===> The Official Studio XPS 1640 + ATi 4670 GPU Owner's Thread<===

I have been playing Fallout 3 on High settings, while using a Zalman NC2000, and have not been experiencing any heat issues whatsoever.

 

It's not really a flaw, at least in my opinion. It's more of a sacrifice. You have so much packed into such a small package, something has to be sacrificed, for now.....

 

Honestly the heat of the SXPS16 is nothing compared to some other laptops. Its warm, maybe slightly uncomfortable, but not horrendous. Also if you have a cool pad just put that between your legs and the laptop, problem solved.

 

I got a defective system that had a 256GB SSD, HD 3760 and Intel 5300. Since they no longer offer the SSD, they upgraded/changed my replacement computer to: 500GB 7200 RPM, HD 4760, and WiMax 5150.

Do you think this is a fair upgrade? I kind of don't because the 256GB SSD costs like $375 to upgrade to, while the HD 4760 costs $100, and the WiMax costs like $15. The 500GB isn't an upgrade at all.

 

Nope, they should also give you $250.

 

why just focus on the PC hardware. i choose accessories some years ago. if you have £150-200 left, choose a nice ink-printer or (something else) that you need for daily using.

DELL have lots with accessories, and many of them keeps high quality

 

My temperature at webbrowsing and idling is usually 36 degrees with my Zalman2000. However, sometimes, sporadically, the cpu temps go up to 63 for a real quick moment (a second or less) and comes back to the late 30's. Normal? Something I should be concerned about?

 

I tried everything to get them to upgrade me to the Blu-Ray Burner from the Combo drive, but they wouldn't budge. He just offered a full refund or the config I posted. This really sucks cause I think they should offer something closer in value to what I originally ordered.

I should note that my original order was refurbished though. Still, I ordered a computer with certain specs and it was defective. Now they try to offer me something of less value. I don't care if it's a brand new replacement, I'd rather have a refurbished system with better specs than a new one. I could care less if the refurbished system has a few little micro scratches that I would probably make on a new one anyway.

Any ideas on how to get them to cave in and upgrade me to the Blu-Ray Burner? I've tried emailing Michael Dell and a bunch other corporate guys with no luck yet.

 

Your only recourse is then to send it back for a full refund and purchase another system through the outlet with the specs you want.

 

Just say, "You have two options. You keep a customer, satisfy my request and maybe loose a little bit of money or I take all my money, you get nothing, I tell all my friends and acquaintances about my situation and I go to a competitor never to return to Dell again and you loose 10 fold what you would compensating me for something that never should have happened." Let them try that on for size.

 

A typical dell csr won't care.

 

Not a chance.

 

Worked with my PS2.

 

Well I finally ordered! Think I got a decent deal on an outlet notebook. Usually none of the 4670 models come up but this morning I caught one! It had most of what I wanted at a fair price and I got the 9cell battery for an extra $80. I had planned on buying new, but each time Dell refreshed its latest deals (which they did this morning) the price was climbing.

Studio XPS 16 (1640) Laptop: Intel Core 2 Duo P8600 (3MB cache/2.4GHz/1066Mhz FSB) w/2.0MP Integrated Webcam

System Price : $1,149.00

4 GB DDR3 SDRAM 1066MHz (2 DIMMs)
500 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4670
Obsidian Black with Leather Accent
8X DVD+/- RW(DVD/CD read/write) Slot Load Drive
6 Cell Primary Battery
125V Power Cord
90W AC Adapter
Previously Ordered New
16 inch Edge-to-Edge FullHD Widescreen RGBLED LCD (1920x1080))
Network Interface Card
Intel WiFi Link 5300 802.11a/g/n Draft Mini Card

Only things missing from the nearly $2k new system I had configured a while back are the SSD and bluetooth module. I'll buy the new Intel 160GB G2 when it is available. Anyone know if the bluetooth module can be purchased and installed by the owner ?

 

That's a great deal for the RGB and the 4670. I keep looking but I haven't come across one with the RGB yet.

I have a $20 Targus bluetooth module that plugs in a USB port. It only protrudes from the USB port about 3mm. I know it's external but it's cheap, easy and works.

 

Swedish DELL support are insanely polite and very very generous. (i have never even heard about one single person who have got upset or a bad deal),

just for record they always replace a old m1710 with a m1730 (even when m1710 was available), Inspiron 9400 they replace with a Studio Xps...and so on.. (they always give you a higher price class. must be the most generous PC company on the Planet)


so my tip is to keep on nagging on them, call different people on the tech support, that often helps.

 

Hey guys,
I just got my new dell studio 16 and I was trying to play a new game that's currently in beta called Heroes of Newarth. It's a 2D game with great graphics and the gameplay is like DOTA. However, on max resolution the game has A LOT OF slow downs. Is there something i need to do to get my performance up? My dell m1730 with an 8800M card runs the game perfectly with no slowdowns (SLI DISABLED). From what i was looking at this computer should be able to run the game just as good as my m1730.... I'm not quite sure why I'm experiencing slow downs. I have the 4670, 2.4ghz processor, and 64bit vista. Are there other drivers i should download for the video card? Thanks.

 

^^ it looks like a fresh install always cures problems with gameplay.

 

a fresh install of the OS and drivers or just the video card drivers

 

Great deal....you got the RGB, 5300, and better HDD than me for ~$250-300 more. I consider that pretty good, considering the screen alone. If that price included the 9-cell, all the better.

Joe

 

try the video drivers, then if its still doesnt work, reformat.

 

Here's a random comment:

I really like the fact that Dell refreshed the SXPS with the ATI 4670.

I now wish Dell would start offering the processor options that e.g. HP and Lenovo are offering.

Both of these vendors have been offering the P8800 and T9900 for a while now.

The T9900, at 3.06GHz, is, I think, the fastest dual core currently available on the market and would likely satisfy those looking for more power at an affordable price (it is $375 over a P8700 equipped T400).

The P8800 is attractive as it does 2.66GHz while still being low in power consumption. It sounds like little improvement over a P8700 but it is just a newer processor. It would offer the performance of the currently offered T9550, but without the extra battery drag (and heat, the P line is more efficient).

An SXPS with the P8800 would likely be what I would buy right away, if it existed.

 

are there new ati drivers i should be using or should i reinstall the ones on the dell website

 

Bueller? Anyone?

 

Once my replacement XPS 16 gets here, I'll take apart this one and answer your question.

 

btw 15.6" 1600x900p panels are backordered so anyone that ordered with those panels your getting delayed

as I am finding out

 

Running 3DMark06 I get a score of 6651. Is this a normal score and how can I improve it? Running a P8700.

 

That's a normal score. Newer drivers from ATi's website will actually bring your score down (they did for me).

 

I updated them through Dell's website, are those okay?

 

4670 now on the Dell Australia website...ordering mine soon

 

Why would you order this? The RGBLED screen is what separates this machine from the pack. Do yourself a favor and upgrade the screen; it'll cure the backorder problem as well.

 

I bought a samsung 46" 1080p lcd to hook it up to so I pretty much already spent that extra $250

I don't really care for perfect color garment, 1600x900 led screen will be fine for $250 less... and the machine is separated from the pack for its looks, featureset, price, 4670, and warranty .. at least in my mind

I also think that the highest resolution under 1920x1080 is 1280 or some crap on the rgb is the biggest turnoff... 1080 on a 16" is a bit ridiculous for everyday use

 

hey guys i just got my xps in today and have been tooling with it for the better part of 8hrs straight. my configuration is the p8700 with 4670 1gb, 4gb ddr3, 500gb 7200rpm, and 16" rgbled.

i was just testing out left 4 dead and was fairly disappointed with the performance. running at 720p with all details on high including shadow, 2x filtering, and no AA i was barely keeping 50-60fps indoors. outdoor environments forget it, averaged about 30-40 and taking big hits that would even dip down to 0fps (depending on fire and zombie volume). i tried a bunch of other combinations with the most effective one being to take shadow to low and leaving filter at trilinear. and even then i was still dropping to 30s with onscreen chaos. i re-installed the drivers and set power to 'best performance' with marginal results.

i havent tried any other games out yet and overall im loving the system minus the much-maligned heat (the transfer under the palmpad is pretty bad) and minor calibration issues... and let's face it the screen still looks damn good. spent most of the day transferring files from old pc and installing apps. suprisingly, despite what many have said, there really isn't all that much bloatware to speak of; i revo uninstalled maybe a couple things. i plan on undervolting tonight but before i do, just a quick few questions!


1) is that gaming performance the norm? if not what can i do to boost performance in that area?
2) can anyone post idle and load temps for cpu/gpu pre-undervolting?
3) how much of the pre-loaded support software is worth keeping?
4) what proggies are best for driver detect and auto-updates?

last note, the comp i've been using up until now was a dell dimensions 8200, bought brand new in 2002, so this is my first time tooling with vista and my knowledge of it is pretty limited.

again overall, i love it!

 

1. No that is definitely not the norm for performance. I play L4D at 1080p, full details and 4x AF and it runs at 40-60 fps outdoors and a constant 60+ indoors. Make sure your system isn't overheating because that could be the cause since it would throttle the GPU and you would see the slow downs you are getting. Lift the system up a bit from the back (9 cell battery is ideal) to improve the airflow. Also check your catalyst control center and make sure your anisotropic filtering and antialiasing are set to "application settings". Set your mip maps to performance and textures to performance as well (quality difference is negligible). Catalyst AI at high gives the best performance.

2. I'm using RMClock to undervolt and my CPU idle temps are 36 and load is in the low 60s. GPU temps I can't monitor as of yet. Since I don't get any throttling, it must not be getting very hot.

3. None of the support software is worth keeping.

4. Just check on Dell's site for updates.

 

Are my temps high enough to warrant undervolting? And how far did you undervolt using RMClock?

TZ00 60C
TZ01 49C
TZ02 54C

Core #0 48C
Core #1 53C

HDD 39C

Also, what is the TZ00-02?

 

1) i raised the back up a solid 3-4 inches and actually that did help a lot with the temps, mid to hi 60s on l4d. also changed the ccc settings you recommended. i then set your game settings and started off with 'apartment.' started off okay as i was picking up my gear, around 60fps. opened the first door and then came the crazy fluctuations...60...30...25...45...10....2...40...
unfortunately i never got to test the outdoor environments as the game completely locked up after i tossed a molotov cocktail...indoors. so there's that.

2) ok that basically seals the deal for me. i'm getting approx 50 while elevated and typing this.

3) i really didn't think there was that much bloat...then i ran belarc

4) website doesnt have the recent chipset driver and a few others, but that's no biggie, i got it elsewhere.

NEW QUESTIONS

5) did you clean install, could that be the reason?
6) I'm new to the large memory game, is nearly 2gb usage while simply browsing fairly standard?
7) any other ideas to improve performance? any other solid benchmark tests?
8) did you "auto-adjust" the lower multipliers or do each one separately?
9) is that abrasive sounding series of clicks from the dvd drive when u load/eject normal?

thanks for the quick & helpful response~

 

Do you have vsync enabled? If so, turn it off (in both the catalyst control center and in game) and your FPS should shoot up.

5. No, I'm using the initial install. Based on what you've told me, I think your problem might be having vsync enabled.
6. Depends on the browser and extensions you are using. FF used to have a big memory imprint but not as much these days.
7. You could disable unnecessary services. Look up some vista tweaking guides.
8. I adjusted the lower multipliers myself rather than depend on auto adjust.
9. I have the blu ray drive so it doesn't really make much noise at all when I insert/eject dvds.

 

Yeah I wasn't planning on ordering today but considering it was "previously ordered new" rather than "scratch and dent" and came with the RGB and 5300, I bit. Nice that it will be coming quickly too!

Laptop price was $1149, which did not include the 9 cell battery, but it was available as an accessory (along with mice, crapware, cases, etc) during checkout for only $80 -- really good deal since Dell is wanting $180 for this on new orders! Total including the notebook, 9 cell, and tax was just over $1300.

It also didn't include the Bluetooth module which I'd like for my Logitech diNovo Edge keyboard. I searched the Dell parts and found Bluetooth 370 module 2.1 with EDR (manuf# C816H / dell part# 430-3342) for $30 so ordered it as I tend to misplace or damage external dongles. I'll install it at the same time as the SSD. Seems like everyone complained the wrong mounting screw was sent with it, hopefully I have or can find something that will work.

Anyway I'd suggest those in the market for a SXPS16/4670 to frequently check the Dell Outlet, particularly in the mornings. I was very surprised to see this one at such a low price.

 

Considering the heat issues a lot of people seem to have, I'd suggest the P9600 which is 2.66ghz (10x multi), 6mb cache, 25w TDP. It could take the place of the P8800 you mentioned (which has half the cache) and also the T9550 (same speed and cache but with 10w extra TDP). If I ever find a good deal on a OEM CPU I may get it; alas it is not a common CPU either at retail like Newegg, or on eBay. You can get them for about $360-390 from a few vendors.

They offer it for the SXPS13 so strange is not available with the SXPS16...

Agree on the T9900, lot of extra $ but if you do stuff that is really CPU intensive it would be a nice option.

 

i disabled vsync both in ccc and the game options and while according to fraps it did boost the max fps (as high as low 90s in 720p), it was still as much an inconsistent stuttering POS as before. i can't imagine it could be the heat because the cores were well under 70C the entire time.

good on you for going the blu-ray route. the noisy clunky clicking (can anyone confirm this as normal?) really reduces the appeal of a feed drive and the dvd upconversion, in short, sucks balls. the hd theater effect is especially annoying because it looks like it's just always playing at 1.2x speed.

ahhh getting frustrated...

 

Well my friends.. ordered mine on 3th of august, EDD was 19/08, in production from 4/08.
Yesterday a dell customer called me to say that on 11-12 will receive a mail with ups tracking.
Today i received a mail from dell delivery update, with a new date for delivery (14/08) and ups tracking. They ship it on 12/08!

Only 11 days from the order for delivery?? wow!! i'm so happy!!!

 

Ok, will be speccing a machine up on the weekend and ordering next week.

Is the 128 SSD worth the extra over the 500GB drive? Is the speed increase really that much better? I expect it is but just wanted opinions from those who have one.

Any other "must haves" that I should upgrade on the order?

Thanks

 

I'd rather have the extra space of the 500 GB.

 

Yea...that's the obvious advantage. At the moment, my 9400 only has 100GB and it seems to do me fine. All the "extras" are on an external.

How does the speed compare in real world? I've looked at benchmarks and sure, they are impressive, but real world testing/usage shows so much more.

 

No word yet on your replacement?
My third ordered 7/28 is arriving today...

 

It was in the boxing stage as of yesterday with a ship date of the 10th. Guess I won't be getting it until at least Tuesday.

 

Just got machine #3 delivered.

 

Get the SSD. The best upgrade you will ever make.

Use NAS or a USB drive for extra storage space.

 

Quick questions:

What current processors are compatible with the MOBO?
Can the GPU upgraded?
What is the MOBO? Make etc.

 

Replacement has shipped. Guess it will get here by the 11th.