M17x r3 680M compatability

As far as I can tell they use an inf that contains all the device ID's and machine ID's out there, so it should be good for any machine. They simply modify the version specific bits every release and add in any new cards.

 

Awesome, i wasnt sure if you had to add your device id to the search bar at the top of the driver page and filter out your machine.

Thanks Micky.

 

You're welcome.

You can do it that way, I tried it and it works, although it offered me an earlier release so it might be just a check that your ID is in their inf??

 

well now I am getting 6 beeps and not able to get into bios

 

Aw man, that sucks!

Looks like you'll have to try: remove the cmos battery, hold down the power button for a few seconds and replace it. This should default the bios. If no joy, you are probably going to have to blind flash it. There are plenty of threads on this but make sure you do not use an earlier release ROM file than the one you have in it as this can be disastrous!

You might have to remove the 680 at some point to see if that gets it to POST?

 

I removed the cmos and no go...still 6 beeps. won't even go to bios.
I will have to give it another go in a few hours as I have to head out for a bit. I will look for the blind flash guide when I get back unless someone already has a link and could point me in the right direction.

 

I don't have one I can recommend but the beep code is video card failure so I'm thinking with your iGPU disabled something had caused it to not see the NV card at all. Taking it out might force it to use the iGPU if the bios is now defaulted? Good luck.

 

well I did the blind flash and managed to get windows to run on the IGPU however now my 680m is not detected in the bios or windows. I removed the card repasted and reinstalled the card and it still isn't being detected...any ideas or is my card a dud?

 

This is what worked for me:

Remove the 680
Remove cmos battery and power drain the system (power button for 10 seconds with no power to the laptop)
Reboot into your bios (assuming you have the unlocked bios, A08 or A12 I guess it would be, I have A08 unlocked)
Disable your IGP and enable PEG
Save and exit, shut the computer down
Install the 680m
Boot the system
680 should show as "Standard VGA Adapter"
Install driver with the modded INF file
Enjoy 680m

 

Sooooo can somebody say if which is better or recommended 2GB or 4Gb 680?

 

There is absolutely no difference between the two, unless you are going to run a 3 monitor setup with huge resolution.

 

Unlocked A12 bios ? Downloads
Windows ?

Windows 7 :

Enter the A12 unlocked bios, disable the integrated graphics Advanced Menu>Video Configuration>disable IGP and set PEG.
Download Nvidia driver NVIDIA DRIVERS 310.90WHQL
1-Install Nvidia driver.
2-extract.
3-Installation failed>close dialog.
4-Browse the extracted Nvidia folder>open Display.Driver folder> copy and replace nvdm.inf.
5-Run setup.exe within the extracted Nvidia folder.
6-Select custom install>next>Check clean install option>uncheck Nvidia update.
Use this .inf http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...compatability-nvdm-m17xr3-gtx680m-v310.90.zip

Triple post

 

Yeh but 4GB sounds cool. Well worth te extra £100 :/

 

Unlocked A12 bios running Windows 8
Should i have the card out of the machine before changing to PEG and disabling the IGP as Slim Shady has suggested? right now the card is not seen in bios only the intel graphics. device manager doesn't see it either.
I had the card working yesterday for about an hour, but couldn't get the drivers to instal (followed your guide) it would start to instal and then would just stop and say it failed then the screen froze a a few seconds after boot up.
after that i got a black screen, but could hear windows start...then just a black screen and i couldn't get into the bios.
i did a blind flash and got windows to start with IGP, and now just trying to figure out whats next.
i was going to try Slim's steps shortly to see if it forces the bios to see the 680m (just have to drop my daughter off at daycare first)

and its a 2GB card if that makes a difference.

 

ok so again I removed the card, disabled igpu and set to PEG installed the card and nothing happens but a black screen and 6 beeps.

 

Sounds like a dead card, my friend. You have some sort of warranty, surely?

 

thats what i thought. my 460M started up just fine when i reinstalled it this morning.
i have messaged the seller (upgrade monkey) on e-bay as they warranty DOA cards.
hopefully there won't be any issues getting a new card.

 

Unfortunately I was coming to the same conclusion. Shame you had to go through all that pain but you have exhausted all options (make sure you log a DOA )

Good Luck.

 

For windows 8 , repeat disable IGP and set PEG.

Disable driver signing.

1) Open command prompt (Admin) windows key + X
2) Type "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning yes" (without quotes) enter.
3) Type exit> reboot.
4) Install>reboot
5) Repeat/replace with "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning no" reboot.

 

Will this help the bios detect the card or would this only apply when i get another card?

 

You said the card worked for an hour and couldn't install the drivers, it's not dead; windows 8 won't install modded drivers so disable driver signing with IGP disabled and PEG enabled.


1-Install Nvidia driver.
2-extract.
3-Installation failed>close dialog.
4-Browse the extracted Nvidia folder>open Display.Driver folder> copy and replace nvdm.inf.
5-Run setup.exe within the extracted Nvidia folder.
6-Select custom install>next>Check clean install option>uncheck Nvidia update.
Use this http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...compatability-nvdm-m17xr3-gtx680m-v310.90.zip

 

at first it wouldn't install the drivers..then it suddenly froze the screen and now i can't get the bios to recognize the card. i put my 460m back in and it started up fine.

 

Disabled driver signing, rebooted watermark windows 8 test mode ?

 

sorry j95 but you lost me there

 

Windows 8 GTX 680M installation (Windows 7 skip step 2 and 4).

Thermal Pad Placement.



Verify that the card is properly seated http://youtu.be/6vEk_ZFAzLI?t=3m51s

1) Enter the A12 unlocked bios M17x R3 BIOS A12 - unlocked & 'SATA fix' disable the integrated graphics, Advanced Menu>Video Configuration>integrated graphics disabled>set display to PEG>F10>reboot.


2) Once in windows disable driver signing.

.1 -Open command prompt (Admin) windows key + X

.2 -Type "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning yes" (without quotes) enter.

.3 -"The operation concluded successfully"

.4 -Type exit> reboot.



3) Driver installation.

Download GeForce 344.11 WHQL

.1 Extract driver using 7-Zip/winrar. Right click extract to "3xx.xx-notebook-win8-win7-64bit-international-whql"

.2 -Display.Driver folder -> copy/overwrite nvdmi.inf.

.3 -Extracted 3xx.xx-notebook-win8-win7-64bit-international\ run setup.exe

.4 -Select custom install -> check clean install option.

.5 -Reboot.

nvdmi.inf (unzip) Modded nvdmi.inf v344.11

Exit test mode:

.1 -Command prompt (Admin) windows key + X

.2 -Type "bcdedit /set {current} testsigning no" enter.

.3 -"The operation concluded successfully"

.4 -Type exit>reboot.




How To: Flash Nvidia cards within Windows.(DOS method is safer [GUIDE] NVIDIA VBIOS flashing)


Download nvflash 5.118 to desktop Download NVFlash 5.118 for Windows | techPowerUp>extract>open nvflash folder copy/paste .rom file (vbios).


Open Command prompt (Admin)

1-Type "cd C:\Users\"your user name"\Desktop\nvflash_windows_5.118" (without quotes) hit enter.

2-Back up first. Type "nvflash.exe -b backup.rom" hit enter (with spaces)

3-Vbios flash. Type "nvflash.exe -6 vbiosname.rom" hit enter.

4-Type "y" twice to confirm (override mismatches)

5-"Flash successful">reboot.


Clevo cards Downloads
Dell cards Downloads

NVIDIA Kepler VBIOS mods - Overclocking Editions, modified clocks, voltage tweaks



Guide Optimizing GPU FPS Rendering (TimerResolution.exe) http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/710325-crysis-3-performance-r3-2.html#post9107772



[Guide] Alienware M17XR3 Windows 8 Clean Install + Drivers

 

ok yes i got all that. the only problem is as soon as i enable peg and disable the IGP with the 680m installed i get a black screen and 6 beeps the bios won't register the card so i can't get to windows in order to complete the process.

 

"I had the card working yesterday for about an hour, but couldn't get the drivers to instal (followed your guide) it would start to instal and then would just stop and say it failed then the screen froze a a few seconds after boot up"
No beeps ?

 

my apologies. I had put it in a previous post a couple of pages back and for some reason i thought you were involved with that part.

 

The card worked for about an hour with microsoft basic display driver ?

 

that's right. then all of a sudden the screen froze. i rebooted and got the black screen and beeps

 

The screen froze only after attempting driver installation ?
Did you hear the gpu fan spinning during that time?

That is strange, maybe faulty vram.

 

to be honest i don't remember if the fans were running or not...was pretty frustrated by that point and yes it only froze after attempting driver installation. i have contacted the seller and sent them some info the requested, now i'm just waiting to hear back from them.

 

Handle the new card with the ESD bag (anti-static) or Anti-Static Wrist Strap Amazon.com: Anti-Static Wrist Strap Grounding Cord with Adjustable Band: Computers & Accessories and follow the windows 8 installation guide.

Good luck!

 

will do and thanks for the guide!

 

Hmmm. Also pulled the trigger and ordered one for my M17x r3, will report my experience once the card reaches me.. (hopefully soon!) Hehe..

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2

 

Works IGP HD3000 with installed GTX 680m ?

 

It doesn't http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/672230-m17x-r3-680m-compatability-63.html#post9038829

 

Hi guys, just received and installed my GTX 680m today, installed the drivers and disabled the IGP, but currently having a problem that the card does not switch to performance state when running 3d applications. It just stays at lowest performance state.. And i have my power plan on high performance BTW.. Any ideas would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

I have a question for folks running the 680m in an R3. A few pages back in the thread, someone indicated that they were gaming on battery and didn't realize it because the frame rates stayed good. While some may view this as a good thing, it seems like a bad thing to me. If the card does not downclock automatically on battery then the run time for the laptop will be very poor. Right now I can get 2.5 hours out of my laptop on battery. (It's 3D so it doesn't have switchable graphics) While this is not awesome battery life, it is good for my needs. I can live without the 3D. I would be unhappy if my laptop only ran 45 minutes on battery before it was dead, though.

Can you elaborate on whether it behaves like the 580m as far as power saving when unplugged? If it will still run a couple of hours on battery then this looks like a go for me too.

Thanks

 

Ok, I fixed my problem by flashing the VBIOS, seems the stock VBIOS was throttling, now evything is running fine, managed to get 22990 on 3DMark06.. seems a bit low, but still ok.
And to answer your question, i just ran my laptop on batteries with IGP disabled and was able to get roughly 2:40-3hours battery time, and that's more than acceptable for me.

 

Latest GTX 680M vbios mods. NVIDIA Kepler VBIOS mods - Overclocking Editions, modified clocks, voltage tweaks

 

Excellent. That means it is working just like the 580m. You guys are spoiled with the IGP. You get crazy battery life. The 3D users never had that and 2:40 or so is about what we get. Probably not quite that although it will report that right when it switches to battery. It's good enough so I have no excuse not to follow your lead except that I will lose my 3D. I saw that Slvl (spelling?) was willing to do some mods to possibly bring back the 3D if he had testers early on but it looked like there were no takers. Perhaps there is still hope.

One last question: I think I saw that it is cheaper to order it from Dell if you have a preferred account. Is that correct? I see them on eBay but I think I saw it mentioned in passing in this lengthy thread that Dell is cheaper.

 

I hate to just interject this, but if you get the 680m to work with the R3 with these instructions, will the 3D still be unable to work? Thats my main concern on what to buy at the moment, I can either get a 580m that DOES work with 3D, or the 680m which I cant find a straight answer to whether or not 3D will work. Thanks for any help!

 

The 3D does NOT work. I just called Dell to get a price on a 680M and they told me it wasn't available for the R3 so I don't even know how to buy one at this point except through eBay.

 

Yeah, that is a bummer . They won't sell anything that is not on the approved HW list when they take your service tag. You'd need to find a friendly sales rep that will sell you the R4 upgrade kit. It will not even be available to a rep using your R3 tag

Since using non-approved parts will invalidate the warranty (as I was told in writing from Dell/AW support) you might as well hunt one down on EBay. I saw a couple of companies offering AW R3 680 upgrade kits getting good reviews.

 

Many R3 owners got the card the card from Dell, $200 cheaper with preferred account. Regarding 3D svl7 is working on it. [Alienware] [M17x r3] NVidia 680M Compatibility with 3D Controller

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/672230-m17x-r3-680m-compatability-27.html#post8842741
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/672230-m17x-r3-680m-compatability-45.html#post8906008

 

Had this card on my R3 for a while now, and so far it's been great. Here's my benchmark result with a little OC.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-2860QM Processor,Alienware M17xR3 score: P7953 3DMarks

 

after updating my R3 on gtx680m everything was fine and he even passed a test showing 3dmark11 5800 points. But after a reboot I get 8 beeps and nothing else happens. I can not even enter the BIOS. I have tried everything I could: my cards on the old tried to connect another monitor, and so on. Who can help?

 

Specs. Bios OS etc.?

 

Bios a12 unlock. also tried to take out a small battery.