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

This isn't the same as having the factory image installed with everything in it.

@Spartan had posted a new image awhile back but I can't find it right now. I'll edit the first post with all these things, just need to collect everything.

 

Someone please help me understand undervolting, so I have 200w vbios, and I set my core in afterburner to 1.000v for 2100, the gpu Is now using 190w average vs 200w dosent this decrease performance? And isn't this no different than just flashing 190w bios? I don't get it. If we undervolt and gpu uses less wattage and gets less fps how is this a benifet? Besides lower Temps. Or is it if the core is 2025 @ 1.000v will it be the same performance if it's 2025 @ 950mv aswell?

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I don't see a problem, you're not pushing the graphics to 100%, the GPU power is always load dependant. 2025MHz will yield the same performance at both voltages as long as there is no thermal / power limit involved.

 

Hi guys newbie here just bought the base spec a51m with 9700 and 2060. Ive been following this thread for some time and ive been wondering whats the best bios for my config ? (Do i even need to update the bios) and do i even need to bother updating vbios? All i need is least heat and safety coz i dont want to burn (read: explode my alien) my $$$ as this is my first rig with this much cash . Thanks!

 

Just bought A51m, want to upgrade screen to 4k, please guide me, i removed the glued screen and try to fit alienware 17 R5 4k screen which was laying around but its large and doesn't fit properly, any one knows slim bezel 4k 17.3 inch screen. please help.

 

Yeah those were never going to be compatible. The thin bezels on the A51m will prevent most of the screens from fitting. The reason they don't have 4k as an option yes is because it didn't exist. Razer JUST announced their 4k 120hz screen I believe, so maybe Alienware will also get a hold of something like that soon.

 

How to make this stop? I installed the latest oc tool and all and it's just keep coming this up.... And nothing is downloading...

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Quite amusing.... The users of the thinner lower performing BGA models like Razerbook and MSI GS65 play with ram as the devil these days. While the real deal with Z390 is still fully locked down. Maybe you all should start post and nag in Dell's own Alienware tech support forum? Nothing will happen if none take the bull by the horns


Area-51m, memory upgrade 128GB?

 

Thats true.....I run 3000MHz G.Skill Ripjaws CL16 in my GE75 (both BGA), simply at XMP speeds.
If they could make 2666MHz 14-14-14 @ JEDEC then we could forget XMP, kinda bad if AW, a TOTL product, doesn't support it.

 

Doh, after looking through the settings again I DID have Ray Tracing on. It must have auto-turned on after the patch or after I downloaded the latest nvidia drivers. Thanks @Biker Gremling for pointing that out! My fps is back to normal.

 

Don't forget the Aero 17 has also had a thin bezel 4K 17" screen for awhile now. It's only 60hz but it just shows Dell is draggin their feet. I wouldn't be surprised if they hold out until next year or the next 51m refresh.

 

Perhaps the person that posted that was speaking only in relation to the Area 51m, as this is definitely not a Z390 issue. It is a Dellienware issue. They have made a conscious decision to cripple it for some strange reason. Z390 has no issues with RAM overclocking whatsoever, on Clevos or desktops. I wouldn't expect it to be able to do this (4500MHz+ as shown below), but c'mon... running the RAM at 3000MHz should be super easy and a pretty ordinary achievement.

 

Dell’s Alienware Laptop GPU Upgrades Are a Conceptually Great Idea
https://www.extremetech.com/gaming/...op-gpu-upgrades-are-a-conceptually-great-idea

 

Sorry for my terrible English )
I ordered the EUROCOM 780W AC Adapter for my A51m and it made a terrible squeak when connected to my laptop.

After a little research, I realized that if I remove the ferrite filter that I showed in the photo, then the squeak (which is really terrible) completely disappears.

How dangerous is removing this filter? The squeak is really unbearable.

 

It should be OK. That is normally there to reduce EMI (electrical noise and radio frequency interference). It sounds like it was causing what it was meant to prevent. The product should work the same without it. But, if you bought it new and it is under warranty I would ask them to exchange it. It shouldn't be doing what you experienced. There could be another component that is bad that is causing it to happen.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrite_bead

 

Unfortunately saying goodbye to the Alienware Are 51M.
At the time it was the best option available for me. But this laptop is simply not portable enough for me.
With all the issues I've had, I managed to get a refund for this laptop. It still remains an amazing laptop. But I really need a more portable machine.
Now Because I'm actually really happy with the support I've received from dell, and because of their customization options when taking an order, and because the are also giving me as small discount code in order to remain at Alienware/dell, I am planning to stay at Alienware. Though this time the Alienware M15 r2.

Configuration will most likely be i7 9750H, RTX 2080 MaxQ, Oled panel.
When using it at home, I use my external 1440p 144hz monitor. I guess the specs will be plenty enough to run on that monitor. Of course not as good as the Area 51M, but the Area 51M is really exceptional in regards of performance you can expect from a laptop.

Nonetheless. I am really thankful to this forum and thread. You guys have been so helpful, and shared so much information with me. I learned a lot of stuff here, and am a little sad to leave this thread. I see that the m15 r2 thread is barely alive in comparison to this thread.

FYI, I was planning to get the razer blade 15, but that one is more expensive, has worse support and has no US Qwerty option in Belgium. I also thought about getting the Dell XPS 15, and using an external GPU, but that really seems like a pain, due to ending up with 1 integrated GPU, and 2 Nvidia GPU's on one system, causing quite some trouble in terms of wanting to install the latest nvidia drivers. So the m15 r2, seemed like one of the better solutions.

Any feedback is still welcome. And feel free to ask any questions.

 

Smart move staying away from Razer. They're a nightmare to deal with. I'd never recommend them unless you're a famous youtuber. Then they actually listen to you.

You don't have to leave this thread since you don't own an Area 51m anymore. Stay. You might have some valuable insight to a new buyer that needs help through you're experience with the machine.

What was it that made it so unportable for you? For me it was the dual PSU setup. That was just obnoxious for me. I moved mine around alot so having to take both psu's with me if I wanted to game somewhere else was just a big nope. Though the Eurocom 780w makes me reconsider that. . .

 

What makes it "unportable" for me is the insane short battery life and its heft. Quite a heavy machine. Also the fact that it's 17 inch, is even for me on the larger side. I have used 15 inch 14 inch and 13 inch laptops up until so far. So yeah.

 

Sent you a pm

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Fair enough. It is a beast to carry. But I just like bigger screens, so that never bothered me. Hopefully the M15 r2 fits your needs.

 

I have the 9700k w/ 2060 configuration and all I can tell you is my own experience. I run a CPU -voltage offset when gaming and this is my only heat related adjustment, other than "sometimes" using the performance fan option in AW command center. Temps are/were not not a problem for me before or after these adjustments. Oh, I also run demanding games on high settings rather than ultra for better temps.

Far as bios goes, I just keep it up to date with no problems, although I wait several days to make sure nobody is having issues. My vbios is still the same as day one. If there is a problem there should be an update.

I have not experienced anything but pure joy with this configuration. You can look forward to happy computing, regardless of what you intend to use it for.

 

High RAM frequency is very board layout dependant, the trace length and placement has to be perfect, that's why 2 DIMM boards are always the best for RAM OC, second thing are the memory training routines certain manufacturer uses, these do differ a lot.
That said 4500MHz+ RAM is very uncommon and strains the IMC on the CPU pretty hard.
I needed like 1.32V on the VCCIO/SA to stabilize Gskill TridentZ 4600C18 @ XMP on Asus M11 Apex. The stock SA/IO it set by XMP was 1.46V. Talking about rapid degradation...

 

Yes, YMMV even with desktop boards. Some do it better than others. The CPU and motherboard can both be limiters on RAM overclocking capabilities. A given set of RAM sticks might easily overclock to 4000MHz on one computer and they might only run 3800MHz on another one with a CPU that is not a great silicon sample.

But, this still does not explain why the Area 51M has memory overclocking features and controls disabled, hidden and/or broken on Alienware's "flagship" product when even wimpy BGA turdbooks with locked down CPUs like (but certainly not limited to) the 9750H can do it without any issues. Somebody made a business decision to omit that valuable feature set, and it wasn't a good one.

 

thanks for the reply! Cant wait to get my hands of the alien soon. Hope to get good unit as well
is your set the first batch which prone to malfunction or the second fixed batch after june 2019 ?
Also does ur config come with dual 180W or one with 240W ?

 

A lot talk about overclocking features for ram. But at least offer XMP support. Nope, not this either. Dell’s engineers have instead locked ram speed below Intel’s own specification. Lock it down with 2400MHz sticks as max supported is more like on level with Apple solutions.

 

(Tin foil area hat starts here)
Maybe they've bought a metric crapton of 2400 and 2666MHz sticks or have contracts with RAM manufacturers as in - yeah let's make 2666MHz the max so folks will get 32GB already because they can't upgrade to faster RAM anyways.
(Tin foil hat area ends here)

 

Given this, thermal throttling of the GPU and the burning out of components In earlier units, I wonder if there is a fundamental issue with the design and using the very top end hardware. Given a supplied 2080 cannot run a game without throttling without undercoating (which for me didn't work anyway) why supply units with them? Surely it is better for dell to use slightly lesser that works?

I liked my M17r4 so am an Alienware fan and really liked the look and the stats of the Area 51m but its being picked up for return today as not fir for purpose and I am getting an Aurora instead (Hope I haven't swapped one issue for a different set!)

 

Has anyone been supplied 2400 as all reviews I have seen indicate they ship 2666

 

I mean those with the older Aurora and 6700K couldn’t upgrade to 7700K. Locked down by Dell.

Dell has offered both specs.

 

but either way they wont go past 2400mhz

 

https://www.dell.com/community/Alie...7-AWCC-OC-controls-disabling-XMP/td-p/7197660

Brother @Cass-Olé is our resident Aurora Guru and he knows all about their shady desktop shenanigans.

You can pretty much count on anything they sell, be it a notebook or desktop, to be artificially crippled or locked down in one or more aspects. When ALL major gaming and enthusiast desktop motherboard manufacturers were providing BIOS updates (for free, of course,) for those wanting to go from 7700K to 8700K, Alienware was happy to sell you a new computer. They even took a stand publicly and made it clear there would be no 'free' upgrades even though nothing more than an Intel-approved firmware update was required.

Yet, they talk out of both sides of their mouth and when it is convenient and self-serving to stand by Intel specs, that is exactly what they do.

The limitations the Area 51m carries are imposed. They either cut corners on things and had to do it to avoid system failures, or an idiot made a business decision that was arbitrary. It is not "because it's a laptop" because Clevos with the same specs do not have those limitations. It is because that's how they roll... with everything... desktops not being an exception to their nonsense. Gimp-O-Rama.

 

Then you might need something along Business Class laptops with Pascal that come with Intel +dGPU MUX switch. I don't think current AW has that feature.

 

So question. I just received my Area 51m. And everything is set up, runs amazing. Undervolt has been done. The only problem I am running into is the lighting... Can't seem to find the zones that apply lights to the trackpad, tron lights etc. Thanks!

 

Hey guys, since a few days after i adjusted the gpu throttling temp at 81 with the Asus tweaker (i own an rtx2080) with my gpu undervolted at .970 and 1880mhz, i get thermal throttling hard at 78 with a lot of lag and the game becomes uplayable (the division 2)
I also get a lot of game crashes as well. Anybody got some tips for me please? Should i try uninstall that asus tweaker? If yes, will be every preset deleted from my gpu? Running latest bios and 180W bios.

 

Downgrade to bios 1.5.0/1.5.4 and the throttling will be gone

 

Look for advanced in the lightning section, it is hidden in my opinion

 

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/174087301227

 

-----
It arrived on June 6th so? Dual 180W...

 

So I was close to order it today, then I stopped again...
After battling with the customer service for one day because the coupons I had were not working (by the way, expect 15-16% off for black friday), today I managed to have everything in the cart, with a good discount including a 25% on the 3 years plus service... and Paypal rejected the credit application, for absolutely no reason.
So I don't know what to do, I get a total of about 20% off over 3k, but it's still a lot of money all in one go...

 

I'm sure 1.5.4 throttles too, but double check, I could be wrong.

 

I need some serious help... My gpu is capping its power at like 50w max and it's just not clocking up at all anymore.. Anyone know what could be going on? Rtx 2080

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Have you changed any settings via Afterburner? I'd revert back to stock and check all ok then start to make changes again whilst testing after each change to ensure stability.

 

IMHO Razer laptops are overpriced and crap.

 

Is it worth buying the 780W power adapter?

 

That depends on how much money you have and whether or not it's going to benefit you.

If you travel a lot or are constantly moving the laptop around, you'll likely find the benefit outweighs the cost in your usage case.

I'd like a single adapter but definitely not at that price, based on my usage case which is moving it from upstair to downstair a few times a week.

 

I talked to a dell support manager.
I wanted to get my vrm radiator for rtx2080 as my unit does not have it. I bought it at october 24th.
Support manager said me that the absence of a radiator is not an accident. They don't install radiators intentionally. To prevent rapid failure of the videocard they released 180w bios with 75c limit.
The point is they stopped installing the vrm radiator when they released a 180w version of the vBIOS.
BIOS is for motherboard
vBIOS is for videocard
when you installing BIOS update from Dell website - it can contain(install) new vBIOS also(screenshot for proof).
Of course they can leave vrm radiator and release this new vbios for less failure situations. Dell support manager said me that videocards vrm can handle its heat as it without radiator. But not for long term I assume))
Is this an attempt to save on the radiator ? for high end overpriced laptop - I dont think so.
Is this an attempt to provoke premature failure ? I think yes.

So this is not best gaming laptop anymore. It can not handle 200w RTX2080.
Of course, you can try to overclock it to help it burn faster. You can even donwgrade vbios to 200W and raise gpu limit to 89c if you prefer fireworks and like more intensive burned mosfets smell.
I hope you make the right conclusions before buying Area-51m.

 

If they are truly saving on the heatsink on purpose, that's a huge mistake.

The true test to this would be the RTX2080's from the upgrade kits. If they don't come with the heatsink, then this is true.

Seeing this is a big problem, I am in the position to design, manufacture and sell replacement heatsinks, even with some improvements. Is people interested in this? If so, please let me know so I can create a new thread and proceed forwards with this project.

 

That's BS. First, because all rtx 2080 models ship with the vrm radiator installed from factory and second, because the thermal limit is implemented in BIOS, not in vBIOS. My laptop arrived in April and it has the vrm radiatior. If you bought from a reseller you should talk to them, maybe they manipulated the unit.
Apart from that, talking to Dell support is pointless, they will only give wrong information and confuse people.

 

Unfortunately this is usually the case. Your talking to someone who does not have the correct information a large portion of the time and instead of finding out the correct answer they just make something up based on some things that have come up from support reps.

If you want a straight answer your best best is to tweet someone like Umar and wait for a reply.

 

I have the 190w bios, with a 145+ core and 600 memory I managed to get 29500 in firestrike with Mac temp of 78c in gaming, not to bad tbh and I'm happy. I'm on a really nice version of windows 1909 it's a lite edition... But my 2080 is stuck at 50w now for some reason.. I think it's a bug. So gonna try to find 1809 later today and jst stay there.

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