M17x R4 - Lost Nvidia GPU

Well I was drunk a few weekends ago and I put an ebay bid on an M17x R4 that was listed as having random BSOD crashes. I couldn't reduce my max bid the next day and I ended up reluctantly winning the machine 6 days later with my max bid of $401AUD ($270USD).
She rocked up yesterday and last night I threw in an old Samsung 830 SSD and installed Windows 10. Everything seemed to install fine including the Nvidia driver but as soon as I ran 3DMark, the GPU crashed and when the machine restarted the 675M wasn't recognised in Device Manager or the BIOS.

I'm going to assume the GPU is cooked unless anyone has any ideas.....

I threw a 7970M in her and ran the old 3DMark11 benchmark and she seemed to work fine with a score of about 7300 but I'll try a Time Spy and Fire Strike tonight.

 

D E D ... lol

 

Definitely dead, crappy GPU anyway so I guess it did you a favour. Get a cheap 970M/980M if you prefer to spend little on it or keep the 7970M just do not OC it as they have terrible solder job on the die so too much heat will kill it fast overtime.

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Yeah I'm tempted to find a decently priced 980M. I've ordered a brand new LCD lid for $35 so hopefully the BSOD's are gone and she'll be a decent laptop. I'm starting to get a good collection of dead GPU's though.

 

For some stupid reason I can’t get Windows 10 to activate on this machine. It’s working but it’s asking for a key. It had Windows 7 on it when it got to me and I’ve used the same Windows 10 USB on all my other machines to upgrade them without an issue and they’ve never asked me for a key before.
There’s no way the motherboard has been changed recently because the thermal paste definitely looked a hundred years old and it still had the original thick sticky thermal pads on the GPU.
Has Microsoft shut the door recently on sneaking free upgrades using a USB?


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There are uh... ways to activate windows 10 without a key, or just use windows 7-8.1 keys without any hassle.
If you need a GPU just to do a couple of light tasks, FP M6100's are insanely cheap for being a R7 260, and can be overclocked.

 

yes , Microsoft will ask for a key if there is no windows 10 COA embedded in the mobo.

 

Well they used to let me do it, those bastards. I guess I'll just run a non-activated version or put Windows 7 Pro back on it.

 

Again, there are ways to activate it without a key (of which I obviously do not advocate for and will not link to, or mention the guide that resides on certain reddit forum that Jack Sparrow might like to browse.)

 

On an unrelated note, I'm just gonna head over to Reddit to.......watch NSFW videos....yeah that

 

Check out the forums at My Digital Life, they might have what you need, you need an account to get it but you can browse without.


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Funny cat videos anyone?

 

Good news, I didn't have to visit jack Sparrow after all.

I put the original HDD's back in and used my Alienware Windows 7 Pro installation CD. Once that was all done including all drivers and updates (jeeeezus I forgot how long Windows 7 takes to install) I used the Microsoft media Creation Tool for Windows 10 selecting the Upgrade this PC option rather than using a USB like I usually do. After installation it still hadn't activated and it just said that it could not connect with the Activation Servers. I just turned the machine on after a few days and now it's all sweet!
Maybe they used an unlicensed version of Win7 previously on this machine.

 

I have a used 980m that I grabbed from my friend's Alienware 18. If you want it, just pay the shipping and its yours.

 

Really? That sounds like a pretty good deal. Almost too good to be true....It’s just after midnight here though and I have to be up at 5:30am so I’ll discuss it tomorrow if that’s ok. Cheers.


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It had been used quite heavily by my friend for 2 years, so I'm not sure how long will it last though.

 

I'm surprised you haven't thrown it into your M17x

 

It's a hot card. That's why I hesitate to use it.

 

If you're US, and the offer to pay shipping is still open, please let me know
Regardless, if even youre not US, and the offer is still open, I am open to consideration.

 

You can take it King. I don’t want to risk adding another dead card to my collection.


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If he decides to choose me, would be great! Was planning on picking up a cheap Zbook for it's docking station

 

Just received my new soft-touch lid for the M17x. The previous owner took no pride in this old girl but she’ll be purring now.




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I think I'm going to experiment with the old lid to see what resprayed soft-touch comes out like.

 

It’s not a new paint job but it’s still very satisfying.







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