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    GTX 580 Breakthrough!!!

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by james_2k, Aug 4, 2011.

  1. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    Woohoo!

    well sort of, i downgraded to bios A04 and it doesnt throttle any more!!

    lost 3d but who cares, we now know its the main bios doing the throttling!!


    so moral of the story is, if you want to benchmark the 580m, install bios A04 :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  2. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    Wow!!!!!!!!!! Can't believe it was the main bios, everyone thought it was the vbios or nvidia purposely downclocking the card, guess this is not the case. Take that amd fanboys, lol jk!!! ;)
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  3. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    :D its good news. but bitter sweet due to the loss of 3d. but i dont care at this point. 120hz is great :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  4. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    Ok I am new to overclocking video cards, have never done it before actually. Can anyone tell me the best program to use for the nvidia gtx 580m to overclock it, and also what program do I use to stress test it for stabilty???? Thanks guys. :D
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  5. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    msi afterburner is all you need.

    and stress test, your favorite game, or 3dmark11 :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  6. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    Report back when you find the highest stable core,memory and shader clocks and I will give it a run.
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  7. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    highest stable for me so far is 760 core 1900 memory

    hasnt crashed yet, but im scared to go higher :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  8. Mechanized Menace

    Mechanized Menace Lost in the MYST

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    Just remember when OC YMMV(Your Mileage May Vary). Not all GPU's/CPU's OC the same. So Nasty Nate you should probably go in increments to see what you can get and not jump right into 760/1900.
     
    Mechanized Menace, Aug 4, 2011
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  9. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    shader is auto linked.
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  10. Mechanized Menace

    Mechanized Menace Lost in the MYST

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    Was just about to edit my post.I am used to the older Nvidia cards, Didn't realize Fermi auto linked the shader to the core.
     
    Mechanized Menace, Aug 4, 2011
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  11. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    What about furmark or is that program dangerous?
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  12. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    i dont use it, i wouldnt want to risk it
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  13. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    Ok how long to I have to stress test the gpu to consider it to be stable? I know for cpu overclocking stability people suggest running prime95 overnight.
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  14. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    hmm. i just play some games :)

    have you tried 740 clocks with 3dmark11 yet?
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  15. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    A05 and A06 throttle? Someone needs to get ahold of the Dell dev team =/

    They keep mucking up everything they release. 5 more days for me =/
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 4, 2011
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  16. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    AO6 does throttle. havent tried 5
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  17. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    See if you can get A05 running on there...I don't OC myself, the 485M, when I had it, was WELL fast enough and ran Rift at max everything with supersampling on at about 30-40fps which was just about double :)
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 4, 2011
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  18. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    what does a05 offer over 4?
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  19. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    if you dont oc then you wont have any problems with a07 :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  20. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    I know but I like the option being there :)
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 4, 2011
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  21. widezu69

    widezu69 Goodbye Alienware

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    Maybe A05 offers 3D without the throttling...? :D
     
    widezu69, Aug 4, 2011
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  22. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    hehe, maybe it does :)

    cant find it though
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  23. svl7

    svl7 T|I

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    BIOS A05 has never been released for download. It performs worse than A04, not recommendable imo.
     
    svl7, Aug 4, 2011
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  24. widezu69

    widezu69 Goodbye Alienware

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    Wait so, you have 120Hz when using A04, it still works fine with the newer card but the 3D doesn't work?

    Edit: Perhaps someone can dissect the A07 bios and put the 3D info into the modded A04 bios :D
     
    widezu69, Aug 4, 2011
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  25. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    yeah no 3d. also i dont think display brightness is adjustable anymore :S
     
    james_2k, Aug 4, 2011
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  26. nastynate69

    nastynate69 Notebook Geek

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    What are the max safe temps for this card??
     
    nastynate69, Aug 4, 2011
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  27. zoolian982

    zoolian982 Notebook Deity

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    zoolian982, Aug 4, 2011
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  28. DR650SE

    DR650SE The Whiskey Barracuda

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    The fact that is the main bios means is an issue that Dell can fix it.

    I wish erwianela (sp?) was still around. I provided him with some very comprehensive test results which he took back to Dell engineering and gave the test results to them. Within a week they released a bios based on my tests. The issued a bios that gimped the xm cpus. A week after my tests a new bios was out. I wish i didn't have only my phone to browse or i would dig up my post. I literally ran tests all day. But it was all worth it. We had great support back then. That was last July or august. I miss erwianela. And it was one of my finer moments. :p



    EDIT: FOUND IT. BEHOLD. ONE OF MY GREATEST MOMENTS IN NBR history Please read my post here:
    http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ios-a08-discussion-thread-28.html#post6689471

    Its worth reading my post and about the next few pages. If some one can provide hard data like that, and send it to Dell engineering, they will likfly write a new bios. Someone should really put in the work. Gpu logs, screenshots ect. Telling you it will help your cause.
     
    DR650SE, Aug 4, 2011
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  29. Mechanized Menace

    Mechanized Menace Lost in the MYST

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    Erawnelia I used to butcher his name also. lol till someone said it was just Alienware spelled backwards. This though sounds like Intentionally induced throttling maybe like the SXPS 1640's.
     
    Mechanized Menace, Aug 4, 2011
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  30. bar-code

    bar-code Notebook Evangelist

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    Im pi$$ed that Dell are doing this intentionally, and currently am so tempted to return my 1week old m18x and go to another vendor who does not throttle.

    ati cards are hitting higher clocks and gpus running at 85c. Ok i admitt my 580m will not pass 73c on load but why is this specific to the nvidia cards.

    "Dell" if Nvidia are not throttling their own cards why r u!!
     
    bar-code, Aug 5, 2011
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  31. ichime

    ichime Notebook Elder

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    Temperature is not an absolute indicator of how much heat the card produces in the system. A 580M at 73 degrees is probably consuming more power and producing more heat than a 6990M at 85 degrees.
     
    ichime, Aug 5, 2011
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  32. bar-code

    bar-code Notebook Evangelist

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    hmm does this even make sense. I thought more power meant more heat.
    Anyway im dissappointed to say the least!
     
    bar-code, Aug 5, 2011
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  33. ichime

    ichime Notebook Elder

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    Think about it this way: A large cube that fills up half the room at 70 degrees C is going to make a room warmer than a much smaller cube at 100 degrees C. The 580M die is bigger than the 6990M die and thus has more area to dissipate the heat it produces.
     
    ichime, Aug 5, 2011
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  34. Shaden

    Shaden Notebook Deity

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    Also Bar-code remember that was only 1 internal sensor for my AMD card hitting 84C. And only ONE time in a LONG LONG List of temp readouts. The over all Temps (the simply GPU temp) is in the mid 70s ...

    But to be fair I imagine I could push farther but I think I am 'throttling' too (I am not really sure what throttling is) but I know it gets flickery and unstable and crashes out the test ... even though the heat isn't an issue.
     
    Shaden, Aug 5, 2011
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  35. Saltius

    Saltius Notebook Evangelist

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    Maybe Dell knows that the Delta 330W adapter can't afford your dual 580M when overvolted. That may be nothing to do with the 580M's heat as M18x can handle it well but power consumption the Delta adapter can't.
     
    Saltius, Aug 5, 2011
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  36. DR650SE

    DR650SE The Whiskey Barracuda

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    The adaptor is rated for 330W So I doubt that is the case. I've seen my 240W PSU pull over 280W. My guess is that dell did it to reduce the number of cards they had to replace due to overvolting/benching. Keep in mind they frequent these forums as well. That is why I think throttle stop resulted in a lockbit that prevents the TDP from being adjusted via software on the new sandy bridge.

    My guess is the $$$ is the reason Dell is putting these safety limits on thier computers. Keep in mind the M17x R2 is a system that can be pushed to the point of damaging itself. That is a loss of profit for dell. My guess is this is the trend for computer manufacturers from here on out. Overclocking is going to be a thing of the past. :(
     
    DR650SE, Aug 5, 2011
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  37. ichime

    ichime Notebook Elder

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    an overvolted GTX 580M becomes a 150-170w TDP card @ GTX 560Ti clocks. Imagine two of those in SLi... :/
     
    ichime, Aug 5, 2011
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  38. DeeX

    DeeX THz

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    the 580m Throttles? o_O not again :<
     
    DeeX, Aug 5, 2011
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  39. Saltius

    Saltius Notebook Evangelist

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    GTX580M has 5-phase power supply among which 4 for core and 1 for vram.

    If one phase for core allows 35A max(quite a high value for a mobile card), that should be 35A*0.92v*4=128.8w for core.

    Added 20w for vram, we get nearly 150w power consumption max.
     
    Saltius, Aug 5, 2011
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  40. Special_K

    Special_K Notebook Guru

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    Has anyone tried flashing the clevo BIOS I provided and see just maybe if that fixes our issue?
     
    Special_K, Aug 5, 2011
    #40
  41. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    it doesnt.

    but if you read the thread. flashing A04 does :)
     
    james_2k, Aug 5, 2011
    #41
  42. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    flashed this modded a04. and i have brightness control back. dont know if it was a fluke or not but seems fine. still no 3d.
     
    james_2k, Aug 5, 2011
    #42
  43. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    You still butchered it ;)
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 5, 2011
    #43
  44. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    news: the 580 seems to throttle at about 78/80 degrees C also. but for a shorter amount of time than the dell throttle.

    putting a book under the laptop decreased temperatures enough to allow constant play at the overclock settings (about 70 degs)
     
    james_2k, Aug 6, 2011
    #44
  45. james_2k

    james_2k Notebook Evangelist

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    guys with 580s. what are your idle and load temps?

    (not just after startup but after its been running a while)
     
    james_2k, Aug 7, 2011
    #45
  46. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    Just FYI I was able to temporarily get the throttle removed on A08...Can't figure out why but it WAS working.

    Also, Furmark heats the GPU up to the dell throttle after about 4 seconds...

    This is getting ridiculous someone needs to get ahold of the team that handles this stuff. I am so angry. I lost like 4 hours of my life on it :'(
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 17, 2011
    #46
  47. zoolian982

    zoolian982 Notebook Deity

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    Dear Nvidia,

    Please remove the throttling on the 580m cards.

    kthxbye.
     
    zoolian982, Aug 17, 2011
    #47
  48. LVNeptune

    LVNeptune Notebook Virtuoso

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    actually the throttle by nvidia isnt bad the dell bios throttle is horrible.
     
    LVNeptune, Aug 17, 2011
    #48