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

I know all about the recall. That's not what I'm talking about.

On the alienware website the only thing you can get right now is the M17x which the dell associate said "is the R2".

 

They are not shipping units they know will be defective......(aka the R3)

 

Actually they are shipping mine and fixing it within 2 months.

However, thats not what I'm talking about now.

I wanted to browse the R TWO options and I noticed that the R TWO is not listed on their site either. The associate said that the m17x listed on their website is actually the R TWO. Can someone confirm this?

 

Yes the M17x on the website, or "M17x Classic", is the M17xR2.

 

yes the M17x classic is the r2.

 

ok thank you. Also, excuse my ignorance, but why would there be a bunch of extra cords if you tried to connect to 3d display? Does it take more than one hdmi to transmit the 3d signal?

 

You would need dual link DVI to get the necessary bandwidth. If the HDMI output is v1.4 then a simple HDMI>DL DVI should work I think. Otherwise you would need a DP>DL DVI adapter

And on the website the M17x has never been called the R2 (except in outlet and support areas). It is just the M17x Core i7

 

You're also going to need the external emitter for the Nvidia 3D Vision as well, by the time you start adding all these cables and parts it makes it a desktop to use the 3D.

 

That is true as well, although it your mirror the screens on the laptop and external, maybe you can get away with the M17x R3 integrated emitter?

 

Don't think that would work Scook, I'm 99% sure that the integrated emitter isn't included unless you order the 3D kit/Screen. Why would Dell(especially Dell lol) include a part that cost them money if they didn't have to that wouldn't be used? Also you can't mirror the screens directly as the laptop monitor isn't going to be 120hz refresh rate without software which really screws with things. Just my opinion on the idea of course.

 

All true, did not realize he did not have the 3D kit.

 

Seems to be some confusion about 3D and the R3 here.

First: For 3D, connecting to a 3D display via HDMI v1.4 you will get 720p and not 1080p.
(see http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...r3-optimus-460m-users-lounge.html#post7109702)

Second: I am not aware of any cord that will work with the 3D 120Hz display via the mini displayport to DVI.
(see http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...s-lounge-thread-part-1-a-164.html#post7150234) Please, please, please let me know if you have found one that will work.

 

I think you would need an active adapter, not a passive cord.

 

More info:
The adapter by ACCELL (referred to throughout our threads) which is included in the link above does not support the 3D 120Hz stereo display per the manufacturer. They state it supports DisplayPort version 1.1 The 3D signal we want requires DisplayPort version 1.2 (and other companion standards). I am not sure what DisplayPort version is built into the R3. If it supports version 1.2, then we may indeed find an adapter for 3D. The later standard was established in December of 2009. I am still digging into this.

====
FYI:
The other adapter that I originally looked at and bought is a single link and would NEVER work with our 3D application - my mistake. However, it should work well for me with other applications. I will let you know when I get my R3 (which has an EDD of April something).

====
I am certainly NOT an expert at this, so if anyone wants to chime in and explain things further or correct me... Please do.

 

Not true at all. Dual link cables are 10ft for $15 AND if you already have the emitter built-in then you can use that. If not the 3D vision kit is $100-150.

 

I had thought he was referrring to a cord / cable that was ALSO an adapter. I guess we need to ask him.

 

I dont think so. DaneGRClose was talking about the Minidisplayport to dual link DVI adapter which is about $100. M17x does NOT have DVI output so basically the dual link cables u were talking about are just useless

 

^^^Exactly Torai, here's the math for those of you who doubt me on the cost to setup external 3D, and just as an FYI if you don't order the Nvidia 3D kit/screen with it from the factory there's no emitter:

$100 +/- for the adaptor
$150+/- for the Nvidia kit
$250-$400 for a 3D capable screen of decent size(20"+)

Grand Total=$500+ without thinking about it, do the total math next time

 

hey guys! i just got my r3 weeks ago and holymoly i f*cken love it so much! but one thing i have issues with is the HDMI input. When i play blocks ops on my ps3, theres times where my screen/disply turns off. The game and sound is still running but the only way i have to get the disply back on is is uselly by taking out the hdmi and reinsert it or toggle f8 combo. I even tryrd my friends hdmi chord and i still have the same problem. uselly im able to get by one full round in black ops with the disply turning off but its been getting annoying so i was wondering if u guys have any suggestion or reason.

 

click on the battery icon in system tray
-> More power options
-> "Change plan settings" for the plan that you're currently using
-> Under the "Plugged in" column (assuming you're using hdmi-in while the r3 is plugged in), change "Turn off the display" to never
-> save changes

 

thnk u sooooooo much!

 

Do you find the color of your games to seem off/different while using hdmi-in?
My games seem quite blue shifted

 

You should try to adjust color temperature in your screen to correct this. I find 6500K to be good

Edit, sorry i just realized it is HDMI-IN you are talking about, i don't know if there is any adjustment of this kind (what i was sugesting apply to external monitor attached to HDMI-OUT)

 

Looks like I will be a guinea pig for your entertainment.
I just pre-ordered an AMD Radeon HD 6970M with the $500 Dell gave me for F'ing up my order (3D package). Hopefully it will ship by next Friday.

Shall we take bets as to whether or not it will;
work
brick
explode
cause r3 to explode
be excessively hot/unusable

 

shhhhweeeettt! can hardly wait for what you can tell about it

 

kind of sad that the good:bad potential situations is at least 1:4 haha

 

Worst I believe is that it won't work without proper driver or Dell update. Upside is huge. Good luck!

 

It should work. It was available on some of the Euro Dell websites before they had to take it off due to the Sandy Bridge incident. It also says it's supported in the service manual.

Best of luck. Please keep us updated.

 

Umm...so i've been enjoying my R3 that i got on January 25th... i just looked at the alienware website and noticed that the R3 isn't for sale anymore. I googled it and saw that there is a design flaw with Intel's chipsets...

What am i supposed to do with my R3? Am i expected to return it? Will they just replace the chipset? When will i get it back?

 

see here for info regarding intel recall

 

You must be playing too much and checking in here too little! Good for you.

Shame on Dell for not notifying there be love cash cows individually!

You can return within 21days.

You can wait for Dell to send a tech to u to replace the motherboard.

You can do nothing like me and just enjoy your R3.

 

Yes, i've been gaming away. I had never PC gamed before my R3 and i'm loving it!

So i can just wait until the new chipset is released and then i can call them and tehy will send a tech out for me?

that sounds like the option for me, because i really dont want to return my system, even though i regret not getting the 3D. I'll live.

 

FYI, it only affects the CD/DVD/BD on the r3 (it's the only sata2 port in use)
I'll probably opt out of getting a new mobo; don't want 3rd party techs touching my hardware ever again.

 

Typically repairs are done by Dell people if you've got the right warranty. This isn't a situation where they send you the box and you get your laptop back 5 weeks, several cracks and missing items later.

 

Actually, Dell has told me several times that intel will be taking care of the repairs themselves. I still don't want them touching it, but we'll see.
Anyway, this is discussion for that other topic so I'm out!

 

I had thought the eSATA port was also effected... ?

 

it is

/10char

 

Is anyone using RST 10.xxxx with an OCZ sandforce SSD?

After weeks of not installing the RST drivers, I finally decided to do it with the hope that performance would see a boost. Bad idea! 100% freeze up after RST loads on every single boot, even in safe mode.
That's the last time I listen to the suggestions of OCZ forum staff. They swore up and down that my performance issues are being caused by lack of RST10

I'm glad I can type and click fast. Had to start the uninstall procedure within 4 seconds of booting into windows; took 7 attempts.
Can anyone point out which version of RST 9.6 would work with the r3? I'll edit in a link in a few seconds.

EDIT: lol
rst 9.6 doesn't install on HM67 chipset
rst 10.x installs, but crashes every single boot - including safe mode
It'd be nice to be able to TRIM my drive haha
oh well....

 

Not sure if this was posted, an unboxing by IGN:

Alienware M17x R3 Unboxing Video Video - IGN

Youtube link because IGN media player sucks - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQufARlO1X8

 

Anyone have this auto-install itself after pushing CPU temps?

 

No, have not seen before.

Besides running benchmarks and playing games at ultrasettings for hours, have not focused on pushing cpu temps however.

Did it change the cpu temps after installing???

Freaking photobucket has a malware advertisement that runs when you click on the photo, fyi....

 

Nope I haven't seen it either. One question I have for you guys is if you can run Prime95 with ThrottleStop and/or CPU-z in the background to monitor temps and clocks. I had a strange incident this week where about 30 minutes into the test it downclocked to idle clocks and wouldn't kick back up. Just wondering if this is just my computer or if we may have an issue with the model or hardware.

 

Dangerclose, I ran Throttlestop and its included prime number test for Uncle Webb on day one to show him temps and throttling among other things. No problem with either.

 

But how long did you run it for? Anything stress test wise up to about 30 mins is fine for me, in the 30-45 minute range it drops to idle clocks and won't return to standard stressed clocks without a restart.

 

not as long as that. Would running TS. For 30 min satisfy?

 

Probably, ideally Prime95 if you don't mind to make it the same scenario but if you don't want to I'm just fine with TS. Either way +1 and thanks in advance.

 

dane what kind of score do you get with wprime 1.55. 8 threads, 32m test?

just doing a quick comparison... thanks bro

 

I ran through the core parking thread and applied the adjustments then ran prime95 for 30 secs and switched to aida64 stress test. Temps went up to 84C so I stopped it and restarted the laptop while I considered whether or not I should undo the registry changes or not.

Once it restarted, I got a pop-up saying the thermal control thing was installed. Temps wont go past 80C in the same stress test, but my C0 keeps dropping to 99% and multiplier is going below x25
CMod and Chip are still 100.0

 

That sounds like Turbo Boost 2.0 kunekaden, throttling is basically kicking down below the 2.0ghz per core level. Mine kicked down to 800mhz on 4 cores without the 4 threads and wouldn't budge. No idea what the thermal control pop-up was but doesn't sound like true throttling to me.

 

Sure thing Stereo, I'll load them up when I get home.