Alienware m15x with GTX460M Problem

Hi there,

I have been looking at this forum for a few days to see if i can find some help. I went every thread about m15x problem, issues, stuff to fix my brand new alienware m15x.

it is hard to say, I bought this alienware m15x this month and it is not even a week old. But i face really serious lagging issues. I ran 3dmark 11 full version benchmark and it gave me FPS as 1.2 to 3.6 maximum. startup after entering password takes longer to show desktop.

Here is my configuration :

Core i7 740QM 1.73 Ghz
4GB DDR3
1GB Nvidia GTX 460M
500GB HDD
WIN 7 HP 64-bit

I always had a huge respect on alienware products but after looking at what i face recently is really got me down.

I have noticed this problem is not for just me and everyone is facing it around the globe. I hope you guys are more experienced and can come with a solution.

Please don't tell me the following, as i already made the stuff below:
1. stealth mode off/on
2. set to high performance option
3. update latest gfx driver
4. clear startup
5. remove command center
6. re-install everything from scratch
7. update BIOS to A09

And still problem sits down.


Any ideas why it is lagging after doing all these ?

Will look forward for your replies. Thanks in advance

PS: I'm new to this forum, So i apologize if i posted in wrong section. Correct me.

-
Deceptron.

 

wow sorry to hear about your problem do you still have a warranty? it looks like the only thing you left out was your bios settings have you checked that yet?

 

Thanks for your quick response.

Yes, i have 1 year warranty left. Like i said i have just bought this and not a week old yet.

What do you mean by BIOS settings ? All i did with BIOS was updating the BIOS to latest A09 version and EC 1.18 like mentioned in my list above.

hoping for a solution.


PS: I noticed your signature.. are you facing the same issue with m15x with GTX 460M ?

 

Sorry to hear that. My GTX460M is working perfectly although it is not strong as I expected :-<

 

What game plays better for you ? in 1080p resolution ?

Also what setting i should use to test with 3d mark 11. ?

My alienware usually takes more than 15 seconds to show desktop after entering password.





Seriously i'm very disappointed and probably first person that face this issue next day when i bought it

Hope you guys can point me to right direction with some solutions.

Thanks in advance.

 

hey,

the best what you can do is sending it back to alienware or letting a technician come to you (next business day).

What you can check is:

- CPU with cpu-z (shows parameters of your cpu)
- GPU with gpu-z (shows parameters of your gpu)

maybe you can post some stats here...

also what you can do is:

1. shut down
2. take out battery
3. press the alienware button for 20 secs
4. put battery back in and try again

 

I will post the stats definitely but sorry about this newb question.. do you want me to run a game and open the gpu-z and cpu-z to test or just open the application and log the stats in file ?

Man believe it or not.. the graphic settings with high in GTA 4 shows green in range and still it takes 1 minute to move the car a few inches. Yes inches!!!. I'm seriously disappointed on this.. you know how it feels like when you wait to get your dream laptop that being faulty right after you buy it.


EDIT: i have added the stat log of GPU-Z and CPU-Z please check..
it is opened from desktop without any game running in background.


PS: can i ask you.. if you have faced this problem before or similar to this much lag ?

 

you have a real problem im just sorry i cant help you with it my m15x has run great since day one and that was with a i3 and 240m. i would call dell for sure and say hey i just bought this thing and i cant even play any games on it. somethings not right

 

try some stats while gaming to see how/if your clocks change. gl

 

Yeah, both, GPU-Z and Throttlestop logfile while gaming would be nice to see.

But since your system is really new you might want to consider calling Dell and ask them for a replacement or let them fix it... can't be that a new system isn't running properly.

 

I have uploaded the current log file. Recorded when running GTA IV ( i didn't play much because it was very lagging )

UPDATE: I installed and played Far Cry 2 with all very high settings. guess what ? It was dam smooth. I mean it plays very smooth and uber hot air behind my M15x bums. is that a good sign that my GFX is not an hardware issue ? or do you say its an old freakout game that could run on any graphic cards ?

I'm currently downloading a demo game of BATMAN ARK ASYLUM to check.

I will update you guys.



UPDATE:

Benchmark tested from inside GTA IV option. Here is the stats :

Code:

Statistics
Average FPS: 8.07
Duration: 31.83 sec
CPU Usage: 67%
System memory usage: 69%
Video memory usage: 68%

Graphics Settings
Video Mode: 1920 x 1080 (60 Hz)
Texture Quality: High
Render Quality: High
View Distance: 32
Detail Distance: 70

Hardware
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
Video Adapter: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M
Video Driver version: 259.64
Audio Adapter: Speakers / Headphones (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU       Q 740  @ 1.73GHz

File ID: Benchmark.cli

 

is the gpu log in-game? The clocks seem to be stuck to 2D (200mhz) for some reason... Noticed that you are running driver 259.64, probably not the issue but try upgrading to the latest 275.33

 

I will try to get the log again.

But hey can someone let me know if this benchmark results are good ?

It is actually the benchmark from GTA IV after installing patches to GTA IV.

Code:

Statistics
Average FPS: 25.63
Duration: 37.38 sec
CPU Usage: 72%
System memory usage: 80%
Video memory usage: 89%

Graphics Settings
Video Mode: 1920 x 1080 (60 Hz)
Texture Quality: High
Shadow Quality: Very High
Reflection Resolution: Very High
Water Quality: Very High
Texture Filter Quality: Tri-Linear
Night Shadows: Very High
View Distance: 53
Detail Distance: 100

Hardware
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 

Video Adapter: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460M
Video Driver version: 275.33
Audio Adapter: Speakers / Headphones (IDT High Definition Audio CODEC)
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7 CPU       Q 740  @ 1.73GHz

File ID: Benchmark.cli

 

must be a hardware issue or possibly a bad motherboard?

 

That looks about right ive heard gta4 is even hard on desktops all maxed out which is what it looks like you did.

 

Can you post some GPU-Z logs with "continue refreshing this screen whil GPU-Z is running in the background" checked, and also a Throttlestop log, CPU-Z doesn't log the clocks.

Also like I said, you should call Dell, especially since it's a pretty new system.

 

Ok i will take down the test and upload the result.


I called dell support and was in phone for 5 hours. Yes 5 hours infront of my alienware. i have been transffered to 3 different people 2 of them were giving me ****ty excuses and answers. he was using my laptop in remote assistance to check what i already checked. But still i went easy and finally i lost patience after 5 hours. idiot installed an old version driver and said it should work and try now. I tried again and it was even worse. i was like w*f ? so finally i was connected to 3rd person and i lost patience to wait anymore. But i gave him one last chance and he said to run diagnostics in boot. the result said nothing problem in hardware side. and guess what he said next ?

Sir, The problem is with your OS. Please re-install your OS and try the game again, if the problem presist, please try another game.


Do you think that is reasonable answer ? for being with support for almost 5-6hours.

is this what dell on-site warranty mean ?

my first and last with dell. F O dell