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    *OFFICIAL* Alienware 18 Owner's Lounge Thread

    Discussion in 'Alienware 18 and M18x' started by Mr. Fox, Jun 12, 2013.

  1. BlackjackCZ

    BlackjackCZ Notebook Consultant

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    Hey Brother, your tempertures are right in line with what I was getting after a 3DMark 11 run - Mid to upper 70's.
     
  2. stoyles

    stoyles Notebook Enthusiast

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    Here you go...
    770 gtx sli gpu-z.gif
     
  3. Sligh

    Sligh Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hey all,

    I am currently in the process of reinstalling win8 pro to my new SSD, have successfully installed the OS on the SSD, in the process of downloading all the necessary drivers, but just getting into windows explorer now, I do not see any other drives available (my 750gb with the caching drive is not there, just the C drive). Anyone know why that is and how to get the other drive visible? Is it just a driver I'm still missing? Thanks for any help you can give me.
     
  4. YannC

    YannC Notebook Geek

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    I currently don't have Windows 8 (I have used it before), but it should be very similar to 7. Go to Control Panel > System and Security > Administrative Tools > Create and format hard disk partitions. You should be able to assign a letter for the other drives and decide how you want to use them.
     
  5. Sligh

    Sligh Notebook Enthusiast

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    Wasn't even listed in explorer as a drive period, but turns out the cable wasn't pushed in all the way, I see it now and have formatted it, but my bios says I don't have an msata drive attached to accelerate the drive, despite windows telling me the drive was accelerated prior to putting in the ssd...we'll see after all the drivers are installed
     
  6. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    You have to install intel rapid store to be able to do that.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  7. Terminalintel

    Terminalintel Notebook Consultant

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    Is anyone having the same problems that the 14 and 17 are?
     
  8. Workpac

    Workpac Notebook Enthusiast

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    Does anyone else have blackspots under their trackpad. They are most visible when the light is on of course. And the left and right clickers are spaced slightly unevenly. It doesnt take away from the laptops awesomeness I am just curious if I got a slightly defective laptop.
     
  9. DumbDumb

    DumbDumb Alienware !Wish money wasn't the problem.

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    ooooh take it apart to investigate so you can be the first to get us pictures!!!!!!
     
  10. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    what problem is that?
     
  11. prank1

    prank1 Notebook Evangelist

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    I assume he means the throttling problems that 14 and 17 users are reporting.

    So far I haven't read anyone write about any throttling problems on the 18. In fact people with the 780m SLi seem happy.
     
  12. TBoneSan

    TBoneSan Laptop Fiend

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    A lot of people seem to be reporting high temps though.
     
  13. titansfan

    titansfan Notebook Consultant

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    No throttling whatsoever but relatively high temperatures. Running Firestrike extreme or maxxing out a modern game with the AA turned all the way up has my GPUs running around ~83 and my CPU around ~84.

    What I LOVE about this system though is how cool the area from the top of the keyboard to the front stays. I wouldn't even notice if my GPU was on fire until I started seeing sparks lol. Touching the top of the machine by the screen is REALLY HOT under load though. It can scald probably.
     
  14. Terminalintel

    Terminalintel Notebook Consultant

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    Good to read there are no throttling problems. Brings peace of mind when I go to finally purchase my rig.
     
  15. Spudinske

    Spudinske Notebook Enthusiast

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    Am I going to run into any difficulties installing a Samsung 840 pro and windows 7? The system will already have 750gb hdd + 64gb ssd cache. Will would be the steps of properly installing the ssd?
     
  16. sasa1981

    sasa1981 Notebook Enthusiast

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    You should not have any problems I replaced all my drives and installed fresh win 7.
     
  17. Vulcan03

    Vulcan03 Notebook Guru

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    Finally got my machine Shipped!!! and this is after cancellation and re order. I was expecting it to be much more late but this will doo :D
     
  18. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    Finally, have fun brother!!!
     
  19. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    yust remove the nsata and hd do not format then.
     
  20. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Nice. Have fun, mate!

    First things first. Make sure you make recovery media using AlienRespawn that is pre-loaded on to your machine. You will probably need either an 8gb USB Flash Drive or a couple of DVD' (NOT rw's). Make your recovery image and stash it away safely for future use if you ever need to restore the factory condition of your machine.

    Leave the bios set to RAID. If you want to add another SSD later on down the road and set up any raid array between them, it's far easier to do, and will not require an OS re-install. Also, if you plan on using the mSata as a cache drive, you would need RAID anyway.

    Physically install the SSD and install windows: http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...er-install-order-guide-alienware-systems.html & http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ook-feel-after-clean-install-windows-7-a.html

    Once you have done that, and assuming you still want to use the 750gb HDD & mSata (as why would you NOT want to use them?) you can, if you choose, format the HDD (your mSata won't have anything on it as it should come from the factory set up as a cache drive) and use the 750gb drive as a data drive for other stuff. Personally, as the mSata is of a rather small size, I think that it's most beneficial use would still be to accelerate your 750gb HDD.

    Note: Foramtting your HDD will erase all info on it, however, if you have made your AlienRespawn recovery media, you can 'Respawn' to it via USB/ODD and it will still revert your drive, including recovery partition, back to how it was when you first got it.

    Hope that helps.
     
  21. DH48

    DH48 Notebook Evangelist

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    Just looked at the status and:
    Carrier: UPS
    Shipped On: 15/07/2013
    Shipping Method: Standard Shipping

    So dell is sending it to UPS and it will be on its way :) to bad i will no be able to pick it up until the 16th of august. UK dell only sends the unites to UK addresses. Will be in the UK in august. But still am happy :) hope the unite is not faulty in anyway.
     
  22. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Is there any way that someone could check it over for you? - just thinking that there is a 7 day returns period in the UK. I am not sure if it may or may not be possible to 'redirect' the shipment now that it has shipped....maybe something you could contact Dell over??? - just a thought..
     
  23. diceysoft

    diceysoft Newbie

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    Mines just arrived at home :)
    This days going to drag now :'(
     
  24. sLOWRY

    sLOWRY Notebook Enthusiast

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    The day has finally arrived! My M18 will be here today. I have been waiting since May.

    Unfortunately, I'm not going to have the same freedom as the rest of you as since this technically isn't "my" laptop. I ordered it as a desktop replacement so that I may get out of the office and work some nights and weekends at home. With that comes a few stipulations. I'll be an Administrator on it … but so will at least one other person.

    The IT guy here is going to take this thing and load it up with a bunch of garbage I just know it.

    It kinda sucks but I get it. The laptop has to be backed up regularly and be made idiot-proof just like the rest of the systems here. I work as a designer in the themed-entertainment industry. I'm sure many of you that work in IT know how computer (meaning hardware) illiterate most creative types can be. I'm not as bad as most of the people I work with (or am I??) but I still get lumped into the same category as everyone else that went to art school.

    Whatever … I still get a beast of a laptop.
     
  25. very_hardcore

    very_hardcore Notebook Geek

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    Is it true that you have to unscrew back of the laptop to get the battery out. I was just wondering as I wanted to hook it up with mains most of the time with occasional use on battery.
     
  26. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    Yep, it is true.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  27. DH48

    DH48 Notebook Evangelist

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    No they dont ship them outside UK. I asked. I will see if i can ask someone to look it over if it boots and is as it should be.
     
  28. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Worth doing, mate. Even if they log anything that they think 'might' be wrong within 7 days with Dell, you should be fine.
     
  29. very_hardcore

    very_hardcore Notebook Geek

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    It will affect battery's life if I leave it inside then while laptop is connected to mains ?
     
  30. bumbo2

    bumbo2 Notebook Deity

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    Well, I don't think so. I have my R1 for 2years now and I alway leave the battery inside and I had have any problem!


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     
  31. very_hardcore

    very_hardcore Notebook Geek

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    Thanks bumbo, I am not very good with laptops as you guys are and right now I am at verge of buying alienware 18 which would be my first alienware machine as well. First thing that is stopping me from buying is sli as I have bad feelings about sli that they consume too much heat and most games do not support them and also they attract problems. Second thing was the battery which I found out recently that you have to unscrew machine to take it out. I would have bought it ages ago if single 780 m option was available in 18 inch model but I am just waiting for the option to become available which is taking forever :(
     
  32. ijiang

    ijiang Newbie

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    Hi guys!

    I just ordered my Alienware 18! I've owned an M17x R1 for three years now, its still delivering fine on games like battlefield 3, the only problem was that I burned out one of my video cards when battlefield 3 first came out, too many marathons even for the M17 ;(. The poor things got heat issues now and the display shuts off randomly. So I decided to get another laptop! and after perusing everywhere, it was a close battle between a Cyberpower Fangbook and an Alienware 18, but the benchmarks the 18 delivered were so impressive I was blown away. GPU equivalence of a GTX Titan!! Whatever that means :p Specs!

    Intel i7-4930, 32GB Dual Channel DDR3L @ 1600 MHz, 1.5 TB(2x750 GB 7200) RAID 0 + 64 GB mSATA SSD, Nvidia Geforce GTX 780m SLI, 3 + 3 years of support. Got the Orion backpack coming in, the expected delivery date should be the 31st of July! Looking so forward to it. Battlefield 4 and Rome 2!!! And whatever new elder scrolls is coming out, I hope there's an offline one, not a big fan of MMORPG's :,(
     
  33. DH48

    DH48 Notebook Evangelist

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    UPS sent me a update.
    Shanghai, China 15/07/2013 22:08 Export Scan
    15/07/2013 22:08 Origin Scan
    China 15/07/2013 6:11 Order Processed: Ready for UPS

    So it is coming from china. Funny thing is my bank released the amount as it had been locked for a month without dell sending a request. Was showing as pending. I asked Dell rep. if there was a problem and was told that money would be credited to dell account as soon as it is shipped. Well its shipped and still have the amount on my account lol ....free AW lol :D Also have a mate on the UK side that will take a look to see if it is ok when it arrives.
     
  34. sasa1981

    sasa1981 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Does anyone know what part I need to replace CDROM with hard drive. Can u please send me a link what I need to order?
     
  35. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Please let us know what machine you have.....R1/R2/New 18 ?? - also, your location might help regarding sourcing locally...
     
  36. ICNMatt

    ICNMatt Notebook Geek

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    Finally mine has been shipped - due at my office on Wednesday :)

    Its been a long wait considering I ordered the day of announcing the beast (11th) and a cancellation in the mean time.

    Can't wait!

    And just to help me keep it as fresh as possible, I just ordered the new XPS12 with 256GB SSD and i7-3687 for working from. Saves me lugging the 18 everywhere unnecessarily.
     
  37. sasa1981

    sasa1981 Notebook Enthusiast

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    I have alienware 18 and im from las vegas usa sorry
     
  38. titansfan

    titansfan Notebook Consultant

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    So after extensive testing I'm pleased to say that the CPU (4930MX) actually runs significantly cooler than I would have expected it too. Triple Pipe Heatsink really works here and it never goes above 80 or so on demanding games and firestrike extreme at stock.

    The GPUs on the other hand are, conversely, running hotter than I would have expected given the design, one of them even hitting 91 yesterday. They only have dual pipe heatsinks but they are quite thick so I'm not so sure if they are the primary cause. (Does anyone know if I can install a triple pipe heatsink in the new 18? Where/which would I buy it etc.?) I plan on re-pasting everything tomorrow afternoon and I'll come back and post results. Was going to use MX-4 but now i'll be using IC diamond since I grabbed it for cheap at Fry's yesterday (and since most people on this forum seem to prefer it.)

    Oh and this is probably a stupid question, but can you install a third hard drive without removing the optical drive? My caddy only seems to fit 2 drives and I only saw two connectors. Thanks in advance for any tips.
     
  39. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    No problem. Well, there is obviously now a Dell part for that, as the R1/R2 never had the option from Dell to remove the ODD and configure with a HDD in the ODD bay. Not quite sure if the same caddy that many have used for the R1/R2 will fit in a new 18. Again, not sure if the Dell part will be available to buy as of right now - I don't think anyone has a parts list for the 18 yet....maybe contacting Dell might help with it.

    Mr. Fox used this one https://www.jacobsparts.com/items/HDDBAY-01/ in his R1 to replace the ODD. I cannot say with 100% certainty wether it will fit the new 18 though....

    Unless the old style gpu heatsinks from the R1/R2 fit, which I highly doubt, there is no '3-pipe gpu heatsink' right now.

    As for the drives, x2 in the caddy, x1 mSata and one in the ODD bay. That's it. So, you could go x2 7mm SSD's and an mSata SSD to get 3 drives without removing the ODD.
     
  40. Mr. Fox

    Mr. Fox BGA Filth-Hating Elitist

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    I'm interested in knowing whether or not these will work correctly. It might be a solution to having lost a drive bay if mSATA doesn't turn you off too much. If they work well, you could end up with a lot of SSD RAID0 goodness stuffed into the box.

    SSDMR (Dual mini-SATA to SATA RAID Adapter - SATAIII)

    mSATA-Dual.PNG
     
  41. Crabeye

    Crabeye Notebook Consultant

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    Got my rig today :D...

    Can anyone point me in the right direction/Page/link or advise on how to do a clean install please. If it was just a normal hard drive I'd be OK but I'm a bit of a noob with this Msata thingy.

    512GB mSATA SSD Boot + 750GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s. Window 7 Ultimate.

    Thanks
     
  42. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    I'd like to know that too! - that's a cracking little idea if it actually performs well. I wonder how it would would work in terms of putting two mSata's in and THEN raiding that with a normal SSD. There's obviously some for of on-board raid controller in the adapter and I wonder if there would be any conflict in actually raiding it again......very interesting though.
     
  43. Big Noob

    Big Noob Notebook Guru

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    @titansfan:

    Did you hit those temps with stock vbios on the GPU?
    That would mean there´s no temp limit in the AW 18.
     
  44. steviejones133

    steviejones133 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    Well, the procedure should be pretty identical to a normal SSD. Here's the thread for clean install guide: http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...er-install-order-guide-alienware-systems.html & http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ook-feel-after-clean-install-windows-7-a.html

    Before formatting/clean installing to the mSata, make sure you create AlienRespawn recovery media using the Respawn software that's preloaded - stash it somewhere safe in case you need/want to revert back to the original AW factory drive image.

    What you might want to do, and I don't know if Alienware configure the mSata in this way at the factory, is to make two partition's - one say 32gb, leaving the rest as space for everything else, and then use the smaller partition to cache/accelerate your 750gb HDD using RST - that way, you maximise performance of your much slower HDD as well....
     
  45. Crabeye

    Crabeye Notebook Consultant

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    Thanks Steve,

    Will give it a go tomorrow. +1 rep.
     
  46. kh90123

    kh90123 Notebook Deity

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    I think with the Intel SRT, you don't actually need to partition it. You can select a size of which you want to use to accelerate the HDD, and then it will just take that space away from the msata, as though you have a smaller msata.

    And by the way, thanks for your explanation regarding clean installation on page 77.

    I was going to use the Intel 525 240GB to accelerate a 1TB HDD, but now I look at the power consumption figures, I figure I should just go balls out and get the Crucial M500 960GB. With all due respect, why do a Raid 0 on msata/SSD? Why not just use it all without raid as storage? Any proper Sata III SSD is fast enough, will it even make any significant improvement to loading/bootup time?

    I understand that the first method is a more cost efficient way, ie, using raid 0 or non raid msata to accelerate the HDD, and that way you get good speed and storage, by sacrificing some power. With the msata and HDD both active, we are probably looking at probably at least 8W of power here.

    The other way would be, just get all SSD storage. And that's what I am debating about, if I go this way, I will have the Samsung 512GB, Intel 240GB msata and Crucial 960GB. After all the over provisioning, I should have 1.4TB or more of pure SSD storage. From a power and speed standpoint, the second method should trump the first one. But from cost efficiency standpoint, the first method is quite a bit cheaper.
     
  47. titansfan

    titansfan Notebook Consultant

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    Yes everything stock.

    The GPUs just run hot, no throttling as of yet.
     
  48. TBoneSan

    TBoneSan Laptop Fiend

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    @KH90213

    You are right when you say SSD Sata 3 is fast enough. But having 2 in raid 0 will almost double the speed. Having 3, 4, etc in Raid 0 will still show improvements, just not as dramatic with each addition.
    Personally I'd go for 2 x 480/512 over 1 x 960/1024 purely for the greedy raid 0 speed gain :D
     
  49. Mr. Fox

    Mr. Fox BGA Filth-Hating Elitist

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    If you know how to do a clean install, it is no different with mSATA SSD than an ordinary SSD or HDD. I agree with Steve, although I recommend reserving a 64GB space (unallocated) to use as a cache for accelerating the 750GB HDD for data storage, then using the rest of your 512GB mSATA SSD for the Windows and program installation. (The largest possible cache size is 64GB, which is why that size is commonly selected when the mSATA is used exclusively for HDD caching.)

    The opening post of this thread (link also provided by Brother Steve) should be useful: http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...es-sata-iii-ssd-upgrade-raid0-discussion.html

    Look for newer versions of Intel Rapid Storage Technology than what you find links for (those have not been updated).
     
  50. kh90123

    kh90123 Notebook Deity

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    2x 512GB is expensive, there's no other SSD drive as big as the M500 960GB (897GB formatted) with a similar price/GB ratio ($0.71/GB). I would do raid 0 too, if the AW 18 has a 3rd 2.5" drive, or another msata slot. As of now, I think going for pure space is more important for me. I have many lossless songs, and some are 24 bits 192kHz, which comes at 1GB per album. As you can see, it doesn't take much albums to fill up the drive. :D

    And of course, one could always do a raid 0 on the Crucial 960GB.

    Edit: I think I found the solution. I could do what Mr. Fox did. So on top of having the Samsung 512G, Intel 240G, Crucial 960G, I can add another 1TB HDD using a HDD caddy, and that will push me to 2.4 TB space. Balls to the walls storage solution.
     
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