Dell XPS M1730 Owner's Lounge, *Part 3*

Hacked nVidia 262.99 to install on my system. Fans still cycle rapidly when SLI is enabled, but at least this version lets me toggle SLI on and off without requiring a reboot. This makes it practical to enable SLI when playing 3D games when the GPUs are going to be hot anyways, and then disable it the rest of the time.

 

I just have the CPU overclocked with throttlestop then use I8Kfan control tool to force the GPU fans on slow unless they go over 50c.... No annoying SLI issues as I have the 8800gtx

 

I8kfan only controls just only one of the GPU fans. It doesn't control the other.

I've had A011 since the launch date, when I reset my X9000 clocks back to 2.8Ghz for a test drive (lowers down fan speed), so far the fans seem to kick in to low-medium speed when it reaches 58*C when powermizers disabled.

When gaming my 9800M GTXes reaches to a 70*C max, as opposed to 75 to 78*C on A10. Fans are louder for users with locked CPUs, but I guess this BIOS update doesn't effect the X9000 users much when OC'ed to 3.2-3.4GHz... fans go full blast all the time - 65*C max.

I guess Dell updated the BIOS in light of the Nvidia Lawsuit within Dell's effect models that is going around lately. (Not surprising to see the M1730 in the effected list though)

 

Eh, what lawsuit?

 

The lawsuit whereby if you own an xps m1730 from the uSa and it was purchased between certain dates and with certain troubled nvidia cards, they will be dishing out compensation/replacements/vouchers there is a website about it that they setup...

Anyway regarding fans and temps yeah I have overclocked and undervolted so very low temps all round but I use i8k fan control because it reduces the actual volume of the system lots even with just one fan on low

 

I'm curious about that site, mine is manufactured in March 2008.

 

has anyone tried OC-ing 8800M GTX SLI with the new A11 bios? i oc-ed the video with MSI Afetrburner and i got all max posible , 650 / 1625 / 1040 without any artifacts or problems and the temperature is 65-70 degress while gaming. also my GPU score in 3dmark vantage went from 7700 up to 10071 with a T9500 CPU with dual IDA

 

Eleron, I think this is specifically for US customers. And I am certain it covers all M1730s carrying the G92 cards. Time period might be mentioned so as to narrow down the scope to just the people who had the 8800/9800 cards with their systems.

You're an E.U. guy as I understand it so you've got solid consumer laws that protect you. For example, Dell having to honour their warranty with something of equal or better value, or your money back. An M17X replacement is practically a given for you if they fail to repair your system back to satisfactory state.

I wouldn't be surprised. When I was testing the X9000 on my system, I was able to push the 8800s to 670/1666/990 without any artifacts or crashes. Most likely a side-effect of the system running cooler.

 

I use CPUID to monitor temps.

I haven't been able to overclock graphics cards without an immediate shut down or blue screen but that's because the system is a complete POS and should be replaced.

A11 Bios cycles the fans quite often, as the laptop is right in front of me I can hear the fans even wearing headphones or over audio. It gets so loud that I can hear it over the TV.

I've found that the fans will throttle when the computer is idle, light web browsing, playing Guild Wars, etc.

The only satisfaction I get from owning this and being burned by Dell for the useless extended warranty I purchased (937 useless days remaining!) is all the business they've lost when people ask me for recommendations. =)

 

True, but it was purchased in the US

Anyhow, as long as they keep it working, it`s all I`m interested in.

 

Hi eleron911

The new A11 bios is excellent! I have a M1730 with 9800m GT sli. They where running at 75c all the time... but now... does not top 60c on full load. The fans kick in once in a while to get the temps back to 50-55c but its only a short whoosh every 30secs.. it can be annoying but to be fair I would rather have my Laptop in safe hands with this new Bios than cook the poor beast!!!! So very pleased they have sorted the temps out!!!

I highly recommend this Bios! Also I would update the drivers from

Drivers | drivers for mobile cards and laptops | laptopvideo2go.com[]=win7x64

I recommend Date 2010-10-30.
If you download the above please download the Inf file and replace it once extracted .

The above is for all versions and OS but it makes such a difference... I play an awful lot of World of Warcraft.. The only game I play but since updating this driver it has gotten rid of some annoying graphic glitches.

To sum it up.

Excellent job A11 bios!!! Happy bunny!

I hope this helps!

Keith

 

I have the same set of results with BIOS A11 (I just upgraded). Now, with SLI enabled the fan(s) cycle from about 2300 rpm to about 3000 rpm every 8 seconds, with the machine at idle.

Other info:
Temps etc measured with HWinfo32 v358-913
Windows 7 64-bit, Graphics: 8700M GT x2, Vid driver 260.99
Temps in SLI: CPU: 33C, GPU0: 51C, GPU1: 56C (stable)
Temps without SLI: CPU 33C, GPU0: 49C, GPU1: 52C (stable)

So it looks like SLI mode raises the GPU1 temperature enough to cycle the fan(s).

Less than a month ago I stripped, cleaned and re-seated all heatsinks with AS5 and the XPS M1730 sits on a hard desktop without obstructions.

The reason I upgraded to A11 is that recently I've noticed a dark area on the left of the screen, like the left 50% is darker than the right. It's very 'graduated' and only noticeable for a few minutes after wake-up from sleep mode. The darkness is similar to the effect you get when viewing the screen at about 45 degrees. I have full UK warranty but am currently working in Brazil so am not sure if I automatically get the same warranty benefits here or whether I have to wait for a visit back to UK. I imagine the process to get a half-decent Dell qualified rep. here and then get a satisfactory fix will be a nightmare, which is why I hoped the 'better' fan management with A11 might keep the think limping along until I can get it reported in UK.

Quite frankly, the fan cycling is driving me nuts as I type this. I don't play much in the way of SLI-compliant games (Does MS Flight Simulator X use SLI??) so I might disable the SLI. Or should I just roll-back to A010 and 'deal with' the inevitable Dell helpdesk questions when I report the screen issue?

Apologies for multi-questions!
Cheers, Andy

 

Relative newbie in the sense I have *never* updated a bios before! Still running the original one that came with the computer.

Is there a link somebody can point me to with instructions on how to do the update? Or somebody patient enough to tell me what to do?

I have the 8700 which has never given me one moment's problem, in fact, the computer has been stellar from the get go. However, I am noticing the upper left getting hotter and hotter, and I have just installed a gpu temp monitor. 60c idling/internet surfing, and up to 83c while playing EQ2. I have the laptop on a cooler, but it's not helping. So after reading about what the new BIOS is doing with the fans, I think I had best get it installed.

Any help will be really appreciated!

 

So it's still a rinse/repeat action.

Well, at least they don`t let them get too hot this time. Could be a help in OCing

 

im loving A11 - its taken 20c of gpu temps and i cant really notice much extra noise

 

Drivers and Downloads

A11 bios - close all running programs make sure you are plugged in, open the file - follow instructions onscreen.

Also I think your problem is with the screen rather than the graphics cards. Easy to change screens when you get back to UK

Cheers

Go here -

 

Go here for A11 bios - Drivers and Downloads

 

Well KUDOS to Dell Support! I opened a chat to ask about upgrading the BIOS to A11, and while agreeing that the update would help the heating issue, the tech asked about my temps. I told him the gpu temp of 85c this morning, and he immediately said you are overheating, parts need replacing.

So, a tech will be arriving with a new video card, fan and heatsinks. No hassle, no arguing .. straight out unsolicited offer to resolve the problem!

Just another reason why we have been Dell loyalists for all these years!

And thanks all for the link to the BIOS update ... I will do that after the parts are replaced!

 

Agreed Eleron. Certainly gives more scope with the temps as they stand to have a play with overclocking the cards..

Quick question did they ever do a 9800M Gtx version for the M1730.. I just keep seeing threads that they exist.

Thanks in advance.

Keith

Actually looks like they do... and they're very expensive.. £600 on Ebay... Bloody hell may as well get another laptop for that price... Also the Intel X9000 cpu extreme 2.8ghz are not cheap either some wanting between £300-£500 on ebay.
I find that odd considering if you paid £1800 today you would get a machine that is twice as powerful if not more than the Beast... makes you think that upgrading is not worth it. Guessing you guys already knew that.

Also is there a page where all the latest updates are all on one page. I'm looking to see if there is an updated Chipset drivers and also is there a new Bios for 9800m Sli cards or is it not worth doing.

Sorry for the rant just thinking out loud

 

Hi guys,

I have had a XPS M1730 since March '08 (2.5ghz dual core/4GB RAM/8800m gtx SLi) and my warranty expires march '11. I am using 175.32 Nvidia drivers as these have been extremely good with the games I play (mostly Starcraft 2)

Yesterday when shutting down I had a blue screen crash that said:
"Hardware Malfunction , NMI: Check Parity/Memory Parity Error" and couldn't switch the laptop off, had to wait for the battery to die.

So far today the laptop works fine.

Also the battery light (two below the power light) is flashing orange. Even though the battery still charges I believe this flashing means the battery can't be charged.

Lastly and this issue has been going on for a few months. The logitec LCD screen (the thing that can display performance/clock/stopwatch etc) sometimes flips out and the display goes out, (have to task manager-end LCDmon to reset screen) though this happens randomly.

I take this as a sign that my laptop will die soon of some hardware problem sooner or later (most likely the motherboard) but with the warranty ending in a few months I don't want the worse scenario of my laptop dying when the warranty ends.

Any advice you can give me? Should I contact Dell and tell them about it?
Though they might offer to repair I'm not too comfortable with getting refurbished parts that might die very quickly with how few months are left on the warranty.

 

Yes, there are 9800M GTXs available for the M1730, but they`re rather expensive...

 

Okay, need some advice. Through wasting time with this.

1. Upgrade to A11 Bios without issue. Been monitoring temps, observing behavior both GPU's were listed.

2. Yesterday night one of the GPU's disappeared. Not listed in Bios, Device Manager, CPUID HWMonitor, etc.

3. Tried uninstalling graphics driver, cleaning everything in safe mode and reinstalling, absolutely no luck.

4. Tried flashing back to A10 Bios (no problems there) but still no resolution.

5. If I call Dell I can expect their routine of only to depot despite NBD onsite warranty and their continual breach of contract. For reasons in previous posts/threads I don't trust Dell and I don't want my machine away from me indefinitely.

Anything else you can think of before I have to waste more time with Dell or simply have to sue them?

Laptop is essentially static, in a dock like state and rarely gets moved. Use an external monitor, keyboard, etc.

Thanks in advance.

 

Bake the glitched card....

 

I had the same issue, started a few months ago, then I started getting lock-downs and messed up images, and eventually had to send it for repairs. It`s been a week, don`t know exactly how long I still have to wait, haven`t gamed in a while and I miss it...

 

@Bloodroses

I remember there have been a few mentions of a missing GPU on these forums before. All of them were related to a failed or failing GPU.

It sucks that you need to send it to the depot, but I'm afraid there is no other options.

On another note, has anyone tried running new NFS Hot Pursuit on the laptop? I'm experiencing bad performance. Had to lower the resolution to 1440x900 to get a decent performance out of the game.
It's the first game I came across that the beast is not capable of running with the native screen resolution.
BTW, I am using latest NVidia drivers that are said to add SLI support to this game.

 

NFS Hot Pursuit runs ok on the beast at native resolution full details from 35 to 60FPS . something's wrong with yours

 

Extend your warranty another 2 years and go with the on-site service. You will be glad you did. It's highly likely your M1730 will have a catastrophic failure and will end up being replaced with a newer and much better machine. That is how I and many others ended up with a brand new Alienware M17X R2 with specs that are better than the XPS M1730. Extending the warranty is less expensive than buying the parts that are likely to fail, and far less expensive than buying the latest gaming rig. I still have 2 years of my original 4 year extended warranty from the XPS that transferred to my M17X, so the money that you spend on the warranty renewal should also transfer over to the new machine.

Secondly, yes... contact tell about your current problems and have them corrected. What's the point in having a warranty if you're not going to use it?

 

I have the on-site warranty and never had to send my machine to the depot. Dell sent a Qualex technician to my home 12 times over 2 years to replace major components before replacing my XPS M1730 with an Alienware M17X R2.

Dell is running out of replacement parts for this machine. Don't forget that an accidental damage warranty covers every part of your machine, including small things that do not stop you from using it. In know of circumstances where an accidentally broken $5.00 part that was no longer available resulted in a replacement with a new M17X.

Send an email to Dell's customer service department (not tech support) outlining all of your issues and ask for their help in making things right for a faithful Dell customer that spent a huge wad of cash on their flagship product. Always be very polite when communicating with Dell employees. Use "please" and "thank you" excessively. They respond to customers that are calm and polite differently than customers that vent their frustrations and make threats. (Most of us respond differently to people that are nice than we do those who are not.) If you get a technician to come out, share your issues face-to-face and ask if he can call Dell while he is at your home and go over all the issues you are having. After 12 visits, the technician in my area became an ally and actually helped me get Dell's attention at a level that you and I do not have direct access.

 

I have Complete Care, and the on site service warranty, but I just agreed to send mine in for repairs. I would've argued for on site service, but I don't really mind since I'll just use my M15x instead until the XPS M1730 gets back.

 

As far as I can see, your M15x is much faster than the beast, so why do you miss "her"?

 

Having two decent machines around is good for LAN parties when a friend doesn't have a machine that can run a certain game.

Also I just leave laptops scattered about the house. The M15x typically resides in the kitchen, the XPS M1730 in the living room, and the X200s in the family room.

 

Interesting. What are the specs of your laptop? And what OS are you using?

 

Thanks for the reply, I had a 3yr warranty starting march'08 and it ends March'11 so I think i can extend it for another year.

Think i'll contact dell on monday and see what they say.

When you say "I and many others" what problems did you have? was it similar to mine or different.

 

DDT5 i have fps probs with Need for Speed Hot Pursuit aswell. I have installed win7 x64 185.85 nvidia drivers and nhancer with a good sli profile to get about 45fps all settings high 1920x1200 also running throttlestop at x17 default cpu voltage & 3.4ghz(bios). I have found with my beast that the x7900 cpu just runs way to hot and get lockups when cpu is hitting 80c. On a side note what is your 3dMark 06 score?

 

I have run into the problem with CPU throttling myself. I just run it at 3.0 GHz. This way I get a quite system and CPU doesn't throttle even if it reaches temps over 80 C.

It has been long since I run 3D Mark 06. I don't have the exact score, but it was somewhere around 12k. I'm not a big fan of synthetic benchmarks.

I noticed you have quite old drivers there. Any reasons for that? Newest NVidia drivers should improve performance in the NFS Hot Pursuit. I am getting much worse fps than you. I get around 20 fps, sometimes dropping all the way to 10. It doesn't feel like 10 tho, but it is still sluggish. It seems weird. All other games run just fine. I wonder if it could have something to do with the fact that I am running out of space on my hard drive. I've got < 10% free space on both OS drive and the second drive, where game is installed. However, in pure numbers I've got 7Gb free space on OS drive and 23Gb left on the second drive. 3rd gen Intel SSDs and 750Gb Seagate 7200 rpm drive cannot get here soon enough!

 

hi mate i have 9800gtx sli so they may be the difference in fps? i will try and put down to 3.0ghz and see what happens. i was running 185.85 drivers as they were giving me way better performance in 3dmark06 (score 13859 cpu 2750) and with latest 260.99 drivers only 12886. just tried it then and one race it was raining and i only got 25fps. SLI isn't working properly in the game with GPUS only getting 40% utilization each. Try setting nvidia control panel to use only one GPU for game and see report results. I really miss my console lol you just put the game in and play no stuffing around with settings mind you it is fun!!!

Just tried nvidia 260.99 drivers and getting a about 21fps with the same settings and same race etc. This game is coded really bad for sli setups!!! again another game coded for consoles!!!!!! it gets 35fps with single GPU only in NV control panel

 

T9500 2,6ghz @ 2,8ghz with Throttle stop , 4gb ddr2 , 8800M GTX SLI , 500GB 7200rpm hdd and windows 7 32bit with nvidia latest driver 260.99 . it ran fine from the first time i played it. i uninstalled it but i played about 2-3 times and it was playable @ full details. it must be buggy but the beast can run it just fine

 

Thx for the input guys! DanXbix, I did not even think that SLI could be an issue here. I mean, it is 2010...multiple GPU support should really be de facto at this point. Especially when it comes to such a big title as NFS. Back to the point, setting the game to run in a single GPU mode solved the issue! Thanks again. Game runs with average of 35 fps. Which is totally playable. I noticed, however, that fps would drop to 20 for a second in the same places all the time. This is annoying. This game is a bad port from consoles, no doubt about it. Hoping they will fix that issue and add SLI support with a patch/new drivers.

Btw, I was monitoring CPU load to see if that could be a bottleneck, but it was never fully loaded. It actually seems that the game utilizes only one core.

 

Indeed, DDT5. A single 8800m GTX should run this game at native resolution over 30 FPS. With a proper SLi profile, you'd be getting blistering rated in the 50-70 region.

 

Hey Guys i installed 260.99 drivers & nvidiaInspect and made my own profile
now runs at 50fps SLI 16x Anisotropic filtering and 8x Antialiasing @ 1920x1200
looks awesome and plays awesome!!

You may need to adjust a little as i have 9800gtx sli
uploaded profile for nvidiaInspect latest 1.9.4.1 (please delete .zip extension and leave as .nip

 

Well, I could have updated this on Friday after two hours of pointless discussion with Dell technical support but I'm so confused I simply don't know what to do.

history:

Problems started prior to Oct 2009 but contacted them that month

Replacement issued Nov 2009 but cancelled

Sent a detailed letter to Michael Dell and kept dialogue and hundreds of wasted hours until Jan 2010

Then I went through attorney general who recommended I file lawsuit

Then in April - May I tried again with Dell

During this time I have been told not to use the laptop due to the burning electrical smell, shut downs, blue screens, and now disappearing graphics cards.

I don't know what to do, since Dell offers me no remedy and I have a warranty in name only. They claim my account is on hold due to some nonsense but when I talked to the only person who can deal with this issue, let's call this person X. X does nothing and cannot support alleged claims. X is never available, Dell managers cannot contact X. I spent over 36 hours trying to contact X and I only manged this one time. X has locked my account and I cannot obtain warranty service.

So they sold me warranty service that cannot be obtained. A laptop with known defects which is a part of a class action lawsuit. They've lied to me numerous times which is all documented.

The last lie was that I would receive a call within 24 hours; after denying me any remedy at all under the warranty. Of course as I knew I received no such call and I do not expect any call unless I pursue the matter further.

I have considered approaching media outlets, consumerist, writing another letter to attorney general, researching law firms who might be able to take this on.


This is after my initial xps m1730 was replaced after repeated failures and a year of fighting them after constant part replacements.

Thinking the nightmare over with a replacement laptop I then extended my warranty for four years.

In all honesty this goes beyond the pale of just replacing the laptop since I've had a warranty that's been invalid since the day it was purchased and I've wasted hundreds of hours pursuing this matter. The lies are the worst, such as being told that I have my account fixed only to be told it has been not. Or being told that they cannot fix the account.

I have asked in the past that they simply just give me all my money back for the system and warranty since they cannot fix the problem with my account or my laptop and they have flatly refused.

Why did they even issue me a warranty if my account is on hold? Nothing they say ever adds up and when you back them into a corner with evidence and logic they just lie.

Any suggestions as to what I should do at this point?

 

Account on hold = you failed to return parts/system. Unless you deal with the person X, there is no way around it.

 

Sorry Achillies, try again.

That is not what I was accused of nor the reason my account was flagged.

Additionally getting any information from them about the real reasons was extremely nebulous and time consuming. Until I spoke with person X no one was able to tell me what was going on.

When I did speak with person X they were not forthcoming and everytime we explored the situation logically they failed to have any means of resolution nor any evidence.

Let's just say we went through my account history and what they were claiming made no sense.

When person X realized this X suddenly changed story and claimed there was nothing that could be done to fix the account.

I would walk each person I talked with through the entire situation and it would end up as a logical circle with no end. The canned response is person X and person X is never around, not helpful and lies to cover up incompentence and fraud on their part.

To claim they can't do anything is BS. No one at the company takes any ownership of the problem.

If they really can't fix the account problem and the warranty of almost $600 dollars is worthless then why not refund my money and I will gladly send them the system.

Again at this juncture not only have they failed to fix my computer in an appropriate time but they have essentially wasted over a year of my warranty.

Simply fixing my computer is just one of three actions that needs to take place.

1. Fix the account
2. Fix the computer
3. Remedy the warranty period that I lost due to their incompetence

I have pursued the matter and invested the requiste time.

Do not assume that I am at fault here, remember that Dell has had many class action lawsuits due to their history of deceit, lies, failure to recall known hardware issues, poor support, etc.

I am looking for advice and not claims that I did something wrong, which I have not, especially since they have no evidence.

Additionally when I cannot get in touch with person X and no one at Dell can either....why should I be put into a situation where one person holds such power? Why is there no one to review the case and take corrective action?

Let me make this clear, when person X could not be reached by Dell personnel, management and escalations dept for over a month how is this my problem?

 

Magnus did you have any luck with the SLI profile for SSCV?

As for the above, bloodroses, If you have invested that much time and stress into it that really sucks on Dells part. I doubt anyone here can offer anything more that will help, other than to say, know when to quit, even if you lose out slightly , for example if you get the system in some form and just sell the it,and make back something . Buy somewhere else . The alternative is going to be so stressful.... If you have the patience left then go for it brother, if not then I would seriously consider abandoning the sinking ship.

If you continue down the Dell path, be SUPER nice to everyone you talk to there ( i have worked on phones and when a customer is being an , i do not want to help them, when they are nice I TRY to help) I am sure you already have been and I'm preaching to the converted but hey, I feel ya pain mate been in a similar situation with Microsoft (banned my console mistakenly and wouldn't reinstate me - in the end it wasn't worth my stress)

Cheers for reading

 

mrmarkwalker, thanks for advice.

Trust me if I could walk away I would.

Here's the dilemma. Could only sell the machine for parts or else I could be sued.

I know there's a fault in the graphics cards, I know there's a problem with the warranty. If I pass that problem on I can be held legally responsible if I do not disclose this as an as is sale.

In that case what am I going to get, probably so little that it doesn't justify taking that action. I can't afford another machine after making this investment.

If I had the money I'd walk away from this situation but I can't afford to take such a huge hit.

I was depserate when I contacted the attornery general, their advice to sue is a complicated matter. That's why I am here basically wishing on a star for advice that might lead to a resolution of this matter.

 

Thanks. I imported the profile and game runs with an average of 35fps. I tried tweaking the profile a little. I was trying to lower Antialiasing to see how much of the performance gain I would get, but the performance would actually decline to about 20 fps.

 

I have just tried A11 BIOS and I am not happy with it. I have X9000, and 9800M GT Sli, and I am with the GPUs at 53 in idle, and fans are working continously (not very loud but you can claerly hear them web browsing).

But the main problem I see is that with Furmark, fans still do not get full speed. Fans do not reach the speed they can reach when you overclock the processor, and so on I have seen 91º Celsius in Furmark, and I stopped it. I guess more degrees would have been achieved.

I am going to overclock to 3,2 to see if fans are continously with max speed as with a10, even in the desktop, If they are, BIOS upgrade have not been a success for me.

 

I never understand why people on here are so willing to actually defend Dell's tactics vis-a-vis escalations. I know that many of us have reaped the benefits of their warranty policy and what not else, but that shouldn't warrant a guilty conscience and an unrequired need to try to justify their tactics in other cases where they might genuinely be making a mess of matters.

I never understand why people on here are so willing to actually defend Dell's tactics vis-a-vis escalations. I know that many of us have reaped the benefits of their warranty policy and what not else, but that shouldn't warrant a guilty conscience and an unrequired need to try to justify their tactics in other cases where they might genuinely be making a mess of matters.

Anyway, you could try to send another e-mail to the corporates/Michael Dell, explaining the recent events of your account and how they have frozen your account and refuse to explain why it has been locked and why you haven't been given a chance to clear the matter.

 

I did not experience the memory parity error, but did have issues with the LCD similar to what you described. I also had other issues where the Logitec LCD program settings refused to stay the way I configured them. I used Speed Fan to monitor temps and I frequently had to kill the LCD software, restart it and restart Speed Fan. All of the standard applets (clock, timer, etc.) were pretty much useless crap in my opinion. I would disable them and they would always end up re-enabled. But, those issues were pale in comparison to the other problems I had.

Let's see if I can remember all of them...

- Creative Audigy software incompatible with Vista x64 (what a joke that software was, and Dell refused to refund what they charged me for something I could never use)
- black screen on boot
- failure to POST after pressing power button
- random BSOD during boot
- random corruption of boot sector (BCD)
- boot failures (operating system not found)
- freezes while loading Windows (before welcome screen)
- power adapter not being recognized
- video artifacts
- only one video module recognized
- overheating while gaming, with games exiting to desktop
- Blu-Ray drive disappearing and reappearing

First machine was rebuilt twice at my residence, and the first machine replaced in first year of ownership. The second machine was rebuilt once, then replaced by M17X R2 in my second year of ownership. Both machines had problems with the nVidia modules. Due to the number of problems I had with the first machine, Dell upgraded me from the 8700M GTX to the 8800M GTX modules and that reduced the number of problems I was having.

The Qualex technician came to my house to replace parts 12 times in less than 2 years. (On two occassions, I had Dell simply send me the parts to install myself.) We are on a first-name basis and I have his cell number stored in my cell phone contacts now, since I had to return his calls to confirm appointments so frequently. When I say "rebuilt" I am talking 4 hard drives, 3 motherboards, 2 memory modules, 4 SLi video modules, 3 batteries, 3 AC adapters, and 1 optical drive. The only things never replaced to try to fix problems were the CPU, primary LCD display, Logitech LCD and the case. Nothing Dell ever did fixed all of the problems on the first machine. To be completely fair, the second machine was more reliable and only had to have the motherboard, video module, optical drive, battery and AC adapter replaced once. The first machine had all of the above.

Based on my experience, I think the XPS M1730 was simply an engineering abortion in a pretty wrapper. Thank God I had the foresight to go with the 4-year Dell Complete Care on-site warranty. (I normally do not buy extra warranties, but I had a gut feeling about plopping down 4 grand on a machine that I might be sorry if I didn't.)

 

I am trying to get an SLI profile to work for Splinter Cell Conviction. I will get back with results.