*OFFICIAL* "All Powerful" M17x-R2 Edition Owner's Lounge - Part 2

You can always order from USA using Mfractal's method.

 

True, but the price difference is only about 300-400 depending on the build. By the time you get a mail forwarding service, there isn't much of a difference. Also the duties on a laptop are pretty nasty :/ . To me it puts it just out of the realm of being worth it, especially since just ordering it through the proper channels makes it easier to return/service.

 

For a fully buffed system it could be around 600-700. Now all the maneuvering might cost you another 200 at most (correct me if I'm wrong) and with the CC warranty you don't have any problems abroad.
I bought mine in Canada only because it was more convenient and less time consuming.

 

So, anyone tried the new 10.3a drivers released today?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=468483

 

Yep, tried it. I was having problems initially with it going to sleep and not being able to wake up, forcing me to take out the power source. So far the new driver has solved that issue

 

When the hell are the official 10.3s coming out?

Noticed they redid the way you choose your GPU when selecting drivers

 

March 24th dude. I don't know if I should skip these and wait for the final ones. I'm so lazy when it comes to update things especially drivers...

 

I'm using the 10.3 preview and it's pretty good, nice frames in Crysis Wars. The 10.3a doesn't have any worth while improvements unless you are playing Aliens vs Predator.

 

Yeah, I noticed the same with the 10.3 preview's when they came out. Thanks for your thoughts on the 10.3a. Exactly the excuse I was looking for not to update.

 

Like the mysterious Great Blu Ray Shortage of 2010™.

Dang, I wouldn't buy one without LED lighting. I'd rather have the lower resolution, but no way am I buying a display with florescent lights.

 

4870s are delayed
Missing 1080p monitor options
No 1333 mhz ram options

You'd think a company as big as Dell would have a better handle on their supply chain managment.

 

Highly amateur

 

I am all for bashing Dell, and they usually deserve it but in that case I am not so sure it's all their fault. They could get screwed by their suppliers, who knows?

 

I have the new 10.3 drivers and tried installing RivaTuner with Jokers tweaks and I still can't get the overclock to work for the 4870's on R2. What is working for others? Any help is greatly appreciated, and sorry if this has already been covered.

 

Are these the 10.3 official drivers or the beta ?

 

There's actually a rather large computer parts shortage in Taiwan that's effecting everyone world-wide right now I just read about. While all the large OEMs like Dell are grabbing as many components as they can, they are having problems getting items like RAM. We're probably going to see shortages in items like motherboards in shops for example sometime soon since since costs have been in some cases tripling...

 

There are 1333 mhz ram options.. You just have to select a i7 quad core (720QM, 820QM and 920XM). The other processors doesn't support 1333 Mhz, and therefore it won't come up as an option.

 

They are the beta ones.

 

I'm not so naive as to not understand that they are somewhat at the mercy of vendors and suppliers but I've also worked in enough factories to know the short comings of bad inventory management. Companies tend to live hand to mouth when it comes to inventory. Ideally you keep enough on hand to meet demand with a percentage above for to account for increased demand or vendor/supplier shortfalls. The fact that they are production back logged and part shortages means they didn't correctly anticipate their production and inventory requirements.

Unfortunately for Dell there are other options for consumers. Feb, Mar, and Apr there tends to be an uptick in consumer electronics purchases in the US. Tax refunds have come back and people are holding disposable income, it's not the time you want to be telling your buyers, sorry we don't have that right now.

 

The largest companies are usually the slowest in terms of logistics coordination. That's normal. You will still be buying from them anyway if you need the best product/service.
This doesn't make the situation less frustrating though.

 

What other options are there? Nothing competes with the dual GPU 17x (outside of the one Clevo). As far as inventory goes, that thinking works great if the inventory can be moved quickly. High end parts are expensive and keeping a large stock of them would not be in Dells best interest.

 

Inventory = money on the wrong side of the ledger sheet. Hence the hand to mouth comment.

Not everyone "needs" the dual gpu options but yes the Sager X8100 is an option for dual gpus, but so is the Sager NP8760 & NP8690 for single gpus. With the performance of the single 5870s and the lower price point you're seeing consumers save a little and still get a very well performing system. G73s are going like gang busters and would be doing better if Asus could keep them coming out the door. How many of those people would be Alienware buyers otherwise? How many Alienware buyers would jump ship if the Asus G73 and MSI GX740 were readily available?

I'm not "bashing" dell for anything other then not being able to move units out the door in a timely manner.

 

v10.3a are WHQL and are not beta, they just include a couple of minor fixes that weren't ready in time for the official v10.3 WHQL testing process.

 

I'd jump ship as soon as there's a system that, has an SLI/CF config, has a superior cooling, superior build quality, next business day home support.
Until then, I'm on board!
And those cheap overheating soap boxes don't impress me much.
As an enthusiast and occasional gamer, I need guns and potential. I need a system that can be stressed and still have some reserves, especially in cooling. The only potent (IMO) rival for AW is Clevo, but they are sleepy lately

 

Couldn't say it better myself. There is currently no competition that is worth mentioning to AW. Clevo maybe close in performance but they are uuuugly in comparison.

 

Companies like ASUS and MSI try to put their feet in every market niche and they score their customers. But you can't score the hardcore users easily without dedicating an entire branch/department with decent R&D just for building gaming rigs. It takes time to mature in this field. Dell has the potential + they now have AW with their unique and very focused success in high-end rigs. Dell can afford to be lazy, but can you afford to throw 1.5-2k on every plastic box? I'm not that rich to buy cheap gear

 

Asus' G73jh is supposed to have really good cooling.

 

Supposed to is the operative word here. Overall it's not bad, just not very good either (see the GPU temps).

 

joker, i was just looking for your post from couple of days ago when you said something along the lines of "g73 sucks" but you post too fast

 

Yes, 90C on the GPU on the first stress test is not too cool to me.
In addition, the most important (IMO) is the 'cooling durability', is how your system handles the heat as a function of time(preferably in months )
I had the M17X-R1 for 7 months and stressed it quite alot. Haven't seen the core GPU (280M) temps rise above 80C and CPU above 65. Cleaned the vents 3-4 times. I call it a good cooling.

 

This one?

 

hahahaha!
100% hit !

 

10 char...

 

I just want the official 10.3s because I want to get CF working in XP and think an official driver will be my best bet

 

I was really just wondering if anyone is overclocking with the 10.3a? If so, how?

Thanks again

 

I always overclock by BIOS flash

 

So...
I almost crapped myself right now!

I was playing batman when this happens!

So, sure that my video card said bye bye, i go out of the game, run furmark for 15 minutes, then run COD WOW, then go back to batman and this time wait it out to see that it's a frakking game effect!

 

serious? So anyone would see that? That would freak me out. That looks like what my screen looks like with a failed GPU OC.

 

I thought it was below that usually?

At any rate, those temps on the M17x-R1 sound really good! (Particularly if that's a dual GPU system :-D )

 

yeah. It's a part of the game
it does look like a f.ed up gpu!!

 

lol...yeah I had just gotten my xbox 360 back from the dread red ring of death and was playing batman and got to that point too...I completely freaked out. Game developers sure are getting creative these days...

 

Well im now a happy owner. It finally arrived yesterday. Well worth the wait. 92fps on MW2 at max settings 4xaa. Very impressed. Build quality top notch. Although its got wrong parts in it, its being replaced with parts i should of recieved, funnily enough the HDD`s were in RAID at boot.

 

By "wrong parts" my guess is they didn't give you upgraded parts accidently? That's the kind of wrong parts I'd like to get

 

They sent wrong size screen, wrong version of windows and wrong speed memory.

 

That's strange, couldn't find the review with those temps and most reviews on this forum tell about 75C max, but never provide pics.
If Mandrake or Moo come across, they might shed us some light, as they both own/ed the system. Moo had his GPU out of the game in a week or so.


>>>> Here a couple of owners complain about 95C+ in G73jh.

 

RGB LED is back in stock.

 

zomg joker quit being so effective/proactive!!

 

Now we just need a 5870 to show up and I can quit waiting and start buying.

 

my GPU's NEVER went over 70 in a game on my R-1 or R-2

 

and $50 dollars cheaper