metals.

 

I had that crash too. Try the latest beta Nvidia drivers. I don't see it anymore

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I have them. Uninstalled the previous ones with DDU and installed the latest. Issue persists.

 

ok im not sure what solved it for me, but i got the exact same specs as you (but installed my games on a 1tb crucial m.2 ). I installed all the latest drivers from dells site.. realtek audio, everything chipset related, the network card etc...

I installed this driver 381.78 http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=413922

and the latest bios s1.0.14
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/aw17-r4-15r3-bios-s1-0-14_k1-0-0-9.804001/#post-10513915

Bios settings set to cpu performance mode. and that was it. Dont know exactly what took care of my issue, but worth looking into before you give up.

 

11 Grams of Thermal paste is enough for DOZENS of re-pastes! In my experience, you only buy what you are going to use in a year or less. Shelf life is iffy, and technology moves forward.

 

Just received my laptop today. I don't appear to have CPU heat issues when leaving the overclock options alone. I've benchmarked in Firestrike, Heaven, Prime95 and haven't had any detectable throttling at stock settings. The CPU seems to hang out in the low 70C range quite happily at load.

I seem to have some throttling (games start hanging up) if I'm on OC level 3. Is this just the way it is without a repaste or are there some OC settings someone can share? I'd like to be able to use this chip at least at the 4.4ghz advertised. CPU seems to hit around 85C and I get a couple hitches playing and the game returns to normal. Rinse and repeat at this OC level.

GPU seems to stay relatively cool around 63C under gaming load. Can anyone share some OC settings? I'm at +30mhz +300mhz in Afterburner. I come from the desktop world where I have a ton more headroom than that. Anything more than that and my heaven scores seem to drop.

I also appear to have 1x stick of Micron MTA8ATF1G64HZ-2G3B1. Does anyone know where I can find another stick at a reasonable price? It seems somewhat obscure on the internet.

Otherwise very happy with the laptop. I've spent most of the day setting it up and getting a feel for it.

 

What's the difference? What makes pasting with liquid metal require tape?

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It doesnt require tape persey, but since liquid metal is metal if you get it on some components it is conductive and can fry the motherboard.
Also if the liquid metal gets on anything aluminum it will break down the aluminum on a molecular level.
Its really a precaution. Kryonaut or Gelid are non conductive so using tape doesnt matter.

 

Think one of the major compounds in liquid metal is gallium

 

The paste I got is carbon actually, MX-4 from Arctic. Anything wrong with carbon-based paste?

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I have both the original and new QHD screens and there are differences.

However, for gaming there isn't really much of a difference and they both look really nice, for gaming.

I almost find the original QHD to be a bit brighter with a tad bit more contrast in their stock form.

 

For gaming laptops, I would opt for Grizzly Kyronaut (traditional paste) and/or Grizzly Conductonaut (Liquid Metal).

If you can get a hold of Kyronaut, I would pick some up and use it over the MX-4.

 

Ok, would you go with traditional paste over the liquid metal conductonaut to avoid the need for electric tape?

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There where several mentions in this thread about 1.5mm pads beeing needed. However in iunlocks repaste and repad guide I find only 1mm and 0.5mm pads. Where come the 1.5mm pads into play?

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Thanks, man; interesting to know.

 

Why not try newest WHQL driver 381.89
And GeForce Experience Bloat in previous drivers has security vulnerability as well

 

I tried them. And, trust me, this isn't a geforce experience issue...

Tried also restoring the factory image, no change, still hangs and freezes mid games...

One thing I found odd with my unit was the BIOS and vBIOS situation. My BIOS was 1.0.5, but it already came with the latest vBIOS flashed.
When I downloaded the vBIOS one of the warnings was expressively not to do it unless you had 1.0.12 BIOS or later...
Meaniwhile I flashed the BIOS to 1.0.14

Think this might be the issue?

 

I did not say Geforce experience was your problem!! I said that Geforce experience in previous drivers had security vulnerabilities. This is a Big difference

If you've ruled out most from OS-software, Maybe start looking at firmware level or hardware. Re-flash well known working firmware, make a clean new OS istall and latest working drivers + software. Test before you go on internet and gather Windoze updates.

 

Yeah I was trying to reflash the 1080 vBIOS but I cant, just tells me it already has the latest version and closes the command prompt, any way to force it?

 

Ask if other have the previous vBios. Ask if they can dump the firmware and see if you can get it to work. Or put up a sub-thread in the AW forum for this topic. You could ask here as well. And firmware is more then just the vBios. Different sBios should be tested as well. Dell and firmware last 3 years is Terrible reading.

 

Can anyone who has seen both an IPS 1080p panel and TN 1440p GSync panel on the Alienware 17 R4 please tell me if there really is much of a real world difference in colour reproduction?

Not sure which to get 6700/1070 with IPS 1080p or 6820/1080 with TN 1440p GSync, heating issues concern me on the 6820/1080.

 

From reviews by guys like OwnorDisown it sounds like the QHD is good for gaming, but not as much for editing. I think iunlock has seen both screens, you could try asking him. If you're an editor, you'll probably need/want an external monitor anyway.

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Thanks for the reply, yes the refresh rate is definately an advantage on fast reaction games but the IPS screen i've read looks great in games like the Witcher 3 with its superb colour reproduction, i'm not really an editor, my purpose is mainly gaming, web browsing and multimedia.

 

Oh then yea, I think you're fine with the QHD if you want to game at 2560x1440 res at 120hz. It's a TN panel and the color reproduction isn't as good as the IPS display or 4k screen. Mine just shipped today and I can't wait! I'll post pics and test mine out. They took their sweet time from when I ordered to shipping. I thought it took only 2 days not a week. I wish they made OLED screens for the 15 or 17's but my next laptop will have OLED.

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The heating/throttling issues of the 6820/1080 concern me though, it seems the 6700/1070 doesn't suffer the problem anywhere near as much.

I've read if you get an LG IPS 1080p panel you can overclock to 100 hz.

I'm in the UK and looking to buy a refurbished Alienware 17 R4 6820/1080 with TN 1440p GSync or 6700/1070 with IPS 1080p off the Dell Outlet, there's a £300(roughly $384) difference in price.

 

I've been advised to ask for your advice, could you please tell me your views on the real world differences between the IPS 1080p and TN 1440p panels esp colour reproduction?

Really stuck whether to buy a refurbished Alienware 17 R4 6700/1070 with IPS 1080p or 6820/1080 with TN 1440p GSync.

Do you have any thoughts on the heating/throttling issues on the 6820/1080 compared to the 6700/1070?

 

I think with a repasting and following iunlock's guide, everything should work out and you'll be in the high 60's-70's c on the stock clock. There's also that TENOFF code going on right now at Dell, and I think a 50off699 for PC's. Then if you get a rewards account you might be able to save an extra $50 buying it with it there.

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Prime it. If can....

For those who are new to repasting, I would stick with traditional paste like Grizzly Kyronaut.

There are intolerance among all heat sinks, so in some places you may beed 1.5mm pads. It is best to do a dry run (place the heat sink on top without paste and line it up before putting paste on the die(s), just to double check where it may need the pads...

Stick with BIOS 1.0.5.

Avoid upgrading your BIOS or your system may become a ticking time...dead paper weight.

Rule of thumb for everyone, never jump on the latest BIOS update.

Run Fire Strike with hwinfo64 open and look at the GPU's package power. If it is maxing out at ~185-200W then it is on the latest vBIOS. Just keep it like that.

This is a great question. Typically IPS screens are better and will produce more accurate colors, but in this case they are almost equal due to the IPS not being a top tier IPS panel.

The new QHD is good and is sufficient to do some editing as I do so on a daily basis.

If I had to choose, rare but, in this case I'd go with the QHD over the FHD hands down.

If the IPS was of top tier, it would be a different story.

You'll be more than great with the QHD then.

The 6700 is just as prone to heating issues. If you're able, go with the 6820HK unlocked CPU so you'll be able to tune it, whereas the 6700HQ is completely locked.

Go with the 6820HK where you'd be able to make different profiles and tune it.

Also go with the QHD panel, however, if you are getting a Skylake model, chances are you'll end up with the original QHD with the bands on the screen. If you are primarily just gaming, this won't bother you...I would still take this QHD over the FHD panel that Dell offers as it is not a top tier FHD panel so there is no incentive to go with FHD.

 

I only updated because I was already having issues on 1.0.5.
My vBIOS came updated from the factory which is weird seeing as one of the warnings in the installation instructions is to not updated with a BIOS lower than 1.0.12.
How can I revert my BIOS and/or vBIOS? And where can I find them.
*EDIT - Found the previous BIOS, gonna try downgrading to 1.0.5, also I just now connected the dots. The vBIOS requires 1.0.12 and I thought there was something wrong because mine came with 1.0.5, but it's just refering to S10.12_K1.0.5

Thanks, I'm going mental. Had it for almost a week, can't play a game. I'm just hesitating on sending it back because I'm not in the country of purchase anymore and the shipping costs will add up.

The only thing I'm missing is the PCH heatsink mod. Maybe I'll do it tomorrow (by the way, is kapton tape a good alternative to 3M 33+? I can't find the 3M stuff anywhere).
But I still think it's weird I need to go thru all this trouble

 

Thanks very much for this excellent reply, it really helped and made me feel the 6820/1080 with 1440p would be best for me, i saw the TN 1440p panel on youtube and was very impressed.

Only problem is the 6820/1080 on Dell Outlet here in the UK has gone, all there is now are 1060's/1070's so i'll just have to wait until some more show up or go with the 6700/1070 with IPS 1080p.

If i'm really patient i'm sure refurbished 7820hk/1080's will show up soon.

 

Yea you might see a 7820HK GTX1080 17 R4 show up on the outlet sight soon from someone who didn't see iunlock's guide on how to repaste. I think Dell does deals often enough that you can add like a 10% off code to make whatever sale you see that much better.

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Providing you get the lg Phillips 1080p and not AUO or ChiMei it's a winner ... 100hrtz overclock, good contrast, no grainy screen, imo bets the auo qhd, which had washed out colours and the banding issue. I've had 3 Alienware r4s and while the 4K screen is great, it's a shame it's not offered with 1080 gtx. Anyway you can always downsample or use dsr for better image on 1080p.. and have Optimus or switch to dedicated mode).

I've not seen the kaby lake revision qhd screen though.

If you buy off the outlett thou and want the lg Phillips screen your best going for skylake cpu as kaby lake I had came with an auo 1080p screen and it wasn't great (back light bleed and grainy screen with yellowish tint)..

In the end I settled with 1080p LGP gtx1070 6820hk 512 Sk Hynix pc300 Nvme ssd. Shame ssd wasn't Samsung but happy it's not tosbiba.

 

URGENT

Anyone have bios 1.0.5 file by any chance?

Please PM me if you do or provide a link for download.

Thanks.

Update:
I totally forgot I had this in my bookmarks. (Thanks @DeeX) Very handy. Bookmark this.
http://downloads.dell.com/published/pages/alienware-17-laptop.html

 

Here - http://www.dell.com/support/home/pt...roductCode=alienware-17-laptop&driverId=FW3GM

 

Awesome...thank you.

+Rep

 

np.
Hey do you know if kapton tape is a good replacement for the 3M Super 33+ when doing the PCH mod?
It's temp resistant to 260ºC, I can't find the 3M stuff anywhere local

 

Yup that'll work just fine.

 

what a sight. .

 

Is this with the samsung video memory or the micron? I have the micron.

 

I apologize, when I see this I am thinking how badly did this person get ripped off. (Comparing Dell part prices)

I was just having a talk with my friend who got a MSI and I was telling him that since my ram and ssd cost less than Dell parts my score should get a % bump in comparison to his MSI. Because you know good parts will cost more than worse parts and Dell parts are like $650 for 1tb PCIe NVMe SSD

I am weird.

 

I actually got a pretty damn good deal on the 17r4 with doscount gift cards, a good sale, and 10%off for military. The 13r3 wasn't the best deal in the world but I'm happy with it.


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Hi iunlock - I am not sure how to PM you - are you still doing packages for repasting Alienware 15R3? I am considering purchasing one tomorrow and want to get an idea of cost if the temps are out of range. Cheers

 

The GTX 1080 are all Micron DDR5 X memory .

GTX 1070's (DDR5) can have either Samsung or Micron. Of course Samsung is far superior.

GTX 1060's (DDR5) can also have either Samsung or Micron, but I've seen more Samsung on the 1060's.

Micron must have got the contract for DDR5 X memory, because it would have been nice for the GTX 1080 to have Samsung chips.

Maybe next time around....

PM sent.

 

Do you know where I can get a matching stick of Micron? I ordered it with 1x 8GB. Am I better off just buying a 16 GB package and getting rid of the 1 8GB stick I have if Micron isn't quality?

 

Did you check eBay? Usually all you have to do is put in the part number for the memory and you can find a matching stick.

 

Ya, I mean I found this: http://www.memory4less.com/micron-8...SqZIYS0yYW1cvNue7l3hEnLvhVzIMnEljahoC_BLw_wcB

Is $80 a good deal or not?

 

Yeah, they do seem pretty rare. It looks like if you can wait one should pop up on eBay, otherwise you may as well buy a 16GB kit at that price.

 

Ok, I'll probably do that. Any recommendations for a quality 16 GB kit?

As an aside, here's my wPrime 1.55 result with some temperatures. This was a recommended first step when I got the laptop. Not sure how this translates but if someone could let me know how I fared that would be great!

 

Did you go to Advance Settings and change the core count to 8?

 

I did.