M15x Problem/Technical Question thread

hi, new user with m15x gtx 460m here. Can the 460M be overclocked? All i see around are guide/talks about 5850 oc'ing only....

 

using vlc, when i had a ton of tabs open with youtube videos on them. running a 260M here.

 

Same here so I think it's probably caused by VLC and not by the driver... Maybe there's a newer VLC version which will work. As the driver usually works perfectly for me I'm gonna keep it, there's no reason to assume that the VLC won't have some issues with the older driver.

 

Afterburner: MSI Afterburner

Nvidia Inspector: NVIDIA Inspector 1.94 download from Guru3D.com

EVGA Precision: EVGA | EVGA Precision | EVGA Precision

Any of these will work.

 

i have had it crash on me before when i wasnt using vlc. i would just be reading something in google reader (via firefox) and it would crash and the screen would start flickering. this driver is fuxored.

 

Another reason I'm 99% sure it's completely bogus-he's within the return period. He could just return the thing and get $1000-2000 more for it or whatever, even if he had to pay a restocking fee.

 

I'm having similar problems. I'm using a Samsung monitor and my problem is random artifacts appearing on the screen and some applications cause the monitor to go completely dark. When I alt-tab or alt-f4 out of the app, the screen returns.

I have the 1.5gb NVIDIA gtx 460m video card with the driver dated 9/5/2010 and version number 8.17.12.5964. Is there an updated driver for this card?

Please help!
Thanks,
p5surf

 

Bensmack & p5surf
i had a similar issue this is what was going on on my sony tv i would set to full pixel, and on ccc i had scaling options set to max overscan which help take up the full screen but when i played game it would crop and it would never hold on to the full dimensions. So this is what i did and it worked for me....

first i uninstall video card drivers
second i install microsoft .net framework 4
finally i install the up to date video drivers from AMD (mobile readon 5XXX)

after everything installed, i did advanced wizard on ccc and set setting the way i wanted them and they stayed that way... no more video problems everything works great. whether its gaming or on start up, this also fixed certain audio conflicts i was having....
hope this helps

 

Thanks Mexic00ls. I uninstalled the driver completely and then used Driver Sweeper to eliminate all traces. Then I downloaded the newest version of the driver and installed it.
I tested the connection from the laptop to the external monitor with the VGA cable and it worked fine. Retested with DP to HTMI to HDI connection and I'm still experiencing the same problem. I can isolate it down to Adobe products.
When I open adobe acrobat, the external monitor goes dark. If I go to a website with a flash animation, the screen goes dark.
Maybe its the cable (DP to HDMI to HDI), maybe its Adobe's incompatability with the 460's driver? who knows.
Any other ideas are welcome.
p5surf

 

Will the M11xR2 power adapter work for the m15x?

 

I don't think it will be able to provide the M15x with enough wattage to run at full power, maybe ok running stealth mode.

 

I really doubt it, because the AC adapter is a 65W adapter... that's way below the 150W of the M15x

 

it's actualy 90w but it wont work so thanks for the info.

 

Ok, thanks for the info! Didn't know this... on the dell configuration site it says 65W if I'm not very mistaken.

 

oh that's for the m11x with core duo processor. The m11xr2 has the i5,i7 cpu which requires 90w.

 

still i wouldn't recommend using it, could cause harm to your system and psu.

the M15x is a power hungry beast.

 

Thanks for the advice. I wanted to confirm before I did anything.

 

Hey,
Im new to this site but lately my m15x that i have had for two years has started to run the fan almost constantly if my cpu reaches anything above 40c. some of the time it will be at 30c and the fans will be running on second speed.i cleaned the fans out 3 days ago and there was no change. Should i apply new thermal paste or what. This isnt even under any strain on the cpu this is just simple internet browsing and some youtube watching.
Any help would be great thanks

 

i'm guessing you have the older area-51 model. but still should try a power drain.

 

Yes i do sorry i forgot to include that. How do i do a power drain?

also i just restarted my computer and noticed that my vga mode was integrated...does this mean its not using my dedicated graphics?

i tried hitting fn+f7 and restarting but it didnt change

 

-turn off
-unplug
-take battery out
-press power button for 20 sec.
-put back and test

 

Did that fan came back on at the windows 7 welcome screen full blast hasnt slowed down since even though its only 31c in my cpu cores.

it seems like when ever i start an app the temp rises like 10c and the fans come on then it settles back to about 29c and they will kick off but if the temp stays at 30 the fans will stay on

also when i just restarted my computer and noticed that my vga mode was integrated...does this mean its not using my dedicated graphics?

i tried hitting fn+f7 and restarting but it didnt change

 

see if you can switch to the dedicated card in the bios.

 

how do i get to the bios earlier i was trying and on startup it doesnt say press this button to access bios

i think thats why my cpu is heating up cause this s running integrated

 

should have an option during start up. just spam f2 when starting up.

 

there is only setup and boot utility on start up and in setup there is only one thing about the graphics card and thats in the info tab and it says the vga bios version

 

hmmm its been a long time since i had the older model. so i can't recall the options in my head. try posting in this thread and see if they can help.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-area-51-aurora-legacy-systems/

 

thanks alot for the help

 

np sorry i couldn't do more.

 

no worries just trying to keep this pos alive

 

Lately, I've been having some serious performance problems with my M15X, and I was wondering if you guys had any advice.

As of late, my M15X has been running really choppy-games like CoD MW2 and Black Ops, Civ5, TF2...hell, even Plants vs Zombies became unplayable. The first time this happened, I was able to fix it by reinstalling all the drivers, but it only lasted a few days.

At the same time, the built-in Windows benchmark (The Windows Performance Index) showed my CPU rating going from 6.5 (IIRC, it was 6.something) to 4.4, then 4.2. At the same time, it's also been running a lot hotter then usual.

Any idea what's going on here? Is it worth cracking it open and redoing my heat gel? I've already blown out the fans to no effect-FYI, the fans are barely running (But they are all working properly).

 

I would take a look at the thermal compound. It wouldnt hurt at all. It sounds like it might be throttling back from the heat, but you would definitely hear the fans loud all the time.

I always reapply my own thermal compound on my notebooks and desktop components. I used OCZ Freeze on my CPU and GPU in my M15x and they run real cool idle and load.

Make sure you are running the latest A08 BIOS.

 

Just to make sure, you don't have stalth mode activated, do you?

 

Well, I believe if stealth mode was active, it wouldnt allow you to run the WEI Index? Or is that only when you are on battery mode?

It could be stealth mode too, but you would definitely notice the speed decrease if it was.

.....Stealth mode keeps striking back. lol.

 

I don't THINK I have stealth mode activated-but I don't even know how to activate it, or tell if I do.

 

Stealth mode is activated by pressing that touch sensitive button that looks like a tachometer.

You will know if its enabled or not by pressing it. The button will glow brighter when activated, or dim once deactivated.

 

That did it! I feel kinda stupid now, I spent hours on this thing and was this far from calling up warranty and lifing them out until they sent me some parts.

 

Try Wattos' Stealth Mode Indicator. Install, run, right click icon (small alienhead) in task tray and select Stealth Mode/Disable. Then create a shortcut and copy/drag it into Start/All Programs/Startup Folder. Will assure disabled at startup. If state changes, tray icon changes to red and gives a screen message. Very handy and widely used by forum members because of the ease with which Stealth Mode can be started inadvertently, particularly when hitting delete key, and the difficulty of determining the status from the touchstrip speedometer indicator under many lighting conditions.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...th-mode-indicator-stealthmodeindicatorbin.zip

 

Hehe, it's always stealth mode ^^

 

Have a question about gpu temp. Does the gpu temp suppose to go up whenever you watch youtube videos? My gpu temp goes up to 63C max whenever I watch youtube.

 

yes, it you have hardware acceleration enabled for youtube, then your gpu is used for video play back. use gpu-z when opening a youtube video, you will see your clocks go up. to disable hardware acceration, right click the youtube video, and go to settings and turn it off.

 

To amplify a little, the 5850 will ordinarily run at 500/1000 while playing a video with hardware acceleration enabled. My temps usually remain in the mid-50's for a 6-7 minute video, but no cause for concern at 63C.

 

I just find it funny how watching youtube could cause more high temp on gpu than playing a game.

 

Well, speaking generally, it shouldn't. What game(s) are you using for the comparison.

 

Nice Christmas avatar, BatBoy. Merry Christmas.

 

The Witcher, Starcraft 2, Fallout New Vegas.

 

And your temps stay below 63C while playing those games? No way. You must be playing in Stealth Mode or on battery. Alternatively, count your blessings.

 

Not stealth mode and corded.

 

man i would kill for those temps. your gaming temps are close to other peoples idle temps.

 

Is there any overclock program I can use?