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

I'll be asking a refund to Donald from HIDevolution by mail... we'll see..

 

Hopefully, HP will follow through on this and it will become the norm with other OEMs.

Hands on with HP's Omen X 2S 15: The world's first dual-screen gaming laptop

To further aid in cooling, HP said it will use Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut liquid metal thermal compound from the factory on the CPU. While smaller boutique PC vendors have offered it as an option on laptops for additional cash, HP’s making it a standard feature on all Omen X 2S 15 laptops.

 

Maybe he has stock of either the whole laptop with a 2080 or a GPU he could swap, sorry wasn't following along with your whole problem thread...it would be nice to give Donald a chance to make it right from his end too.

If it's the one I am thinking of, I was excited to hear about it, then saw the little screen under the big screen, not sure how that's gonna help much... with my eye's I prefer a 17" to start with, so that littler screen won't be much help to me.

Why can't they make a full screen where the keyboard is right now and have it switch between a touch keyboard and a full display - control via the mouse once you are in game / app. I'd even go for adding an external keyboard to get the "keyboard screen" as a screen full time.

2 x 15.6" at least, or better yet 2 x 17.3", or dream about a 2 x 18.4" laptop

 

I was interested in HP using Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut as a stock compound.

 

Wow Dell support are useless. They are giving me the run around, I'm trying to get the upgraded heatsink and order support says contact technical, who says contact sales, wtf. Clueless staff.

 

After running Kryonaut, MX4 and Conductonaut on my RTX-2080, I have noticed that after a couple of days, the average max temps I am getting at a particular clock profile are averaging out to be very similar (conductonaut being just 1.5 to 2 degrees celcius ahead of the competition). Strangely, I am getting better temps with MX4 as compared to Kryonaut (probably because the MX4 syringe that I have is almost 2 years old and kept resting in my drawer all this time before I started using it and now it is REALLY THICK or perhaps a bad kryonaut batch?). This means, cooling in this case is limited by the cooling solution rather than the paste. So if your temps are lurking around mid 70s or early 80s while gaming on thermal paste, it's pretty much useless to go to conductonaut unless you plan to mount a noctua NH-U12A heat sink to the GPU as well. For CPU, I haven't tried yet but I have noticed better temps with MX4 as compared to Kryonaut.

 

They go exactly same paths as Asus. Aka forced to use Liquid metal due coming 8 cores BGA chips. The question is... Will Alienware jump on the same train for their thinner overheating m branded BGA models? As well for revision 2 of Area-51m? Because 10 cores will need it + revised heatsink.

 

Today I also noticed that issue where fan RPM jumps up suddenly in a quick burst of a split second and then goes back down. I wonder why this is happening.

 

Yep, has been happening since the last bios update. Strange


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Not strange at all. Dell's firmware engineers fiddled with fan profiles in last bios version. Probably screwed up pretty well while they tried a new fix to reduce noise... "Reduced fan noise during BIOS update process".

 

Lol, yeah before the fans would go to 100 percent while updating the bios. This is the fix they care about before giving us unlocked ram ?


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You forgot add in the long promised "increased power utilization from single PSU"

 

I know right.. No word on this, no word on 2070/2060 TDP vBios update, etc etc etc.

 

Before I return one motherboard to Dell tomorrow, I decided to give both motherboards a go and monitor performance / power limits / overclocks and GPU performance. Here is what I found after a full day of testing and after 4 back and forth motherboard swaps. For this context only, I'll call them by their PCB color. Green(with NIKOS inlet mosfets) vs Blue(with AON inlet mosfets) (easier to convey things by sticking to just one name for each).

The Green one (with NIKOS mosfets) is able to provide more power to the components (both CPU and GPU) at a more stable and sustained rate. The GPU is able to hold it's clocks much better without jumping up and down a lot and I was able to undervolt the CPU at 5 GHz better on it.

On the other hand, the Blue one (with AON mosfets) appeared to be choking the life out of components in terms of stable power delivery under load conditions (most likely because of it's lower max current ratings and higher thermal resistance? (There are a LOT of other components involved as well so this may or may not be 100% accurate for your board). I was not able to sustain stable overclocks on the CPU at the same undervolt as I was able to maintain on the Green one. Also, the PCIE bus went unstable when I overclocked the CPU to 5 GHz across all cores and I started getting random weird errors and warnings in the windows system event logs for network card and what not. Additionally, the GPU wouldn't stick to the same working Afterburner profile anymore and downclock itself to a much lower (70-75 MHz below given 1950 MHz in the profile) at the same 937mV and was STILL unstable! I kept on receiving crashes for the GPU and it was also running noticeably hotter (around 4-5 degrees hotter), perhaps due to a significant amount of noise on the power lines. (I tried plotting some curves on the oscilloscope but unfortunately couldn't manage as my little girl found those moving lines really interesting and wanted to exchange my oscilloscope with me for her stuffed penguin and I had to give up the idea lol! Plus, it was 4 am!)

I also noticed that the DGFF contact point (where those 2 ribbon connectors go onto the motherobard) were crisp bright golden colored on the Green one while they were greenish and grey-ish on the Blue board and no, they didn't change color after a prolonged cleaning session with iso-propyl alcohol. They looked like they were made from some really cheap material and that makes me suspect if one of Dell's manufacturers in China cheaped out on the quality of metal that they used to make those PCBs. The contacts on the green board looked gorgeous but the Blue one looked like a corroded car battery terminal! Since that part of exposed metal is actually the same as used inside the motherboard wiring itself, it's safe to assume that it was overall a cheaper quality motherboard itself also which could add extra noise to the circuit under load situations (not talking about the parts here).

This leads me to a somewhat broad conclusion about these motherboards. The Green one with the parts mentioned seems to be more stable under load and because of higher absolute max ratings, is able to provide more consistent power without any jolts and spikes + better overall PCB build quality while the Blue one apparently suffers from noise on the power lines. On paper, it seem to be not because of the mosfets but from experience, I can say that it's always a good design when the mosfets are beefier than necessary and even under max load, have a large margin to spare before they reach their max specs. The 330W PSU pumps out 17 Amps which could vary and 24A absolute max for inlet mosfets isn't good enough in this case. The NIKOS are 50A max which is really overkill, and since they are running WAY under max specs, they run relatively cooler (and also have lower junction to case thermal resistance (4 vs 4.8 °C/W max) which means they can get rid of the p-n junction heat better).

I hope this helps someone out in the right direction. I have finally put my laptop back together with the green board and called it a day of successful testing. The blue one will be going back to Dell tomorrow.

 

I'm not surprised by that. For me, Conductonaut has always been only a couple of degrees cooler than Kryonaut. You may have a bad batch of Kryonaut on your hands if it's much worse than MX4.

 

Thanks for your in depth analysis!

Out or curiosity, I'd like to check what board I have (most likely first revision) but what would be the simplest way to go about this?

Do the mosfets say Nikos/AON?

 

The CPU power delivery mosfets on the Lemon are Alpha & Omega Z5038QI 5 while on the green one, it's Alpha & Omega Z5038QI without the number 5. I couldn't find a datasheet for the lemon part number ANYWHERE! It's weird, this doesn't happen very often. Plus, the lemon has AON 6380 on it as you can see in my quoted post in the above message.

Here is a picture of the Z5038QI chip. The other one looks similar apart from the added number 5 to the part number.

 

Thanks! Happen to have a picture of each?

Edit: NVM LOL

As expected my board has the "lemon" mosfets.

 

Just posted in the above message: http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...-owners-lounge.826831/page-1077#post-10910681

 

I complained to dell that my replacement 51m has a panel that looks very yellowish compared to the last one I had. Both were the LG panel and the first one was very bright with white whites while this one is yellowish. When compared its night and day. They gave me premium support so they have a part dispatch that comes tomorrow. I’m going to tell the tech to just drop off the panel and let me do the swap and return to dell. Dell told me I can tell the tech this and he will just notate the account in case I damage anything. Fair enough. I’m assuming the manual shows how to take the panel out? I hear it’s a very easy swap


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Added some missing details that I forgot to write before about the overall quality of the motherboard based on color of exposed metal contact points. I'd suggest that if you have a blue motherboard, it probably came from the same manufacturer in China and probably has cheap metal wiring inside. Another vague claim but that's what I can come up with based on a sample size of only 2 motherboards.

 

Dang Sk. I thank you a lot for this. I really can't wait to look at mine and test it. Keep going with this solid information. I think I speak for all when I say you are a great laptop investigator

 

Try and reproduce any of the problems that I mentioned in my original post. But you will not be able to identify the difference clearly unless you have a reference motherboard to compare things with while keeping the CPU, GPU and RAM constant between the two.

 

Only have another machine, most likely with the same MB/chips as they were ordered at the same time.

 

If I were you, I'd NOT try and overclock it much instead just run it on stock clocks. The performance should be fine when running on stock settings. The only downside you might observe is the GPU running hot and not undervolting enough, but you can try your luck there. I have mine rock solid on 1950 MHz at 931-937mV. The lemon board started acting funny specifically when I overclocked it. On stock settings, it behaved pretty normally, although the GPU was running hotter, definitely by 4-5 degrees.

 

I've already overclocked the hell out of it lol. Haven't had any thermal issues as I have the 9700k/2070 (can hardly ever get the GPU to go over 54C.)

But when I do upgrade to the 2080 in the future, this may be an issue. Guess that's what warranty is for though, should I encounter any issues when I upgrade.

I don't overclock while gaming though, as i haven't found a need to, just when benching.

 

I keep my 9900K at 5GHz across all cores at all times. Speed step takes care of the running frequency. And I like how it never throttles! I was previously thinking of putting conductonaut on the CPU but after my experience with this GPU, I am starting to think that it will be a useless activity and end gain will not be much. The CPU is already delidded btw with conductonaut between the dye and the IHS.

Also, try and see if you are getting any errors in Windows Event Viewer under the System category. If you notice that your network card is giving you warnings after you overclock the CPU or some other weird error messages/warnings then it's better to back off because those errors usually indicate that the PCIe bus is unstable at those frequencies and it is making everything connected to it less stable.

 

I've been playing tomb raider croft edition for a couple of days with maximum graphics settings, unfortunately sometimes it crashes with this error: (0x887A0006: DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_HUNG). what's the problem?

 

Next time, run hardware monitor in the background to inspect max temps. It could be due to many reasons. Usually GPU hangs up when it is running too hot or one of the ram chips on it is not making proper contact with the heat sink. Very rarely, it could be because of a bug as well. Also try disabling tdr for your OS. 8-10 seconds should be good enough.

 

Alright, I'll keep an eye out for this on my next bench session. So far I haven't had any issues.

Do you think delidding my 9700k with conductonaut would make a huge difference in my ability to OC?

I can run 5.1GHz on R15 without hitting 100C, but when I try 5.2Ghz it crashes right before the rendering finishes.

I can also run firestrike 10x in a row and it stays under 80C @ 5.1.

So my temps aren't bad, but wondering if delidding could net me enough room to be able to hit 5.2+.

 

Is it stable on Cinebench R20? Usually mildly unstable overclock is exposed by Cinebench. If it stays alive after multiple back to back benching sessions on it then the OC is stable. But delidding *will* make substantial difference if you use conductonaut between the dye and the IHS. Speaking from experience. Intel's solder doesn't work as well as liquid metal does.

 

Substantial difference with delidding and Liquid metal? All will depends... On the chips.

 

5.1 is stable on R20. Can't recall testing 5.2 on R20 though, I'll fumble with it later.

Might look into delidding it then. Is it hard to make a delidded CPU look like a factory CPU? Or is this more dependent on the IHS silicone? Also, do the 8th gen delid kits work for 9th gen? As I know they didnt use solder for 8th gen..

Edit: Word

 

i've always used rivatuner during the game, the temperatures were good, 60 degrees cpu and 74 degrees GPU, I'll try to set TDR to 10 seconds

 

Sure, before you use it though, make sure it is the right fit for your CPU. 9th gen delidding tools are slightly different from 8th gen. I used RTV gasket maker to reseal my CPU. The trick is to apply just enough that it barely holds up so that the dye and IHS make great contact. Once it has "seated" properly, you can shove some more gasket maker with a flat head screw driver into the gaps between the PCB and IHS to seal it off completely and then just put it back into the socket. The pressure from the socket will seal it off as it gets baked up in it's own heat. Putting too much between the IHS and the PCB will cause worse temps than stock so that is important. I used the relid tool that comes with delidding tool from rockit cool. Lol that rhyme sounded dope!

Are you running an undervolt on the GPU? It should not crash at those temps (if everything else is stable). If it continues to crash, try another game. If problem persists then you should contact Dell for replacement GPU. Show them these errors as evidence that this card is malfunctioning.

 

Lol, alright. I may consider just having SL do it.

Not sure I want to go through the hassle of removing the solder, and I think it would be cool to have it binned as well, as I don't have a desktop to fully test its capabilities.

They also take full responsibility of the chip, so I won't have to worry about destroying it, or causing scratches on it trying to get the solder off, as that would bug the hell out of me lol.

 

no undervolt, only + 115MHz on the core and 200Mhz on the memory, I will try to play at stock frequencies

 

Rockit Cool have a product called QuickSilver that works great for this purpose. It includes both the silver compound and metal polish sachet that contains enough for one CPU. All you need to do is to just put it on and leave it for a while and it eats up all the solder. Then just rub it with some cotton buds with the polish to have a nice shiny dye exposed. I thought of going the SL route initially but dumped that idea and bought complete 9th gen gear which I used to delid my both 9900K's and then delidded a couple of other 9th gen CPUs for other people and made more money back than my investment on the entire venture. Takes really less than 1 hour to do it all. After that, all you need to do is to just leave it clamped for a few hours.

At 7GHz, you don't really need to overclock memory on this module. Plus, undervolting will help massively and you can still overclock while undervolting at the same time. It will reduce your temps dramatically and run things a LOT more stable.

 

So, what are you suggesting here? Should he delid or should he not delid? Should he use LM or should he not? Your post adds ZERO value to this conversation.

Also, look at your previous post on this thread, you are hell bent on pissing off S.K. , who has made more meaningful posts on this thread than most of us combined. Why do you take this child-like approach when it comes to AW owner's lounges all over this forum?

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Yeah I'd be more inclined to purchase the delid kit and do it myself if I had multiple CPUs, or knew others who game on PC.

Unfortunately aside from myself and my wife, I don't know anyone else (besides online buddies) that game on PC. If I had a network of buddies that were willing to let me delid their cpus for a few $, I'd certainly get one haha.

Might invest into one when I have the space to build a desktop though, as for now the kit would be a one time use thing and who knows what you'll need for next gen.

Thanks for the info though, much appreciated.

 

It's your hardware. You can do whatever you want to do with it. Nobody is an authority. You just weigh pros and cons and if you feel that it is making your hard earned money deliver more value for you, go with it. It's that simple. And there are no rewards without risks. If you care too much about warranty, you are probably going to get average results at best like the rest of the crowd. For me personally, CPU warranty goes out the window the moment I grab that box. I've delidded more CPUs than I can count, and NEVER had to RMA one, because what kills CPUs is not delid, it's the balls to the wall OC over extended period of time that pulls the trigger. Unless it's a DOA chip, so always better to test thoroughly for a week or so before delid (but I know it doesn't apply in his case).

P.S., Don't worry about anyone pissing me off anymore. I do not check the forum without logging in now so I can't see the comment that you referred to (Don't even know who said what haha!)

If you do the math, that will cost you around 10 to 12 times more money than you'll spend on the kit altogether. If I were you, I'd save on that and just buy the tool. But if you just want peace of mind then yeah, that's what we earn for in the first place.

 

If you want the very best Cpu temp there ain't other choices than delidding and Liquid metal. All depends what you want. But forget the warranty afterwards if you care about that. I posted that you can shave of 3-7C degrees. Weight it up vs. lose the warranty on the chips. You need to post both sides if you give advices. See... Not everyone fully understands the disadvantage. If you play with the fire you have to tolerate the heat Aka replace the chips with a new one if you have to RMA.

Edit. According to Silicon Lottery, 3-7C will not be enough to get that +1 bin. And certainly not if you are near the border at 100C and thermal shutdown before you start delidde your CPU.

 

Yeah it's certainly cheaper to buy the kit (mainly because I can use it for future endeavours.) The rockkit kit is $40 + $5 for the quicksilver + $ for shipping (so probably 50-60 total), and $59 if I sent it to SL for delid without binning.

As much as I'm a stickler for saving money and (enjoy) doing DIY stuff, I'm a bit of a perfectionist and feel like the whole process would come out a little janky if I did it. I really want it to look like it has never been touched.

We'll see what happens in time though. Not in a rush to delid it any time soon. Maybe I can find someone local to lend me the tool if I decide to go the DIY route, as it will more than likely be a one time use thing.

 

Sounds familiar lol! This OCD can come in really handy when doing DIY jobs like this. I let my OCD side take over while doing these jobs to do them right, but it is also useful to know at all times when it is good enough. My CPU works great, but at the same time it looks black around the edges due to excessive silicon sealant that is preventing all that LM from leaking out. I had to resist the urge to wipe it clean and make it nice and shiny before putting it back but one got to tame his/her OCD side enough so that it doesn't take control when it is not needed.

 

XTU doesn't work with RAM. Restarting the settings don't stick at all.

I think @Johnksss also had this issue with the A51m he was using.

Yes...mine is yellowed at the two corners of the top of the lid. Also left mouse button a bit.

 

Can you post pictures of the top corners on the lid yellowing up? I might need to protect those areas as mine still looks pristine after the chassis and screen swap.

 

LOL.

So I just ran R20 @ 5.1GHz and it passed and like you said, I checked event viewer.

It shows a warning, not error, that the WLAN Extensibility Module has timed out.

Is this what you were talking about?

 

Can you post a picture of the entire event?

 

So, how is your AGA w/rtx2080ti working out for you? The reason I ask is that I was thinking of buying a 15m w/2060 or 2070 and use my existing AGA w/gtx1080ti in order to save a few $'s, and maybe take a bit of load/heat off the laptop. I currently have a 17r4 w/i7-7700hq 2.8/3.6 and I need to upgrade its CPU for better VR performance, esp. in X-plane 11. Unfortunately AW does not make a CPU amplifier, lol! Make any sense? Thanks.