Best M17X cooling solution?

Does anyone have an opinion on the best cooling solution for an M17X? I just discovered that if i elevate the back of my laptop off my desk by an inch my temps went down a good 10 degrees C. I of course ramped up my TDP to 80 and TDC to 70 and i am much happier with performance but i currently have the back of my laptop sitting on a DVD case. Is there any more elegant solutions that anyone can recommend?

 

Freskogel: piedini rialzanti per notebook

I'm italian and I found this. Sorry...but I think that you can understand with the image.

It says that they are without glue so they don't leave any trace on your m17x

 

As simple as a laptop cooler like the NZXT Cryo Lx.

 

coolermaster notepal u3 ftw!

 

Hey "Captain X" thanks. I'm ordering a Cooler Master U3 right now from Amazon. Looks and sounds like a great product. Cheers!

 

I've got four little rubber 'feet' that are about 3/8" thick that are stuck to the bottom of mine. I run 800/1100 GPU and 85/70 CPU all of the time. The GPU temps never go above about 72°C with no cooler. I just don't want to carry a notebook cooler with me everywhere I go. The USB powered ones are relatively useless IMO. I travel with my M17x daily though. If you leave your laptop stationary, that cooler will work well for you.

 

I essentially always do leave it stationary, and the way mine is situated it seems like it isn't easy to access the upper touch panel controls. If it is oriented at an angle, such as would be the case with this cooling stand, the whole usability of it would improve for me. I also use a Logitech diNovo Edge keyboard, and with that in front of the Alien it seems like a long reach to the (admittedly occasional) touch controls.

I hope I'm making the right choice. Oh well, it isn't really that expensive.

 

that's a good solution lifting your rig has a great influence over air flow.

 

Yeah, I've seen lower temperatures all around. I'm still able to slip the cloth sleeve around it too. I built a ghetto cooler with three 120mm fans that runs off of AC power. That keeps it very cool, but like I said earlier, I travel with the laptop constantly.

 

Just got and setup my ZALMAN ZM-NC3000U and the change in my temps is huge. I am now able to run 85/70 on the CPU without issue which is great. I usually use RealTemp to monitor my CPU temps but decided to install HWMonitor when testing out my new cooler. I noticed that it is not giving me temp readouts for my GPU's only the current voltage. Is this normal for a 4870 CF setup or is something wrong?

 

I can confirm that this is a great method of cooling - Notepal u3....In my opinion, better than a cryo and I have used both....

 

totally agree with stevie here. notepal u3 is just awesome for its price

 

The Notepal is the poormans NZXT i don't see why will it be better?Guess opinions are split.

 

it aint about the cost of it, its the performance....why pay £60 for a flash lump of metal that doesnt cool as well as something that cost £20 and cools one heck of alot better! - must just be how the cryo "looks" lol - each to their own tho i guess.

I benched both of them, the cryo did not reduce temps in the same fashionn as the u3.

Thats why i returned my cryo and stuck with the u3.

 

Hey Steve, that's good (for me) to hear, as I recently purchased the U3 myself. I don't have it yet, but none of the reviews I read about it could find hardly anything bad to say about it.

 

that's not entirely true. why spend more than you have to when you can get the job done from spending less? besides, it's not like NZXT is better than U3 (apart from being overpriced and overhyped), the cooling performance is either equal or less compared to U3. U3's cooling ability and design win hands down and throw in affordability, it's a no brainer. if you do a search, my cooling results with u3 even surpassed many other members who are using NZXT.

 

Its a top notch cooler Dave, you will be very happy with it i'm sure...I had spent ages trying to find it onl sale here in the UK to no avail, then all of a sudden...bam...there it was! - got a great deal on mine...only cost £17.99gpb and the next day, the price went up to over £30gbp so I was made up....(maybe Coolermaster were using a Dell-style pricing policy and just decided to add another 50% for no reason in the UK.....reminicent of the R3 eh? )

 

Well, the U3 doesn't look quite as sexy as some of the other biggies out there, but then I once heard that one should never use more technology than necessary to solve a problem elegantly (ironic for Alienware owners?). The U3 seems very simple, robust, and the design seems flexible/unconfined. I would have been willing to pay more, but didn't have to.

 

The great thing that I found with the u3 (apart from its cooling abilities) is that the notebook sits really well on it....hard to describe but you will know when you set it up.

Basically, when i had the cryo, because the height of it at the front was quite "high", it lifted the notebook from the desktop a fair margin, meaning that where your wrists lay on the desk had to be "higher up" to type.

Becasue the u3 design is very slender at the leading front edge, the bottom of the notebook is at the same level as the desk you have it all sat on and it makes for more comfortable typing.

I found that with the cryo, my arms and wrists felt "un natural" in terms of reaching the keyboard....with the u3, my forearms and hands dont have to "reach up" to the keyboard anywhere near as much as with the cryo....

The leading front edge of my notebook is more or less flush with my desktop because the u3 is so slender in design. The cryo, being more robust, made the leading front edge about 2cm higher than the desktop.

Hope that kinda makes sense but its another factor that makes me love the u3.

You will see what i mean when you get it Dave, let me know how you find it!

 

I will stand by what others have been saying. The U3 is amazing! I have had mine for months now. B4 I had it, when playing FFXIV I would see temps of 'round 75-80. When playing on the U3 I only get temps of 60-65 and the internal laptop fans only kick in on the low settings. This thing is quiet too man. when I first started using it I had to keep checking to see if it was working. It is just so damn quiet I really cant tell if the fans are running 0_o I love it! You will too man!

 

I agree with the awkward typing position the NZXT causes.
For that reason I bought a usb keyboard to use.
If I had seen the U3 I probably would have bought that instead.... oh well.
I already replaced the fans on the NZXT to more efficient fans anyways (quieter yet push more air) so I will keep this for now.

I use to use this product called laptop legs on my inspiron which would raise it's back up to 3 different heights, worked great.
But, they don't work on the alienware due to not having good placement to stick them on (would block air vents or make it lopsided)

D.

 

Has anyone tried one of these?

Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER SF-19 Strike Force Notebook Cooler Model SGA-6000-KKYF1

I like the looks and the large fans, and the UBS 3.0 ports, but its so expensive.

I've always been a fan of laptop coolers as I believe they are a great insurance policy for any laptop, but I worry sometimes that they might disrupt the natural airflow your laptop was intended for and actually do more harm than good. Which is why I like the USB powered ones as they don't seem to be strong enough to cause any harm, yet still lift your laptop to a good height for typing and still reduce temperatures.

Where did you get these? I'd be interested in some large rubber grommet style feet (like these) to put on the bottom (large so its stable). Another question is how did you attach them? I imagine stuffing the laptop in my bag everyday that the feet would fall off unless they were screwed on.

 

Someone on these boards bought the strikeforce with usb 3 on it.
They said that they really like it.

I am tempted to get one, but I really don't NEED it (just want)

D.

 

Same here, I've got two notebook coolers but I just really like the look and features of the Strikeforce. Its almost worth saving the $25-$45 to get the USB 2.0 version.

Notebook coolers are like Pokemon.. I gotta collect 'em all or I'll never be satisfied.

 

LOL, yeah.

I have a usb 3.0 expresscard so that may be worth it for me... but the wife may take question to another one showing up

D.

 

I have a NZXT Cryo Lx and I have to say I didn't notice much difference in temperaures when using it with my M17x R1. Worst part is the latop still crapped out.

I doubt it was temperatures though I just think nvidia suck at making mobile graphics cards 8800m GTX, 9800m GTX and GTX 260m all broke I'm glad they don't make those cards anymore I'll bet there are a lot of really unhappy customers out there!!

 

Hi, I just got the Cooler Master u3, but it does not work as I was expecting, it only helps at idle, but at full load the temperatures are exactly the same I was getting when lifting the back of the latop. What is the right way of placing the fans? I have one fan per video pard and the other for the system fan. HELP !

 

I've got 103 degree on my first GPU with 98% load today and I realize it quite hight temp, how could I cooler it down? My notebook cooler didn't help...

 

I see you have the 5870mmhave you tried the retentio clip mod,a repaste also.
There's a detailed thread about it on the forum,do a search for internal cooling mod.

cheers

 

Did anyone tired to use your m17x outside during winter? or put some ice around m17x

 

you don't want humidity next to your laptop
and yes some have tried "freezing" it.

 

Mandrake had it with his r3 when he had it. It's expensive though.

EDIT: What are those rubber ball things called that you split in half and use to raise your computer? I can't seem to find them on newegg.

 

cooler master u3 guide?