Questions about upgrading Alienware M17xR3

Im thinking of upgrading my Alienware M17xR3 from an AMD 6870M to a AMD 7970M.

Here is my system info to begin with:

Code:

------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 11/2/2012, 12:54:16
       Machine name: DAVID-PC
   Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1 (7601.win7sp1_gdr.120830-0333)
           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Alienware
       System Model: M17xR3
               BIOS: InsydeH2O Version 1.0 A08
          Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2720QM CPU @ 2.20GHz (8 CPUs), ~2.2GHz
             Memory: 6144MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 6092MB RAM
          Page File: 5234MB used, 6946MB available
        Windows Dir: C:\Windows
    DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
   User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
 System DPI Setting: 120 DPI (125 percent)
    DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
     DxDiag Version: 6.01.7601.17514 64bit Unicode

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
          Card name: AMD Radeon HD 6870M
       Manufacturer: ATI Technologies Inc.
          Chip type: ATI display adapter (0x68A8)
           DAC type: Internal DAC(400MHz)
         Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_68A8&SUBSYS_04BA1028&REV_00
     Display Memory: 3802 MB
   Dedicated Memory: 1012 MB
      Shared Memory: 2789 MB
       Current Mode: 1920 x 1080 (32 bit) (60Hz)
       Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
      Monitor Model: unknown
         Monitor Id: LGD02DA
        Native Mode: 1920 x 1080(p) (60.012Hz)
        Output Type: Internal
        Driver Name: aticfx64.dll,aticfx64.dll,aticfx64.dll,aticfx32,aticfx32,aticfx32,atiumd64.dll,atidxx64.dll,atidxx64.dll,atiumdag,atidxx32,atidxx32,atiumdva,atiumd6a.cap,atitmm64.dll
Driver File Version: 8.17.0010.1077 (English)
     Driver Version: 8.851.2.0
        DDI Version: 11
       Driver Model: WDDM 1.1
  Driver Attributes: Final Retail
   Driver Date/Size: 7/6/2011 15:00:42, 795648 bytes
        WHQL Logo'd: Yes
    WHQL Date Stamp:
  Device Identifier: {D7B71EE2-2BE8-11CF-AD77-B024BEC2C535}
          Vendor ID: 0x1002
          Device ID: 0x68A8
          SubSys ID: 0x04BA1028
        Revision ID: 0x0000
 Driver Strong Name: oem103.inf:ATI.Mfg.NTamd64.6.1:ati2mtag_Manhattan_PXAI:8.851.2.0:pci\ven_1002&dev_68a8&subsys_04ba1028
     Rank Of Driver: 00E60001
        Video Accel: ModeMPEG2_A ModeMPEG2_C
       D3D9 Overlay: Not Supported
            DXVA-HD: Not Supported
       DDraw Status: Enabled
         D3D Status: Enabled
         AGP Status: Enabled

---------------------
Sound Capture Devices
---------------------
            Description: Microphone (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
  Default Sound Capture: Yes
  Default Voice Capture: Yes
            Driver Name: stwrt64.sys
         Driver Version: 6.10.6314.0000 (English)
      Driver Attributes: Final Retail
          Date and Size: 12/2/2010 05:41:02, 520192 bytes
              Cap Flags: 0x1
           Format Flags: 0xFFFFF

            Description: Rec. Playback (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
  Default Sound Capture: No
  Default Voice Capture: No
            Driver Name: stwrt64.sys
         Driver Version: 6.10.6314.0000 (English)
      Driver Attributes: Final Retail
          Date and Size: 12/2/2010 05:41:02, 520192 bytes
              Cap Flags: 0x1
           Format Flags: 0xFFFFF

            Description: HDMI In (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
  Default Sound Capture: No
  Default Voice Capture: No
            Driver Name: stwrt64.sys
         Driver Version: 6.10.6314.0000 (English)
      Driver Attributes: Final Retail
          Date and Size: 12/2/2010 05:41:02, 520192 bytes
              Cap Flags: 0x1
           Format Flags: 0xFFFFF

            Description: Microphone Array (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
  Default Sound Capture: No
  Default Voice Capture: No
            Driver Name: stwrt64.sys
         Driver Version: 6.10.6314.0000 (English)
      Driver Attributes: Final Retail
          Date and Size: 12/2/2010 05:41:02, 520192 bytes
              Cap Flags: 0x1
           Format Flags: 0xFFFFF

---------------
EVR Power Information
---------------
Current Setting: {5C67A112-A4C9-483F-B4A7-1D473BECAFDC} (Quality)
  Quality Flags: 2576
    Enabled:
    Force throttling
    Allow half deinterlace
    Allow scaling
    Decode Power Usage: 100
  Balanced Flags: 1424
    Enabled:
    Force throttling
    Allow batching
    Force half deinterlace
    Force scaling
    Decode Power Usage: 50
  PowerFlags: 1424
    Enabled:
    Force throttling
    Allow batching
    Force half deinterlace
    Force scaling
    Decode Power Usage: 0

I have been doing some research for the past couple of hours and found a couple of good guides, as well as where i would be able to buy the 7970M.

However what i am unsure of is what i need to prepare for the upgrade. Im sure the guides have a lot of information but im quite certain they won't cover everything.

I need a few questions answered:
-Do i need a new power adapter? The 7970M is a lot more powerful in comparison to the 6870M.

-Which guide do i follow? I found a good one on NBR at http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/658958-guide-installing-overclocking-amd-mobility-7970-m17x-r3-illustrated-guide.html

But on the 7970M seller's page there is another guide ALIENWARE M17/M18 VGA Upgrade Kit - Dell OEM HD7970M | eBay

-What precautions do i need to take before undergoing the upgrade?

I also want to upgrade my processor, however i am not sure which processor would be a viable upgrade option.

I hope i can get some help with this, its my first time upgrading my Alienware.

 

First off welcome to NBR!!! for Installing a 7970m I would follow the guide NBR guide (Slickdude is the man!!) and you should be fine. As to the processor, which one do you have currently? Once you start upgrading your system not gonna be able to stop.

 

Need more information to advise you on your CPU upgrade. Like, what sort of things will you be doing with your R3 (i.e. games, movies, Photoshop)? Give that you already have the i7-2720QM, that's a very decent CPU for everyday gaming and computer use. One thing I would recommend it to upgrade from 6GB RAM to at least 8GB.

As for your PSU, which adapter do you currently have? If you have a 240w PSU, then that is the highest available for the m17x. You can tell the size of the PSU in the Power tab in the BIOS. If the PSU is a smaller size, then yes, you should get the 240w PSU. Its available from places other than Dell, sometimes for a lower price.

That is a very good price for a 7970m upgrade. The NBR guide on installing the new GPU is a good one, but I must stress this point: GET AN ANTI-STATIC MAT AND WRISTBAND! So many users complain their new GPUs are dead right from the install and I'd bet dollars to donuts it's because they didn't take precautions with anti-static tools and a bit of a static charge killed the card. GPUs especially are vulnerable to static pops. Follow the directions in the upgrade guide and you should be good with your new GPU. Double check the best BIOS to run on the R3. I think there are better revisions than A08.

 

Officially, we only recommend this ones:

2670QM
2860QM
2720QM

Engineering would need to test them with different processors to make them an official upgrade but we have no eTA on that.

 

Thanks for the replies!

I couldn't find the Wattage in the BIOS so i checked the brick.
The model number of the brick is GA240PE1-00 and a quick Google search revealed that it was 240W.

As for the processor, i use my Alienware mostly for gaming and making maps in UDK.
Currently depending on complexity of the maps, it takes quite a long time to Build them.

Should i flash the BIOS to the best version before installing the 7970M or should i install it first before flashing the BIOS?

 

You need to flash the bios first to disable the integrated graphics. Follow Slickdude's guide as BigTonyMan said.

 

Precisely put!

And I know I sound like a broken record, but get some more RAM for your system. Upgrading to 16GB might not make your system fly like if you installed an SSD, but it does make a difference. As for your CPU, I would recommend installing your new 7970, then upgrading the RAM (if you're open to that), then if UDK is still pretty lagging, consider going to the i7-2860QM. I say this because the CPU will cost you +/- $500 and is only necessary for CPU intensive situations. MOST users can get a lot accomplished with the mid level processors. Whether you are in that mid-level CPU usage tier or higher up remains to be seen.

 

I went ahead and bought 2 sticks of 8GB Corsair Vengeance RAMs.
I also found out my battery was dead (charging stuck at 8% although it says Plugged In, Charging) so i bought another one.
The 7970M card is on the way and i should receive it in a couple of days.
I think i'll be getting an SSD as well. Does anyone have a good 256GB SSD to recommend?

 

Darn that's a lot of money putting into your R3 LOL.

I've never understood how could people use up 16Gb ram. I have 8Gb ram and I barely 50% of it. As for SSD, I highly recommend either Intel or Samsung. 256Gb 830 Samsung was on sale for $170. That's probably the best SSD you can get at that price point. If money is no problem to you ( it definitely seems it is ) then I would recommend you a 520 Intel.

 

leeshjnn - virtualisation / if you run 1 VM for w2k8 and v sphere and let's say 1 front end on the web server / 2 vm's as db cluster on the back end - suddenly 16 GB is not enough / more like 32 GB should do the trick

 

Add in the fact that those of us with SSDs have our prefetch, superfetch, and page files disabled. In those instances, it's better to have too much RAM than not enough considering what will happen if we run out of memory.

 

So i actually installed the graphics card according to Slickdude's guide. My laptop boots up just fine and all, no errors or whatsoever. However when installing the mod drivers from that thread, the drivers for the 7970M are not being installed. There is no option for installing the AMD display driver. Does anyone have any idea what went wrong?


My drivers are now the microsoft drivers.
Also after the Microsoft drivers were installed my screen became dim.
I am still searching for a solution but i appreciate any help i can get.

 

Hi David.


I believe you will need to edit the inf with your hardware id.

 

Is there any tutorial on how to do this?

I found my hardware ID using HWINFO.
This is my hardware ID: PCI\VEN_1002&DEV_6800&SUBSYS_04901028&REV_00
However i am not sure where i can add my Hardware ID.

 

Here's a guide.

Sorry should of included the link to begin with: Mod Catalyst Driver to Add Supported Cards – BenchmarK3D

 

Thanks for the guide.
Before i started trying to mod the drivers, i downloaded AMD's Windows 8 drivers for the 7970M. That driver fixed the Dim Screen issue and it works just fine.

Here is the link: AMD Catalyst