M17xR3 - Owner Answered Frequently Asked Questions *READ BEFORE POSTING*

Well, when playing Dolphin or PCSX2, the graphics "looks" the same, but runs smoother/less-choppy on the GPU. I guess it's the graphics memory or [insert watever hi-tech lingo here] that does the trick when using the GPU. Cuz it certainly (aesthetically) looks the same. FPS doubles when on GPU.

Also, for some reason while on the GPU, it seems like the CPU happens to go faster. Is this true, or am I just talking shenanigans?

 

You know why?

Because GPU's are purpose built for games, CPU's and CPU intergrated graphics aren't.

GPU takes load off the CPU thus freeing it up for system tasks and other applications.

 

Ah that's interesting. I nearly forgot that the HD3000 was a part of the CPU lolz. Woops

 

No no no, it is part of the CPU but thats not the reason.

It's the pure and simple fact that the intergrated graphics intel put in sandy bridge CPU's are not meant for gaming. They are purely there to run the OS and graphics such as Windows Aero.


Discrete graphics such as nvidias or ATI's cards are magnitudes more powerful, this why it runs a lot smoother.

 

Hey, i have a small question. How long should Boot time take on a R3? I have the 2720 CPU and 6970m. Also i only have the stock 4gb Ram and stock 320gb HDD.

Sorry if this is the wrong place to look but i thought FAQ's thread was the best place

 

10 seconds from the "Starting Windows" to prompting for password on 2820/6970/Intel 120GB SSD + 750GB HDD/16GB HyperX

 

What about if you dont have an SSD? ive got the 2820 and the 6970 with the 750gb sata...

 

I used the BootTimer.exe program and had 15s flat on my M18x with no additional tweaks if that gives you a reference. It was my every day setup

 

since i got the M17X i have been meaning to ask

..... regarding the DMC option in bios.

...what is this...??? some kinda wireless display-thingie....

 

Im gonna dl that program tonight and check, cuz mine seems like a minute or so total from pressing the power button until I get to login screen.

 

I am not sure how it times it but the M18x has a quick bios (which I love) and the total wait was more than 15 seconds but it definitely was not long

 

I apologise if this is meant to be posted elsewhere

 

Added to post#1

------------------------------------------------------

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Please be sure to see this thread -
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/580844-guide-how-display-b3-sandy-bridge-m17x-r3.html

Make sure you are on BIOS A04

------------------------------------------------------

 

I plan on ordering a M17x R3 in the coming weeks and was wondering the what advantages the 2820QM has over the the 2720QM besides the clock speed. Such as battery life and overclocking? Also anybody with the 3d bundle with the 480m what processor they have and how long their battery lasts on a full charge?

 

You should ask this in the Owner's lounge thread. Now, personally, I have the 2720 + 6970. I get about 5hours battery on IGP at 2clicks of brightness, 15% volume, WLAN on, and lights off, while surfing the web. It'd be like 2hours on the GPU while playing Dolphin or something. If only surfing on teh GPU, then like 3hours-ish, IIRC.

 

Thanks man wasn't sure which thread to post it in I'll finish reading through the owners thread and ask if nobody else did.

 

any idea on what the enable/disable option on the DMC means.....

 

The 2820QM has 33% more L3 cache over the 2720QM, which is sweet

Knowning that you need not upgrade any higher (before moving in to the extreme edition). Basically piece of mind.

 

Ya i'm in an intense debate with myself on whether to get the R3 3d, 2820QM and 560 or go with m18x 2820XM with dual 560's. What i'm mainly concerned about is the battery life as long as its 2-3 1/2 hours i think that'll last a class or 2. I'm using it for gaming and school.

 

6970 gets around 2.5-3hours while doing basic stuff. On the IGP it gets about 5hours doing basic stuff. Basic stuff includes surfing the web, FYI. Hope this info aids in your selection.

 

Doesn't sound that bad I personally like Nvidia over ATI. With the GTX 560 being confirmed to come to the R3 and 18x i'll probably go with that over the 460. 3-3.5 hrs with a 120 mhz display sounds good to me.

I was talking with an alienware tech can somebody confirm this for me that you can manually toggle nvidia optimus using the fn+f6 key. I remember alot of people saying there was no manual toggle switch for optimus because of the way it was wired to always be on can somebody test this out the tech said?

 

Fn+F6 is to toggle your display (like if you want to display the screen or projector, etc). If the NV equipped R3s have a different use for F6, then I'll be dammed lolz.

 

My pre-recall R3 had the NV 460 in it (they didn't have 6970 at the time of launch in US). R3 still had the Fn+F7 labled as I/D GFX (toggle between integrated and dedicated card) but it literally did nothing. When you pressed it, it popped up a windows saying as much ("This does nothing" or something along those lines). You can't switch Optimus in and out, it's constantly working through the integrated graphics, adding the dedicated card to the flow when "known" (as in approved or blessed) application is executed. You can't, IMHO, switch it off unless, perhaps, you disable your NV card in the BIOS.

 

*Shrugs shoulder at the other OP's issue*

I've never heard of Optimus being manually configurable besides whitelisting programs.

 

Guys, do you know if you hvae to burn your own recovery discs etc? or do they come pre packed?

 

Prepacked are the Alienware-branded windows 7 disk and the drivers disk. It is always a good practice to burn your recovery disks as well for not all the SW that comes with your unit is on the driver disk (like webcam for example).

There is nothing you HAVE to do, it just makes sense if you do

Besides, if you have 8 gig thumbdrive, you can instead use that for the recovery media, not DVDs.

 

Can you burn recovery media at any point? Like after I have the system all configured the way I like, could I snapshot it into recovery media?

Need to decide on doing this vs just a Acronis image to a spare hard disk

 

Nope, the recovery media just gives you the way to factory default. Once you have system all configured the way you like, just image it to an external hard drive. I use clonezilla.

 

Am I missing something or can you really not set any effects for the touchpad/media bar in alienfx on an r3? I can select a single color but I can't make it morph into anything else to fit my rainbow theme

 

I don't think you can make it morph, etc. Were you able to on other AW's?

 

This is my first one! I thought in some videos of r2s on youtube that I saw it but I may have just assumed it was possible.

 

sorry if this is being asked a few hundred times, hows the battery life for 6970, discrete and IGP enabled ?

edit: ok nevermind, i just saw this

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...tions-read-before-posting-22.html#post7550173

 

I ordered my M17x r3 yesterday and I couldn't be more excited

Processor: 2720 QM
RAM: 4gb
HDD: 320 gb
Graphics: 6970
Wireless: Intel 6300
Screen: 1920x1080 60hz

I love my specs but now that I have ordered it I have some questions/concern. First off I ordered the stock RAM and HDD so I could upgrade them myself. For the RAM I was planning on just adding 4 gb of DDR3 1333 from newegg because I have heard that the 1600mhz ram is not really that noticeable outside of benchmarks. For the HDD I was hoping to get a small ssd (120 gb) but I really dont want to pay that much for any ssd. So my plan is to buy a momentus xt 500 gb drive and make it my primary drive. My questions about my HDD situation are:

1. Are there any 120gb ssds that wont break my budget? ($100to $150)
2. If I go with the momentus xt and the stock 350gb, would I keep them in RAID 0 or would I have to switch the settings around?
3. If I was to make the momentus xt my primary drive would I have to do a clean install?

I am concerned about the rubberized texture of the r3 peeling off and I was wondering how many people have had that happen to their m17x?

Lastly, part of the deal I got was the spruce eco backpack which I have heard does not correctly fit the m17x r3. I heard from someone on these forums that they called dell returns and explained that the rep told him that the laptop would work with the m17x when in reality it did not. That guy was able to get dell to send him the Orion instead. Do you think that I could pull this off because my rep did mention that it would fit the m17x fine?

Sorry for asking so many questions, but this is my first big investment in a laptop and I want to make sure everything is perfect. Thanks in advance for any help!

 

I'm thinking of getting pretty much the exact same setup you got and I have a few questions also.

But to answer some of yours...
1) Newegg frequently has 120GB SSDs on sale for around $150-160 after rebate. The only ones under $150 after rebate are the Kingston V+ series. They are a little slower than the sandforce/OCZ/etc drives, but it will still be much faster than a conventional HDD. I just sold my 120GB sandforce SSD here on the forum for $160.
2)If you want to use any HDD other than the original as your primary drive, you'll probably need to do a clean install like you said, I don't think repair partitions allow you to install onto other drives. Your new laptop should come with the windows 7 disk and driver disk. If it doesn't call dell and they'll send you them. You can also burn your own Windows 7 disk and download the drivers if you prefer.
3) I've never run RAID so I can't help you there.

 

Now my questions. I'm coming from owning a Asus G73JH-RBBX05 with an i7-720, 5870m, & 1600x900 panel.

1) I've heard the screen on the 1080p Asus G73SW is beautiful, and I've heard the 1080p on M17x R3 is just "ok" and also "hazzy". Is this correct? How does everyone feel about the 1080p 60hz panel?

2) How is the 5.1 audio on the M17? The Asus g73 only has a single headphone output, but offers virtual surround via Creative software. I know it's all smoke and mirrons, but I kinda like it. I know the M17 offers 5.1 output via the 3 or 4 headphone outputs. Does the M17 offer any software 5.1 emulation so you can use stereo headphones and get virtual surround sound? I own ATH-AD700s and am hoping they'll work well.

3) How is the heat output on the 6970m? A well pasted 5870m on an Asus G73 maxed out from 80-90c on furmark. Is the 6970m similar or hotter?

 

I repped you for being un-lazy and actually flipping through the pages to find yer answer. *High five*!

 

Can anyone help me out here?

 

all your questions have been answered in a variety of other threads, if you would be kind enough to help yourself out I am sure you would find more than plentiful of information...

 

honestly 4gbs of ram is more then enough for 95% of the people out there. save that money and add it to your ssd budget since thats real low.
1: The Best Budget & Enthusiast-Level SSDs - TechSpot Guides
2. set it to ahci
3. yes you'll have to start fresh

i have no peeling problems, had it for 3 months now.

 

guys..what is the DMC option in BIOS?

 

This is BS, when i ordered my AW my colleague at work ordered the Asus g73sw. Whilst it is a very well priced for the spec, the screen was largely disappointing. Its a matte screen so it doesnt give off a reflection like the Aw but its nothing special. When i finally whipped out the Aw at work my colleague with the SW was in awe.............

 

Dropping in to say hey after reading a number of pages in the thread.

Just got my Alienware M17x R3 today, coming from an HP dv7tqe 6100 that I just sent back. Managed to pick up my AW for $1000 from someone on craigslist who bought it for his work partner but never opened it because his partner wanted an Apple. Its mostly base model, although I have a slot loading BDROM in an HTPC that I'll be swapping into it (went ahead and updated my sig with that since it'll be an easy swap), and I plan on future upgrades of both HD and RAM.

I've only had a minor issue so far, I upgraded the graphics driver to 11.6 mobility and had a BSOD when I was adjusting the power profile. It later BSODed again when it went to sleep. Both of the BSODs complained of the ATI driver. It seems that the power saving features in Windows were causing instability with the new driver so I've disabled them and the laptop has been running smooth ever since (been logged into WoW for the last few hours).

I'm looking at getting some form of screen protector, preferably anti-glare.

Does anyone have any experience with the Green Onions Supply brand screen protectors that Dell has on their site for the M11x? I found that Provantage actually has the M17x R3 version and I want to give it a shot.

PROVANTAGE: Availability of AG2 Anti-Glare Screen Protector for Dell Alienware M17X R3 Rel 2011 By Green Onions Supply

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw4uN4T9Csk

 

woohoo ...got my "updated" replacement-AW M17Xr3 (with the 3yr Warr. ATI 6970, and the bluray) ....have had recent experiences with NVIDIA's on the M17Xr3 and optimus which led me to go (begrudgingly) towards ATI


the option of DMC in the bios...what is that..some kind of wireless thing-a-ma-bob........i must've requested for this info. a few times but no one has given an answer, google has no idea..'cept sending me back to my qs. posted here, or the AW manual.....

 

Hi NBR Forums

I recently purchased an alienware m17x r3 but I am having trouble playing games such as Crysis (1) on medium and even Starcraft II or HoN on their highest settings. Is this normal?

My benchmark tests are pretty close to what Dr.J and others have posted on pg.1

If this is how the laptop should be performing what do I need to upgrade in order to play these games on the highest settings? At the time, I was informed that there was no upgrade for the gpu by alienware sales/tech support.

Here is a screenshot of my benchmark:
ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting


m17x r3 specs: i7 2720 | 6gb 1333 | 1080p 120hz Screen | 1.5gb Nvidia 460m GTX |

 

i know some have issue with the optimus settings where it is using your intel card to play games cuz it doesnt recognize the game and auto switch.....but other 460 users can elaborate..

 

The r3 I have includes the 3d bundle so there is no Optimus. Unless others get better performance with their 460m it may just be that the gpu isn't powerful enough. Sucks that its the only option on their website right now.

 

Fortunately my R3 has manual switching with the ATI graphics so I dont run into recognition issues with dynamic switching from either ATI or NVidia. I experienced that in the brief time I owned an HP dv7tqe, it was a nightmare.

 

you said it mate....it took dell 2 replacements to realise optimus was the issue...and i tried my utmost to fix that issue meself...as opposed to asking Dell...which obviously had no clue

 

Swapped in my BDROM drive a few days ago. I could not believe how complicated they made it to get to the optical drive. I had to literally take the entire laptop apart to do it. I used the maintenance manual posted on the support site. Not exactly something I relish doing, and it took quite a lot longer than I'd figure it would. Especially considering that 99% of other laptops, even those with slot loads, swapping an optical drive is either as simple as hitting the drive bay eject button or just removing a bottom panel, in the case of the slot loads.

That said though, my blu-ray drive runs great, I bought it a bit over a year ago from Logic Supply for my HTPC (looks like they dont carry it anymore now that I check). It is a Panasonic U-135A. Cost a bit more than I would have liked but I preferred to go with a reputable vendor after being burned by two different people on ebay with non-functioning Sony BC-5600S drives, one of which I never received my money back on.

A few months ago I had purchased a copy of PowerDVD 10 Ultra so that's what I'm running with it, however I wont be buying any other Cyberlink products after the hassle it was to get it reinstalled and functioning even though I had a proper license code.

I suppose my next job is upgrading the RAM.

 

trying to install the new driver - INTEL_--HD-GRAPHICS-3000_A02_R303343

"Driver being installed is not validated for this computer. Please obtain appropriate driver from the computer"

Any suggestions?