Acer TimelineX 3820TG Owners Lounge. Info, benchmarks, tweaks, mods and upgrades

The clockgen would have to be swapped out or you would have to have pinmod done (jumper wire on 4th pin of the clockgen). The pinmod would he the cheapest if you are comfortable with soldering under a magnifying glass. I doubt that the colckgen can be swapped without some serious equipment, so you would have to change the motherboard. The funny thing is that you can't be sure if the new board is OC'able because the placement of the different clockgen on the Mobo seems to be random. You would be better off selling your unit. Start from scratch and keep returning units until you get one that OC's.

Bronsky

@Hendrickson my drivers are here - http://forum.notebookreview.com/6481111-post1821.html. I'm still using the original driver. I am not that happy with it and have been thinking about looking for a newer one but I think I'm just swapping the unit for an Intel 6200. Sounds like you had no problem selling your machine. I have to tell you, I am tempted to try to find another German site that will ship to me and do it again to see if I can get an OC'able unit. What holds me back is my display. I have the feeling that it will be really hard to get one that I like this much. Plus, every time I think about doing all of this over again, I start to shudder and break-out in a cold sweat.

 

@Hendrickson

I have no BT 3.0 device and these means a can't test ist at the moment.
You have to deinstall first you Broadcom druver because it is newer than the Acer one.

Just a picture to show what was Acer doing to get the BT 3.0 as device description.

 

I would say that the model i got which they still have stock of is slightly older and you would have a really good chance of getting an overclockable one.

Your BT driver is the same. I'm just puzzled on how the hell i can get bt3 to work correctly then...

 

Hi everyone, i had been follow this post for a while and I got my 3820TG few days ago from Hong Kong. I am really happy with this new toy, it's not as light as 3810 but it's way more powerful(I can finally play BC2 on a laptop without too much weight) Anyway, I need you guys to help me out, when i try to update the 5650 driver to 10.7(8.753), the driver stay as 8.713(Which is 10.5/6). The reason I really want to update the driver is because it take forever to load BC2 online' map, and I really hate that.
Plz help me solve this problem

 

No luck after unistaalling and reinstalling i still get 2.1 speeds and this in the device manager. I'm stumped!

 

hey,

I am about to do a clean install of Windows 7 on my new 3820TG using Bronsky's driver backups. What I'm asking myself right now is whether I'll have to follow any particular installation order in order to restore the default driver configuration (e.g.: Intel VGA driver first, then ATI).
Could you guys help me out with this?

@bronsky: in your post concerning the win 7 clean install you mentioned that you haven't put any of the Acer apps on your system. But what about the "Acer ePower application" - don't you need that software to switch between the Intel and ATI VGA?

 

Have you switched your bios to "dedicated" before trying to install the driver
mine seems to work fine.



@Hendrickson Just loaded and ran CPUID. It recognizes I5-450M but on the Mainboard page it shows Mainboard link width at 1x with a max of 16x. PCIExpress problem? Again? Related to 10.7? CPUID not reading it correctly? Does it idle at 1X? 3DMark06 seems to work fine. Although I ran it a few times and I'm getting about 180 pts less between 10.6 & 10.7.

Bronsky

Anybody know how to change photobucket settings so that I can UL a pic and it won't make it smaller? Yeah! It worked.

 

-->

just change the uploading parameters to "1 megabyte size" by hitting that button

 

I would use my own driver backups. Make the eRecovery disk. You never know if there are changes that you won't catch that will drive you nuts. I only posted them for an emergency if someone failed to eRecover before wiping out the HD. Also, they are now on the Acer site. How are you backing up your OEM cert and key?

Bronsky

 

^ I'll try using the tool you recommended. If that doesn't help I'll be following this guide on a manual method.

My 3820TG will probably be delivered later today or tommorow morning. As soon as I get my hands on it, I'll post my experience with the two cert-backup methods.

 

Yea ... the method in the guide is what worked for me. I have big pictures now.

Bronsky

 

So Hendrickson, how is your matte screen protector? Have you tried it already? And what about that issue with PCI Express x1 and x16. Does the newest ATI Catalyst solve this problem?

 

I just ordered it so i wont have it for a few weeks yet. The pcie issue is still there i think however its random. seems to idle at x1 but sometimes it gets stuck. could be the reason when when overclock frame rates drop.

 

Ok. Would you help me out with that? With the Freeware version what Clock Generator are you running and which ONE should I be running? Control registers? Where do I find those and where and what should I change in them?

 

Any idea on how to "dock" the 3820? Is there any universal dock or something? Or coming up in the future?

 

hey innermoon where in hong kong did you buy your 3820tg and how much did you pay ?I'll be there in 1 week and wondering what specs you got and if you saw the silver model there aswell

 

can i get links for bronskys and tools that he recommended

 

Strange thing. Notebookjournal.de also wrote about this PCI Express issue Google Translate, however still no solution there

 

The clean install issues are addressed in here.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/6465732-post1613.html Make your own backup disk from eRecovery as I describe in the post. If none of the methods of authenticating Windows works, use the link in Marasam's thread to manually install the key and cert. My backup files. http://forum.notebookreview.com/6481111-post1821.html

Good luck.

Bronsky

 

I'm losing hope for the 3820TG w/ 5650 coming to the US.

 

Don't worry, it will come to US when us europeans gets the next timelinex model 3830TG

 

Ok I think my issue with the bluetooth is the driver left over from my older system which had the 2.1 BT. IS there a way to stop stupid windows installing the BT 2.1 driver the instant i uninstall and try to install the BT 3.0 acer driver?

 

real supportive...

 

I'm just speculating but you could try uninstalling the drivers, reboot Windows to safe-mode which I don't believe will install those drivers. Then install the real drivers, and reboot to normal Windows.

 

What program is running the keybindings? Do we know that? Im having trouble binding keys to PUSH TO TALK in programs like Ventrilo. My guess is that some Acer program is in it up.

EDIT: Found it. Its called Lanuch Manager and shows up as LMmanager.exe or something like that in the task process list. I disabled it and Ventrilo worked. So this is SOLVED .

 

Thanks will try that! It because I didn't do a clean install between the systems just swap HDD's and this is why its always installing the 2.1 driver

 

Just checked again later to see what the story was and ...



I don't really get this ... it appears to be some kind of random software hang-up.

Bronsky

 

quick question, my 3820tg came without BT and UMTS, was wondering if it would be upgratable? I think bronsky you said that broadcome has BT and UMTS in on one chip. Im not in hurry just wanted to know if i could do that in the future. Thanks alot.

 

I was concerned that they might be integrated (BT and wireless N - not UMTS/3G). After looking at it, I don't think so. I think they can be independently upgraded. The problem is that they might be tied together via software. I'm ordering an Intel Wireless and let you know how it goes.

I don't think you can add UMTS. The PCE slot is not included in the nonUMTS units. There are solder points if you are really handy.

Bronsky

 

Turn bluetooth on, right click on the bluetooth icon, choose open settings, click on the hardware tab and click on properties, click on change settings, click on the power management tab and untick the first option, click ok then apply and your bluetooth should come on automatically when you restart your laptop

 

finally got my BT 3.0 installed. Seems a little faster than BT 3 but not by much. What a disappointment

 

mmh, this pci-e issue is bothering me quite a bit. I hope we'll find a solution for it soon enough.

 

The 10.7 catalyst v8.75 driver works for me without a flaw. Seems no issue with the pci-e. Always at x16 when on ati mode. Turbo boost is much stable as well, stays at 3.3 ghz. You guys might have the powerplay ticked thats why you're getting an x1, or probably on a power saver mode?

 

Sounds great!
Were did you get such a well specced 3820TG?
How does it handle temps when gaming and OCing it like crazy?

 

@IKAS V: My TG is from SG . Temps are handled quite well when gaming or multitasking. I've never gone over 90C. My main problem is that the gfx card does not OC higher than 660/1060, beyond this value crashes the 3dmark06 when tested or merely when trying to open an application. CPU speed are at stock, I've tried OC'ing it with setfsb but no luck with the freeware, i'm waiting for the shareware version and see if it would go beyond 4 ghz.

 

How can we permanently disable powerplay, do you know if its possible?

Also if the freeeware setfsb gives a pll error no point in waiting as you say for the shareware version it won't work either.

What do you mean by waiting for the shareware version? Doesn't make much sense to me. Just download it and select the g73jh clock and hit getfsb if you get an error you can't overclock. No error = you can overclock and pay the 500 yen to get a serial code.

 

That is exact the point. You hit it.

 

Hey guys,

there is a new Intel Hd driver out (15.​17.​9.​64.​2182).
But I'm having trouble with the install. I get the message that my system isn't compatible with the new one and i can't install it?

Another thing is the new 10.7 ati driver. Can I simply install it over the last 10.6 driver or should i delete the 10.6 first and then install the new 10.7?

 

Waiting for the shareware version means waiting for Bronsky's activation key Haha i don't have online funds to donate that's why.

With the powerplay, mine stays unticked once unticked. When i press the P button on the upper left of the keyboard, it switches the gfx to either ati or intel. When on ati, it is automatically at x16 and looking at the powerplay in CCC it is hence unticked. It stays permanent once disabled i believe.

If this does not apply to you, you might want to configure the power settings, just make sure to enable first the ati card.

 

Also, i have not received any pll error just yet though i tried several clock gens already, so the hope is still there.ü

 

You can install the 10.7 over (i think). I did the same, but first you have to switch to discrete vga mode in bios.

I'd like to install XP. Is there any XP mobility ati driver for the 5xxx series? I'll install XP just becouse an RC-plane controller doesn't work on Win7.

 

Okay got the setfsb working (thanks to the man himself, Bronsky! ) appreciate it a lot mate.

Best thing is, I am not getting any pll error! Which basically makes my board OC'able. However, the clock is very unstable, the screen freezes then crashes. Are there any settings that I need to adjust? I'm using the ASUS G73JH clock gen.

So far 148 mhz and above bus speed instantly restarts the notebook. Makes me wonder how this would make any difference with my previous stock speed..

Anyhow, at least my i7 clocks! Albeit on a very limited rate..

 

Glad someone could use the license. I paid for it and was clearly not going to be using it. I guessed that your preliminary results looked best for the chances of OC'ing and I7-620M. You should try the other clockgen that works on the I5-450M. It might be more stable for you.

I want to see temp data with the CPU under stress. I wonder if the instability you get has anything to do with temp? You think the I7 will run through a stress test without becoming too unstable?

Bronsky

 

Hi guys, new on the forum and in need of help.
I've bought a 3820TG a few weeks ago with the i5-450 and HD5650.
In the beginning the computer was completely quiet but after one day the harddrive started to make a clicking sound (you can hear the arm moving) every 10-15 seconds and the HDD starts to spin (this sound could also be from the GFX-card's fan but the sound also comes on when I'm using the intel graphics).
So does this mean that there is a program that works in the background (the computer started to make sound before I had installed any programs) or is my harddrive busted (when I run Crystal Diskinfo it says the disk is fine)?
The sound is really annoying!

 

Thanks again Bronsky! Do you know those other clockgens that I could use? The instability occurs after adjusting the bus speed and hitting the setfsb, it lets you move the cursors for a couple of seconds and then freezes. Or lets you open an application and crashes it afterward. I'll run it under a stress test once I get a more stable bus speed. ATM, i am able to run at 145 mhz without any issues, temps below 50C, browsing with several other apps open. I apologize as I can't upload some pics today my phone won't allow it darn phone..

 

These guys can tell you better than I. I deleted all of the emails back and forth.

Bronsky

@ all - I'm trying to develop some benchmarks for engineering and scientific programs. Anybody know a good benchmark for Matlab? How about CS5? Would also like to bench a 3D modeling and a CAD program. I am open to suggestions.

 

I guess you have an Western Digital HDD.

if so:
1: download quiethdd quietHDD
2: start it and go to misc page, untick APM (advanced power management) and AAM (acoustics management) and hit apply.
See if that helps.

My 3820TG also likes to do a lot of HDD work, all the time. An clean install of windows would surely help, which I'm going to do soon.

 

"very limited" I won't say, you are getting speeds in same ranges as we get. I'm getting 2880MHz (max 3200MHz turbo boost) stable. You say you crash at 148FSB, let's say 145 FSB is stable, at 145 FSB your i7 is at 2900MHz (max 3480MHz turbo boost).

Unless you are unlucky the chips are of the same quality, and only difference is the multiplier lock, max overclock should be about the same.

 

OCFreak whats the highest stable OC you can get? I've found my limit is 169.7 MHz. 172=176 will crash after a while, doesn't like threaded apps. So 169.7 is my max limit which really happy with. Just a shy of 3.4Ghz turbo boost.

 

Thanks OC-Freak for that info. I thought you guys were getting 160+ fsb stable, isn't that the case? Or maybe were looking at different numbers? Mine is stable at 145.7 MHz looking at cpu-z which is 158/760 on the slide bar of setfsb app. That's 2.9 GHz and 3.6 GHz (with x25 multiplier) regular and turbo respectively. I think it's not that much increase. Right? Hendrickson's OC's are much better.ü