Upgrade questions: Core i5 --> Core i7 920xm for gaming

Hi guys, I am planning to buy an i7 920xm from ebay very soon and have a few questions before I do this upgrade to my m17x r2.

- A ES sample is under $300 on ebay, is there something I should watch out for with these ES chips vs. OEM?

- So a 920xm has unlocked multipliers, meaning I can use throttlestop to achieve 24/24/24/24 on all four cores or more? I would like to be able to run at least 3.2ghz stable on 4 cores

- My dual core i5 520m right now can do 3.3ghz across both core stable at stock voltage (20 multi x 165), and up to 3.6ghz single, is there any point to upgrade for gaming? However, even when overclocked it barely runs 30fps in GTA 4, so I hope a quad core will eliminate any bottleneck to my GPUs when games like Diablo 3/BF3 come out.

- What thermal paste is best for laptop cpus?

- I haven't done the upgrade yet but have seen tear down videos, do I have to remove every other component before reaching the CPU? (including both GPUs, because that'll be a PITA!)

Thanks for all the help, I've done intensive research on the forum about overclocking and 920xm reviews but would like some confirmation before I pull the trigger and do the installation. Thanks lots! =)

 

The es chips are usually pretty good if you are really unsure make sure that you can return the cpu if its no good

yep you can overclock to your hearts content the real unleashing happens when you increase the tdp!

For most games the improvement isnt going to be huge but for GTA 4 being cpu dependant it should help a fair bit, if overclocked you should get +45fps

Thermal paste is not hugely important as long as you have it and have applied it right, I have used OCZ Freeze, Artic Silver 5 and IC diamond, all perform well.

To get to the cpu you only need to disconnect stuff and take panels, screws and the keyboard off, all the other components you can pretty much leave, although blow out any dust you see while you have the laptop open. But watch the tear down videos, be careful and you should be alright.

 

yep,

i have recently upgraded from 820 to 920xm es. Great overclocking. can get x27 on all cores 3.7ghz. Played around put cores on 29/24/24/24. got 4.16 on the first core stable. With extra cooling could proberly go higher. got mine for 150 pound sterling. Best investment i have made.

 

i see HUGE dif in fps and overall smothness after switch from i5-430M. Best cpu ever - go for It

 

What about if I'm coming from quad core i7 740QM?
Will the difference in gaming huge enough to justify the purchase of 920XM?
Thanks in advance.

 

920XM plus throttle stop will be running 2x faster than a Q740M. Especially since it will turbo up on all cores and not just a single core. You can easily run it at around 3.5GHz on all four cores at the same time.

 

thanks for the responses so far. I've got a great deal on ebay for a ES i7 920xm for $200 USD! Really happy with the price, now just need to read some more on thermal paste and tear down videos then I'll do the swap. 3.5-3.7ghz is nuts for a laptop! Can't wait to see how far I can push it =D

 

I highly recommend buying from Laptop Monkey on e-bay. Super fast shipping, great communication, and I know a lot of folks on these boards have purchased from him in the past.

 

Sherly's CPU Service is also good on ebay. They let me return my ES CPU without issue (even though it worked fine).

 

yeah, without OC the GPU ( not enough Power ) 3.84Ghz is a piece of Cake even for my Qx9300