*OFFICIAL* "All Powerful" M15x Owners Lounge, *Part 3*

ok, your lucky i just ran into that too. power off, unplug, take out the battery and press power button for 20 sec. then try again. if doesn't work reinstall the command center again and that should fix it.

 

Thanks a ton... a quick BIOS reset (holding the power button for 20 sec) fixed it. The new CC is good.

I don't know if you've noticed any changes with aliensense while logging into windows. On occasions, when the surround light is low, the whole screen becomes white and I get to a camera settings window on the login page.

 

Just another update... I've noticed that after the new CC update, The big alienhead logo on the lid flickers very rapidly instead of being lit up continuously. Any suggestions?

 

Try reinstalling command center again but just do the repair

 

I just installed the command center and didn't have any trouble. It does look nice, I was wondering if we would get an update since I saw this new layout on the M11x. I like the white login screen thing cos I do keep mine in a low light area, I don't get a camera settings window but just a drop down box set to something like "Face Bright=Auto".

 

Disable "Face Bright = Auto" to get your old login screen.

I've got tough luck with the new upgrade. Even after removing, reinstalling, cleaning the registry, etc the alienhead logo flickering issue remained. I finally opened the driver DVD that came with the system and flashed my keyboard FW back to v 1.0.0.9. Now the flickering issue has completely gone. So maybe it was the improper flash.

I'll try reinstalling the new CC. Will keep you guys updated

 

Alright... the flickering issue went away only temporarily when I uninstalled or reinstalled the CC application. It would re-appear as soon as I reboot the PC. I'm not sure of what is going on here - but I guess I've tried all the basic trouble shooting steps that I can take at home. Unless someone has any suggestions, I am going to call dell tech support tomorrow and get someone to take a look into it.

Just to give an example of what is bothering me: The alienhead logo would not pulse when the PC is in standby. It would flicker with very high pulse rate when PC is active.

 

sweet, can't wait to install it when i get home... yes im at work again .. what i really want though, is a driver update for the touchpad... i know the windows7 driver is fine and all, but i want multitouch capabilities like the macbookpros with the 1, 2,3 finger swipe features... cuz they're just awesome .. I'd have to check again when i get home, but i think i remember seeing those options in the Synaptics folder in program files...and i always wanted to try re-installing those crappy default touchpad drivers to see if it supported those features, despite the horrible responsiveness....Does anyone know of this? I really, really doubt it though...it was probably features for other "synaptics" touchpads which supported it.. *sigh*

 

Does the whole alien logo flicker or just the eyes?

 

Errr, asking again and again, how come my login page is not the Alienware one anymore? It's the boring windows 7 one

 

I think only the eyes flicker. I'm not sure about the whole logo (very thin rim. Too thin to appreciate).

 

read this it can help with what you want.

so its still flickering?

 

I don't know. The flickering was too rapid - noticeable during night time. In bright day light it is difficult to appreciate. This morning I was on phone with Tech support and they seem to think that there might be a driver conflict issue or incorrect flash issue

I tried reinstalling the older version of CC again in the morning and now the flickering is much less noticeable (will only be able to confirm once it is dark)

The tech support guy gave me an impression that in a worst case scenario, my MOBO will need to be changed since the AlienFX BIOS is physically embedded on the MOBO.

 

this what?

 

The flickering happen to me as well, though I did what InappropriateName_3 suggested and opened the same file again, then chose the repair option. After the mandatory restart all was well.

P.S. I'm lovin' this laptop more and more everyday I use it. . Oh and I went with the orion bag from alienware.

 

Yay for the Orion backpack, its effing expensive, but it's quality stuff!

 

I installed the new OSD and now my media buttons will not light up, they work but they dont light up, same goes for the Alien head on top of the keyboard it does not light up, but the one on front of the case does.

 

I Just noticed another issue after updating to the new CC.

Pre update -Scenario:
---------------------
1. Open the lid on my unplugged M15x (without turning it on)
2. Plug in the AC adapter

The alienhead (power button) and logo would light up for 2-3 seconds and then turn off

Post update -Scenario:
----------------------
Same as Step 1 and 2 but now When I plug in the power adapter, the alienhead on powerbutton and the lid logo only comes on for a mili second (almost like it flickers) and then goes off.

Anyone else having this issue?

 

my alien power button never comes on at all, neither do my media buttons

 

Try to do the reset, power off, unplug, take out battery and press power button for 20 seconds. Then power back up to see if it helps

 

sorry bro, nothing like that is on the M15x, it does have alien touch but it works with the original synaptic driver only, but it pretty crappy imo and not worth using the synaptic driver again. wish it does have multi touch, it would have been sweet.

 

Hi again! The SSD issue being partly solved by a "sanitary-erase" of the flash modules which sped it up a bit but after the fresh install of W7, a new issue popped up.
My CPU scored 7.4 in Windows rating before the clean install.
Now I only get 5.5.
I have uninstalled and reinstalled the CPU Drivers twice and ran through the chipset driver install as well.
Any ideas what occured there?

 

sorry, stupid me forgot to post the link: here it is.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-change-windows-7-logon-screen/

 

try the reset thing i just posted, and redo the test. keep us posted.

 

Roger Dodger man.
Do you ever sleep?

 

lol, sleeping is for wussies, hahah. i'm not on here all the time, just pop in and out when i can, i mean when the boss or wife is not around.lol

 

thanks for that, all the lights are on now..

 

glad it worked out.

to everyone, the reset should always be the first thing to try, when your laptop is buggy.

 

No-change from reseting the BIOS.
I'll run trough another clean install tomorrow or the day next.
Thanks for the tip though, didn't know thats what the little battery was for
Good evening man, I need my sleep^^

Added to your rep as well, since you helped other forum users and I so much.
Thanks!

 

ok also make sure stealth mode is off too, sometime you have it on without realizing.
is cpu the only thing that is low on the score?

 

Just got off the phone with Level 2 Tech support. They did the usual stuff with a remote connection:

1. Uninstalled CC, OSD and Chipset drivers
2. Delete alienware mentions in the registry
3. Cleaned the temp folders
4. Reinstalled Chipset then OSD and then CC. Reboot after each install.

Funny thing: I called about my lights not turning on for a second (when the PC is powered off). After he was done with the whole thing, my alienhead logo (on the lid) just stayed off. He then tried the alienFXtester.exe file and the logo turned on again

Put me on hold for another 10 minutes and this is his reply "Verbatim"

"I just go in touch with a level 3 tech support person and they have received 2 other complaints about similar things happening after the CC update. They are looking into the issues and it appears that it is a software conflict."

He will call me back on Tuesday and keep me updated. Apparently, as per him, they expect to release a new version of CC that will get rid of this problem. Until then I am stuck with the buggy alienFX.

Can you believe it? Anyway, for those who have not updated their CC, better hold off updating till next week.

 

Yup, here is a shot of my result below.

 

Thanks for the update
Will wait until it is cleared of its embarrassing issues.

 

Made this theme edited from the morph one floating around this thread.

http://www.mediafire.com/?q5dnmmmttmj makes it look like its breathing "incredible hulk" haha

Let me know your thoughts

 

IMHO

CoolerMaster makes a couple with one giant 120mm fan. I'd get one thoughs if you were thinking about getting one.

Most laptop cooling pads are worthless. The 120mm fan one's stand the best chance of working though. I had to get one for my elitebook 8530w because it got crazy hot like 90C. I got a CoolerMaster U2 for it because it allowed me to put the fans right where I needed them and was still portable. However, it would not be good for the M15x.

The laptop cooling pads will not get your temps down that much but they keep the laptop from ever getting TOO hot and that is all you need.

 

UPDATE

For those of you that do not know, I had an issue when downloading pictures from an SD card and listening to music at the same time, the sound crackles and the system lags. Tech support attempted to fix the issue, and ultimately decided the laptop was defective.

They sent me a replacement, which I got yesterday. I am happy they got me a new one so fast, but the ISSUE IS STILL THERE. Extremely disappointing.

So again, I ask. Pop in an SD card an d download your pictures while listening to music and see what happens.

I will be making a video to show the issue to tech support, and will most likely be asking for a refund.

 

We have had so much snow here in VA that I had to pick my M15X up from FedEx (yep, funny they can't get here but I can get there). Anyway I love this machine but I find the USB ports are VERY tight when connecting/disconnecting devices. Has anyone noticed this or is it just my machine? I don't want to damage something.

 

Yep, super tight, but it should loosen over time.

 

Ya no worries, the tightness is a good thing. Over time they will get loose.

 

Yeah, the USB are a little squeezy, plus they are only 2 of them, which really shucks.

 

IMHO....

I think all the AlienFX problems you guys are having could be solved by using the new Open Source Cross-platform AlienFX Manager. I use it on my M15x with Archlinux. It is written in Java.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=8819707#post8819707

The AlienFX is built on a TI TUSB3410. You use C code to program the thing to do what you want.

If nothing ells you should use it to get a definitive answer if the Hardware is Bad or if it is a Software problem. Because the Open Source AlienFX manager is Open Source you can check the code and find out vary easily and definitively that your telling the controller to do what you want it to do. With the Proprietary manager you have no idea what the hell it is doing. It could be opening up a back-door to allow all Alienware employees accesses to your computer ... Or it could have some major problem that is eating up all your CPU.. Or a Memory leak... You never know.

 

Aren't there three? Two normal and one eSATA/USB hybrid port?

 

Yep, The major reason the eSATA is duel USB/eSATA is because that is the new standard for Power Over eSATA. Which is vary cool. The old eSATA port was basically gimpified because you still had to plug in the drive to a USB port for power.

 

Can you still plug in any normal USB device into an eSATA/USB hybrid port?

 

Thanks so much for your replies on the usb ports. I was really worried about the tightness.

 

Hey, yep I get it too but only when using the laptop speakers, it's fine when the audio is through the TV via DisplayPort. I didn't have many photos so I copied OpenOffice and got some skipping and corrupted tones in the music.

 

Yes you can.

 

Hey guys just saying hi as i have just put my order for meh M15x ;D

 

Congrats, I'll be doing the same as soon as I sell my Macbook Pro

 

Silly me, I didnt even know the eSata port was a hybrid USB !
Also Signus, congrats, whats your setup?