Acer Ethos AS8951G/AS5951G Owners Lounge

Hey people
Does anybody know anything about BIOS modding ?
It's Insyde H2O BIOS
Thank you

 

Hello, jd0101,

so I hope you got the answer by yourself. Keep the ZRH.fd file saved at a safe place as I do (in NAS in my Fritzbox) to have it handy for the next time .
If there are any questions left just feel free to ask.
Sorry I wasn't quicker, but your request caught me at work - where I should work and not send emails...

Kind regards and best wishes from Manfred Glinke

 

Hi wipeout 2097
I overclocked my GPU with your values and when I watched youtube the picture stopped then g chrome stopped then whole system crashed got white display and then explorer restarted ..
Went back to factory settings and all OK now!

 

Any help??

 

SAMMC, so I don't need to buy the brackets to install a 2nd hdd?

 

@Ray24
Thanks for your report, especially for also trying out the old RAM sticks Can't believe you actually did the whole work again in order to test it but I'm glad you did Since you made all that effort it would have been nice if you had made a benchmark comparison or at least measured the fps before and after (evga precision or msi afterburner can both show you fps while playing a gme). Then we would have had real numbers and could calculate the performance gain in percent, but hey I won't complain When you say you see the difference with your eyes that's good enough for me.

When I got my notebook, the 4gb additional Ram they gave me was slower than the one underneath the keyboard, running only at 1066mhz! After replacing it so that all were 1333mhz I got quite a boost in 3dmark2011.

I am sure now that I will upgrade to 1866mhz Ram but I will do it later, maybe in a year, when it is cheaper. Then I wil also buy a SSD hdd. for now my system is fast enough.

I updated to the latest gefroce Beta drivers and since then I can't overclock my GPU as high as before. 690mhz is max for me now, before it was 720mhz. If I go back to the old driver it still will not go higher than 690mhz anymore... strange, and annoying
But since you use the intel grpahics alot, I have a good advise for you:
Go to the intel site and download the latest driver for the Intel GPU. The one that acer offers is VERY old, more than a year or so. In the description of the newest intel driver it says that it brings up to 35% boost in fps for newer games compared to the older driver, and that older driver is still newer than the one we have from Acer!
So i strongly suggest you go check it out! Just uninstall the old intel grpahics driver first or you will not be able to instal the new one.

@GalaxySII
I'm pretty sure it's not possible to replace the GPU on the 8951g with a different chip. No way it's gonna work properly, even if you use a faster/better version of the gf555m chip. Bios will be different and motherboard is devised only for that particulat gpu, anything else will screw your system.
It should work with a different cpu as long as it is the same socket/family, but not with gpu. I might be wrong but the gpu is not plug and play, it's and integrated part of the motherboard, I can't imagine you can just pop it out and replace with something else.
Also, forget about the windows perfomance index. it's totally inadequate to measure your performance when OCing the gpu. Also, your overall score will always only be as high as your lowest component (e.g. your harddisk), no matter how fast the rest is.

 

Are you sure? look here
Creative IT replacing nVidia chip on motherboard for Dell XPS M1710 - YouTube
soldering a ati chip graphic on macbookpro 2.16 ghz motherboard.MOV - YouTube

anyway thnx for HD 3000 i didn't know that i have to uninstall old first
but on intel web is older one i have 8.15.10.2559 via driver genius

my SSD got 7.9 score

 

Haha,.. yeah I could have made a benchmark, but ..like you said, I could see the difference clearly with my

I don't know if the 1866MHz will still be available in a year,.. probably (with Ivy Bridge coming) Kingston will release some higher 2000+ MHz HyperX PnP RAM..
And If they can be used with Sandy Bridge... GO with them

Thanks for charing the tip, (or should I say, ..warning ) about the newer Nvidia drivers..
I'm again on the 280.26 Drivers, (cause accourding to Adobe, they are still the best -stable- drivers for CS5 Premiere Pro.) ---and luckily I haven't had any problems with these drivers,.. at all!
--I've read a lot about higher (newer) drivers having problems here and there,... so I'm gonna stick with these for a while,
I did trie some other drivers, (for BF 3 ) but didn't go so well either.

----A tip from me, (maybe a bit to late now...)
I had made a full Image from my C: drive, (with the perfectly working 280.26 driver installed) and put that one back again, on my machine. ---Luckily the image- was still quite fresh, so, didn't need to do much afterwards..
So putting back an image copy of your C: drive, does result in not having those --turning back to previous- drivers trouble You have.. ---at least so It did for me

About the Intel graphics // ---again thanks for the advise.. but (probably beat you to it... )
When I got my Acer 8951G, the first thing I did (and since then with new updates) was/is, updating the Original Graphics drivers from both --Intel-- and --NVidia-->>(till 280.26 haha)

And Yeah going from the acer Intel-graphics drivers, to Intel's own drivers,.. indeed gave a Very Nice Boost

 

@ Galaxy SII,

You said you have installed the Intel Graphics Driver version 8.15.10.2559 ??
--That is originally a driver for the Sandy-bridge -Desktop- graphics..

Did you experience any problems? ..I saw that driver as well, but since it was described as a Desktop-driver, I didn't install it.

RE: Edit--- It isn't available anymore on the Intel website. yet checking the -cached- webpage,
it clearly does! state it is also for the 2nd Generation Mobile i7- Processors!

(Downloaded it from another trusted place)
--So, ...Guess I'll try it out then...

 

I have Intel VGA "Driver Revision: 15.22.52.64.2559 October 28, 2011"
That's copied straight from the Readme file. I downloaded it a few days ago from intel hp.

@GalaxySII: No I didn't mean it's not physically possible. Of course you can replace the chip. What I mean is it's not possible the GPU will work if it is no the exact same GF555m chip.

Something else and IMPORTANT:

I have discovered something that is porbably a reason for me to sell the notebook. It has serious problems with CPU throttling!
In theory, the Turbo boost should have your CPU run at 2.8Ghz at full cpu load. All the intel CPUs have a mechanism that downclocks them if they get too hot.
Read this Review: Review Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G Notebook - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

In the CPU Performance section it will tell you how the CPU throttles to 1.8GHz when it is under full load. I tried this with Cinebench r10... and
Exactly the same thing happens with my machine.The clock goes down to 1.8ghz when all 4 cores are used!!! I can't believe this, I paid so much for this notebook to get almost half the performance I should!

Please download cinebench ( CineBench 10 download from Guru3D.com) and then on the left side under CPU Benchmark run "Rendering (x CPU). This test wil stress all 4 CPU cores simultaneously.

When you look at you intel turbo boost monitor, you should that it drops most of the time under the 2ghz level. I recommend using CPU-Z, this will show you in detail what your exact cpu speed is while the benchmark runs.
I doubt I'm the only one with this but if so, I at least can send it back for repair.

Please let me know what your results are

 

Hey Vipeout.

Wow,.. man! your machine has some serious CPU Throttling!

Just a note; If you use all 4 cores with the i7-2630QM, (at full CPU load) it should run Max Turbo boost all 4 cores at 2.5GHz , single core, it can go as high as 2.8/2.9GHz

Either way, with those numbers in mind, .. it is clear, you've got some serious CPU throttling going on!

A few pages back (page 21) I posted a few of my Cinebench r10 /r11 findings, to check if my notebook had the same CPU throttling issues, like the one --bad-lemon- machine from Notebookcheck.net...

Also on some other page... (have to look for it ) I posted some findings taking gaming, and running Adobe CS5 into account.

As it appeared then (and still is), with CineBench, and every other benchmark / gaming /software testing.. I'm Blessed with a good machine don't have any CPU Throttling issues what so ever!

About my CineBench testing results.
Every time Running CineBench r10/r11, checking CPU-Z, (you can also use some other, more per-core monitoring apps) --Mine stays perfectly running all 4 cores at 2.5GHz
I've never noticed otherwise.. Even running other 4-core load capable software /benchmarking programs, there is no CPU throttling.

Since my testing results (on Page 21) I've already run some more tests
(On page 21), I still had only 12GB of 1333MHz, but I switched those with the 16GB 1866MHz Kingston PnP.
A few months later, (Had no time to do so earlier) I runn again some CineBench r10.
You can see those results in the picture below.

Note; The ones in green, where with the 16GB 1866MHz Kingston PnP. (they've gotten better and better since)
Also under Open GL, you notice 2 in the 6000 points, they where run with over clocking my GPU to 720/1000

 

Hi
I saidin previous post i used driver genius will scan your comp outdated drivers and search for latest
so intel has older and that program search couple websites
(ill describe later)

 

Here is that soft its really good I like it


Here are screens
http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/8535/genius.jpg

 

Vipeout

Man how u can just give up quickly and say I am selling laptop jeeezz
Try to find problem first how can be throttled your CPU what it causes ?
And CPU-Z is not good soft to show your speed
the best soft is HWinfo x64 it will show you EXACT CPU behaving ..
Here are some screens the first is power on balance and second is on performance as u can see on cpu-z is nothing changed and on other soft is
if u choose power saver the cpu will be throttled
balance is balance high performance is cpu running on max

 

Howdy,
Just figured I'd post my thoughts after purchasing and upgrading the 895g-9600. I purchased this as a replacement for my Vaio AW, which I've rebuilt a few times due to faulty power connector, peeling rubber wrist-cushion, etc. I had figured since Acer made the guts of a lot of Sony laptops that this was son-of-AW, or at least pretty close, with sandy bridge. It turns out the internals are very different as well as the assembly.

I upgraded the following:
memory 8gb -> 16gb
hard drive 750gb -> 160gb intel SSD
CPU: i7-2630QM -> I7-2860QM

First a note on the memory - in my machine, at least, the slots beneath the keyboard were populated with the 8GB and the slots accessible from the back were empty - so if you're wanting to upgrade memory, check if you have the same cofiguration before you go and get 4 4gb SODIMMs like I did.

Hard drive - nothing interesting. If you want to add a second drive and not order the bracket/cable/etc, and aren't interested in your optical drive, there are many 2.5"HDD -> optical drive "cases" available on ebay. Basically you just plug your drive into the case and it adapts it for the micro sata connector to the optical drive (or whatever it's called).

Upgrading the CPU was a true pain - you have to take the lower part of the laptop completely apart - that means taking the entire lid off (not just the keyboard part), unscrewing the motherboard, flipping it over, and installing the new CPU. It took me about an hour and a half or so to do everything above.

The new CPU works great, doesn't overheat my laptop (still 45W TDW), etc. I didn't go for the xtreme processor because it's 55W, and I didn't want to deal with the extra heat.

The LCD panel is annoying - it's LED backlit and the lighting is uneven - no true blacks here. There is much light leakage at the bottom and very little leakage at the top (suggesting only one LED array at the bottom). Unfortunately, this 18.4" panel has a 40 pin LVDS connection, whereas the older dual CCFL panels (which might fit) have a 30 pin connector. So it looks like I'm stuck with this panel for now - even if the older panel could work, the inverter would have to be stashed somewhere and it'd be a true hack to get the old-style brightness control working with the LED panel interface.

The removable mouse/remote is a true pain. It'd be great if the firmware for the thing had it always-on when laptop is on and it's docked, so you don't have to swipe it to wake it up. That is my number one complaint with it. I looked into what it would take to attach a regular touchpad and it won't be easy - basically, nearly all touchpads for laptops are made by synaptics and they all use a ps/2 hack where extra data is just sent over the bus for new features. It looks like the remote is using a USB connection (those 4 pogo pins which it mates with), but I'm not entirely sure.

My device came with a faulty battery - before I even cracked it open it wouldn't take a charge (and was "empty" when I got it) - the charge light never turned on. I'm going to just replace the battery (out $70 or so) now that I've cracked it open. I was too impatient to wait on doing all the upgrades yesterday...

Running XUbuntu 11.10 (I can't stand gnome 3), and vmware under that to host OSes for work - the primary reason I upgraded the processor was to get all of the virtualization features which do not exist on the lower end models.

Overall I like the build quality of the device - it's a shame that the LCD panel and the mouse remote suck, otherwise it'd be a 9/10 at least. There are only 3 screw sizes used in the design, which makes it easy to keep track of what goes where, and, even though I had to take it completely apart, it was easy enough to put it back together.

I'll write an update if I manage to source a compatible panel that has better light distribution, or come up with a hack to replace the remote with a synaptics pad.

 

Man can't belive what you just wrote here !!
U think that your battery if faulty? won't charge?
And you don't know that all rechargeable batteries are shipped or supplied ALWAYS EMPTY ???
Did you read documents before you used laptop???
Did you turn on battery underneath with orange switch (which is in OFF position when unpacked) ???

Man xuse me how old are you?

 

Ha yea, I Know that one, driver genius is great!
---I edited my post, cause though that latest driver had been removed from the intel download-site, ..the cache link to it was still there ...Hence, I could see the driver was indeed also for the 2nd Gen i7 Mobile CPU's.

One thing that bothers me, (before trying out the update) Why did intel remove that driver again? ...it once was on their site, but no more?

How does the 2559v run, compared to the 2250v ? Any noticeable improvements?
--I just want to be sure, I can update the driver (since my machine is all running well right now )

You're right about that, One of the other I said that can be used, for a better -per core- monitoring, is HWinfo x64. That's the one I use most of the time.
CPU-Z is just, a simple (but not always correct one), if you want to find out some 'basic' info about your hardware...

Also, it's true, that if you put your -power plan- on Balance or Power-saver mode, the CPU will clock down, to save power. (standard pre-set)

Hence I went into the advanced settings, and tweaked the 'Balance Power setting' to my own liking, --putting in 'Processor power management everything to active / 100% , and tweeking down, other things, to spare battery time, ---without sacrificing CPU power.
This gives me full CPU power, but also leaves me with enough Battery for on the road.

That's why even when running CineBench on battery, I still get the same performance


@ Galaxy SII, I've never asked, but what numbers do you get running CineBench R10 32/64bit ?#---I'm just Curious to know how well your 8951G runns with your specs .. (an 2820QM? and ...also 1866MHz ?)

 

Kind of rude aren't we? No, I haven't read the manual yet. I rarely ever do.

 

Hi about that Intel drivers I really don't know about them I just did what vipeout said and really helped .. cos I WAS trying to install new Intel HD 3000 but I didn't know that I had to uninstall first .. and differences are minor ..
btw those two drivers I think ..

I haven't made any tests yet cos can't be arsed to do that just run Win index haha
But I can try but not yet because look what I got
Will be playin tmrw so tests on Saturday

better than kingston

2860QM

 

@ Galaxy SII --Ouch those pictures look so GOOD!!
--uhh I mean what's in them

--So now after finally getting what you wanted,... what did you pay for all these yummy upgrades?

--The more you upgrade, the more my machine looks like a .... HAHA!!
Can't wait to see those juicy test results on Saturday --I'll be here waiting

 

Just to warn you the 2860QM may stuggle to run all 16GB @ 1866mhz.

 

Hi Ray24
I've recently purchased an Ethos 8951G with 8Gb RAM, but its only showing 6Gb
Can you please re-up the "How to get to the 2 RAM slots underneath the Keyboard on the Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G" guide?? (seems to have expired)
It'd be a huge help!
Thanks

 

Just received my 8951G and loving it so far. I am coming from a Gateway P-7805u which was no slouch at the time and served me well for over 3 years. Thanks to all the contributors to this thread!

Regarding throttling. I ran CB R10 and to my horror saw this same phenomenon as Vipeout and the Notebookcheck.net review. The Turboboost would throttle from 1.7 to 2.7 and benchmarked ~13500. I though I got a 'lemon' and was contemplating a return. However after some playing around I was able to solve my throttling issues. I went into Power Management and switched my profile from "Balanced" to "Performance". Now then I run CB R10 the Turboboost is rock solid at 2.6 and I score ~16500. Hope this bit of information helps others having similar issues.

 

Cnorton
If u read couple posts up u will notice that i already mentioned this power scheme and profiles
Some people thinks that all features are not important in windows such experience index
or power and ignoring it
Windows is what u have installed on your hardware so don't ignore it
when u gaming switch to high performance ,when u officing switch to power saver ,when u watching films switch to balance mode!

 

Hi do you want to see those two brothers ?
I had AW11XU/Q too
I must say I missing it #

I could do it today but my beautiful girlfriend went to post office when it was closed and I smiled sarcastically on her ; hmm yeah? OK
I was steaming and red then and sayin to my self whaat a dum**ss TOLD HER : IT IS OPEN FROM 7:00 till 1:00PM
Oh well women ..

for me it was ok just laptop is disassembling from top not from the bottom

Sorry then if I offended you

 

(for a few months now) I run 16GB Kingston HyperX PnP @ 1866mhz Prefectly stable, on an Acer 8951G with an i7-2630QM

Before taking the plunge with them, I checked what other users thought where on it.
As it so happened, even some gaming notebooks like the Asus G74sx had trouble running full 16GB @ 1866mhz. Anything above, caused them to auto clock back to 1333mhz.. (There was however one person who got the full 16GB working on his 74sx, running all @ 1866mhz.)

To be sure, I emailed Kingston for some more info, asking them, If my Acer could possible run the full 16GB @1866mhz.
--Mailing me back, they answered that they had only tested the memory to max 8GB per machine, and thus, they couldn't tell me if it would work.

The only way to know for sure? ...simple by testing out

As for the Corsair, I guess it's the same. Here and there people have it work okay and/or not, even with the 2860QM,
---it depends by each machine how it will go. (does the motherboard support it, and the BIOS, .. cause unlike the kingston being PnP, the Corsair are xmp

Guess with many things we want on a notebook, we often have to try it to see if it works

Hey azza.azza.rocks

So you bought an Acer 8951G with 8GB RAM, but it only shows 6GB?
--That could mean one of these things.
1; One of your RAM modules isn't fitted correctly into the slot (have you checked under the backcover -simple open-up-- if you see those 2 memory slots being filled with 2 2x2GB sticks...? = this would mean, you probable got 8GB total but one isn't fitted rightly)
2; You've been sc...d with getting 2GB less! ---But that seems just weird, as the Acer only comes in versions having either 4GB, 8GB, 12GB, or 16GB installed.


---I've checked the link to the guide How to get to the 2 RAM slots underneath the keyboard on the Acer Aspire Ethos 8951G it is indeed expired..

I've uploaded it again.
So here, for you (and every other person who wants it ) is the new link.
Step-by-Step_to_RAM_slots_underneath_Keyboard.pdf - download now for free. File sharing. Software file sharing. Free file hosting. File upload. FileFactory.com

 

LOL Yeah I still have my AW. Just really wish I had it's screen on this new bad boy. LED backlights are neat battery-wise but I don't think that matters with this machine.

I think I disassembled my AW too many times - probably the biggest thing that slowed me down on this new guy was trying to not break anything.

No worries bud

I have finally gotten used to the trackpad.

 

I was plannig to swap LCDs put acers to sony and take sonys to acer but i gave up cos i dont think it would fit..
Yeah i upgraded it to X9100 c extreme and 8GB and 4 SSDs

 

Hello

So I have successfully replaced CPU and RAM here are some screens
As I said CPU-Z is not 100% right instead of 2860QM shows 2920XM on the top
In specification says normal
but HW info shows everyhing OK even BIOS show me 2860QM
Will do tests later

 

My System always runs on "performance" Mode when connected to AC. That's not the issue here, it's a thermal problem. First run I get above 16000 and then when the system is on its peak temp, around 13000.

@Ray24: Did you run the cinebench test continuously? Because the first time I run it there is no problem, but try running it 6-10 times in a row, again and again, don't allow your CPU to cool off in between. When doing this stress test, my CPU gets around 95°C! Did u do such a burn-in test? If so, then I really might have gotten a "lemon" and I can return it for repair!
Best way to check is running Prime95 for 10min, if there is no throttling, your system is rocksolid.
Would be very grateful for your feedback because my decision on whether to sell it or not depends on it.

@GalaxySII: Thx for the hint with the other software. However, there is no doubt that my CPU really does throttle, even turbo boost monitor shows it, also my cinebench points drop vom 16k to 13k, so there IS throttling.
Did you too try to run a stress test, say for 10min? No overheating at all?

If I am am the only one with trottling because of heat problems I am sending it back for repair first thing monday morning!

cheers

 

Ooh maan cant believe u taking it such deeply
Why u wanna stress laptop so much ?? I really don't know what is your problem properly
What is your daily work on it? video editing graphics modeling and converting simultaneously???
Fakin hell of course u will get some throttle your CPU is almost 100% HOT !
You have 3 % and you laptop would just switch off cos once cpu reac 100 C it will switch off

Just go here if u love stressing your computer so much and do it even months if u love it
I srtessed CPU RAM and GPU for 5 minutes and that is job done for me ..
Download that latest utility and run it and go to stress forever
http://downloadcenter.intel.com/SearchResult.aspx?lang=eng&keyword="xtu"#

 

My problem is that my cpu runs at 2-2.2Ghz when I play skyrim (single core applikation) instead of 2.8ghz like it should. The Dell xps L702x has no throtteling issue while having the same hardware and being smaller.
Please if you have nothing helpful to add, don't comment.

 

Hello everyone!

I have decided to buy an Acer Aspire Ethos AS5951G-9694! (ie. The only model configuration for the US)

Problem though, I can't seem to find one anywhere!

I find the 8951G in abundance, but the only 5951's I find are Canadian models with different/omitted specs.

Does anyone one know where I can find one from a reputible person or place?

 

Try reinstall windows all I can suggest you don't forget install Intel Turbo Boost
and all Intel programs install nvidia 280.26 driver install directX physx
run the game with nvidia gpu

 

Hey Vipeout,

Well, first; it seems you've got the 'performance' Mode right, so I guess it's clear, that there does not lie the problem.

Now about running CineBench (the 64bit version and not the 32, which gives a lot lesser score --but I guess you knew that already )

I've run CineBench r10 64bit for a some runs as well, (having nothing else running) and yes there is a drop in the score, (because of the CPU making sure it's not overheating)
--Yet, (With the heat builded up),where you say your score goes from somewhere in the 16000, to downwards into the 13000 points! (on multi-CPU ?) ---Mine always stays (a few times just) in the 16000! it only fluctuates a couple of hundred points when the CPU runs hot, ...Never! does it drop down as dramatically as yours does! --I mean 2500 / 3000+ points is a lot!

Next--
Looking to your CPU temps, running Cinebench for a while, mine hasn't gone any higher than 85°C!,... so I guess there might be an issue!
If I play a game like GTA IV, (using all four cores to the max, my highest temps are 87°C
...that still a nice way down from your 95°C!!

Now talking about running Prime95, (That is one Hack of a CPU-stressing program!!)
It is no secret, that our notebooks, (which aren't build with the 'Best Cooling' and CPU management inside ), ....that our CPU does clock down a few times, after running Prime95 for a while,...
---What we do want to know is, 'How much, and how often does it clock-back?
---a.k.a. does it cause some real CPU-throttling?

I can say, that (as expected), mine does clock down a 'few' times, after running for quite some time at full Load running Prime95.
How much does it clock down those few times? --- it stays above 2.0GHz
And Like I just said, it doesn't clock-down often.

The temps however, do get to 90°C (only seen it go to 91°C a few times, and a 1-3 times spiking at 94) this is normal especially when running a 'Crazy! ' CPU-Stressing program as Prime95 with the cooling in our notebooks.

-----Have you runn Prime95 ? ---what were the results?

...I would recommend 'NOT' to run it for to long on our Notebooks, since they aren't really made for such Prime95-Heavy!! (long-time) CPU-stressing.
--say 5 to 7 minutes max, should be enough to give you an idea, how your CPU performs.
If there are any 'serious' throttling issues, they will show up very quickly with Prime95

--Forgive me if I'm incorrect (Don't know more about the game, than I've read ) (cause I don't have the game myself--yet.. )

Skyrim is very CPU intensive, relying heavily on CPU-power. accourding to tests, it needs at least i3 3.0GHz, to run on Ultra settings, arround 30fps. --right?

Some benchmarking also show, that Skyrim doesn’t appear to be optimized for more than two threads.

So... (not on my own expereince of the game, ..which -again, I Haven't--..Yet... ), but according to what I've read, from other gamers, (and seen on youtube) it looks, that the i7-2630QM should run Skyrim (not all settings on ultra) Nicely.

-----the i7-2630QM can/should run at least! (stable) at 2.6GHz/2.7GHz on 2-core and --2.8GHz 1-core.
(the i7-2630QM can reach 2.8 on 2-core and 2.9 on 1-core, but that doesn't happen often)

So..... it seems, that what you said, is right, ---2/2.2GHz is indeed rather on the low-side..

--At what settings do you play Skyrim? -- & how is ..fps ?

 

Hi Ray, thanks for your feedback mate, you are being a real help!

yeah I was refering to the 64Bit version of Cinebench and like I wrote, 16k points is only possible in the first, maybe second run. After that it goes 15k, 14k and if things are real bad 13k. And like I said, 95°C is craaazy!

Also, it happened a few times now that while playing skyrim, the system just shuts down all of a sudden. Im in the middle of killing a dragon and PUFF! the system is off from one second to the other. This is of course the internal overheating-protection-mechanism kicking in. Yeah my GPU is overclocked but only to 690mhz and it usually never runs hotter than 88°C. sure, it doesn't help with the heat but others run it stable at 770mhz, so yeah.

I play skyrim in 1080P with everything on max except shadows and also no AA. FPS is between 25 and 30, but CPU runs only around 2.2GHz because its choking.

Well I defintely will contact Acer support now and send my unit in for repair. But I will not keep it, I'm gonna sell it and get the Dell XPS L702x. it has a better CPU (2670QM), 2x USB 3.0, better GPU and way better screen and mousepad.
the 8951g's poor viewing angles and miserable touchpad make working with it really frustrating.
Also, Dell has a way better Support. They even offer a complete online service manual and step-by-step guide with pictures for taking apart the whole system ( Service Guide). And all this for the same price, rather nice I'd say!
I only regret not having bought it in the first place, the acer is nice in theory but poorly made. The speakers are also very weak for it's size and Acer doesn't even bother to provide a proper touchpad driver.

Well I first gotta check out how much I'll get for my 8951g, I'm not willing to invest too much since I already paid more than I should have for the acer.
I have an Aspire netbook and it too has problems with overheating, even with it's crappy atom processor. Never again acer!

 

Sorry to hear that. Guess I'm one of the VERY blessed ones, with a Perfectly working Acer 8951G.
--it is my 2nd acer to-date, (before this one I had good working 8920G) I understand the frustration of Acer's bad support..
That's why (even if it, or any other company.. weren't bad)
I'll always search for my own tweeks/support/software/drivers

---It's sad that there seems to be an issue 'here and there' of overheating with Acer notebooks.
But remember, Dell isn't free of those issues either!. I've heared/read of many xps-Owners, who have overheating issues as well ----So just be sure to check what is your best option for a replacement notebook for your 8951G.

--When I'm stepping-up to a new notebook in a while, I'll be going for a BTO (Build-To-Order) notebook.
They are Very Well-made, (Great powerfull HW inside!) with great cooling, and Good support.
For the same price-specs as the Acer 8951G, you can buy a BTO with some very nice HW, (like a far better GPU than the 8951G)
---BTO is the next one I'm going for!!
(or something more yummier is just around the corner!)

My advise, look around a little more (while your Acer is send to Acer-support) and see if there are more good options (or better, like a BTO -perhaps? )

I'll hope you have success with finding/buying a new notebook.
--If you have any questions, you'll know where to go

 

Vipeout
I told you in my previous post it gonna turn off it self did I
Everything what you wrote here and what you have done with acer laptop think it's your fault am sorry .
You said you upgraded it ,you said you overclocked it you have been messing with laptop
I do not think that acer gonna refund you money they dont do that they will replace only IF they wont find that you been doing modifications to it.
You complaining its overheating and not been stable its because you overclocked it!!
If you overclocked CPU and GPU altogether OFCOURSE it us gonna be friggin HOT
and + if you are not usin laptop cooler underneath maan , OMG
I ve been playing FEAR3 about 4 hours and laptop got quite hot and i even didnt overclocked GPU.. but stayed on .. this laptop is not for heavy overclocking!

 

RAY24,

I just purchased some new RAM to upgrade to 16gb total. I am in need of your installation guide. The link you posted below has expired. Do you mind reuploading? Thanks.

 

Hello cnorton, Welcome to the forum!

Just a few days ago, someone also already noticed the link had expired, so I re-uploaded it again.
Off-course I could tell you to go to page 43 (where I re-posted a 'new' link)... but hey, since you're new here..

---Here is the link for the re-uploaded RAM installation guide!

Step-by-Step_to_RAM_slots_underneath_Keyboard.pdf - download now for free. File sharing. Software file sharing. Free file hosting. File upload. FileFactory.com

 

Must have missed the post. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction and for the detailed guide. Repped!

 

HELP! Can you elaborate on the boot flash process ? I'm stuck in Acer support hell after trying to flash the 1.11 BIOS, and now my 8951g is hung (no display, keybard dead). I've got the .fd file on a FAT formatted USB; is there a specific USB port I have to use ? What keys do I press at boot ?

Any help much appreciated!

 

RE: BIOS recovery: NEVERMIND! I played a bit more w/ the various hints available here, and was able to recover, and am up and running w/ v1.11. Thnx to all who've posted the clues here.

fwiw: I'm not sure which combo of tweaks fixed it: booting w/ AC power instead of battery; using a different USB slot, or maybe just holding ESC+FN long enough for the power light to start flashing, or ?? but anyway, I'm a happy 8951g user again.

btw: I actually got Acer tech support to offer to repair it, and pay for shipping both ways. I don't know why they didn't just give me the boot flash sequence, but I guess I should be grateful they offered to fix it. Thankfully, thats no longer needed.

 

Hi Ray
I just realised I didnt answered your post few pages back
The CPU cost me £290 (now am selling 2820 for £180 and 2630 for £150
And RAMs cost me £150 (now am sellin kingston for £80)

I'll tell you system feels very smooth and fast


I'll do test later cos I do not have time now

 

I have an interesting topic for all of you owners out there.

Can anyone play 3d games with this laptop? I have checked the min specs here:

3DTV System Requirements

I have been running around this thread and nvidia isn't giving any responses (for months):

Notebook not showing "Stereoscopic 3D" option in the NVIDIA Control Panel with R275.33 - NVIDIA Forums - Page 6

I am thinking that I should be able to play BF3 with this lappy on my Samsung 3dtv (which is in the compatible list). Am I missing something?

I don't even have the stereoscopic 3d settings in my nvidia control panel...

I have no idea why it isn't showing up but my desktop with a geforce 210 does have 3d. :S Im going crazy!

 

3d games ..
u need 3d display for it so it needs to be connected to HDMI and use 3D monitor or flat big screen TV supports 3D

 

I don't think this notebooks GPU is 3d capable. Tere are GF 555m version that have 3d output enabled and others that don't have it. The DELL XPS17 has one version with 3d and one without, both with a gf555m gpu

 

Vipeout aah maan all new gpus including our 555m is 3D capable . jeez
there is no different 555m it's only one and i said it DOES support 3D OVER HDMI (1.4) check and google it ..

 

Hello,

Had to replace my Dell XPS M2010 (Large 20lbs laptop) due to continued ATI X1800 video card failures. This occurred during the holidays. I had been tracking Acer’s AS8951G and compared others in this class months before.

There was a price drop on the AS8951G and now I own one. Very nice PC. No problems. However, some temp file cleanup and bloatware removal was necessary. Did some driver updates, NV video & RealTek HD Audio….Ok

WEI: 7.5, 7.6, 6.8, 6.8, 5.9 = 5.9

Bios Question….(PC is currently at V1.05)…Latest is V1.11 I saw post on pg 38. Is Acer recommending this if the owner has issues? If not, don’t upgrade?

Acer Aspire AS8951G-9630 LX.RJ202.153 Notebook
MS Home Premium (x64) Build 7601
Intel Core i7-2670QM 2.2GHz,
8GB DDR3, 750GB HDD, Blu-Ray Player
2GB NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M, 18.4" Display
Bios V1.05 8/2/2011


Updating an incorrect BIOS may cause harm to your system. We recomend that you only do this after being instructed by one of our Customer Care representatives. By using these updates you agree to accept the possibility of product failure

I’m not getting the warm and fuzzies from Acer’s comment above. Any customer ideas?

 

Hello EasyCruz,

Well, you've already answerer a part of your question yourself.
--Acer recommends --Like you said--what reads on their website,
they recommend you to only upgrade your BIOS wen need to (a.k.a. have been told to do)

Now do we think it's Okay to upgrade BIOS? --Well, some of us have done so, and some not.

According to those who have, it was simply because he/she wanted to upgrade,.. so far I haven't read anyone upgrading BIOS because he/she was told to do so, or needed to do..

Also, no-one has seen any difference afterwards, (no-noticeable changes..)

In my case, I haven't upgraded the BIOS, I'm still on v1.05 as well.

Over the years, with different notebooks, I've upgraded the BIOS's and learned ( some-times the hard way.... ),.. it often is just not necessary.

Cause if there occurs any bad-install ..or goes something else wrong while upgrading the BIOS,... that your stuck with a whole lot of "...."

I treat every notebook through this pair of glasses.. (something also some fellow Notebook technician's say),
if its working properly? --why risk screwing things up,.. with doing something that isn't necessary??

So should you upgrade your BIOS?...
--if you're having some issues with your notebook,... if needed' ..Then yes you should upgrade...
--Or if a BIOS comes out, that truly does change something to the Notebook (in a positive way
I say,.. it is 'probably' a good Idea.


So... the questions you should first ask yourself,..
=
Do I have problems that require a BIOS upgrade?..
Is the latest BIOS of any noticeable positive effect?

If there is a NO answer to those questions, then the only question that remains is
---Do I need to upgrade the BIOS?


You've read what i said about that rule I follow..

yet still (according to the results of those who did upgrade the BIOS),... you could...

At the end,...the choice is to do, or not to do.. is yours ...