M18x R2 HD 7970M Xfire GTX 680M SLI when ?

nice, i assume for the optical drive space you need a special caddy? or can you just take out the optical and mount the hdd in there?

 

yes you need this caddy 12.7mm Sata To Sata 2nd Hdd Hard Drive Caddy Dell HP | eBay

 

Its done!

Went for red, 8gb ram, killer wireless, 7970 crossfire, 3 year warranty! Now to play the waiting game.

 

I have a similar one in my system, but I purchased it directly from Jacob's Parts for less than the eBay price. Here's where I ordered the one I am using. https://www.jacobsparts.com/items/HDDBAY-01/. Mine is designed exactly the same except the housing is metal. That one appears to be plastic. I am satisfied with my setup. The factory bracket fits the caddy perfectly and there is room for a higher capacity 12.5mm HDD where there is not in the main HDD caddy.

Have a look here for more detail... http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ns-troubleshooting-thread-44.html#post8496990

(The bezel I am using with the external BD-RE fits Panasonic drives. I'm not sure it will fit other brands. I think that NBR member tanderson found the bezel would not fit his brand of DVD/CD combo drive. You might be able to mod it, but the tabs possibly do not line up with the holes or something like that. Would need to find out from tanderson if it was possible for him to make it work.)

 

well, first of all i am a noob. so don't lol at me pls .....

i have order
320-3263 18.4-inch WideFHD 1920 x 1080 WLED 1
320-3624 CrossfireX 2GB GDDR5 AMD Radeon HD 7970 1

1.------the hd 7970. but i saw online it was 3GB why it become to 2GB . or 3GB just for desktop?

and when GTX680 come out.

2.-------can i put hd7970 and gtx680 into m18x R2 together?
if it can be done , will how will it work? will they crash down or not?

 

crossfire 7970M means two cards so you get 2X HD7970M's with 2GB of ram each

the GTX680M has not been released yet

 

But only 2gb of vram will be usable as vram is not a additive in cf or sli.

 

The mobile market has an upscaling naming scheme so 7970M = Desktop 7870, 5870M = Desktop 5770, 580M = 560 Ti, etc in mobile form and desktop 7870's have 2gb memory. 7970 is a different gpu altogether and is not available in the mobile market. No mobile/desktop cards are not interchangeable so you cannot stick a mobile card in a desktop or a desktop card in a laptop.

 

And to answer your final question, I am almost entirely sure that you cannot run an AMD card along with an NVidia card in any way that does not leave the slave card disabled.

 

^^neither would you want to.

 

Ah man, that sounds killer. I'm thinking of using the Seagate hybrid drives (750GB) as I have heard good things about using them for data, especially data that works well being cached. What size M4 did you get? I'm eying the 256gb, myself, as the prices are getting so low.

And yeah, I'll be keeping that in mind, so you do, too, in case you're ever out up here in San Francisco!

 

I've been using the first gen Momentus XT (500GB) for over a year now, and it's a noticeable speed boost over an ordinary HDD - I can't say whether it comes close to SSD speeds, because I've never used a machine with an SSD, but it's definitely faster than an ordinary HDD for a lot of data.

 

I really like my Momentux XT hybrids. They do feel snappier than an ordinary HDD... noticeable improvement. They are very good drives, but not even close to SSD speed.

I was a slow adopter of SSD because of the absurd cost per GB and lower storage capacity. Now that I have been using SSD as the primary drive and HDD only for storage, there is no comparison. The difference in experience using SSD, even the underperforming Agility 3, is incredible. I think it's a very worthwhile upgrade, even for non-gamers. The entire system runs smoother and more swiftly even with a cheap computer.

 

So are there still any problems with the 7970 Xfire given it is on sale in the US? I'm trying to figure out a reason it's still not for sale in Australia...

 

They are slowing getting sorted through end user workarounds and hacks. AMD seems to have been more focused on releasing their new tech than they were supporting it, LOL. Finally making some headway due to the efforts of owners. You can follow the unfolding saga in this thread... http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m18x/661918-m18x-r1-7970m-crossfire.html

 

If let's say you want to upgrade your 500gb hdd to ssd in the future. Is it possible? And how do you do so?

 

The service manual for taking apart the machine is in the owner's guide thread at the top of this forum. Specifically, though, you remove the bottom plate cover, remove the hard drive, and install the new hard drive. Although, assuming you only have the single hard drive, you would not need to remove the 500GB hard drive, but, instead, could just install the SSD along side it.

 

Ridiculous.. 7970M CrossFireX ftw

 

Unfortunately dell figured out the AMD is better its $600 for the 7970s now and $350 for the 675s

 

On the site now...a single 675 is $350. Crossfire 7970's is $550. Dual 675's in SLI is $600. Doesn't look like anything has changed. U.S. site prices, btw.

 

That seems appropriate and fitting considering the difference in performance. It was silly to pay more for a renumbered 580M (675M) than for new and more powerful tech.

It may also have something to do with demand. If people are gobbling them up as fast as they can provide them, the ODM supplying Dell, Eurocom and other OEM may be charging them more for the 7970M for no reason other than they can get away with it.

 

Sorry i was referring to Dell.ca.

 

I should have noticed your location, my bad. You had me worried there for a minute. LOL

 

Well, for them's that's wondering, 7970's in CrossX are now available in NZ at least. Oddly enough, they are only available as an option if you select the 'Mid-Line' preconfigured system- ie, if you select the already completely decked out M18x model then click 'customize', the ATI GPU option won't even be available. Weird....

 

They have also added it to the Australian website today although for us we have it available for the "bottom-line" (as a customization, AUS$80 off price) or the "Mid-line" (pre-customisation) but strangely not an option for customisation of the "Top-line".

 

Finally was able to order r2 with 7970m xfire. Now I play the waiting game once again...

 

Just placed my order a few minutes ago. Had to leave Mythlogic on the Clevo 170EM side. Took too long for them to get the 7970Ms...great company though and I hope to go with them again. In the meantime, Alienware came through with a great price and I should have my laptop in around a week or so!

 

Guys, anyone know of reputable Alienware resellers aside from Hidevolution? I've read dozens of negative reviews so I decided not to go with them.

 

Ho to All,

Only second post here but come to the site a lot.

Ordered the M18X R2 with 7970M Xfire two days ago.
I was surprised when checking my link to see it is in production with a delivery on/before 11th June.

Sent back an M18X that had 580M SLI as it was duff straight out of the box.

Of note there is a 10% off final price on the DELL UK site that was a nice saving but not sure when it ends.

I will report back when it turns up and I have had a chance to give it a spin.

Regards
GW

 

I need a little help. I can't decide if the GTX 680m is worth waiting for? Or should I just go with Radeon 7970m CrossFireX? I want my future M18x to satisfy my performance needs for quite a bit of time so making the right GPU choice is essential.

I almost always choose Nvidia because of the stable drivers, better application support and proprietary CUDA features like PhysX. Vendor lock-in stinks but I've never had any issues when I've gone Green so I'm not complaining too much about it.

But Nvidia's current highest-end mobile GPU, the GTX 675m leaves something to be desired with less performance than Radeon's top-end 7970m GPU and rebranded last-gen architecture.

The upcoming GTX 680m is Kepler based and has 2x as many CUDA cores and looks decent. It's just that I would have to wait to place my order until the 680m became available, no idea when it's gonna happen, if I wanted to go with preferred Nvidia for my ultimate laptop.

If I go with Radeon 7970m's though, I can place my order sooner and have my dream machine ready much earlier. Better performance than the GTX 675m, and possibly the GTX 680m too. Most likely cheaper than the 680m is gonna be, considering the 675m is already pricier than the 7970m right now.

AMD Radeon's drivers were terrible when I used them in the past and still seem iffy. Not as many games are optimized for Radeon as are for Nvidia. I'd give up PhysX, 3D Surround Vision (useless for a laptop anyways) and a more mature GPGPU-computing environment than what Radeon offers.

I don't want to end up turning to the Red-side for instant gratification now and end up regretting it when GTX 680m is released. Nor do I want to wait an unspecified amount of time without a gaming laptop for the 680 just for the performance to end up still falling short of the 7970.

What would other members recommend?

 

I'm not saying that the 7970m's are not beasts or that they won't get "ironed out" soon BUT - no-one knows what the 680m will bring to the table yet. If you want to be sure you made the right decision, you HAVE to wait until all cards (sorry for the pun!) are on the table!!

A well known saying...."buy in haste, repent at leisure!" - you said yourself you would prefer an Nvidia based system...so why not wait a little longer - you will STILL have the choice later on....

 

@steviejones133:

I like your logic and agree with you. I was leaning towards waiting to begin with, just wanted some feedback on what others would do. Thanks!

 

Your welcome, my friend!

 

Waiting will also allow me to plan out my finances better anyway.

I'd rather have a little extra padding in my budget which might be more forgiving if other situations arise that also require money.

Plus, extra budget might allow me to upgrade the CPU to the 3920XM or get another year's worth of warranty

 

Don't forget, M18X systems are upgradeable...even if you may not be interested in that - you may change your mind when you receive it and start using it.

I have both AMD and Nvidia 28nm desktop GPUs and they're essentially the same. Yes, Nvidia is better - but the difference is very marginal. There's no way that someone that bought a 7970 in January is going to be regretting not waiting until March when the 680s dropped - that's two full months of awesome gaming.

 

Haha - unless the 680m produces figures that outshine the 7970m's figures. Then I could see quite a few people kicking themselves - we simply dont know just right now.

And you cant just turn around to Dell after two months and say "Hey Dell, I now want 680m SLI please....." if you change your mind.

Don't forget too, upgrading your gpu's after you bought the system is ALOT more expensive....sure, you might get in 2 months of enjoyment, but if you want the VERY best of this generation of mobile gpu's, it only makes sense to wait and see how the "big picture" unfolds......otherwise if your one of those "early adopters" who really must have the fastest and best right away, those 2 months enjoyment could end up costing you a small fortune...

I may be more cautious than others, but that is only through hard lessons in the past. I still would recommend waiting if you must have the very best gpu's - at least until you have seen what the competition brings to the table...

 

My take on this is that if it's the best performer and is available now, I'd choose it. By the time 680m arrives, I'm sure someone's already cooking up something more powerful and is preparing for lunch, er launch.
Like the owners of 7970m today, you will only have a few months to enjoy your top-of-the-line card before it gets outdated.

 

Some Sager resellers are saying it will be about 10% faster than the 7970m, but also quite a bit more expensive.

Should know more next week at computex in any case.

 

Good point. Tech gets outdate nowadays as soon as its released. My 580m's were "king fo the mobile hill" for about 6mths or so LOL - but, if you want Nvidia cards, you have no choice but to wait. I am "tempted" to upgrade my 580's to 7970's but I will hold off until "the fat lady has sung" - given a choice (and I ain't no fanboy either) I would go Nvidia if they are in the same price/performance area, simply because I have had far less headaches with Nvidia than AMD.

I can see that being the case - Nvidia always tends to be more expensive, last time around with the 6990m/580m they were initially more than double the cost of the AMD offering which would make me seriously think about 7970m IF 680m are ridiculously over-priced.

Like you said, we can only wait and see....

 

After 680m, the 7990m will arrive and will be the AMD top mobile card for this generation. Keep that in mind

 

A 7990 is still questionable, the 7970 is already sitting on a 100w so there isn't a whole lot of room to adjust things. It's very plausible that AMD just threw their biggest baddest card out first to see what Nvidia would do.

 

I really dont mind AMD, especially if they have the performance crown for the time being, but I just prefer Nvidia's drivers for application support and stability.

Things seem to have gotten better on the red-side driverwise since I last used Radeon but they still don't seem as mature as nvidia's drivers.

 

I guess if you can bag a good deal on a machine with 7979m's, you won't go far wrong.........hopefully!

 

Can anybody with the Crossfired Radeon 7970m's share how stable the drivers are?

 

They are "stable" but only partially functional. I installed Catalyst 12.6 beta and it offers essentially nothing over 12.5 beta. The actual driver is the same one.

 

I hear everyone saying that nvidia has better drivers and support.

For me nvidia has the worst drivers and all is .
I have a 460m sli on the clevo x7200 and i want to change to amd. If i manage to sell the x7200 i will get an m18x R2 with 7970m CF, if not i will buy the gpus and put them into the x7200.

Problems)
1)Packard bell laptop with geforce 240m.
Tons of bsods (nvlddmkm.sys bsod = an infamous error if you google it, tons of people have it, and the error nvidia driver has stopped responded and recovered. Thats a TDR error.) Believe i switched multiple times the drivers and i even did a downclock, it still happens.
2)Then i took a change and got the x7200 with 460m sli, having read that the fermi cips dont have this problem anymore.

I randomly get TDR errors where the image goes to hell with purple dots all over the screen, and all i can do is shut down (restart sometimes doesnt fix it) the pc and start it again.

To me at least, that is not good drivers and good support. TDR error is driver error.
I Want AMD for a change.
One way or another.

What i would do:
Take the best there is now. Play to years games without looking on what comes up new.
Then after 2 years if there is something that i can upgrade my gpu with that gives between 3 and 4 times more performance i would do it. If that is not possible, wait some more, and if it is possible to do it without changing tha laptop, i would do it, if not sell and get a new one.

Because i bought the 460m sli Then the
470 came out, the 485m, then 6970, the 6990, and now the 7970

If you compare the 460m sli with 7970 CF you get betwen 3 and 4 times more performance and it an upgrade worth making.
It pointless to upgrade from, for example a 6970 to a 6990, or from a 485m to a 580m, or from a 7970 to a 680m

Get whats better now and enjoy if FFS.
Let them make new gpu, and let you play the games, because, playing games is what the 7970m CF is made for.

 

Sorry to hear you've had TDR issues with your 460M in the Clevo. Before you make a decision based on that experience, I would like to share my experience. It might save you some headaches.

I have been on both sides of the fence, and my experience with drivers has been infinitely better with NVIDIA. I have owned mostly AMD (formerly ATI) graphics cards over the past 20 years of computing bliss. My M18x was the third system with NVIDIA graphics cards and their driver support exceeds AMD in quality and feature set. About the only positive comment I can make concerning AMD Catalyst is the ability to disable tessellation in CCC.

On Wednesday night, I upgraded to 7970M and was very hesitant about that because my experience with GTX 580M SLI was the closest to flawless that I have ever known. If the GTX 680M SLI trumps the 7970M in performance, I may well switch back to NVIDIA again. Assuming the 680M is more powerful, it would not be pointless to upgrade if owning the best is something you place a high value on. That is only an opinion that fits your situation, but it may not be valid for others. Upgrading from 6990M CF to 580M SLI was the most awesome GPU change that I have ever experienced. The nice thing about not being a fanboy is the flexibility to always do what you feel like doing and go with the baddest GPU without having to eat any crow, LOL. With graphics cards, there is no brand loyalty whatsoever with me.

So, the grass isn't green on the AMD side of the house. Unless they change something right away, prepare yourself for a little bit of "driver drama" with the switch to AMD. Find a version that works and stick with it as long as you can, because they're kind of a pain in the tail end.

And trust me on this... AMD drivers have TDR errors, too. The NVIDIA forums have many posts from AMD owners looking for a solution to TDR errors. I had more problems with TDR errors with 6970M and 6990M CrossFire than I have with GTX 580M SLI. In fact, there is a post somewhere in the Alienware M18x forums where I document something like 58 TDR errors in a single day, LOL. This is a Windows Vista/7 problem and neither NVIDIA nor AMD can be directly faulted for it. The problem manifests in the video drivers, but it is the way Windows Vista/7 handle the timeout delay that results in the error. There is also a chance that you had a laptop with a hardware defect that was causing the TDR problems. The second set of 6970M graphics cards I had suffered from terrible TDR crashes, far more than the first pair of 6970M cards. In fact, I never had any TDR problems with the first pair. The second pair and the 6990M graphics cards that replaced the second pair constantly had the video drivers crashing.

And, with respect to 7970M, if you are looking for an escape from driver problems, it's not a solution at the moment. There are no drivers that support it fully. It's a work in progress and you will notice that Alienware is one of the only gaming laptop manufacturers that is shipping systems with 7970M. My 7970M CrossFire setup is absolutely a beast, but for right now, it's only partially functional. I can hardly wait to see how well it works when AMD releases drivers that support it.