Upgrading M15X.

Hello, i am would like to know if i can upgrade my Alienware M15X CPU and GPU.

SPECS:

OS:Windows 7 Professional 64-Bit

CPU: Intel i7 X 940 2.13GHz

RAM: 8,00 GB Dual-Channel DDR3 665MHz (9-9-9-24)

GPU: ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730

I would upgrade my CPU to the i7-3940XM and the GPU to the Nvidia GTX 680M, i have been researching they said you need to uptade your bios to upgrade ?

Thank you for your time

 

Pretty sure 940xm is the best CPU you can squeeze in an m15x, to do with the clarkdale architecture or something.
GPU-wise the best at the moment is ATI 7970m. GTX 670m does work so I've read but you need to reduce voltage (same as with 7970m).

Perhaps think about HDD upgrade to SSD? I've just bitten the bullet and bought a SSD to improve performance.

 

You can only improve the GPU. My advice would be to grab a 6990m and run it at 500/900 with ATiTool, that will avoid all throttling.

 

Or if you're not in a hurry you can wait a bit to see if the nee gpus will work in the M15x, which I'm sure they will as they are more power efficient.

 

Indeed you have the fastest CPU already and more or less the best ram config too (16GB is possible but pointless for most).

Wait for the next gen of GPU's is my advice. The throttling issue can be circumvented but it is alot of hassle and you of course loose performance.

The next gen is purported to be more efficient. This is in fact true however we won't know the truth about the mobile parts until they are released.

 

I've been offered a 670m for $165 but would it be considered a decent upgrade from a 460m?
One comparison I found had scores for the 460m @ 1332 and 670m @ 1920 with 6990m @ 2583 and 7970m @ 3899.
Clearly the 6990 seems like the better option but they are more like $250?

Would the 670m run any cooler than the 460m as I currently have overheating issues when running SSAO on high and tessellation on.

 

The only validated upgrade you can do is for the GPU, either the ATI 5850 or GTX 460, for the CPU you already have the highest one.

I also read about people installing the ATI 7970m, I think you would like to research a little bit more on the forums and make sure about it.

 

If you want 670M performance but with much lower power consumption take a look at the newly released 8870M. It seems like a great card and should work well in the M15x while being at a lower price point than the 670M with more modern architecture.

The card is rated at 35W tdp and it is about half as powerful as the 100W tdp 7970M. The 670M is also half as powerful but also has roughly the same tdp as the 7970M!

 

Do you anywhere to buy the 8870m? Couldn't find anywhere after a google search. Card sounds perfect though, thanks for the advice.

 

Hmm it is very new. You may have to wait a month or two before you can buy the card itself.

It is worth waiting for though. It will double your GPU power over your current 460M and run cooler and quieter. While with a decent OC you could probably nearly triple the performance you get now.

Also news is in that there won't be a GPU refresh for another 12 months or so. So this card will be the most powerful 8000M series card until the end of this year when they release the 8970M. Driver updates have already really improved the stability and performance of he 7970M so the same will apply with the 8870M

 

I'll keep my eye out for sellers of this card and hopefully price reductions in 7970s.

Just on another note (and sorry for asking so many questions) but I'd like to upgrade my i7 720qm cpu and the 920/940xm route is too expensive for me right now. These cards still seem very costly ($300-400 or £250-350).
The i7 840qm on the other hand is only about $130 and various benchmarks (see below) place it well above the 720qm so I'm just wondering if it would be worthwhile getting the 840 or sticking with my 720? Would I notice a significant increase in performance and if I do upgrade my gpu to a 7970 or 8870 would my 720qm spoil the party?

Appreciate the continuing advice