Seems like a good deal (R3 CPU upgrade)

Hey guys, I'm running an R3 for over a year now, with 2670m, 16g RAM, and 580m.

Performance is good but I do hit a ceiling sometimes when running Protools with a lot of plugins, or when gaming with the new ARMA3 Alpha for example.


So then I saw this: Intel Core i7 2920XM Quad Core Processor 2 50 3 50 GHz | eBay

For $250 seems pretty decent, what do you guys think?

 

Sounds good. I'd ask them if it is a QS or ES (Quality Sample/Engineering Sample), these are CPU's that intel have tested so they don't put them back into general stock but sell them on as 'samples'. They should be fine, especially as they have been tested, but good to know if it is cheaper than elsewhere.

HTH.

Just noticed in the pic, ES

 

Is it true that when it comes to ES, they could either be an even better batch than a QS, but also sometimes worse?

But either way I guess you'll be able to get a decent OC on it I presume...

 

I think it's unlikely it will be worse. You have to think that they overclock them a certain amount just to make sure a batch is reliable?

 

Absolutely. These are test chips that would have been pushed to their extremities and may or may not have critical features present in QS and OEM chips. I still have my ES Core 2 Q9100 chip that I thought was a great deal at the time (200$ vs 550 for OEM). It came with unlocked multipliers (not present in OEM/QS Q9100), which was a huge plus. But, it also had NO TEMP SENSORS. That was a huge problem. It also came with an older stepping (C0 vs E0), so it was a little less power efficient. Always ask before you buy.

 

OK, will do. Thanks for the tips guys

 

It says they are a pull from new systems so i would think they should be OEM shouldn't they?

 

AFASK, Intel etch the ES or QS before selling them on. I believe QS samples are not tested it's all about the packaging and checking everything is there and looks good. ES are tested beyond the specified speeds to make sure there is 'headroom', for a lower failure rate.

 

Seems like a good deal to me. if I had the spare cash laying around I'd personally be all over that.

 

Yeah well,

I started looking at 2960xm because Protools has stability problems with Turbo boost and I sometimes have to use the stock clocks to stop it from going nuts. It's more money but I was justifying it by telling myself I use my laptop for video editing freelance and audio work as well.

I started bidding on a 2960xm OEM that started at $350. Lost both times and the winners paid $406. Annoyed that I lost both deals I started looking at ShirleyFu's stock, saw this:

Intel Sandy Bridge i7 2960XM 2 70GHz Turbo 3 70GHz QS CPU Free UPS DHL Service | eBay

It's listed as a QS and yesterday I incorrectly thought QS was the same as OEM. Anyway it was listed as $498 on sale so I made an offer of $460, FORGETTING that if the seller accepts the offer you don't get to try bargain it down even more, but you have to buy it. So I wake up in the morning and ebay says "Congrats! Now pay up". I considered backing out but I have a 100% positive feedback on ebay and was scared this would break it, and I payed.

NOW I feel a bit dumb paying so much for not even an OEM piece, and realising that $460 bucks is a lot of money, so my wallet is hurting a bit. Please make me feel better and tell me it was worth it!

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m17x/647377-2960xm-m17x-r3-heatsink-mods-3.html

reading this old thread about the heatsinks and stuff. Can anybody chime in on how they are working after a few months?

 

Ordered the RAM heatsinks from the above thread, Seiksu thermal tape, and PK-1 thermal compound

 

$350 gets you an OEM 2920XM so it was a bit silly.

 

Indeed, lesson learned.

Btw just ordered a Sager NP9150 special edition from you guys, spoke to a guy called Abe. Just saw your sig about nbr member discounts, but it's too late- already wired the money haha. Anyway my friends an apple guy so it wasn't easy to convince him to get a Sager as his first laptop ever! (His previous one was from university).

Looking forward to getting it, he's excited and so am I.