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    Troublesome M15x

    Discussion in 'Alienware M15x' started by Klihne, Nov 6, 2011.

  1. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    Too sum everything up in a quick paragraph, i have had many issue with my M15x over the past two years. I bought the laptop in January of 2010 and i have had the mother board replaced twice, two hard drive swaps, 1 graphics card replacement, a new screen, and a new power supple unit. I know there are other who may have had more in depth repairs, but regardless it is frustrating none the less. The most recent replacement has been my hard drive. Prior to and since then my computer was running somewhat sluggish and the biggest problem was it randomly powering off and turning back on a few seconds later. I have been out of warranty for some time and i have paid Dell enough money to fix the issue but they have not. I have turned to Best Buy and the Geek Squad and so far they have found that my HDD is again bad and in need of replacing. I have also noticed that my RAM sometimes does not read correctly in the system at sometimes it only detects 2GB rather than the 4GB that i have. I have noticed that Dell has placed to different manufactuered RAM sticks in my laptop, one by Samsung and one by another company i have never heard of. Is this an issue? My main questions are: What type of hard drive should i look into getting...either Solid State or standard? Also, should i look into getting new RAM?

    Here are my specs:
    Intel i7 Q720 Processor
    4GB RAM (Different Manufacter's)
    nVidia GTX 260M
    250GB HDD

    If any other info is need please let me know. Ill try to do my best as my computer is still at the store at the moment.
     
  2. JohnnyFlash

    JohnnyFlash Notebook Virtuoso

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    I'm willing to bet the random power-offs are due to one of your sticks being bad. That was the problem I had, the 4GB stick was a POS. Take one stick out and run memtest overnight, then switch them and do it again.
     
  3. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    I've done the memtest on both sticks together and individually and both pass completely.
     
  4. Mexic00ls

    Mexic00ls Notebook Deity

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    yeah i ran the test too, like that, and then i sent my machine to dell for repairs. when it arrived back the work order was marked as replace ram. so it might still be the ram
     
  5. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    Hmmm ok well I was eventually going to replace it. What kind should I get and how much?
     
  6. khetik

    khetik Notebook Deity

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    the max the system can have is 8gb (2x 4gb) of 1333mhz ram. However, that does not mean you actually need 8gb. For the majority of people, 4gb is plenty. Brand really doesn't matter to be honest.
     
  7. Mexic00ls

    Mexic00ls Notebook Deity

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  8. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    I had already had some in mind. I know which kinds just wasn't sure on if I should get the 8gb or stick with 4 or 6
     
  9. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    So the memory is fine however the HDD and the motherboard is bad....
     
  10. Ldmoose

    Ldmoose Notebook Consultant

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    That's rough man... are you still under warranty?
     
  11. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    nope im gonna either have to renew the warranty for 463 bucks and then send it in or just cut my loss' and just deal with it until it completely dies or i can buy a new one
     
  12. Indiran

    Indiran Notebook Evangelist

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    Always check your heat. When my customers come to me, i'll check their running temps. Take it like this, your computer heats up like oven and having a mobo in the oven, constantly being heated every day will bake it to an extend where it will pop.

    The RAM, prefer if u get 1 whole stick of 4gb. Its sufficient and faster than 2gb separate and a lot less hassle.

    As for the gfx, try upgrading it to others. Im using 5850, so far so good. *Touch wood*.

    Always clean out the fans and the system, occasionally clean the shell too.

    Gl buddy, juz my two cents.
     
  13. khetik

    khetik Notebook Deity

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    I don't think switching to a single stick of ram will make any noticeable difference to the heat output. Also, switching to a single stick of ram means he won't be running dual channel any more, which to me is a drawback. Not a fair trade-off.
     
  14. Klihne

    Klihne Notebook Consultant

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    I agree I would much rather run two 2gb sticks. Also temps are not the issue as my computer is very well known to shut off 5 minutes after turning on and then restarting.