M17 Owners with Quad Cores, What BIOS are you running?

As the title says, if you have an M17 and a Quad core processor, what BIOS version are you running and are you experiencing game stuttering issues?

FWIW I have issues on both B10 and B14. B14 tested with stuttering throughout. B10 is lessened by using High Perfomance Power profile though. I haven't tried OCZ's Bios yet.

 

The stuttering issues are due to the northbridge overheating, irrespective of the BIOS version the stuttering issues will never be completely gone. Check out Project Freeze on the OCZ Forums for the solution.

 

Yeah yeah, broken record, I've heard otherwise, so I'm doing more research rather than jacking 20 other threads in the process of gathering information.

 

it is also to do with the voltage mangement which is effected by the bios version, which is why people like .28 EVEN without o'cing as there is less issues

 

ok so ive used b13 since i got the machine and it had no problems when i first got it.

I dont believe it is a bios problem because I got stuttering after I started messing with different drivers. Now im using 9.6 64 bit vista and Im having no stuttering problems anymore..

But I chose b13 have stuttering because i have had stuttering since Ive used b13

and if its an overheating problem, which it is, get a cooler. I think that is what helped me out a lot and has pretty much eliminated stuttering in general.

 

Got it, Snowm0bile is running B13 and no stuttering, no copper mod.

 

Using B14 Bios, 9.6 drivers and a cooler. Only stutters once in awhile and only when game playing. Much better than with original Bios. i did check off stutters with B14 Bios on your survey but as mentioned before the B14 and 9.6 drivers helped. Not sure if the cooler made much difference as i never had overheating problems.

 

Mavin the Martian!

 

i use ocz .28 and copper modded GPU memory banks, RAM, and Northbridge...no stuttering in games at all and no audio lag....check my signature below for the picture

 

Looking good so far. Need some more inputs though.

 

ditto..............

except i didn't do the ram or memory banks.

 

donda, you didn't vote! haha.

 

i forgot. Lol. they you go.

 

I have a qx9300 coming this week, I'll vote once i got some time with it. I am going to be running zFactors OCZ .28 BIOS though, consensus is that it is the best one.

 

Great. Also let me know if you opt to try the copper mod before you fire your system up for the first time with your new processor.

 

How do I check the BIOS version?

It's a few weeks old only so I think that it has the B14 bios. I have the occasional problem with stuttering. Switching to Power Saver usually makes it worse for a minute or two when it does happen but usually stops after that.

The thing I don't get is if it's overheating, how come it has happened for me at times around 50-55C but not at 75C (that's my northbridge temps).

 

the northbridge runs very hot. it was tested by hell cry in project freeze. he cut the heatsink and useda ramsink on the northbridge and less then 3 seconds it shot up to 80c.

 

@Evil. That's what I'm trying to figure out as well. To check the BIOS Revision, boot up your computer, jam F10 to enter the BIOS, and it will be on the first page along with your Keyboard Controller BIOS Revision.

@donda. Is the Northbridge temp actually reported? Is the ACPI temp actually the NB temp, or what is it? I think the problem is the NB temp isn't reported anywhere, so we have now way of knowing.

 

So looks like the ocz bios are best?

 

I got my QX9300, installed it, flashed zFactors .28 BIOS, started to OC, and was let down....My QX9300 aint gonna make 3.1GHZ even it looks like. I'm so sad. And at 10x300 (3GHz) it did stutter BAD during 3dMark06.

 

Marvie100,

You've got the same perfectly performing X9100 as me.

Are you considering a quad?

 

I dropped my Q9000 for the X9100. I just couldn't handle all the problems it seemed to be giving me. This dual-core is a godsend in my case. Not a single problem yet. I was trying to do everything short of "tearing it open" or "installing a non-approved bios" but all of those options failed. I still have my trusty Q9000 on standby in case i have to send it back to the mothership though.

 

maybe I should just get a x9100 then?

will games like GTA IV and Prototype run well with it? I heard they need a quad to perform well

 

i ran GTA 4 with my 3870's and a t9400

the x9100 will overclock to 3.5-3.8 ghz in the m17 which is more then enough for games

 

I'm running Prototype on max settings with my X9100 and it runs without a problem. Fun game too!

 

and there's no stuttering issues with the x9100? I ordered mine today w/ p8600, maybe i'll have them change it to t9600, mr moo says it overclocks almost the same as x9100

 

If you are going M17, save yourself the myriad of issues with Quads and stick with a dual core. If you take the time to read through the various threads on the notebook forums, you will see the M17/OCZ Whitebook/Asimobile/Flex/Arima 840DI just doesn't mix well overall with Quad Cores. If you *really* want a Quad Core or the ability to upgrade to a quad core in the future without known issues you hope are resolved, cancel your M17 and get a M17X.

With that being said, some games do run better with quad cores and as more games become multi-core aware (defined as dynamic software that task/thread balances based on the number of cores present), quad cores will continue to show improvements and shine. In addition, if console companies continue to poorly port their games that are optimized for the native CPU multi-core support of the Xbox and especially the PS3 (which both the Xbox 360 and PS3 are slated to have a longer shelf life into 2012/13 than previous consoles if not longer), then Quad cores will definitely shine in the area of ports.

Will a Dual Core run 99% of current games excellent? Absolutely. Going with a dual core NOW and upgrading in the future based on need/want is a smart, safe, economically advisable move. The problem is using the M17 to execute that plan with a platform with known quad core issues. Most likely, those issues will continue to persist down the road.

As for overclocking a dual core, with a X9100 (or even a X9000, actually), you have better control over finding the sweet spot with FSB pumping and multiplier setting. But you can also use software to pump the FSB in Windows. In addition, the T9XXX run ~9watts less and cooler, or if you want even better thermals, go with something like the P9700 which is 28W and ~16W less and runs even more cooler than the X9100.

 

I don't want to spend the extra $500-600 on the m17x, plus the looks are just overly flashy to me

shirley's cpu says I can return the qx9300 within 7 days of having it, I'm thinking if I cant get it to work without stuttering I'll return it and just get the p9700 or the x9100 for max Ghz if I wont ever be upgrading the cpu again


Thanks for all your help guys, learning a lot lately

 

No problems at all. I got it to 3.3 with the 28 bios and it was stable.

 

FWIW, I've got a QX9300 and zfactor's OCZ .28 bios. I must say mostly stutter free, but miles better than the B10 that came with my M17.

When it does stutter occasionally, I usually do the "pull out and plug in the power cord" trick and that fixes the problem.

I must say, even with my strong hesitation to upgrade the BIOS in warranty, I've never looked back since. Even got it nicely overclocked to 3.1 GHz and rock steady without any mods whatsoever.

 

Q9000, recently flashed to B14 bios. I've only had one case of stuttering for about 2 minutes since I flashed to it, which was several days ago (4-5 I think) so I don't really have any issues with stuttering anymore with B14.

 

it is a shame that a 100% sure solution hasn't been found, is part of why I am selling my machine. (that and gross irresponsibility when it comes to spending and computers haha)