* Asus N61JQ Owners Lounge *

I have the same, we have the best ! But upgrade for the latest wifi drivers and you will have a huge improvement in transfer rate http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus-reviews-owners-lounges/494250-asus-n61jq-driver-thread.html#post6388295

 

Memory: 4GB (2x2GB DDR3 - up to 8GB) Mixed RAM capable.

2 slots, I'm contemplating an upgrade to 8GB myself, anyone know if DDR3 1333 memory actually runs at 1333?

 

Hey, I'm not sure where post this so I'm just putting it here. Does anybody know how big a performance difference you see with 8 gigs of ram instead of 4? Is it worth the money basically.

 

Having more RAM is never a bad thing. 4GB of RAM is great for basic tasks but if you game, have many apps or large apps open all the time, then the increase will be very noticeable. Larger amounts of RAM will improve basic system operations because Windows will page less often but, if you only play music and browse the web, the improvements wont be noticeable with those activities.

Here is a really quick and probably butchered explanation: Windows will move information in RAM to the hard drive to make sure that RAM is available for applications. When you have many apps open and/or large apps open, Windows will move items in RAM that it "thinks" it doesn't need right away to the hard drive. It is never 100% accurate so certain items that are needed are read back from the hard drive (which is much slower than RAM). When you have more RAM, less items are written to the hard drive and since they are already in RAM, they are faster to read. As well, many games and apps can load more into RAM at a time so you spend less time waiting for things to load. Many times, applications will read things into RAM ahead of you needing them. The more RAM you have, the more that can be read ahead.

Again, it will always make a difference. The amount you notice is dependent on your usage.

 

I bought a Tucano BF-XL-164 for $20 from Fry's ( here it is on Amazon). It fits great; the laptop is snug, and the little flap inside protects the edges (notorious for peeling on the N61JQ). I was taking it to work every day for months, putting it in this sleeve (and the sleeve in my backpack), and there's only a tiny bit of peeling on the lower-left corner.

It comes with 2x2 GB. I am upgrading to 2x4 GB 1066 RAM ( here; unfortunately OOS ATM).

 

4gb ram modules are still an expensive upgrade compared to the performance benefits you will see. 2 3gb modules make a good compromise and seem to be offered as upgrade options quite frequently. In most situations though, your best upgrade is an SSD. For the cost, an SSD provides real tangible performance increases.

 

I just found out theres a new revisions to the N61JQ

N61Jq-XV1
N61JQ-B1 (same specs but $20 extra for 2 year warranty)
N61JQ-B2 (same specs as B1 but comes with Blueray Drive)




Should be able to play Crysis: Warhead on Enthusiast mode ( MaxSettings)

YouTube - Crysis WarHead on ASUS N61JA - Enthusiast settings
The guy, confederate79, had an Asus JA with 1366x768 i7 720qm, 4GB ddr3, ATI HD 5730, but this model has a more powerful i7 740qm so i believe it should Crysis Warhead






Where to buy


N61jq-XV1 ($999 on Amazon and Newegg)
Amazon.com: ASUS N61JQ-XV1 16-Inch Versatile Entertainment Laptop (Dark Brown): Computer & Accessories

Newegg.com - ASUS N61 Series N61JQ-XV1 NoteBook Intel Core i7 740QM(1.73GHz) 16" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730



N61Jq-B1 ($1019 on Amazon, $1089 on Newegg)
Amazon.com: ASUS N61JQ-B1 16-Inch Versatile Entertainment Laptop (Dark Brown): Computer & Accessories: Reviews, Prices & more

Newegg.com - ASUS N61 Series N61JQ-B1 NoteBook Intel Core i7 740QM(1.73GHz) 16" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 7200rpm DVD Super Multi ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730

http://1toppc.com/Merchant2/merchan...e=N61JQ-B1&Category_Code=AS15&Product_Count=2


N61JQ-B2 ($1149 on Amazon, $1199 on Newegg)
Amazon.com: ASUS N61JQ-B2 16-Inch Versatile Entertainment Laptop (Dark Brown): Computer & Accessories

Newegg.com - ASUS N61 Series N61Jq-B2 NoteBook Intel Core i7 740QM(1.73GHz) 16" 4GB Memory DDR3 1066 500GB HDD 7200rpm BD Combo ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5730

 

You could buy these models at Amazon or Newegg. Or you could buy them at the prefered resellers linked on the first page of this lounge.

PowerNotebooks @ Custom Laptops by PowerNotebooks.com™ - Custom Built Gaming Laptop Computers (Member name: paladin44)
XoticPC @ Gaming Laptops - XOTIC PC - Gaming Notebooks - Custom Laptops - Custom Notebooks (Member name: Justin@XoticPC)
GenTechPC @ (Member name: GenTechPC)
___________________________________________________________

 

so crysis got my computer hitting 100C and the auto-shotoff turned on.

anyone else experience this?

been playing SC2, TF2, etc with no issue..

also any solid improvements by replacing thermal compound?

i think i'll sell this and just build a comp. this computer has been too much hassle to game.

 

It's annoying to hear the cpu whine. Any suggestion to eliminate this?

 

Try this. http://forum.notebookreview.com/asu...asus-n61jq-owners-lounge-644.html#post6794403

 

Quick question: I'm settling on an N61JQ with 4GB 1066MHz RAM; can I add an extra 4GB 1333MHz in the second slot of the N61JQ in the near future, or will I be unable to add to it?

 

It will come with two sticks of 2GB each; you will have to buy two 4GB sticks to upgrade to 8GB total.

 

I'm having a problem with the left trackpad button not working sometimes. I tried the latest drivers.

 

Okay thanks. But can I still combine a 2GB 1066 stick with a 4GB 1333 stick?

 

I am pretty sure that you can install a 2GB and 4GB stick together (i.e. you don't have to match the RAM sizes). I think the memory controller will run at the slower speed (1066), so there would be no point to buying 1333 RAM for the new stick. Also, the performance difference is negligible: Core i7 Memory Scaling: From DDR3-800 to DDR3-1600 : Which RAM Speed Is Best For Core i7?.

 

I ordered my new N61JQ-B1 today, it is suppose to be here on Wed 10/24 can't wait. I'm trying to decide if I want to take the time to burn the recovery dvds or just use the digital river MS dvd I am downloading now. Won't really need to dvds unless I would decide to sell it somewhere down the road.

I will be deleting all the factory partitions and installing Linux Mint Debain Edition. The only issue I can see at this time is the ati driver and I think there is a script that will download and install the ati drivers.

 

Hi. Do I/should I repartition the 61jq? If so how do I do that? Thanks.

 

anyone know what i should do about my touchpad left button not working. its still under warranty is it worth getting it swapped out with another ?

 

I will assume you have blown around the button with copressed air. I also remember someone else having a problem with another key and for some reason I want to say the Z key. But my point is that they took the keyboard out and found a little piece of plastic under the key, removed it and all was well. Otherwise I would send it back for warranty unless you don't use the touchpad that much. I would be lost without my left touchpad button.

 

That's a hard question to answer with the information given. Were you thiking about doing a fresh install, doing a recovery or maybe like myself I will be removing Windows and installing Linux so I will repartition my drive to gain backk all the sapce that is used my Win 7 & the recovery partition and what ever else might be there.

 

is there a guide that shows how to remove the touchpad. I'd like to try that first.

 

Yes you can download it from this link
http://www.gentechpc.com/Asus/N61JQ/N61VN Series Chapter 02-v1.0.pdf

 

hmmm, do you think i'll be able to look underneath the button ? to see if there is a sand grain down there or something.

 

This thread might help, I think there were some post further on too.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/asu...asus-n61jq-owners-lounge-632.html#post6742892

 

So I'll have to take out the keyboard to get to it ?

 

I read that with the partitions it comes with lots of space is needlessly taken up. It'll be a new computer, so not a recovery. I was just thinking if repartitioning would clean it out and be nice and neat with the space; or if that's unneeded.

 

If you are talking about the touchpad buttons then you don't need to take the keyboard appart, but you have to remove the top cover of the notebook in order to reach to the lower side of the touchpad.
The procedure to do this is shown in the disassembly manual.
Here: http://www.gentechpc.com/Asus/N61JQ/N61VN Series Chapter 02-v1.0.pdf

 

Turbogear, you rock!

It's great to have someone who constantly has constructive helpful posts on this forum.

Thanks!

 

I'm actually having an overheating problem just running SC2!

Here the background:

I've had this Laptop since the end of August. It's been running flawlessly since then.

I took it with me on my vacation, put it in a backpack through carry on. I don't think I hit it too hard, but it may have been bumped.

When I got home I noticed a corner of the bottom covering the CPU/fan area was popped up, but all screws were still on and didn't seem like a big deal.

So I usually connect my laptop to a monitor and keyboard and leave the laptop closed (I know, I shouldn't have done that but didn't know at the time and never caused me problems)

So I run SC2 and 5 mins into the game my laptop goes into hibernation consistently!

Now I'm leaving the laptop lid open to play SC2 and don't have any problems, it runs fine and doesn't hibernate... that is unless I minimize the game and surf the web or something which causes the laptop to overheat and shut down.

(I had Catalyst 10.8 drivers by the way. I upgraded to 10.10 drivers and the problem still happens when laptop under heavy load)

I used to be able to Alt + Tab out of the game easily. So I'm a bit worried.

I opened up the CPU area and the fan is running fine, and I checked that all the screws were tight and the heatsink is still touching the cpu etc. So that looks fine.

Anyone know what else it could be?

Thanks for any help, it's much appreciated!




TL;DR: What else could be causing my laptop to overheat after a bump or two?

 

I don't think it's the bump that causes your lag. I was just about to post about my laptop also overheating. I also play Starcraft 2 and My gpu and cpu are both at 90C after I closed the game from playing. After booting up my computer it runs fine for about 20 min.
After 20 min I get some bad lagg in games, I also play wow and get lagg sometimes also.

It might be worth mentioning I am on a cooling mat and have tried a lot of the fixes in the thread and what I have found around none have worked. if anyone needs more info or can help I would love to know.

thanks.

 

Battlecat, I had trouble with BFBC2 overheating when I ran it with the lid closed. I run it with the lid open now, but only running graphics on the external.

I doubt the bump had anything to do with it overheating now, it may just be a difference in configuration (new drivers, additional software running in the background etc)

The other thing to do, especially if you've had the machine for a couple months is to clean out the heatsink. Remove the fan cover and blow compressed air into the outlet to clean out the fins. Lint gets stuck in there and will cause big problems with heating.

 

I don't know yet what the partitions from the factory look like, my new N61JQ-B1 will be here tomorrow so then I can see what they have done with my 500 gb drive. In my case I will blow all the factory partitions away because I will be installing Linux so I won't have any use for the ones from the factory.

If I was going to keep Win 7 I would probably keep the recovery partition, but would probably blow what ever else was there and do a freah install. The bad thing is from what I understand when you make the recovery DVDs you still get the bloware so you would need to get a Win 7 DVD from Digital River and use it to install. I think it kind of sucks that all the money you pay for a new PC/Laptop and they make you buy Windows then make you make your own disk full for crap. <rant off>

 

Just an update after playing some Starcraft 2 last night I checked the temps in game, Stayed around 95C the whole time in game and after I got out just browsing web for an hour I checked again and was at 84C. I know this is way way to high should I send it in to Asus or does anyone have any advice I can try?

 

Hey Trotske, the 84C seems a little high an hour after gaming, but 95 isn't all that bad for gaming.

I think I've seen mine get as high as 102C before it goes into hibernation mode to cool off.

I don't think sending it in to Asus will help, as it's running within there spec (105C I think is the max for the graphics card).

I mentioned it in another post, but if you've had the machine a while, you might try cleaning out the heatsink with compressed air.

 

Hey thanks for the reply, I have had it since early augest so I will try that out, any chance you have guide for doing it handy?

 

WOW! And I thought my 80•C were too high... Hahaha! How the hell can you get 105•C?! My asus N61Jq barely passes 82 degrees C! Much dust, maybe?

Oh and, I have ran 3D Mark Vantage, with these settings, with these results:

1366x768 resolution
MultiSample : 4
Anisotropy @ 16
Rest is all Extreme and all on.

CPU score : 10045
GPU Score : 3828

EDIT :

Same res, but performance values : 4177 3D Marks! Not bad!

 

I'm with Phistachio(?), my temps max out at ~82C tops. And that's without a cooler or a very low ambient temperature. I've even run Furmark for a burn-in test for a while and still couldn't get my temps any higher. Did y'all try the fix for limiting the frame rate in the menus? It allegedly caused quite a few overheating issues a while back. You can check it out here: Blizzard codes Starcraft 2 overheating fix | TG Daily

As for Battlecat, I suppose it's possible that when you bumped your laptop, the heatsink could have shifted/moved/something that would have broken up the thermal paste underneath. Since it's in warranty, I would send it back to Asus to have it checked on. If you really don't want to do that, get some Artic Silver and reapply it to the GPU.

 

Yes I tried the varibles fix but in game I am getting like 15-20 fps which is way lower than what I should be getting. I am running on med/high and its 95C with 15 fps. For me its not just Starcraft 2 that I get lower fps in this also happens in WoW but its not quite as bad.

 

If you're getting poor performance and overheating issues, I'd be willing to bet that: a) the heat sink is ineffective; you could try cleaning it; b) the heat sink is, somehow, no long in contact with the gpu/thermal paste. If you're feeling brave and you really don't want to take advantage of your warranty, you could try reapplying thermal paste; or c) there's an issue with the gpu itself and the only thing you can really do is return it to Asus and have them fix it for you.

Unless you just can't part with your laptop for the week or two that it takes to have Asus fix your computer, I'd send it in.

I'm definitely not an expert on this, but these just don't sound like the symptoms of a software problem, which means that fixing it yourself is both riskier and harder to reverse.

 

ok thanks I can part with it and I am no where near brave enough to do it myself, can anyone link me to a guide to cleaning the heat sink/ checking if it is no longer in contact with the gpu/thermal paste?

 

I'm not sure of where you'd find a guide, but if you remove the larger door on the bottom of the laptop, the heat sink should be towards the back (hinge) in line with the fan on the left. It's the big hunk of copper. If you blow between the fins with some compressed air and get a decent amount dust out, it might be worth turning on and seeing if you get lower temps.
As for checking the thermal paste, you'd really just have to remove the heat sink, and as you said, you aren't comfortable trying that.

 

ok thanks for your help .

 

Someone, please help me. I think I've permanently damaged my 1,000 dollar investment!

My laptop case was on my bed, and I guess some vibrations or something caused it to turn over, falling on the ground. Terrified, I looked at my laptop and inspected it. The power button no longer clicks downward, but is still functional.

My MAJOR concern in the fan. I don't know if it's broken or not. Temps in GPU-Z are around 58, but RPM is listed as "--"! Is there someway I could test it, or compare it to someone else's?

Please help in any way! I'm rather frantic right now!

EDIT: Oh, and now the screen seems really crickety (as in, it creaks and makes noise whenever moved). Is this normal, or is it just me?

 

I just ordered an N61JQ and now I'm just waiting for it to arrive! I'm wondering, how many standard 4.73GB DVDs do I need to make a Windows 7 recovery disk? I'm planning to do a nice clean install but I only have one or two DVDs on hand.

 

Battlecat, You should never run your laptop with the lid closed as most laptops intake air through the keyboard.

 

I don't know I didn't make any but I think I read somewhere here on the forum that it took 4 dvds and 4 hours to burn them, seems like a long burn time to me.

 

Got the new N61JQ-B1 today the hd was partitioned as follows
recovery fat32 19 GB 12 GB used
OS ntfs 116 GB 23 GB used
Data ntfs 329 GB 3 GB used

I deleted the OS & Data partitions and repartitioned as folllows

/ ext4 20 GB
/home ext4 340 GB
/swap swap 4.5 GB

On this I install Linux Mint 10 RC1 which worked fine all I had to do extra was install the ATI drivers using Add Hardware Drivers and using the Pulse Volume Control turned up the volume to 100% then use the normal volume control to control volume.

Using a usb stick to install it took about 10-15 minutes til I was ready to reboot when normally it would take 30-35 minutes which is still faster than installing Windows.

I tried to install LMDE on it and it install fine but the is an issue with the elantech touchpad, which is there is not way to configure it so it taps and while typing the pointers goes crazy if you get near the touchpad not to mention scrolling doesn't work. It's fixed in kernal 2.6.34 so I will have to wait til LMDE get that kernla then I will probably install it again.

 

A question for those of you who have upgraded to 8 GB RAM:

After upgrading, does your laptop fan run at full speed when you boot it up from shutdown or resume from hibernation? Mine starts at full blast when I push the power button and gradually slows down, returning to normal levels by the time Windows is finished booting (212 BIOS).

I installed 2x4 GB 1066 G.Skill RAM and passed a memtest run with no errors. WEI memory score rose from 5.9 to 7.3, confirming that the score is based on total amount of RAM in addition to speed.

 

I wrote some instructions to fix the elantech touchpad problem:
[ubuntu] Elantech touchpad improperly recognized as “ImPS/2 Logitech Wheel Mouse” - Page 5 - Ubuntu Forums

Good luck!