M17X Freezing during gaming

My M17X is constantly consistently freezing during gameplay (Crysis and WoW). with my only recovery option is a power button hard reset.

I spent 3 hours on the phone with AW tech services and they had me replace my video drives with 186.12 (that essentially made the system so unstable it would consistently freeze in 3DMark06) and ultimately in-house came out and replaced my primary GPU, but I am still seeing the same issue.

I performed a system wipe / respawn and that seemed to help, but it has started again with nothing else installed on the system.

The failures seem random (15m - 2h) and do not necessarily happen during intense gameplay (gpu temps ~50C), just hovering or standing in WoW.

The failures happen in SLI or just on the primary GPU with and w/o the integrated card enabled.

I have had the same results with the Dox drivers.

Last night I forced the memory clock speed to 1066 in my BIOS to match the FSB speed.

I am concerned about the onboard memory. Is there a good way to diagnose it and / or other possible hardware culprits?

I am at my wit's end and any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. . .

 

try memtest i believe

are you overclocked on the gpu's

 

uh oh theres another one with problems. Mine is different I get blue flickering all over the screen when gaming.

 

Thanks,

No overclocking, all settings were stock or underclocked memory.

 

Is it the same problem that is talked about here?

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=398071


Disable SLI and see if it continues..

 

I have not seen the problem descibed in the linked thread. Also, the crashes occur with SLI disabled. . .

 

Did you run MEM test?

 

If you want to diagnose the memory, you could remove one module and try it that way for a while. If it locks again, swap the modules (still only using one), if it still does it, its likely not your memory. Its extremely rare to have a bad write sector on two seperate sticks of ram.

-Edit- Memtest is another way.

 

Ahh good idea..

I have had bad batches before... Crucial there for a bit had a bad batch of ram and I had 2 diff sets come to me that were bad after a few days and one bad out of the box... Darn crappy ballistx ram

Went to mushkin and no probs since


I have had good luck with the samsung chips that I have gotten through dell.. Havent really had them be bad.

 

Yeah yanking each stick of memory one at a time as Marvie suggested would have been the first thing i did as well.

 

OK, thanks Marvie

I am going to run with each module separately and see what happens.

AW CS had me boot from the resource DVD to diagnose the memory with the utilities there, but I do not see anything to test the memory in the custom menu. . . so I guess I will need to figure out memtest if I go that route

 

I would suggest booting to your restore cd, choosing "custom test" and testing the memory. Also, are you still running McAfee? I would strongly suggest removing it and seeing what results you get. This system does not like McAfee.

Edit: There should be a memory test slightly below the CPU test... unless it was removed.

Gabe

 

No McAfee on the system. I was running AVG, but I even took that off while I am diagnosing.

For the memory test, I booted from the Resource DVD and did not see a memory test in the diagnostics list (weird, right?). I don't have a specific Restore disk, unless you mean Respawn?

 

Hmmm very odd. I just booted to my resource cd, and the memory test is in fact missing. Maybe can you run a "System Management" test just to see what information the memory displays. It looks like you might have to try removing one stick at a time like the other members suggested. I've only had my system hard lock once.....but that was Fallout 3. Are there any blue screens indicating a memory dump? If all else fails, you may just have to restore the complete system and see what happens (assuming you haven't already tried).

Gabe

 

No blue screens, just lock ups.

I did a full blown wipe and restore respawn after the GPU replacement did not correct the issue.

I did see the same issue running on a single memory module, so I have swapped them out and testing now.

thanks

 

disable your network adapters and give it a try. and uninstall any antivirus and firewall you have. Don't go on the web though until protected.

 

It sounds like he has a hardware issue (possibly the memory as we're testing). I'm running everything on my system, including antivirus (avg), and everything is working fine. Our configs are the same, so he isn't doing anything different than what I am.

Gabe

 

OK,

I have confirmed the freezes occur with either memory module . . .

One thing I did realize is that after I did my respawn, I am still on SP1. Not sure that is huge given that is how the system ships, but I think I will update and check again seeing how I am about out of ideas. . .

AW mentioned they were going to send me to R&D if the memory checked out. . .

 

If your video cards and memory check out, there could be a number of other issues. Perhaps there's a flaw on the motherboard communication channel, or maybe hard drive has a bad section. It's also possible that the CPU is having trouble making calculations, although games are more dependent on memory, GPU, and hard drive. Out of 3,000 repairs, I only ever saw 2 bad CPUs. If I were to make an educated guess, I would say there's an issue with the motherboard. Take the R&D and they'll send you another one.

Thanks,
Gabe

 

Yeah, that is becoming my rather uneducated guess. On the phone with AW-TS again now, seems like they still want to hunt drivers. . .

Not sure how much longer I want to play this game

 

I just loaded up a game of crysis and played it for an hour with no lock ups.... and it wasn't even patched. If you want, you can tell them we diagnosed it together, and I can send you my tech ID for them to verify it with.

Thanks,
Gabe

 

OK,

So after reinstalling the OEM drivers and stress testing the primary GPU with AW-TS for 2 hours with no issue, I switched off SLI and played Crysis for 2 hours on 1900 x 1200 on High with no issues

With SLI enabled, Crysis still crashes in about 15 minutes on default settings . . .

I am now thinking the previous crashes I had with SLI disabled may have been with the stock nvidia 186.12 driver they put on my system prior to replacing the primary GPU.

According to AW-TS, if the system remains stable on primary GPU, they will come out again and replace the secondary GPU.

Gonna try to wreck it again tomorrow, but now I am hopeful it may be the GPU and not the mobo!

 

try dox 185.85

 

OK,

The system has been stable now w/o SLI for 6 hours or so 1900 x 1200 on WoW (ultra, shadows +1 tick) and Crysis (high).

I will give the new dox a try just to see if it helps SLI.

Gabe, could you share what drivers you are using?

Thanks!

 

it will help sli performance. it is said that sli is tricky and it will crash during gaming. nvidia 185.85 fixes that and dox 185.85 improves on that. but try it. this is what i heard when i was looking for a nvidia card and wanted to go sli. please report back with your results.

 

So when I install the Dox 185.85 drivers, it goes through the process without any errors, but when I boot I have this bizarre screen overlay. . . I can make out the windows graphics and text but it is like psychedelic mushroom mountains shot through silk screen . . .

Prior to intstall I did a clean uninstall using 3dguru driver sweeper

I tried doing the SLI + Hybrid and the normal SLI (with integrated disabled in BIOS) with the same result each time.

I also tried the vanilla 186.03 Nvidia drivers, but when I go to install them I get an error indicating the Nvidia Uninstaller is 32 bit and cannot run on a 64 bit system and then it goes to Setup and declares an error that the OS I am running is not 64 bit and fails out.

I think AW will try and update the driver before calling the 2nd GPU bad, guess I will see how they handle that . . .

 

Hi alexsga,
I'm using stock drivers on a a clean install. It seem as though the best, and most stable, driver is the stock one. I tried to load up a game of Far Cry 2, but I've exceeded my allowed installation limit........I hate secu rom.

Gabe

 

Your issue does not sound GPU related at all , Since you ruled out the memory also id say what Gabe sounds a bit more realistic and its a motherboard issue .

Id get on Dell ASAP and have them either fix it or issue you a whole new machine.

 

If you uninstall it from another install it will revoke the license and free up an install.

 

There's definitely a hardware issue.... I'm not sure whether it's with the bridge or your second GPU....but something isn't quite right. Hard lock freezes are never a good thing. No amount of drivers is going to fix the locking. I'm going to run through another game of Crysis (unpatched), and see if mine will lock. So far, I get a stutter here and there, but never a lock.

Update: Unfortunately, two installs happened on the m9750, and one install happened on the m15x. I restored both numerous times without revoking.......now I have to have customer support unlock it.

Gabe

P.S. - Do not use driver sweeper on this machine. The chipset is all Nvidia, and it's very easy to break the registry for the chipset by using it.

 

So TS couldn't get the drivers to update either, and given the system is freezing they are calling it the 2nd GPU and sending it out for in home install next week.

I challenged them about it possibly being the mobo, but his comment was that since the both cards are recognized and detected that means the mobo is OK . . .

In simplest terms, the system is now rock solid with SLI disabled and fubar'd with the 2nd GPU enabled. . . so I suppose it is possible?

Either way I'll know by the end of the week when I get my part installed. If it is still bad then I will dig in for a replacement . . .

On the upside, I am rather impressed with how the single GPU handles Crysis

 

I sure hope it resolves with your second GPU. Although, logically speaking, he sounds correct in his thinking, I've seen a lot of partially flawed motherboards. Just because communication happens doesn't mean that there isn't a flaw causing it to loose packets of information. Also, keep in mind that they do reference a flow chart. Although it has proven useful in the past, it is still a flawed system.

I wish we were closer together and could swap parts to see what exactly was causing it.

Gabe

 

Thanks for the insights Gabe!

Having you all to sound board this stuff is awesome and helps keep me relatively sane while working through this stuff on a $3k investment!

I would still like to understand why 186.03 driver install failed and why the Dox 185.85 went to Wunderland on me . . .

I will report back when I get the 2nd GPU installed, or if I figure out the drivers.

Thanks!

 

OK,

Got my secondary GPU replaced today and happy to report 5 hours of Crysis in SLI on High graphics at native resolution with no freeze ups!

Running with the original drivers and I even have the integrated graphics enable in BIOS

Sadly, Dell actually shipped the primary GPU hardware, but the technician was able to switch the heat sinks with my existing unit. He seemed to know what he was doing, and the temps seem fine.

Thanks!

 

Hi alexsga,
That's good news. I began to suspect either the 2nd video card or the bridge toward the end. I'm glad to see it was a simple fix.

Thanks,
Gabe

 

I've recently recieved the Dell (Alienware) M17x. Stats are:
Intel Core Du CPU T9550 @ 2.66GHz
4gb dual-channel 1067Mhz DDR3 SDRAM (2x2gb)
640gb 7200RPM SATA RAID 0 HD (2x320GB)
SLI Dual 1gb GDDR 3 NVIDIA Ge Force GTX 280M

Having the same issues with WoW. Game will play for 15m to 2h and randomly freeze and lock the laptop up. Only solution is a hard reset.

Have updated all drivers from the Dell website, didnt work and caused issues with the BIOS set up so used Alienspawn to restore to facotry settings. Didnt correct the issue. Have just updated to the 185 drivers as suggested on here, still not correct.

Have turned off SLI and it doesnt correct the issue. Instead I get 5 second graphics freezes every 10 to 15 seconds even while on the desktop. I've turned off hybrid graphics in the BIOS set up but that didnt work.

I havent stress tested the RAM or the Mobo yet as I believe that my issues are the same as whats happened with alexsga however I'm not enough of a techhead to know what the hell I'm doing.

Unfortunately in Australia the support for the M17x is provided by Dell who have said they dont know what the problem is and want to wait till updated drivers come out or they gather more data on the M17x problems. I've told them its not good enough as this computer should be able to run WoW with its eyes closed and its hands tied behind its back - I've told them its likely a GPU/RAM or mobo issue however they dont seem to want to listen to that.

I've given Dell 24 hours to make a decision on what they're going to do to fix this problem (replace parts, replace computer or refund me) however I get the distinct impression that they know theres issues with this laptop and arent really keen on repairing them.

 

Care,

If you really want a new computer, you can get it. Try talking to the super and just tell them you are extremely dissatisfied with your purchase. Yadda yadda. Either give me a full refund or a new system.

I have already ordered and returned (with no charges) an m17x to dell. I ended up going to a retail store (micro center) to buy another one with half the specs and spending half as much. At first they were very reluctant, but in the end, it was OK. They tried to stick me with the shipping but I argued and they took it off. Either way, to get a laptop replacement, you must have AW tech or Dell tech determine your laptop is defected. The more you call, the more they realize its a big problem since they document each time you call. Plz let us know the outcome.

 

I'd rather not have the machine replaced, just want it to run correctly!

 

I spoke to Dell TS yesterday for about 2 hours. She observed me playing WoW however the computer had the good grace not to freeze. Once she'd determined that nothing was wrong from her end she suggested that she call back on Tuesday after my raid to see how it performs.

Since then I've had 4 lockups and also noticed that when I close the lid and the computer goes into sleep mode, that once the lid is opened I get nothing but a black screen (no back light at all, just blank, dead screen).

I'll push the case further on Tuesday and insist that it goes back to be looked at and diagnosed. If it comes back and it still has issues I'll be asking for a replacement machine.

 

I'm just curious, but how did the tech support rep 'observe' you? Was she remotely connected? That can add lag right there... lol.

Regarding the black screen on wake up, I may have a fix for it - I'll know more after further testing. It seems to be common and I am seeing it as well (well, not right now) . Need to make sure its not causing issues with anything else before posting it - more to follow.

 

Well, since I managed to get my SLI working, I have had 2 freezes during gaming, two games (COD world@war) played allthough one time I managed to get it out of the freeze). I guess i'm gonna try to switch off SLI give it a try. Hopefully it isn't the problem which is stated above (a defect second GPU).

 

Well I just tried COD-world@war without SLI enabled and it frooze after 5 minutes (1920x1200 4x anti aliasing). So i would say bad primairy GPU.

But then again I do not really understand this issue, and it's origin. Because EmpireTotal war uses only one 260M but doesn't freeze up my pc. Could this be any other device what's causing this? Did anybody play COD and have simulair issues? Thanks in advance.

 

Is it the bios settings you PM'ed me? I'm trying it now.

 

ThaDutchy you may want to try out some other drivers first if you have not already. COD WAW just might not like the drivers.

 

Already tried the 186.24 (but I got really stuck in stealth mode so I guess that wasn't with SLI enabled) and now everything was running very fine on stock drivers. But now it freezes in the game. Maybe a fresh Windows install will fix it... Else I have to phone dell, and i do not want to do that.

btw. It's not that I can't game, it just like the story told earlier I'm gaming for 15min. - 2hrs, within this time, it suddenly just freezes and I can't get it out. Only by pushing the power button for a long time (hard shutdown) and I normally do not want to do that.

 

Those freezes could be the RAM as well. Could always run mem test just to make sure .

 

A good memory diagnostic is already built in. Just press F12 at boot and choose diagnostics.

Thanks,
Gabe

 

Gonna do that when I get home again! Thanx guys. Will keep on posting here.

 

I've recently found this post on the WoW forums: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=19110298142&sid=1


It may actually be a WoW issue with driver support afterall as I notice many people are having the lock up issues with WoW only.

I ran a few other games last night and they ran fine for 3+ hours of gaming each with no lock ups.

I guess if WoW cant operate on the M17x theres no point in me having the computer and may as well go back to the HP.

 

I was playing COD WaW, last piece looks simulair but it's a different game.
The person heaving this issue had it solved by getting its sec. GPU replaced.