Alienware 18 BIOS A12 Findings & Fixes

A12 (the one recently released by Dell?) is compatible with R2 ?

 

Not that one, is the latest sBIOS released by DELL for M18X-R2 in 09 Oct 2013
http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/product-support/product/alienware-m18x-r2/drivers/advanced

Updated: Please do not update the M18X-R2 to A12 BIOS over the A10 unlocked, you'll miss the unlocked cpu option and get 8 beep error if flash back to A10 unlocked because you must flash in legacy mode and in the process it returns to PEG mode again resulting in the 8 beep error nightmare.

 

Are you flashing the the primary and secondary vbios's to you cards?....don't. Only flash the vbios labeled 1 to both cards, make a copy of number 1 and rename it to 2 if you need. I just flashed both vbios's and my secondary fan stopped working as well. The moment I rebooted after flashing the primary Premas 1.1.1 dell vbios to both cards the secondary fan went crazy... by the time hwinfo loaded it was back at 50C

 

Rebooting notebook after flashing secondary gpu with 980MPMA1.rom BIOS and desinstalled HWinfo do not change the second gpu fan problem...
my note shutdown again after reaching 94C in game and fans not spinning. kenny27 if you try some benchmark program and monitor the temps with MSI Afterburner and HWinfo desinstalled, what are your results? Are you using A10 or A12 sBIOS?

 

msi afterburner and Hwinfo running, one loop of firestrike.... I got to 72C. I'm using A10 Unlocked vbios and Premea 1.1.1 dell vbios, and J95 350.12 drivers
I was really hoping I had found you problem

 

Yeah but how did your fans work with HWinfo disable or desinstalled? I was hoping there isn't a need for HWinfo anymore when the gpus are flashed with this new firmware mod.

 

Kenny

I use drivers 353.00 modded by @j95 and they seem to work best on my system. you should give it a shot see how they perform in yours.

 

Guys, this thread is about AW 18 NOT M18xR2. The new A12 BIOS is only for AW 18!!!
You apparently all have an R2 and should maybe take the discussion over to the other thread.

 

I understand, so that's why the second fan in M18X-R2 still not working with this vBIOS... Prema, is there something planned to be released for M18X-R2?

 

I've reinstalled HWINFO64. I noticed my 2nd GPU temp was running to hot 84c. It's never gotten that hot. The primary is running at 74c, normal. With HWINFO64 I can run Witcher 3 for 4-5hrs and both GPU cards run at 74-75c. With this new vbios the 2nd GPU temp gets real hot within 45 minutes of playing game. I'm going to remove it and go back to the vbios I was using.

 

So if I have a for the most part stock AW18 should I or should I not update the BIOS to this? I do not want to make my system worse or anything lol. It has 880s SLI. Also what is everyone talking about updating Dells VBios? I do not see those files on their site.

 

You should update to system BIOS A12. It should remedy the throttle on you 88 0Ms, too.
There is no new vbios for your cards...

 

Awesome stuffs Prema,

I haven't been around or checked in for like Forever but to my surprise checking in on the forums today.
Woot new System bios and new vbios's to try.

Great stuffs - Thanks.

 

so it looks like the tables shifted. now you are better off having an alienware m 18 vs an R2 if you have 980ms after this bios update

 

I am running A12 on my AW18 with 780M and everything seems perfectly fine... other than it not being "unlocked" as they advertised it would be. Not sure if they removed the Secure Flash crap. If they did, we might be able to have @Prema or @svl7 unlock the menus. Will need to test the PRR2 tool to see if I get an error message or "Ready to Flash" and that should tell us.

 

Dell lied to us when they said it would be an "unlocked" BIOS. There are no hidden options enabled, I still can't disable package c-state for my OSx86 project without having to patch the entire Mac OS kernel, and I've already tested the prr2 tool to no avail, with it complaining that flash protection could not be removed.

 

Many refused to believe me when I wrote that Dell will never create an unlocked bios for Aw18. I have all my on dry ground .

 

Oh no, I said that too, that Dell would never willingly or knowingly ever unlock the BIOS on the Alienware 18 or Alienware 17.

 

Just another data point to say that Legacy boot works with A12 bios and the 980M.

I was on Windows 7 with a single 780M and did a clean driver install via DDU. Pulled the 780M and put in the 980M and it booted into my existing copy of Windows 7 right away. Couldn't be any simpler.

 

This is absolutely wonderful news. Very late and way past due, but still very good and welcomed news.

 

just a stupid question why is UEFI is that bad ? im using it i dont see any problem with it and why is Legacy boot is better ?

 

No, that's not a stupid question at all. It's a great question and the only way to learn is by asking.

All by itself, there is absolutely nothing it wrong with UEFI. The door to abuse that it opens makes it potentially a Satanic piece of poop. I absolutely despise it because:

• It allows Micro$loth and OEMs to exercise more control and impose restrictions on what end users can do with their own private property that Legacy BIOS does not allow them to have. UEFI Class 3 will introduce additional draconian controls that are far worse than anything we have ever dreamed of, including the ability to require only signed hardware, block upgrades, block firmware mods, block driver mods, and block the launch of any software they do not approve of, including operating systems that Micro$haft doesn't make enough money off of through direct sales or extortion fees collected in exchange for "certification" signatures. If they decide to, it can even be used to allow them to set an "expiration date" on the system and keep it from booting if they decide you only get to rent your computer for X number of months or years until the clock runs out and you're required to buy a newer machine.
• Pure UEFI mode (without Legacy/CSM support) does not support Windows 7 and most versions of Linux (they are unbootable). Only Windows 8 or newer can run in a Legacy-free UEFI environment and Windows 8 and newer Micro$lop operating systems just suck. It allows Micro$not and their "partners" (slaves) to decide what OS you're allowed to use on "their computers" LOL. That's right... they can own you, and your hardware, and tell you what software your allowed to use in a pure UEFI environment to whatever extent they choose to once UEFI Class 3 has fully spawned.
• Micro$lack holds their partners at ransom and has set guidelines they have to follow to maintain "partner" status and receive the "benefits" of WHQL certification, signed firmware and drivers, etc. The extortion money collected for WHQL certification and signatures is marketed to customers with an offering of a placebo security blanket to help them feel safe and confident that the malware boogie-man doesn't come through the internet and possess the soul of their PC.

So, in summary, it's not UEFI itself, but the total abuse of power and control that it allows the Tech-Nazi imbeciles to wield that makes it bad. UEFI BIOS on most enthusiast desktop motherboards is pretty awesome, but they don't use it/abuse it as a means of screwing their customers (so far) like many of the laptop OEMs and the Redmond Mafia do. Pretty nice stuff, don't you think? But, it's OK, because our self-exalted Father who art in Redmond loves us and knows what is best for us all.

 

Just updated to the latest Nvidia driver, 358.50. I used DDU to clean out old drivers, this driver installed without me having to mod it , nor did I have to disable driver signature. I think I'm a little sad now.

 

Haha, your no longer a rebellious modder, your hardware is legit...

 

Don't forget how to use mod drivers. You may need it an other time

 

Mod 'em anyway! We'll teach those drivers a thing or two. Stock is for children and old ladies, LOL.

 

Would be possible to adapt some of these updates of new 18 A12 BIOS to the old M18X-R2 A10 unlocked BIOS?

 

With the right tools and knowledge, I suspect it would be. I lack both, so I'm going to be pretty dog-gone worthless with regard to sBIOS mods.

 

There is going to have to be a lot of disassembly and sifting through files to see if we can find where they changed to boot code. I think the best approach would be to compare A10 to A12 on the Alienware 18, find what modules they changed (MD5 sum each module maybe?) to find which is different in this version, then deconstruct the specified module to hunt for the code changes, then see if it is applicable to the M18x R2's corresponding module.

Naturally, the chances of bricking are high, so it would be a shame to sacrifice a M18x R2 with a good working recon sound chip.

 

All of my Sound Blaster Recon3Di problems simply vanished with driver version 6.0.100.2055 released 05/20/2015. All of my M18xR2 motherboards had issues with it, but, thankfully, that driver cured the issues.

 

I've been reading through all of you guys postings for some time now. Very interesting things on here. I've been looking for ways to get the most out of my system but am still learning from others and experimenting with what I can, that I have access to. I don't suppose any of you guys are still running the 770M's ? I have an Alienware 18 /w 4900MQ 2.8/3.8 turboboost, Dual 770M's. I like some others on here are running the A10 bios. I welcome any ideas to how I can get the most out of my system without replacing hardware ATM.

 

Install a12 to your system this way you have it loaded, and if/when you decide to go the 980m way nothing to remember. If you don't like it you can always go back to a10. If you bench your system and suffer from throttling (don't know if 770s do) then go get vbios from Prema check to see if he's made them for the 770s. As for your over all system stay away from win10 it can kill your monitor if your unlucky. There is a whole thread on it.

 

I got it downloaded with several other bios updates from the past so I guess I'll run it and see how it works. I do plan on going to 980M's when I can afford the luxury of them..lol. As for the OS thing....well, its a little too late. I upgraded to 10 a couple months ago. I haven't noticed any issues with the monitor so far and I have a crap load of games I would have to reinstall if I go back to 7. I'll keep an eye out for any issues and post if I find them. Thank you for your input in this matter sir.

 

Just make sure you don't install EVGA Precision X at this point. That will overwrite the EDID in your laptop screen. If you normally run your laptop with an external screen you probably won't even notice.

 

Does it mean Alienware 18 + win10 is ok as lomg as i dont install EVGA Precision X?

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

@Mr. Fox got his AW18 destroyed without EVGA precision. He even did not completed installing software lol when 8 beeps appeared

 

Hi, guys! I've just freshly made a new account here because this was a super interesting read!

Now I'd like some welp if possible

I've got an AW18 GTX 780M SLI, i7 4700MQ, 32GB DDR3L, 1TB Samsung 850 EVO Pro, 1TB Samsung 850 EVO mSATA and 750GB WD 7200 RPM.
On this machine I am running Win10 Pro x64 and my screen is clocked at a glorious 105Hz atm (and yes, it's a Samsung panel and no, it didn't die after upgrading to Win10 lol)

Now I've been thinking of Upgrading to GTX 980M SLI for a good while now, ever since the first MXM kits started popping up on ebay, but I never really did it, because of all the hassle it involved (making sure the bios was UEFI at the time, custom the vBios, modding the fan connections to get both fans to spin, needing modded drivers, etc). I was hooked on the thread where @Mr. Fox was pretty much pioneering it all!
And I've just literally recently stumbled upon the new A12 BIOS from september and the description sparked my interest! And it seems from this thread that it has fixed some of the problems!

So the question is:
If I were to buy a pair of 980M's - would I need to do anything special now? Any hard/soft-modding? Custom drivers? Would I be able to FINALLY just buy a couple of the babies and slot them in? (do I need custom X brackets or heatsinks?) And if I get them running - is the performance normal? Is it performing to spec now? Worth the hassle (if any)?
(I'm not asking from the monetary standpoint because from my spec you can probably tell I've got money to burn, lol).

Your help would be greatly appreciated!

P.S.: While I'm at it - it would be cool if someone could explain to me if I could benefit from a modded vBIOS and direct me to where I'd need to read it up/get one, since this area for me is totally new. Thanks!

 

How do you change your panels refresh rate and what is the benefit? Mine says its at 60hz?

 

@smoke - I used the Pixel Clock Patcher to patch the drivers to allow for higher pixel clocks. The screens on AW18 itself (and most laptops, for that matter) allow for much higher refresh rates, so I used CRU (Custom Resolution Utility) to Set a custom 1080p resolution at a refresh rate that doesn't produce artifacts (this required some trial and error to narrow down). In my case it was 107Hz, but I rounded it off to 105Hz for prettyness sake. If I do 120-140Hz I get a few pixels, predominantly when coloured red and grey, flickering, which I don't like.
VSync works fine and dandy and games that are not locked to either 30 or 60fps actually do display the refresh rate as 105Hz for me - so nothing to worry about in terms of game support!

The most beautiful things are:

1) If your beastly system can produce the frames - the screen can actually show them! No more 60Hz when your lappy can push out 90+, for example. Because of this I tend to actually lower my graphics settings a wee bit so I can get more frames out for a superb gaming experience.
2) Since your screen displays at a high refresh rate - the input latency is greatly reduced - FPS games feel so much more responsive! Just doing everyday tasks, like lurking around in Windows or browsing the net feel much smoother too!
3) You can play at 4K DSR at that refresh rate (provided your PC can push it) because the downsampling occurs BEFORE the framebuffer is released, so you're still pushing just 1080p onto the screen!).
4) FREE!
I've also noticed, by overclocking 6 other desktop screens and lurking around the web, that the desktop displays usually can't go beyond 75Hz, while laptop screens are much better at this (there's a guy who OC'd his HP laptop display to 180Hz with no artifacts and even made a video about it), due to better quality materials, like capacitors, etc.

Try it out - it's awesome!

P.S.: @Mr. Fox - your beastly systems could benefit from this greatly if you haven't tinkered with the screens yet!

 

BUMP - so can anyone please explain how the 980M SLI is now working (see post #87)? Thanks!

 

yeah seriously. Why do they not have one.

 

Thats true, I only ever did it for 6 months, on my old M17X-R4 but it was able to do 75Hz but not much else(Perfectly though). I left it on for like a few months, totally forgot about it, but it worked.

 

This is true, this is also why we do not use this vbios, and instead use a combination of two vbios (for SLi) or we stick to the .12 vbios.

 

cos they're lazy f***s....the IMEI firmware isn't even up to date to be compatible with win 10 so that's why i manually did it.

 

This is going to sound stupid but....does anybody know how to extract the bios image file from the updater? It like....hidden. The old M18x R2 BIOS image was in the EXE...just had to extract. I have no idea where the image is for the A18 and the /writehdrfile command doesn't work nor does /writeromfile

 

Try the Phoenix Bios Editor. They packed it in a way to prevent people from easily accessing the ROM/BIN file to mod it. https://www.bios-mods.com/downloads/

 

tried it, but I still can't find the stupid ROM or FD file. I'm trying to see if I can backport the VGA modules from the Alienware 18 into the M18x R2 so we can get proper 980M Legacy support.

 

More info here: https://www.bios-mods.com/forum/Thread-Important-RSA-Signed-BIOSes

The tool should give you a message on screen about the recovery BIOS file name (ends with .FD) and that .FD file should be in one of the folders when the tool unpacks the BIOS. The recovery file should be named something like VAS10X64.FD (perhaps with a question mark if the tool cannot decrypt the entire file name).

 

Ah, it is Phoenixtool, not phoenix bios editor, that is used for this process. Two completely different tools, but very similar names. Thanks for the heads up!

 

So, could anyone please finally answer post #87? Would be highly appreciated.

Sorry for sounding like a noob here, but would like to know what I might get myself into if I decide to buy a 980M SLI kit!

Thanks!