*Official Alienware M18x AMD CrossFire Discussion Thread (re: Dell/AW Conference Call)*

It's good to see that after page 8 Dell lost interest in this thread. I can't wait til this gets resolved in 6-8 months.


I posted on the Dell forums Here to possibly draw more attention to the subject. I demand a working motherboard. $5,000 and 3 years of my time - still waiting for a 100% working system. Sometime before I die Dell....

 

thank u all for your responses. keep em coming

 

It does appear that past a certain board revision the problem crops up.

Also, still circumstantially it looks more US owners are effected then non US owners.

On another note, before we started posting our revision numbers it was theorized that this problem was not affecting systems with XM processors, that is not the case however. The most definite factor seems your motherboard revision.

 

Rev F2: 1136

No issues on my system with anything.

 

Up until now no motherboard revision was in both camps.

 

LOL sorry

 

Zero, if you're always using the cryo LX and manually controlling your fans, you may not have noticed the problem. Have you done any testing to make sure? We have the same revision and my cards will ROAST if I don't control the fans.

 

I've never even downloaded the program that controls fans. My cards never pass 78/76.

 

my system i purchased here in Bahrain , never once had a problem with the cards run them at 800 1100 all the time, cpu 2720qm , did use hwinfo 64 and had a few probs after using that and the fans would not spin up , re run the program made sure i selected autofans re set my bios to optimized settings and unistalled it and never had a prob since , normally around 70 -72 and thats running metro 2033 for a few hours . that hwinfo program caused me all sorts of weird issues including stuttering in games so wont use that again .

 

Could u post your motherboard revision murphey

 

LoL no worries, I had just hoped we were on to something

 

Im just wondering if there is anything that is, or can be linked to using Hwinfo to manually control the fans?.... I mean, once its been used to control the fans, might it not be possible to fully revert to system control somehow? - might be interesting to see how many users have dabbled with hwinfo for manual fan control and then compare cold boot/temp issues with those that havent bothered using manual fan control.

 

Hi nuroo , when u say motherboard rev do u mean chipset running rev 09 on chipset A04 on bios but it was the same on A03 bios ver , not sure if thats what you need if not is there a program i can use to check .

 

Maybe it's not the mobo, maybe it's the cards, or something completely unrelated, like a wifi card or something. Who knows

 

Based on what I have experienced and what I have been told by Dell, it is the AMD cards, not the mobo, that is causing issues.

 

On page 14, joker5150 describes how to get the motherboard revision.


@ steviejones, As soon as I got my m18x I updated my drivers using the 6990 crossfire guide. I can't remember if u had cold boot problems b4, with stock drivers. I only recently started using hwinfo64 and such, just to help not have the problem.

 

Well should we post our 6990 circuit board revisions? I have no clue, just trying to get to the bottom of this. Wonder if people having the issues have slighty different cards. I know one member said his wife's computer had a single 6990, when he flashed that bios in his cards it still over heated on cold boot.

 

nuroo - I agree. It seems many of those that were experiencing overheating issues turned to HWiNFO64 as a workaround to that problem. Using it actually improved their situation.

 

Honestly I don't think Dell even knows themselves. My cold boot problem went away after replacing the mainboard even though I still have the same video cards. Ymmv but I think its the motherboard.

 

What other manufacturers offer dual 6990's in crossfire. If this is a amd/ati 6990 crossfire issue this problem would exist on those other manufacturers laptops also.

If say sager laptops with dual 6990's are having trouble I'd say for sure its an 6990 problem. On the other hand if say sagers with dual 6990 arent having these issues than it Dell's fault.

Let's read thru some forums and find out.

 

Just to verify this cold boot problem with the fans , the problem is no fans work on first boot even when the gpu is under load is that correct ? and then u reboot and then they do work ? , if thats the case i do not have that problem and never had a shutdown issue even after running metro 2033 for 2 hrs , my only prob is the 2nd gpu runs between 8 -14 degrees hotter, for example normal operations with no gaming gpu temp is 50-52 gpu 1 is 62-64 gpu 2 , but i use No laptop cooler and system on desk , so idle temps maybe a little high not sure why there is such a difference between the two cards , so if this is correct will post my motherboard rev number .

 

Cant say ive had any cold boot issues so far.....got my ram today so I will check the MB rev. when I go in....

 

No interest lost. I believe the purpose of the thread is for the NBR community to gather an agenda, form a group to do the talking and let me know who all will be attending so I can send out invites. The topic of this thread is not any specific issue.

I also replied on your Dell thread. Seems to me the whole issue discussion in detail is a bit off topic. If it's an agenda item, fine, I'm sure Mr Fox has that one down. What would be the next topic? Who is planning on attending the call? Perhaps a new thread to discuss mobo revisions and such is in order? I'm not sure, and I'm definitely not the mod. Just asking.

 

Well I'm glad to see someone is paying attention. Obviously I've reached the end of my rope with these laptops. Since October 2009, I've had nothing but random issues from latency problems to failing parts to unintelligent technicians dropping and breaking my systems. I just want this resolved as quickly as possible. I've been waiting over 2 weeks for replacement GPU's and fans just to find out that it isn't going to resolve the problem.

I placed one of my 6990's in my wife's M17xR3 and it works as advertised. Now I just have to wait... I should be used to this by now.

 

I shall take you under my wing and personally do all I can to make sure you are happy in the end if that's what it takes. If you want to shoot me your service tag and basic contact info via PM, I will have my associates in the customer service realm have a look and give me an informed opinion on available options. We do not want to see you on YouTube destroying your box.

 

Congratulations to you for that answer! That'S the kind of backing realibility the consumers of such state-of-the-art machines are expecting, deserves and asking for. THANKS AGAIN! GO ON AND FURTHER WITH THIS BEHAVIOUR! CHEERS!

 

and what about the other half who break stuff completely on their own and want dell to foot the bill? without physically stating. "i broke this, can you replace it"


need to take the good with the bad here people.
of course im all for speedy resolutions as well. and after going over my machine from top to bottom...i see some less than steller craftsmanship, missing or broken parts as well....

deciding on how i should approach that bridge as well. nothing major, but still it's there.


side note:
bill-dell, that is not copper on those gpu heat sinks either. it's aluminum inside and out.

 

That youtube vid was my fault, not that it was me....just found it and thought it would alleviate some of the stress....I also know, like Nicholaus, that it can get pretty frustrating.

I hope my post didnt disrupt the topic - really was meant as some light hearted banter....

 

I saw your response in Dells forums. If you simply stated here what u stated in the response there, it would calmed alot of people down.

We wanted an acknowledgment of the problem and a time frame for a fix. If the conference call does that great, i think people are getting anxious. Given that price of these systems its understandable.

 

Keep this in mind as you approach that bridge:

(Monty Python reference for the young)

Are you referring to the heatsink story Louis told? If so, I think it's a different heatsink unless I'm totally missing something.

 

those are the ones.(the gpu fins) i tested them today and they are aluminum. and the back that shows through the grill is painted black.

 

Interesting. I'll let Louis know someone has failed him.

 

lol yes, this is one of my most key suggestions, copper radiators ... would make a HUGE improvement.

 

i was kind of hoping i was wrong, but that whole setup is lighter than the smaller cpu heat sink

 

Sorry for causing a little bit of an uproar on this thread. The problems have built up with these systems over the years, and frankly I'm done dealing with it. I stood by and accepted replacement systems with upgrades and figured it was a decent tradeoff for what I've dealt with, but at the end of the day I still have an unreliable computer.

All of this time has passed and we've managed to find the problem - yet it seemed nothing was being done. I even made a call to tech support but they refused to send out a motherboard because I had a dispatch in progress already. That's pretty much where I lost my mind. Dell stalled long enough to allow my warranty to expire - leaving me pissed and unsatisfied.

I understand the point of this thread was to gather info for a conference call, but I don't need anyone to comfort me on the phone. I want to see a tracking number for a NEW motherboard. Those of you who are having the same problem should expect nothing less.

As for the rest of you, I wish you the best of luck in resolving your problems. I hope Bill B can expedite the process for you - as the low-level techs are less than helpful and far from knowledgeable.

I'd ask for a warranty for my troubles, but truthfully I just want my computer fixed and I never want to deal with it again. With no coverage on a system this expensive, I might just part ways with it.

 

Rev. F2 1131 here with not problem.

 

lastest list
Nicholaus.rossi has Rev. F2 1136 <-- has problem ****
torgars has Rev. F2 1139 <-- has problem
nuroo has Rev. F2 1139 <-- has problem
mert361 has Rev. F2 1139 <-- has problem
djskorch has Rev. F2 1139 <-- has problem
5150Joker has Rev. G2 1142 <-- has problem


Aikimox has has Rev. E2 1116 <-- no coldboot thermal shut down.
Shaden has Rev. F2 1123 <-- no coldboot thermal shut down.
bumbo2 has Rev. F2 1131 <-- no coldboot thermal shut down.
Zero989 has Rev. Rev F2: 1136 <-- no coldboot thermal shut down. ****
steviejones133 has Rev. Rev F2: 1136 <-- no coldboot thermal shut down. ****
5150Joker(2) has Rev. E? ???? <-- no coldboot thermal shut down.


**** only motherboard revision in both list.

 

Just took the back of my beast to check for rev.

I am on "REV:F2 1136" like Zero & Nicholaus.... Both myself and Zero report no problems but Nicholaus has the same board WITH problems.

EDIT: All of my previous assumptions were based on temps purely idling. They will stay within limits obvioulsy as there is no load but as soon as a load is put on, its not so good....

 

I took a second look to make sure I didn't misread the revision, but it's definitely 1136

 

Hi Nicholaus!
Dell_Bill_B write to you:

Did you 'shoot' him your service tag? It's seems to me quite a good offer and that the guy have really good intentions and will to help...

Please, let us know the developments of your "via dolorossa"...

 

Yes I PM'd him already. We'll see how fast the ball gets rolling on things. I suggest anyone else having the same problems ask for his assistance as well. There's no need to wait on the conference call if you know what's causing the problem. There are some other pressing issues that can be addressed during the conference.

 

Just thinking, I know I was having some issues with my system restarting whilst playing a few games not so long back....it happened a couple of times whilst playing crysis 2 and black ops on my external monitor via HDMI.

Actually, my nephew was blasting a few bad guys at the time of these shutdowns and he came to me saying "uh oh, I broke you computer uncle ste....." (my face was a picture lol)... I didnt have gpu-z open so didnt attribute it to temp shutdown. I did a bit of trouble shooting and ran memtest 86+ which indicated faulty memory modules.

I recall that on one occassion, the game graphics were still on-screen but totally frozen and unresponsive and i had to hard shutdown....on the same day, it happened again whilst he was playing, it just restarted completely from bsod.....

I swapped out those modules, stuffed the stock Dell stuff back in and tested that too which had no problems.

Whilst I have been waiting for the RMA memory, I have been gaming on the external with the 4gb Dell ram that my rig shipped with. I havent had a problem whilst I have been doing so.

Is it possible that ram is a contributing factor to these shutdowns?

I just re-read the 1st few pages.....whats the "definitive way" to test to see if your system suffers from this problem? - would I be right in saying that if you shutdown completely and then boot, start a game and wait, your system will shut off due to high temps? - maybe I have been misunderstanding the cold boot issue....I was thinking that temps would rise consistently regardless of activity and eventually force a shutdown. As I havent done much gaming of late (apart from my nephew), I havent really stressed my system gpu wise to see if thats an issue.....

 

This is important to establish, so techs can replicate the problem. I've been trying to determine a procedure to cause problem other than waiting 12-24 hours between cold boots. The best method I've found so far is: (plz help refine it)

1.
Turn off system. Unplug system from AC. Remove battery. Wait until alien head power button light goes off.

2.
Install battery, plug AC back in. Boot system.

Following that procedure at windows start I don't hear fans. Fans on 6990's will not always start while running benchmark. Highest temps on 6990's seen in CPUID were 107C. Sometimes fans kick in, other times thermal shutdown, even if I never benchmark.

------------------------------------------------------
Reboot
At windows start I don't hear fans, during benchmark I hear fans. 6990's temps never go above 69C during benchmarking or gaming.

If I use hwinfo64, even on cold boot fans start right away. During benchmarks temps never go above 57C, or 62C gaming. Idle temps lower also. In my opinion the thermal thresholds in hwinfo are much better. Why should I need hwinfo64 to avoid thermal meltdown, others don't.

 

Hello again gents, I posted a few weeks ago with the same problem after receiving my new m18x in the mail about two weeks ago. I told you guys i would follow up to what happens.

So basically i ended up returning it to dell, and was advised to order a new one. Optimistic, I ordered a brand new system on 10/25 with the exact same specs, 2860QM, dual 6990s, etc.

Well I just got it just now 11/3, and I am reluctant to say that my SECOND brand new system STILL HAS THE SAME PROBLEM.


Upon first boot, the first program i installed was HWmonitor, I saw that my cards were at 77* with no processes running. I then tried to restart and as expected, heard the GPU fans throttle like mad.

At this point I am at a loss for words and have started to give up hope. I am past the point of frustration and have arrived at disappointment.

After Dell acknowledging this issue, I dont understand why they dont halt production on system specs they know cause issues (I.e Mine). I dont know what to do at this point, I guess ill just return this as well, because i am not settling for refurbished cards and dealing with tech support. I guess all i can do is return it, because if i wait ill go past my 21 day return window..

 

Dear Dell,

I'm applying for the quality assurance job that does not exist within your company. PM me for my resume. I guarantee 1 out of every 100 systems will actually make it out of the door, but your customers will be happy.

Edit: At least 50 people got a good chuckle out of this response... but I'm serious - I need a second job to pay for an extended warranty <_<

 

Bill can you also look at my history and see what can be done with extending my warranty. I currently got a quote down to 450.00USD for just a year. I've spent 8 months out of my warranty troubleshooting & repairing my Alienware laptops. Barely getting to enjoy them. I really don't think it's fair to spend most of the warranty fixing out of the box issues. I know Dell has upgraded me. Is there anything that can be done to help out?

 

I agree. The first time I extended my warranty it was only $200. $450+ for one year is a little steep... not to mention the fact that having a warranty on these things is a necessity.

 

I think that would be a huge gesture on Dell/Alienwares part to extend everyone who is having this issues warranty for AT LEAST an extra year at no cost.

I know many of us have spent countless hours on the phone and with techs trying to resolve issues only to have our systems replaced with yet another defective system or simply trying to solve this issue on a brand new system.

I know that I personally have spent over 10 hours with tech support JUST on this M18X 6990 issue. Now assuming that most of us make $20 hr plus (we have to make decent money to be able to buy these elite systems in the first place) that is already $200 worth of time we have spent dealing with this issue and that doesnt include the time that I will still have to spend once a resolution is avaliable. Lets say another 2 hours on the phone and 3-4 hours for a tech to replace defective parts (if that is the solution). we are now at 16 hours or $320. That would be close to enough to purchase an extended warranty.

Just a thought Dell/Alienware. May help retain some (from what ive seen) very loyal customers specifically ones whos warranty has expired while trying to deal with this issue.

 

OK. First, please hold off flooding me with PM's just yet. Not that we won't end up going that route, but it's just not scale-able. I am trying to find out a lot more information on this issue and what we're going to do about it. Central to that will be implementing a much more efficient process than my PM box.

@Nicholaus Will reply to your PM again shortly.

@Everyone else I am going to catch up on the thread shortly. Just wanted to drop this note in first.

 

I'm still in the 21 day window. If your 2nd system has the same problem, that's bad news indeed. Dell's a big company, so it's going to take some time to inform the production side of the house. Time for fix to be pushed out. And who knows how its going to b handled.

I'm seriously considering returning and getting 580m sli's. What u guys think, should I sit and hope or return b4 21 days up?