*OFFICIAL* M17xR3 Owner's Lounge Thread - Part 1

It's the size in which the circuit are made. The smaller, the less energy used for an x amount of power and therefore the more transistors can be put into a chip making it faster, etc...

 

Think of 40 a an old wood fireplace full of wood on fire to heat a house. The 27 a new gas fireplace that uses very little gas and produces the same heat. Smaller=more efficient less heat and potential to be much more powerful

 

this should give you an idea, by making the chip of the card smaller
http://images.bit-tech.net/content_images/2010/10/global-foundries-gtc-2010/glofo-5.jpg

in short the card will produce less heat and perform better plus get better yield (when perfected)

 

Not to go too much into it and drag things off topic but the increase in performance that Nvidia was talking about was specifically in regards to Double Precision Floating Point...which has only got to do with the GPU's compute power and has very little affect on actual gaming performance.

The increase in DP floating performance per watt is also standard for what you'd see from a full node shrink onto a new improved HKMG silicon. Remember we'll be going from 40nm to 28nm, and not 40nm to 32nm to 28nm. Other than the smaller process, and the layout changes for the HKMG, Kepler won't need many changes in arch from Fermi to hit those goals.

 

So you guys think an underclocked barts in the M17x-R3 will beat 2x5870m in most games eh? Well results say otherwise at high resolutions in desktop 5770 vs 6850. I predict about 60-75% of 5870m xfire performance on average which for a single card is quite good. However, those of us that want maximum performance are still holding out for a dual GPU M18x.

Notebookcheck reference for GPU performance is never a good idea. The 6970M will be quite an improvement over a 5870m and may do well against xfire in tesselation but outside of that I wouldn't count on it beating 5870m xfire except in a handful of cases where xfire isn't optimized.

As for the R2 not being able to handle 100W (draw or TDP?) that's not quite true. The 5870m's when overclocked easily pull 100W each. The most limiting factor is the PSU as some pointed out. R2 would also need a bios update which unfortunately I don't see Dell doing.

 

I agree with you on the fact that games optimized for crossfire will run better on the 5870M setup and the M18X coming out later on.

But there are quite a few titles out there that people still play a lot which are not well if at all optimized for SLI/Crossfire and it seems those games are of course running much better on 6970M.

But again, we'll have to wait until someone from here gets one to test or an actual review comes out.

 

Any title not optimized for xfire will do better on a 6970M, there's no doubt about it. The biggest question on my mind is this: Since Tom's tested the R3 with Crysis 2 and noticed throttling, has Dell solved that? AFAIK that was with a 460M and not 6970M though they never specifically mentioned it.

P.S. I'd be very pleased if somehow 6970M did beat 5870m xfire because that would make the M18x a monster and would be awesome news for the R3. Hopefully the Clevo guys will be able to put this speculation to rest soon. A Clevo W860CU was tested with a 6970M I believe. If Clevo issues a bios update that lets Sager 8690/W860 owners upgrade to a 6970M, that will be a major coup for Clevo owners to brag about.

 

For the warranty discussion, Get as much as you can at time of purchase. I would value this more than the CPU upgrade options.

I added a 2nd year of accidental damage warranty to my M17x R1......$400. And since I fought with the rep I got a $75 Dell Gift Card too....still $325 though. If bought at time of purchase would have been like $120 for the same coverage.

You can upgrade ANYTHING later at a much more reasonable price than the warranty haha.

 

Huh, far better ways to waste money. Thanks.

 

I spent that because I am harsh on laptops Getting the scores I got comes at a price.....replaced a battery, PSU, set of cards, a 2nd 4870, motherboard

Still got till August to add to that list but that is about $2k of parts so far if I did not have warranty

 

Time for new ES sandy bridge CPU's on ebay NEW Intel Core i7-2720M Q0XB ES not 2920 2820 2620 2630 - eBay (item 280618743405 end time Feb-18-11 20:59:03 PST)

 

So I just ordered some upgrades from newegg. I hope the shipment from Dell arrives around same time as newegg.ca (though I highly doubt it).

- Corsair 8GB 1333mhz ram
- OCZ "Vertex 2" 240GB SSD

Dell refused to expedite my order 3 times now Not that it would help much as the systems are new. No one's had their shipped yet, right?

 

Whats the point of buying engineering samples?

Feel so nooby asking this.

 

. double post?

 

They affordable

 

Oh, but they could be really abused or lack features, right?

 

I never had a single problem with ES cpu's and believe me i own many

no lack of features

they overclock the same

temps are the same

they serve the same

but they don't have resale value

! i don't know what i am doing here ? O maybe because i order a M17X r3 just to test it lol. :laugh:

 

Can you post how or a link how you will make your new ssd drive a boot drive with the os transferred to it from the Dell factory drive?

 

You dont transfer the image, you do a clean install on the SSD, for several reasons.

 

Yes, also they have zero warentee, if you get a bad one, youre shafted.....there ES...SAMPLES...not production quality. And yes I know that ebay auction says you can return it within 7 days.....I believe everything I read on the net also.

Per their "return policy"

1. All sales are final.

2. Defective product will be offered exchange, in condition that it is returned within 7 days upon receiving. (buyer pays shipping fees by courier providing with tracking number).

3. If the item is damaged by buyer's usage, seller will not exchange nor refund the item.

So how exactly are you going to "prove it was defective per #2, but not damaged by buyers useage, per #3 ?

Also, youre going be able to test it, and if its defective, ship it back to Taipei, Taiwan in 7 days.........ok then, let me know how that works out for you.

Are they worth the risk, maby, to some...not to me.

PS...Also, as a side note, ever wonder why there comming from Tiwan and not in the US ? because in the US if Intel cought you doing this they would sue you into the next century.

 

no warranty yes but abused not they put the oem's to the same stress test as the es ones

 

No, they do not

 

Never had an issue with any ES/QS CPUs ...

They have always been great investments and other then not being able to sell them on the forums here are always easy to move outside of NBR..

For every ES CPU i have owned i know for fact they are all still ticking along just fine ...

Are they for everyone ? nope atleast not the paranoid or the people willing to burn $1200 on a new extreme CPU ..

Plenty of people here can vouch for the quality of ES CPUs ..

 

Quad...while I agree with you, lots of people havent had any issues., I am just pointing out some REAL differences and possible issues...not advocating others do or dont.....I just think people need to make a informed descision, lots of new people in this forum that DONT know the differences and risks

 

Yeah there are always risks but most of the big CPU resellers on Ebay have got your back if you have an issue..

Most of them offer 30 days and also offer extended warranties for cheap $$ if you feel the need ..

But yeah they are not for everyone thats for sure ..

Im sure Batboy is not going to enjoy us going off topic in this thread so we should probably end it ..

 

So, threw this is my wishlist...gonna wait and see on it.

System Color Alienware M17x, Soft Touch Stealth Black
Operating System Genuine Windows® 7 Home Premium, 64bit
Processor Intel® Core™ i7 2820QM 2.3GHz (3.4GHz Turbo Mode, 8MB Cache)
Memory 16GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1333MHz (4DIMMS)
A/C Adapter Alienware M17x 240W A/C Adapter
Display Panel 17.3-inch WideFHD 1920x1080 120Hz WLED w/ NVIDIA 3D Vision Bundle
Video Card 1.5GB GDDR5 Nvidia GeForce GTX 460M
Hard Drive 640GB Raid 0 (2x 320GB 7,200RPM)
AlienFX Quasar Blue
Adobe Reader Acrobat SW Adobe Acrobat Reader
Optical Drives Slot-Loading Dual Layer Blu-ray Reader (BR-ROM, DVD+-RW, CD-RW)
Sound Internal High-Definition 5.1 Surround Sound Audio
Wireless Intel® Ultimate N WiFi Link 6300 a/g/n 3x3 MIMO Technology
Service 1 Year Advanced Plan

 

It was my impression that the dell recovery disc does not allow a clean install to a virgin drive, only a reinstall on a damaged drive which had the OS there in the first place. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

I dont know, but because its a SSD you want to do a clean install, alingment and such, as in boot up from CD, install the OS etc.....

I know nothing about dell recovery disk, never use em. When I get a new system, ANY new system 1st thing I do is wipe it and install from scratch. I generally download all the drivers I need from the website, burn a CD of them myself.

I put the origional disks that came with the system in safe storeage, unopened.

Not saying everyone should do this, just my procedure......

 

Just ordered my m17x R3 using the link earlier in the thread:
Alienware M17x Laptop Details | Dell

I added blu-ray, went to 8gb, 2720 proc and the Intel N WiFi Link 6300 3x3 wireless... total 2294. I canceled another order that didn't have the discount. Called Dell and re-ordered, got the discount and got the upgrade to 8gb for 80 dollars (from 6gb) instead of 100.

Thanks to the poster for the link! I saved about $265 on the order.

 

Exactly and to add to that, I just picked up a 920xm ES for $360 shipped. An OEM would run me at least $550-$900.

 

Cisco/Linksys E4200, available now. Have one on the way

 

That's what I mean, that warranty addition isn't cost effective.

 

I would avoid Cisco products like the plague. I have a WRT400N and the piece of junk drops it's signal every day and I have to constantly reset it.

 

I have a quick question, I dont think ive seen it elsewhere yet (if so then sorry). When adding or replacing a hard drive in dell laptops (or laptops in general) the replacement or additional hard drive is uniform 2.5" right? After that its just making sure you get sata or pata for whatever your laptop takes?

 

It seems the R2 included the 3rd gray antennae regardless of the card. After glancing at the service manual, I am hoping this is the case for the R3 as it seems a bit involved to add it. Anyways, this might be one to add to the list of questions - Does it come with the 3rd antennae regardless of the card?

The R2 link says hi-def, but the post is about the 3rd MIMO wire for the 6300.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ming-hi-def-content-via-wifi.html#post6383649

 

Most of the laptops use sata II 2.5 HDD's now including Dell Alienware

 

Thanks

 

Yea it wasnt listed on the website, but I told the salesperson that the 3 year $300 warranty was too much and he offered me a 2 yr advanced (adds accidental over the normal one) for $150. Not sure its common place or not but aparantly they can do it.

 

regarding OS + SSD, there are several options

I have two or three copies of win7 home premium that are not in use.

You could probably also write down your OEM product key and reuse it (not sure if it'd work with retail win7, but worth a shot). The program isn't difficult to find, though I wouldn't suggest attempting any illegal solutions.

Lastly, you can request a copy of your operating system be mailed to you.


Then look up Batboy's guide on how to get alienware look and feel back after a fresh install.

 

A couple of questions.

Adding a second drive for raid zero after purchase, possible? When purchased with a second drive from the factory does it use special hardware such as a secondary drive bay or is there a slot ready to go?

How about replacing the existing video card with a new/faster version (ala 6970 or 485?)

 

Another question

In the owner's manual, it is said at page 106 that Memory configurations possible are 4 GB, 6 GB, 8 GB, 16 GB, and 32 GB. My intention was to add 2x4gb to the 2x2gb, for a total a 12.

Would the system really not recognize all the RAM or worse, get damaged if I installed a total of 12gb???

 

I don't understand your logic. How is that not cost effective. The 4 year basic warranty is like 400. Which means $2k in replaced parts is $1600 more expensive then the $400 warranty. In this case the warranty is $1600 cheaper. I don't know what warranty he purchased but his point was its more cost effective to add a warranty now then to add it later, due to the increased prices trying to add it after the purchase. Where as the price of the top video card will go down after time. Meaning take the warranty now, and buy the better video card (or another upgrade) later. I've been through a new screen, gpu, mobo, memory in my first year of ownership. Some of those were replaced due to not knowing what was causing the error, but I still got to keep the new items anyway. If this was out of warranty, it would've been cheaper to buy a new one. I'll be purchasing a 2 year warranty when I pick up my R3 as I intend to own this one at least 2 years. If you like to game on high settings, benchmarking, and overclocking, you are going to lessen the life of some of those components.

I'm on my 3rd Apple router (using latest Airport Extreme) and I'm pretty sure its MIMO 3x3. I've always thought they were easy to use, work well, and look nice. Only con I have is they are pricey.

Edit: My 3x3 statement might be partially incorrect. I think its still limited to 300Mps, but uses a 3x3 for better range and less rate loss at further ranges. I'll do some testing when I make my purchase and see what my max data rate is.

 

2year warranty. Hm. Pay for it? Hm. 1+1 if using Amex anyhow.

 

Man, My EDD is 2/4, Im getting antsy!!!!

 

my rep promised me delivery date by 28/01/11. hope she comes through with it. but my status is still under "in production".

 

That's exactly what I was saying. -.-

 

BAD NEWS for Optimus and 3D

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/549937-alienware-m17xr3-i7-2820-gtx460m-review.html

Look at the 4th pic of BIOS, you will see "Integrated Graphics : not detected". That laptop is 3D equipped as you can see on the other pictures.

Sounds really bad. I wonder if there is a chance it could be enabled by some future bios update?

 

I wonder if it shows up as Detected in a non-3D system?

 

---

I guess there is a way to configure the system with the nVidia GPU and 2nd generation I7CPU and without the 3D. That would support the Optimus statement in the manual.

 

it would be lame to get the 3d package and not have optimus