*OFFICIAL* Alienware M17x Owners Lounge - Part 2

Sweet. My AW m17x with crossfire Ati just shipped!

 

Cant wait to see some numbers ..

 

also interested to see if you get GDDR3 or GDDR5.

 

Yes it still has the integrated chip. Hot swapping requires a reboot, however.

 

Should be noted, when you ATI users recieve your pcs, try to avoid wiping the Windows Vista / Windows 7 installation that it comes with (SSD install or whatever your plan is) and run GPU-Z with stock Alienware/Dell Radeon HD drivers.

These drivers arent on the website yet and might provide GPU-Z with different results than GDDR3..

 

Thanks Mandrake!! Works perfectly

 

FYI this is laptop-won't-turn-on 101. If you've ever worked in a helpdesk dealing with a lot of laptops you learn this fixes the issue for every single battery or AC powered laptop 99% of the time, across all models and manufacturers.

 

I've done it on a HP Proliant server that refused to release an iLO connection and it worked. lol!

 

Wow, Im no computer expert but I have spent a good amount of time fixing all types of electronics. I feel really dumb not knowing this lol. I knew it was to be done if you were going to take the computer apart but I didnt know it affected the battery.

 

Haha don't feel dumb, its something that has wasted tons of time from the more advanced of us computer builders/ tech guys. Trust me in the early days i've wasted hours of time pulling out parts replacing power supplies until i found this out. As mandrake said this is valid for desktops too, something about a charge in capacitors getting "stuck" and needing a full discharge which is what happens when you kill the power source and hold the power button.

 

exactly, it is to discharge the capacitors, which helps clear the data in memory and caches for a "fresh" boot

 

Windows 7 x64 drivers are up on Dell site as well as a new AlienRespawn option

 

nice can't wait to download it.

 

Got M17x #2 today. Kinda funny seeing them side-by-side. Time to update the sig!

 

Don't suppose your #2 has ATI's?

 

So after doing an executive email carpet bomb like I previously mentioned and noting that I would forward my email to Consumerist.com, I got a call from their corporate executive response team.

After a quick one-day investigation of options, they notified me I'd be getting a system upgrade (vs. replacement) from the 1730 to the m17x.

It appears like everything is more or less upgraded but I'm pasting the specs below which is a miracle given what I've heard from others on here, but I want to doublecheck...are there any components that are being downgraded?

Current XPS M1730 Config

* Core 2 Extreme X9000 (2.8Ghz, 800Mhz FSB 6M Cache)
* 4GB DDR2 667 MHz 2Dimm
* 17" WUXGA display (max res 1080p)
* Dual 1GB Nvidia 8800M GTX cards in SLI config
* 200GB 7200 RPM SATA drive w/ free fall sensor
* Vista 32-bit Home Premium
* 8X DVD+- RW
* AGEIA PhysX Card


Proposed m17x Upgrade Config

* Core 2 Duo T9600 (2.8Ghz, 1066Mhz FSB 6M Cache)
* 4GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1066MHz 2Dimm
* 17" WUXGA display (max res 1080p)
* Dual 1GB Nvidia 280M GTX cards in SLI Config
* 250GB 7200 RPM drive w/ free fall sensor
* Vista 64-bit Home Premium and a Windows 7 upgrade coupon


It looks like a pretty nice upgrade to me...but I have two concerns. First, do the 280M cards have built in PhysX accelerators? Because the new config does not have a physx card listed.

Second, I assume all alienware dvd burners are at LEAST 8x by now but their site doesn't list the speed...can anybody confirm?

Third, frequency aside, what is the difference between Extreme and non-Extreme processors? I have one now and this replacement does NOT have one, however the only Extreme one they offer now on the M17x is a quad-core which is about $800 more than what they are offering me.

Lastly, does anybody know if the m17x with the 280m cards solve the heat issue that caused me to get this replacement in the first place?

I'm pretty psyched about this and all I'm going to push for in addition is the respawn image disc and an extra battery which my current system has.

 

All Nvidia card are physx enable. Well at least the recent ones.

 

Right...but does that mean they can handle PhysX if a game supports it without the need for an actual separate PhysX card like I have now in my m1730? Or does it just mean that if I got a separate PhysX card it would be compatible? Trying to determine whether they are screwing me out of a PhysX card.

 

The PhysX processor is built into the 9400M so you will get it. You could argue that you are going from an extreme proc to a non-extreme proc and see what they say.

 

anything nvidia card that soppurts dx10 uses physX.

 

Soon I shall be joining you fine people in the world of m17x, just waiting on the arrival now, heh don't have one as powerful as many of you but i'm satisfied with what i'm getting

 

Nice to hear - congrats on the discussion with Dell re: the 1730. BTW, people will confuse your posts going forward - the All Powerful is M17x. Not m17x. I know... Dell/AW shouldn't have labeled/named it the same

 

is there a way to enable external video output support when using the integrated 9400? does it not work because the hdmi and vga ports are from the discrete card?

is there a workaround for this? it seems odd for it to be like this. it makes no sense. what if the user wants to have long battery life to do a presentation?

 

Hi people!

I just ordered my own Alien M17x few days ago, on 15/10/09 and to my surpise it was already DELIVERED on 21/10/09 to address in US. I'm shipping it to Europe via colleague from company I'm working in and I'm really eager to put my hands on this beauty I have the specification with dual GTX280M though. I was wondering if the possible fps boost would be the good reason to wait for so much longer and decided that no. Now I have to wait till someone from branch in New Jersey is travelling to Europe and within 2 weeks I'll have it :smile:.

No my question goes to current users of M17x or to ones who have experiences with Alienware. Are there any things I should be really aware of. Anything I should avoid at all the time? Yeah I know that I should not throw the glass of beer on it while on LAN party But I was wandering about drivers, about command center, about the lights managing application. I would like to avoid any nasty surprises...

Thanks for any advise you can give.

M.

 

Hey is anyone here thinking about getting or has windows 7? I am thinking about it, already running Vista 64 bit, but curious as to whether when I install it and delte vista if that would clash with my alienware programs installed on my M17X?

 

Not from my side. From what I have seen the M17X is a pretty stable piece of machinery. I havent had many problems with it, and when I did it was nothing that a system restore couldnt fix. Dont disable the synaptics touch driver, it screws up the disabling your touchpad function when you plug in a mouse and crashes your command centre when you go to alientouch.

 

Many have used Windows 7 on the M17x. Depending on how you install it (fresh or upgrade) you would need to install the windows 7 drivers from dell's page and the Command Center. Most of the Vista drivers work fine, but the Command Center requires the Win 7 version to function correctly.

 

It would be an upgrade from Vista. So all I would need to do is install the windows 7 drivers from dell and the command centre? Would I need to install them first or does it not matter?

 

< -Insert long discussion on why you should install fresh here- >
I would install afterwards if you're just doing the in place upgrade.

 

Hahahah! Is it really that bad just doing the upgrade? I dont want to have to wipe my whole computer to put it on here...

 

it is always much better to do a fresh install, thats why everyone is kinda 'meh' on the whole free windows 7 upgrade thing Better to spend the 150 bucks (canadian) for the home version (unless you need the extras) and call it a day.

Although: http://blog.tune-up.com/windows-os/windows-7-performance-check-upgrade-install-vs-clean-install/

 

Go here and read up
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=5428909

 

If anyone has ordered the M17x in Red Nebula, there is a delay. I was told that the Red Nebula color is the only thing they are waiting for. My EDD is now on the 29th. I am anxious to hear some of the benchmarks from the 4870's.

 

Hey, does anyone know if the Dell Travel Remote will work with the M17x? I don't see why it wouldn't but I don't want to order it and have it not work.

Link to remote.

Thanks.

 

Should work just fine with Windows Media Player. Make sure your IR sensor has the driver's installed and you're good to go.

 

I specifically asked about this as I got one with my 1730 and wanted to know if it would work in my replacement m17x. Apparently those are generic remotes and an Alienware rep confirmed it should work no problem.

 

So my m17x replacement specs listed the following for the graphics card:

Googling the 320-0762 and NB10E-GTX1 pulls up varying information as to whether it is the 260m or 280m cards. The Dell rep told me they were the 260m cards and an Alienware tech told me they were the 280m cards. SO...three questions...

1. Can someone confirm what model card it is?
2. If it says SLI in the specs, but the quantity is listed as one, does that mean I am getting two cards?
3. If it is the 260m cards...how do those stack up against the 8800m GTX SLI cards which is what I'm coming from?

 

This was on my old spec sheet and it was the Dual 280 in SLI
320-0762 1 SLI Dual 1GB GDDR3 NVIDIA GeForce (NB10E-GTX1)

Link for the video cards
http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-8800M-GTX-SLI.6937.0.html

 

You're like the 1,000,000th person to get their XPS 1730 replaced with an M17x, they must be atrocious!

 

Hey guys some interesting stats on the Upgrade Vs Clean Install for Windows 7. Benchmarks as well.
http://blog.tune-up.com/windows-os/windows-7-performance-check-upgrade-install-vs-clean-install/

 

They were great computers once they ran. The problem was that they could not remain cool enough and so the mobo and video cards flexed way too much and at too great extremes. The BIOS was set so the fans didn't even kick on until 75 C for the video cards. I myself had the video cards replaced 3 times.

 

Great link on the Upgrade Vs Clean Install. But what's the bottom line for gamers on Vista vs. 7? Are there any compatibility issues or things like that? Or does it have good support for older games?

I'm particularly worried about the older Battlefield games since BF:1942 has major graphical glitches that make it unplayable on Vista and there is no known fix.

I'm getting a replacement m17x and it will come with Vista and a Windows 7 upgrade disc and I'm not sure what to do. I'm also wondering if I will get an actual Windows 7 disc so I can do a clean install vs an upgrade.

 

I am sure you can use the windows 7 upgrade disc to do a clean install. You don't need to have an operating system installed when you do the "upgrade" so it is a clean install. I am 99.9% sure on that.

 

You can do a clean install with an upgrade disk.

 

So, laptop with ATI's is on the way, will be here tomorrow or monday. As far as I know I'll be the first? with the ATI model.. what benchmarks do you want me to run? I'm going to be firing it up with the default Vista install for bench's (I'll be wiping and doing 7 right after), default drivers etc. I won't be doing overclocking, sorry..

Was going to do Vantage, 3DMark 2006.. oh, I'll post GPUZ results too..

Any other requests?

 

Zennick and a few others have there's already.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=391161

 

Looks like theirs are nvidia models? Could be wrong though..

 

guys i have a question for a long time regarding sli. how should i know if a game runs in sli or not or how to see what games are supported in sli? i use nvidia 186.91.

 

On Windows 7 Professional and Ultimate there is an XP mode. It is supposed to run programs intended for XP. I don't know if it will work for you, but maybe worth a try.

http://www.news24.com/Content/SciTe...4/22-10-2009-03-39/Windows_7_Is_your_PC_ready

 

Quick question, which is better Sli 280 GTX or Crossfire 4870's ??