*OFFICIAL* Alienware Area-51M R1 Owner's Lounge

You can only unlock Voltage. As far as I know anyways.

Just Google 'msi afterburner voltage unlock.' It should be the first or second link. Just involves replacing a file within afterburner.

Edit: Spelling

 

geez why would hidevolution slap together fujipoly and a cheap blue pad? given their reputation, i'd have expected higher standards but i guess in this day and age, you really can't rely on anyone but yourself to guarantee a decent cooling job.

 

Awesome job! Will probably follow your setup exactly once my laptop is here

 

The FujiPoly 17w/mk ain’t the best. + not so forgiving when it comes to tolerance differences. Too stiff and on top more expensive than the best out there.

This means all (several thousand) which bought first revision is screwed. Good luck after your warranty is expired. Many used all their money on the laptop and skipped on the expensive extended warranty. + buy this model second hand? Nope

And nothing is official from Dell. Damn nice.

 

So what is the best out there?

 

Dont believe it. Thier paste is mediocre at best. But worst of all, prepasting the heat sink is a huge NO.

 

I wouldn't say lower rated pads they're just made of a different material is all

My vote is for Laird, it's what Cisco and the other OEMs use for high dollar switchgear and is the same stuff Dell OEM uses.​

Different strokes for different folks. PGS > Shin-Etsu > most 3rd party pastes.

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Anyone try swapping panels on these to either a QHD or UHD? If so does the ambient light sensor / keys still work?

 

It's really confusing that Dell put so much R&D into designing a high performance laptop like the a51m and yet can't standardise the paste and pads to something high performance- sure it will cost them up-front but they will save money on far less returns...

 

You're missing the point. To someone like Dell what's worse, 5-10C* increase in heat that maybe 1-5% will even notice or a much much higher return rate right at the end of the warranty period when the high performance TIM fails at year 2-3? The Shin-Etsus and Lairds of the world design their materials for longevity not performance and would be fine if Dell would properly design a heatsink assembly that was capable of supplying adequate pressure where it needs to be.

If you want a quick and easy do this to get the "perfect temps" you want, go to dell, complain about the temps and have them ship you a new heatsink. Scrape off the wax pad and put a PGS pad or similar in it's place and then you've got a permanent high performance setup. If that isn't enough to achieve what you want then buy something else as everything "better" will be a compromise of some form that will ultimately come back to haunt you.

OEMs already use the "best" thermal pads
LM isn't permanent and will need to be routinely replaced
MX4 / Kryonaut doesn't last forever and will also need to be replaced

 

Pre-paste isn't the problem the paste is the issue, they are too dry and often feels like colored clay or rotten cake mix applied on heatsink. Too high temps breaks and thermal gets way worse than toothpaste!

 

Yes but those wax pads server a purpose, namely to protect the die from shock and second to server as a permanent TIM so that it does not have to be replaced. Granted good pads cost money and you could argue that higher dollar builds should receive better materials but ultimately its a combination of the inflexibility of the parts being used to the heat they produce combined with the fact that their heatsink designs supply inadequate pressure. PGS is new and has only recently been applied to OEM devices like the Radeon VII and should be used everywhere but validation takes time as to OEM trends.

 

@Amroth

I really like Gelid pads 12Wm/k, they are normal price, do not get dry, come in all sizes, and very good for low pressure laptop heat-sinks. Everyone I know who used them is happy with them. And, they act like thick thermal paste (not spongy) LOL

 

Unfortunately, they said 101c is normal for that CPU and I can't get re-paste through Dell, as I bought 3 years premium guarantee, I can't do the re-paste otherwise I will have problem with my guarantee in case something goes wrong within 3 years. I guess I wiill have to live with that, or refund the machine, but dont want to refund though.. perhaps try again in a few months and ask for a re-past from them and make the engineer come and use a good one.

 

Doing your own (non Liquid Metal) repaste has no effect on the warranty PERIOD. Dont let any tech or Dell help idiot tell you any different.

 

Glad to hear that, I will look through it and re-paste it, specially because I do 3d rendering all the time and can't run it always at 101c.

Thanks mate

 

Hey guys,

Thanks for this awesome thread!

I'm interested in buying a 51m and I understand that it's a desktop replacement with 2 power bricks.
Despite these constraints, has anyone used it as a "lap"top - working on it with it on your lap while you are in bed? Does it get too warm to keep it on your lap and game for a few hours (weight might be another factor)?

 

For just some webbrowsing it's oke to have on your lap. Don't even think about gaming on this beast while it is on your lap. It will have problems cooling since it sucks up air underneath it.

 

Your Pix don’t show anymore


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You gave your opinion but i absolutely and vehemently disagree based on my 25+ years of experience. Stiffer pads make better contacts are are plain better. Try to cut through a fujipoly pad. You'll see the mesh inside that makes it stiffer and enables heat transfer more efficiently. I've never seen one of these pads fail, ever, unless applied by a hooligan.

And as far as the first batch goes, Dell has been so far quite generous in offering replacements. And as much as I agree that they could do a better themal job within the factory, I think that they have created a masterpiece once tamed down perfectly like in my case. I'm not fully happy with them but I'm contended that I invested my money nicely.

 

I just noticed this too. No idea what's happening. I'll try and change the links when I'm on computer again.

 

This is a problem with any big corporation. One department is ruining the work of the other. Area 51m is a perfect example where sales is destroying the hard work done by the r&d.

 

Do most gaming laptops not have that design these days? They suck the air from underneath and the exhaust is on the back and sides.

Are you suggesting that I'll always need a cooler to use this laptop as it will touch a surface (either the table or my lap) when using it and it won't be able to suck in air unless a cooler is used?

 

They show again now as I've put new links back in the comment. They were deleted from my comment automatically which I find really weird and disturbing. Was that censorship? That was no copyright material and pictures were hosted on my personal Google drive.

 

Generally if a laptop is in your lap, the intake is blocked more, unlike when in a desk, there is a constant space for air intake as put on by the feet of the laptop. Where as if its on your lap, the feet just sinks in your garment/skin.

Well if you open your legs then there will be air, but, o well i guess its not a problem after all.

 

Try on your lap. You'll put it back down on the table yourself when you feel your knees burning.

 

To be able to put this thing in your lap, one needs to be at least 9 feet tall with legs of the same size as a giraffe and heat guards on both knees to avoid the barbecue action. This thing can crispy air fry your knee caps.

 

And as far as the first batch goes, Dell has been so far quite generous in offering replacements. And as much as I agree that they could do a better themal job within the factory, I think that they have created a masterpiece once tamed down perfectly like in my case. I'm not fully happy with them but I'm contended that I invested my money nicely.[/QUOTE]

Do you guys know when Dell start doing the second bath of machine that is not the first? can it be spotted in the system if compare the first bath with the second? just to know if my replacement machine that I received 3 weeks ago, is the second bath.

 

Well, its not recommended to put A51M on your lap and use it. You might burn out something important which can't be replaced and it seems *the damaged part (Phobos and Deimos)* isn't covered by the insurance company nor Dell.

 

I'm soon 54 and so old that I can't remember when I first started with computers. From cheapest air cooling to Phase Change.

Fyi. I have seen a lot failed try with the 17w/mk Fujipoly. Be you sure.

Want something better and not so stiff? Don't click

Spoiler

Another very good choice is Gelid Thermal pads. Both is more firgiving if the fits ain't top.

FYI. You pay more for less!

Will people now ask for replacement if they got the first batch as you said? Or will it (the smoke) hit them in the head as a hammer once the warranty go out?

 

I agree.

I guess, XoticPC will receive their stock by JUNE! I mean it's better to push your expectations down so when it arrives by May, it'll be earlier than what you expected. The delay s*cks bigtime. I don't know why xotic's order from dell is being pushed back to such degree, its more like intentionally done by dell.

 

I guess that answers the question. I was wondering if it will be too hot to place it on lap while working.

I am trying to shoot down two birds with one stone but it is proving to be hard! I'm looking for something which I can use as my work laptop but also can game on as well.

Most of the time if I'm feeling lazy, I work from the comfort of my bed but I think 51m won't cut it for the task.

 

I forgot to add into my previous post. The forum Image host don't play nice with your uploaded pict. Use Imgur or similar image host websites.

Or Xotic-Pc don't want use much time on RMA. Aka they wait it out. Remember some people in here said 1th batch (revision) is bad.

 

This thing is fine on the lap for general tasks like web or watching movies. It is actually not that heavy around 8.6 LBs.

Demanding tasks dont actually make it too hot on the bottom, but you really do not want to restrict air flow

 

I hope Xotic uses furmark in their testing and eventually burn out all machines that has the tendency to do so aka "1st bad batch".

 

You can't recycle bad boards which ends up in smoke too!!!

 

Yeah but it shouldn't come with scratches when new. If it were me I would send it back.

 

Yes, that's what I was thinking as well. I lift 20 times the weight in gym and wasn't sure why 8.5 lbs be an issue unless the laptop gets crazy hot.

I'm wondering if it will be okay if I use a laptop cooler so that airflow isn't restricted .. don't mind upto 10 lbs on my lap.
I have a desk job and don't usually want to sit at one after I'm home, bed is more comfortable!
That's where I'll use it mostly and was looking for inputs from you guys if anyone is like me.

 

I was like that when I was half my age. Then I noticed that I got better playing games on a desk and that's when I venture into gaming setups. I like the portability of a laptop but I loath thin and less powerful ones, so I got into desktop replacement systems.

As the name suggests, they are more of a desktop replacement rather than a laptop and with the angle that alienware laptop monitors open up (around 140?? degrees, I'm not sure you can comfortably use it on your lap without some vertical artifacts. To be fair I think that IPS can be used on awkward angles but I guess the experience is a little less than ideal.

 

HID is sending me a new panel. They were going to send a tech to replace the panel but instead sending me a video of how to do it


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LOL that typically burns out all GPU's even proper ones...

 

Sounds like you're getting the whole upper assembly, outside case, ips panel, wifi wiring, video wiring harness, and hinges... I'm curious to see this video...

 

Yeah, here in the Netherlands they tried to convince me that my warranty is void when i open it up one time lol hanged up called again and got a tech support that had alot more knowledge. Tired of dell's monkeys that i won't even contact tech support anymore only to get warranty.

 

Thank you for posting this. We have investigated internally and agree that we did not do the job to HIDevolution standards, for which we sincerely apologize.

We have taken immediate steps to remedy this, and will reach out to a few of our customers that may also have been affected by this technician's work, and the lack of our proper Q.C. of their work.

Thank you also for taking the initiative to correct our work. We are thankful that you have skills to do this given your 25+ years experience.

We make no excuses. We work hard to make the best product possible. We are human, and sometimes we err. When we do, we make every effort to make it right.

Hopefully, when we are made aware of our failures, which we properly address, our reputation will not be shown to the drain.

 

glad that you reacted, Dell could learn a lesson or two from HID. Admitting a mistake is better than neglecting it, and i don't think your REP went down the drain like that (not with me). If we compare HID to Dell this was a small error compared to mass shipped laptops with the wrong thermal pads (which they didn't learn from three years ago) but not that's my concern.

People cut HID some slack, mistakes happen and it's one that surely can be corrected. Interested in how it ends (probably all good)

 

@Donald@HIDevolution

Respect for your moral code!
That's what really makes or breaks any endeavor.
I hope the technician didn't get into too much trouble, because apparently your worst job still looks better than many other places best one.

 

I’d like to copy your work; can you link me to which pads you bought, exactly?

 

I'm continuing playing Metro exodus. My cpu temps are better than before. around 63 degrees celcius.
However my GPU is getting hotter on my new replacement laptop. It didn't used to go over 75 degrees. But now gets stable at 80.

You guys think that's fine? Or should I do something about it?

 

80 is fine, anything under 87 is fine and should be still boosting pretty well. My overclocked 2080 can hit 83C and will still be near 2000 on the core


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I'm still waiting for my 51m, I thought, but according to you, given that I currently live in an old house with an ungrounded system, is it worth installing a sinusoidal UPS? If so, which one? should feed psu 330w + psu 180 + a denon pma60 + other stuff ... I looked at this: APC SMT1500i but it costs an eye!

 

I use my 51m on my lap 8+ hours a day. I of course use a cooler master cooling pad that has a cushion on it so it doesnt bug me, but I bought this beast because I dont have room for a desk, let alone a desktop.

I sit up in bed using pillows as back support and a hard surface mouse pad to game on.

I wouldn't recommend using it on your lap without a cooling pad or hard surface that allows airflow though.

Edit: Here is the cooling pad I use. Mainly just because it has a cushion underneath and doesnt restrict airflow.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0051GK6RA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_NknUCbRM617DS