AW M17x R4- RAM config. for gaming only

Hi everyoneAm building An m17x r4 specifically for gaming only.
And I got really confused by the frequencies and latencies.
Budget is ok, BUT I don't want to spend $$ on unnoticeable performancePlus,

am considering OVERCLOCKING in the near future, so I might want to leave some room for that.

Sorry if this have been discussed before, but there is always new hardware.

Thanks in advance

Lap specs: core i7-3630 +HD7970 (maby crossfired in future).

 

GPU will be the biggest FPS boost in terms of gaming. The 3630QM is a good processor.I bought just cheap CL10 ram from amazon for my laptop. They apparently make a slight difference for intel GPU gaming but no difference for normal gaming.

You may want the 3740QM if you want to overclock, the 3630QM is locked. Plus you can't cross fire in the m17x, the chassis does not fit 2 GPUs

 

You will hardly notice any gaming performance game, if at all, with specific speeds of ram. Even when OC'd.
Only advice would be to get 6-8Gb of RAM (more is overkill, and never used in games, ever).

Dish out your cash mainly for a top GPU, and a nice CPU if you have some left over. That's what I would invest in if I had to make the choice, instead of a specific brand or speed of RAM memory.

 

For the cpu: it says (2.4-3.4 Ghz) what does that mean?

For xfire: I contacted help from alienware site, asked him about upgrading the M17x to xfire, and he told me that it is possible.

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1: that means intel turbo boost, which will put 1 core up to 3.4ghz (whilst rest are low) or all 4 cores up to 3.2ghz. They overclock automatically. The 3740 is tweakable manually so you get faster speeds and is actually overclockable yourself.

2: The dell rep is wrong I guess. The m17x R1, R2 had dual gpu, then the dual GPU setups went to the M18x, and the M17x R3 and R4 are single GPU setups ONLY. I guess the dell rep is just confused. I have seen the inside of my M17x R4 and there is only 1 GPU slot

 

Then what is all the fuss about latency in RAMs? Also, Will it matter if i get a 2000Mhz RAM? I've read that I'll have to get > 3.66 Ghz to be able to use a 2000Mhz RAM

How will the CPU help gaming? Will matter?

Thanx in advance.

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The CPU uses intel's speedstep and turbo boost features. The lower number is the nominal speed but when nothing is happening it will drop to a low number (I see around 1.1Ghz) and then as the processor is stressed it will rise to the turbo max of 3.4Ghz.

You got the wrong info from whoever you spoke to . Only the R1/R2 had a motherboard with a second GPU slot. It's the M18x that is their only crossfire/SLi machine now.

 

I was depending on the xfire feature for future upgrades -_-.

Then I have two options:
1- Order the 17r4, then I'll have to CHANGE the GPU in future.
2- Order the 17r2, then the GPU is UPGRADABLE In futur.

How is the R4 better than the R2?

Will I get better in-game performance if I overclock the cpu manually over 3.2? I mean is it about the mechanism of the overlooking or it is about the max freq.?



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Three options, get an M18x!

The R4 has the latest family of GPU's, a very good iGPU, and a bunch of features that are newer tech. The R2 is still a very playable gaming rig - check out their owners lounge.

CPU overclocking is a waste of time for gaming. Even the lowest CPU offered by dell is plenty powerful enough for all the latest games. If you go for an AMD video the processor is a little more important since physics processing is handed off to the CPU. Apart from that it's a wash. My CPU has 3 preset overclocking options, I just selected the highest one because it was easy and I could Runs at just under 4Ghz when pushed

 

For cpu: as I thought

For the m18X: is is huuuge man, heavy and expensive also. Plus I'll have to worry about the bag too.

My current plan is: carrying the m17x & the PS4 both in a Slappa. The HDMI-in port is awesome in the m17x.

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Now back to the RAM.

Should I get a 8GB of a CL8? Or go for any 16GB RAM?

Will I need more than 8GB in a current game?

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Ho Ho, not so fast,
I'd like to argue about that.

I DEFINETLY have FPS gain when i OC my 920xm

 

I wouldn't worry about RAM timings (CL, which I think is to do with timings and latency)- unless you intend overclocking and benchmark numbers to be your new hobby. Just get the right speed (1600). Any 8Gb is considered to be more than enough for gaming, unless you intend to background run a CAD app :O

 

That's cool, at last someone that sees game improvements! The Extreme processors have a lot more in them to speed them up though. Not even listed any more for the R4. All I got was a barely discernible 2-3 FPS gain

And I see your hobby there - fun

 

So, 3740QM with 8GB CL8 sounds good huh?

Also, OC increases heat, right? Is it safe?

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It does, and if going to the limit (which I think you need an XM to do) you would be best advised to repaste it with good thermal compound. For me if I start hearing the CPU fan in windows it's time for a dust out

 

Basicly all overclocking is safe in theory.
When you OC for Benchmarks, thats just a few minutss stability, for number and wich what will result in maximum heat exposure.
If you keep that kind of OC state 24/7, your soldering will come lose, the Die will crack...etc etc....in short...you would need to find a basic stable 24/7 over clock.

Your hardware would need some serious upgrading though and that alone would set you back about ~$1000,00.
The main benefit of the Extreme CPU's compared to the "regular" CPU's is that the boosted clock can be set for ALL (4) cores.
A regular CPU can only boost 1 core to 3,2ghz....that boost level will drop to 2.8 on 2 cores....2,4 to 3 cores and 2.0 to all cores.

This is mainly done to preserve the lifespan of the hardware and the battery.
Your QM is already a Quad Core CPU wich can handle 8 seperate threads so that is already overkill for your basic Windows tasks.

The reality is that, only 10 to 20% of all applications are designed to be multi core threaded so you won't notice much of a difference between a mid-end Dual core and mid end Quad core CPU.

So usually, when you have a budget, just stick to your entry CPU and take a high end GPU

 

Everything unphoto says :thumbsup:

My last desktop build (on water) had a 2.2 CPU, stable at 4.7 and benchmark at 5.1. Lots of voltage tweaks though...

 

Thanks unphoto, was really helpful.

Am settled now on the 3740QM. Will see how it gonna OC.

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1- Just to be clear, If I get the 3740QM, this one is not locked and can be OC on all cores right? Will I need any hardware upgrades to OC this CPU? What are they?

2- when you say "10 to 20 % of applications..." do you mean games also? I mean does games need or use more than one core?

3- all what I care about is: in-game performance, so do you think I'll need to OC the CPU to improve In-game performance? Coz I will not use the this laptop for anything other than Gaming... no CAD nor video rendering whatsoever.

Thanks in advance.

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1. 3740QM can be overclocked in BIOS, not locked.

2. Not all games utilize quad cores and run off only 1 or 2 core.

placing an OC on your CPU depends on your GPU, are you going AMD or Nvidia? At best with the R4 you will see up to 8 FPS in very short burst (avg maybe 4fps steady) with a heavy OC on the CPU, but that's with a 400mhz increase to the 1st core... not a stable 24/7 gaming clock IMHO. 40,39,38,38

View this comparison for GPUs, this is where the bang for the buck makes the biggest difference for gaming.
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Update-Radeon-HD-7970M-vs-GeForce-GTX-680M.87744.0.html

 

What a coincidence, I've seen this comparison yesterday.

Generally I was settled on AMD, but when I saw the following info I started second guessing... which is:

----------------------------------
We noticed several graphical flaws in a number of games, some of which were also prominent in our previous comparison review:

1- Far Cry 3: annoying graphical errors (black blocks) in DirectX-11 mode.
2- Assassin's Creed III: very low performance.
3- F1 2012: The race simulation refuses to start.
4- Borderlands 2: Display errors (black line at the bottom).
5- Modern Warfare 3: delayed loading and strange stuttering depite high frame rate.
------------------------------------

Is this how the 7970 perform?

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Can't say about the 7970 but if you go for AMD then overclocking the CPU will make a difference in some games due to the fact that it (GPU) off-loads physics to the CPU. Don't know BY how much though...

 

IMO you shouldn't overclock ANYTHING-it's been shown that it kills CPUs and GPUs pretty fast, even when they appear 100% stable. I woudln't do it on a DESKTOP, let alone a notebook.

Then too, most current CPUs already overclock themselves as conditions allow. My M17x-R4's 2.4GHz CPU maintatins a 3.2GHz clock speed when pushed to 100% on all 4 cores, which is pretty impressive. Of course that's in a climate controlled room that's just a bit over 70F, but still. The Geforce GTX 680 maintains a slight (self) overclock too, from 720MHz official speed to 758MHz, under 100% load.

As others have mentioned, there's no SLI/Crossfire in the M17x, and I can't imagine buying an R2...it's years out of date, and the best AMD and Nvidia GPUs now probably blow away the two older GPUs you can use in an R2, and without the complexity of SLI/Crossfire. Just pointless, unless you got one cheap.

The one consideration I'd have for RAM, is that while the R4 has 4 DIMM slots, two of them are very difficult to get at (two are super easy). For that reason, you might consider filling them with 8GB (2x4GB) from the factory, so that it's in full dual channel mode. Otherwise, getting at those DIMMs is super hard (although Dell does give you step by step instructions). That's also true for the optical drive, unfortunately, though thankfully both hard drives are easy to swap.

I have 24GB in mine, not for any good reason, I just happened to have another 16GB laying around I could throw in. I'm running Windows 8, bunch of programs open, and the most I've ever seen it actively use is around 4GB, a bit over 10GB in use counting both active use and cached stuff.

Honestly 4GB seems to work okay for modern Windows, even for games. 8GB is probably toooootally fine, and you can easily add another 16GB to the other two DIMM slots later if you want. 24 is just ludicrous, 'cause why not?

 

There are a LOT of people OC'ing their GPU without issue. Only failure I have seen is when a voltage increase has been used. 'It's been shown'?? I'd like to see that, been doing it for years and never toasted a part!

 

There's no such thing as "without issue". You're reducing the chip's lifespan by doing it. This was always assumed, but has now been proven. It's pretty pointless too...and something a lot of people may not realize, thinking they're not doing anything bad to their system. No big deal perhaps if you upgrade every year, but...

 

I have to disagree. I have not seen any 'proven'. The manufactures build in an overhead for quality control, OC just uses it.

OC'ing the CPU does not give you that much for a gaming rig but I find the OC on the GPU gives excellent results. Latest tomb raider goes from 25-30fps to 40-50fps with a boost to 720 (from 610). I have tested it to destruction (well failure) and at around 725mhz it starts to artifact, telling me it needs more voltage. Not going down that road on a laptop!

So far it's let me wait and see instead of getting the 680m. Once a game really drags with high settings is when I'll jump

 

The various hardware sites carried articles about the research in the past couple months. It's a fact-overclocking shortens the life of any component. We've always known that almost certainly had to be the case, but didn't technically know for sure until recently.

True, but not relevant. You're still shortening the lifespan.

If you're prepared to buy a new one anyway, then that's fine, it's just most people doing this don't understand that A) their hardware already overclocks itself anyway, and B) they're shortening it's usable life down significantly. I've always said if you're prepared to overclock, you'd better be prepared to buy entirely new hardware.

 

It's just the 'significantly' that does not appear to be the case but maybe the difference between it lasting a couple of years or running forever? No one here has burned out a GPU yet and there are a lot of OC'ers. Like I said anyone that goes for overvolting IS asking for trouble on a laptop and a couple of them have burned out.

I only OC to get better gaming and put it as stock all other times. Today's latest cards don't need OC IMO since they are keeping up with the latest games, but for people like me with a lower GPU it's an option to delay the next investment

 

You're just venting your personal opinion (which is fine) and not basing on facts, I totally disagree with you.

In fact, lately a lot of GPU vendors offer special versions of cards, which have a certain degree of OCing already applied from the factory (Gigahertz editions etc).
Same goes for Alienware, they offer OCing out of the box for certain components themselves.
Heck, it's what most of us buy alienwares with XM cpu's and SLI/XF cards for, to OC the crap out of it, just caus its possible.

As long as you don't touch voltages and do really serious stuff, there is no reason at all to state OCing kills hardware, it's just not true.
I would agree that with really, really, really serious OCing, pushing your hardware over it's limits daily (I mean Mr. Fox style OCing, but then by someone without his knowledge) without adequate cooling and not knowing what you are doing, overvolting, change vbioses, custom bioses and this all combined, and also not monitoring stuff you should while doing this, it could possibly shorten the lifespan of your hardware and possibly could cause failure.

But for 99% of the people who OC here, not a problem.

 

I am not "venting personal opinion". This has been statistically proven to be true now. As Mickey says, it may not be relevant for everyone, if a few years use is okay for you, but it does shorten the lifespan of both CPUs and GPUs. Just because you don't like a fact doesn't turn a fact into a "personal opinion".

 

Depends what you look for, it is a personal opinion. Which I respect by the way, but I just don't agree.

It also depends on what the definition of Overclocking is, as long as you stay within the boundaries of the manufacturers hardware specifications, I am confident OC-ing has no risk.
It's the combination of OC-ing, and hardware that already is faulty, that will speed up the process. Same for Temperatures, if you have a cooling problem, it will show when you OC way faster then on stock speeds.
I also personally rate , for example, Furmark benchmark software way more dangerous then Overclocking, I've seen more posts of GPU's failing due to furmark, then I have seen posts of hardware getting defective with the cause being Overclocking (the cause never is overclocking, but either someone not having a clue what they are doing, or someone overclocking on already defective hardware and next blame the overclocking for the defect).
Again, I do agree with you when we're talking about really extreme overclocking, but I don't think that's what we're on about now.

I drive a Ford, if I look up the net for ford making bad cars, I will find them.
If I look up the net for Ford being a brand making great cars, I will also find them.
These are not facts, just different context people look at it.

Personally, I only overclock for fun very occasionally to benchmark, but outside that 99% of the time I run everything on stock settings.
So where I don't agree with you that it's a fact that overclocking shortens the lifespan of your hardware and can cause defects, I do agree that with systems which cost a couple of thousands of dollars, I don't like to take to many risks even if I think it's not harmfull.

Let's just agree, we disagree

 

Thanks a lot for this great discussion.

That being said, am sticking with the stock CPU

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