M15x or M17x....?!

Hi folks, my first post here and I'm seeking some advise from you guys.

I just bought a m17x r2 for cheap I am in heaven. I love the design power and I can finaly say I have a Alienware (Not so easy to find in Holland unless you buy a new one). Anyhow, it realy doesn't pack a lot of punch atm (620m and 4870m cf) So I am looking for a 7970m single (dont see the need for two right now) However the upgrade does require a faster CPU to reduce the bottleneck, I presume..

So here's the deal. I found somebody who is willing to trade his m15x with with a 5850m and a nice little 940xm, just the CPU i am looking for, and he will pay an extra 200,- Euro's to seal the deal. With that money I can soften the blow for the purchase of a 7970m ButI will loose the beautiful look of the m17x and the larger screen. What should I do? I am realy torn appart here and not sure if I should proceed, money is kind of a issue as always... (btw, 620m's or the 4870m's are just impossible to sell in Holland, almost no buyers or a lot of AW owners, the rest are just shady people).

Also I would like to know if there is a performance difference between a m17x r2 with single 7870m and a m15x 7970m with same CPU's?

Any help would GREATLY be appreciated! (excuse my Englise)

 

well lets see shall we, the m15x has better gfx and far better cpu AND hes giving you 200 euro's on top of that ? the question i would ask is, what the hell is wrong with his m15x !!! because the m17xr2 sure as hell aint worth it period in my opinion. even taking the extra money out the equation, the m15x is a far better spec system, yes its only 15.6" against the 17" but the m15x are way way better than the m17x so much so it would cost 300 euro's just to catchup to that spec and to surpass is and buy a ati 7970m or even the 7870m you mite as well double that... so again my question i would ask him is: what the hell is wrong with the alienware m15x.

ps. choice is yours what you decide.

 

Thanks for the reply. I just liked the m17x for its potential but the prices keep stakking up if I do want to upgrade. I just got off the phone with him and it seems that the o so lovely Alien FX is not working, maybe a sw problem but could be hw related, who knows untill I have a look under the hood.

Still 200,- on top and his sweet 940xm, I cant wait! 7970m here I come!

So to understand you, appart from the CPU and GPU, the chipset on the mobo on the two machines are in the same perfomance class?

 

yes. even with the possible MIO corrupted firmware (AlienFX not working) and requiring a new board if it is the case. a new board you can pickup from ebay new from HK for £100 ish or refurb from usa for same price. still worth the trade tbh. if you want the extra screen size and possible running two gfx cards keep with the m17x but remember the cost to upgrade for the m17x is considerable !
i would first see the m15x up and running firstly and give it a good going over, after that and all is well i would personally trade. even if it ended up being the MIO is corrupted and required a new motherboard. hope this helps you in some way.
btw theses are my personal opinion on this matter.

 

Much appreciated! The MIO also gives me something to fiddle with Didn't know these mobo's went for so cheap. No I just need to hope the m15x has no other hidden surprises. Do you have any tips on where to look for during the trade, other than dust etc?

 

not really common sense should prevail in matters of buying/selling/trading... you seem to know what you need/require. make sure you check temps on both cpu and gpu, not really a issue but it will let you know IF you require at apply new thermal paste and thermal pads asif required.. make sure screens fine and doesn't go dim when it shouldn't. just check the usual stuff tbh.
i would also run a round of memtest also

 

One thing I really wish I had over the m17x is the number pad.

Having to turn on the FN-NUMLOCK is reallllyyyy annoying at times.
I wish a lot of times I would have gotten an m17x just for that reason alone.

But hey it's totally up to you in the end.

 

Well I bit the bullet and treated myself with a blazing new m18x, sold my m17x which I kind of miss since I just loved its design and the beautifull lcd... The temps of the m18x are great dough and the difference in size minimal luckely

 

great move and have fun