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    m17x r3 -- hard drive clicking and detection issues?

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by bydoempire, Oct 15, 2011.

  1. bydoempire

    bydoempire Notebook Geek

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    so i just installed an intel 510 120 gb ssd in my new m17x r3 in slot 0, and moved the 750 gb hdd to slot 1. i set the sata mode to ahci in bios, and started it up. i got a LOT of clicking from hdd, but i was able to install win7 to the ssd painlessly and format the hdd.

    now, whenever i boot up, the hdd clicks madly, and it takes a good three to five minutes after login for the os to find and presumedly mount the hdd. i removed it, and installed an old 640 gb hdd i had around. same issue. swapped the slots of the ssd and the hdd, and reinstalled. same issue.

    if i boot with JUST the 510 or JUST the hdd, it is fine. i remember reports on this forum of the XPS L702X having this issue with ssd/hdd pairings, although i never had a problem with either my corsair 128 ssd or my intel x-35 80 ssd paired with a 640 gb hdd on my L702X when in ahci. is anyone familiar with this issue -- and can it be fixed?
     
    bydoempire, Oct 15, 2011
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  2. bydoempire

    bydoempire Notebook Geek

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    oh, and i can't seem to run anything off the hdd, either -- if i launch the process (like, say, steam.exe), it just hangs and i get the spinnin' circle. annoying!

    edit: well, finally got steam to start, but this file access hang is uncool!
     
    bydoempire, Oct 15, 2011
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  3. Luxferro

    Luxferro Notebook Consultant

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    Are you on the latest bios?

    Download HWINFO64, and check the motherboard section. Make sure you have cougarpoint B3 version. Prior versions of the chipset were know to have sata issues. I'm not sure if M17xR3's ever came with anything but B3's though.
     
    Luxferro, Oct 15, 2011
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  4. bydoempire

    bydoempire Notebook Geek

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    bydoempire, Oct 16, 2011
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  5. bydoempire

    bydoempire Notebook Geek

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    after five complete reinstalls and a bathtub's worth of ibuprofen, i have this rig up to spec. man, thanks to the folk(s) who provided the repaste guide -- my temps are down 10-12C after a good AS5 repaste. (case interior is laid out nicely, too.) my only complaint is the crazy keyboard flex -- this can't be normal, right?
     
    bydoempire, Oct 16, 2011
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  6. Brabostaan

    Brabostaan Notebook Deity

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    What did you do to fix it?

    How much flex do you have and where?
     
    Brabostaan, Oct 16, 2011
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  7. bydoempire

    bydoempire Notebook Geek

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    fixed it by abandoning the intel 510 altogether and putting an intel 320 (160gb) ssd in instead.

    the flex seems to be worst on the left side; however, even the numpad has some flex. the keyboard feels super cheap compared to my previous L702X.
     
    bydoempire, Oct 16, 2011
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