3 pipe HS

Does Dell make a 3 pipe HS for the M17x R4? Thanks

 

Since the M17x isn't offered with an XM option, I don't believe they make an M17x triple pipe. The cpu heatsink design is different from the M18x as well, so an M18x triple pipe won't fit either. It would be a nice upgrade though, especially for those who want to upgrade to an XM CPU.

 

What sort of temps do you see at 3.9ghz?

 

Highest I've seen was 79C while running the 1024M TSBench. Normally max temps during benchmarking and CPU-heavy games like Crysis 3 are low 70s. I'm using the stock Dell TIM.

 

That gives some headroom as it is though, should be able to get mid 4ghz levels which is more than enough for a single card certainly for now

 

Also, is your m18x's cooling much better than the m17x's?

 

XoticPC offers the 3940XM on the M17x R4, so the heat sink must exist!

I actually just ordered an M17x R4 today. So, I'm interested in this as well!

 

Sorry for disappointing, but there's no 3-pipe for the M17x. And the M18x cooling design is superior to the M17x, not just the number of pipes. The R3 and R4 have some issues with cooling the XMs above 4 ghz, even with external cooler/repaste/clean vents, etc.

 

They're two different systems so it's kind of hard to compare. The 680m in my M17x r4 actually ran at little cooler at peak temps than the 680ms in my M18x, but the CPU and idle temps are lower in my M18x. There's no doubt that the M18x's cooling system is stronger than the M17x's though. It has to be in order to handle two 100w GPUs and an XM CPU.

Congrats on the pickup! Glad to hear you're getting another AW. The M17x is an awesome laptop, I loved mine

 

Thanks, I couldn't stay away from AW for long... Decided to go with the M17x for battery life (school), but I ordered the 120Hz screen assuming you could change it from 60 to 120 and vice-versa, but you can't! So, now I'm concerned with the battery life, but I don't want to cancel the order.

I feel like I said "but" too many times.

 

I would trade battery life for bragging about 3D any day.

 

The m17x has a slightly larger radiator for the gpu so it's no surprise it's somewhat cooler. The m18x on the other hand has the 3 pipe heatsink for the cpu. Would be nice to see a 3 pipe heatsink and the option for a 4930MX on the R5. The space on the cpu radiator is there for a third pipe. The m18x's cpu radiator also has a space for a 4th pipe.

 

Me too. I called and they told me I could return it if it was an issue...

 

That's interesting, I never thought to compare the heatsinks so I wasn't aware of that before. It makes sense though, since the M17x only has one GPU there is more space for a larger rad. The M18x still does an awesome job of cooling two 680ms. What's odd it how much lower the M18x idles. Neither laptop's fans run at idle, but my M17x idled in the 50-55C range, while the M18x idles in the 40s.

 

Hmm. That doesn't sound right. Probably a bad paste job. It should have been idling around 40c. What gpu did you have in the m17x? If it was a 7970m than that's normal. It idles higher because it doesn't underclock it's self nearly as much as a 680m would.

 

Really? I had the 680m. I made a post here asking if it was normal when I first got it, and everyone told me it was normal. It seemed really high to me too. The thing is it never broke 65C on stock clocks, even during heavy benchmarking. I think the highest temp I ever saw was around 70C, and that was at +300/600 running 3DMark 11 lol. It ran ridiculously cool at peak temps.

 

Meh. I don't know. If the fans are set up to not spin up till load is applied than there's your explanation but I'm really not sure.

It can be a number of reasons. For example I had experiences where with a new paste job I got higher idle temps but got lower load temps. lol

In any case high idle temps aren't much of a concern. It's the load temps you need to keep as low as possible. The m17x does an awesome job at keeping the core cool thanks to those 3 wide heatpipes and the large(for a notebook)radiator. Best cooling solution on the market.