L502X modded bioses download (GPU voltages and more!)

@Fareday

sadly there isnt too much you can do


if underclocking makes it more stable, then the GPU is the issue, it may be deffective or starting to dying.

if at 500 mhz it is almost stable, try with 490 mhz or lower if needed, however with that such low clock the performance will be very close to the intel graphics performance

about the bios voltages, the one who gave me better results was the 0.85v 0.85v

 

Hi capitankasar,

Thanks for sharing the awesome bios mods, I'm currently using your latest A12 gt 540m bios mod. I was wondering if it's possible to disable my integrated intel HD 3000 graphics card with that bios? How can I do that? If not, then I'd appreciate it if you can help me with this related problem: https://forums.geforce.com/default/topic/748595/pc-games/wolfenstein-the-new-order-/

In the above link you'd find my post on the Nvidia GeForce forums, thanks in advance.

Summary of post: In short a recent game I am trying to run keeps identifying my IGP as the main card (although I've already set my GPU as the main card through Nvidia Control panel etc), and gives me an OpenGL error since my integrated graphics card supports OpenGL 3.1 and below, the game requires OpenGL 3.2. My GPU does support the game and supports OpenGL 4.0, interestingly by disabling the integrated graphics card through device manager (which turns off my laptop's display), having my TV connected to my laptop via HDMI I was able to run the game on my TV flawlessly! Which proves my issue, however I'd like to run the game on my laptop's display if that's possible.

EDIT: I have found out that a similar problem I used to have with another game (Watch Dogs) about the game requiring my video card to support DirectX 11 for the game to run (so it never ran), now works smoothly when I disable my integrated graphics card and use my TV as my main display! EVEN THOUGH my GT 540M is below minimum requirements!

 

as far I know you cant disable the intel graphics, it will be allways there, the hdmi works cause it is wired directly to the nvidia gpu, but on minidisplay port and laptop display, the intel gpu will be allways the intermediary.

my advice is update both intel and nvidia gpu drivers , and set manually the executable file to the nvidia gpu.

you also may need to tweak the game profile with nvidia inspector, it is required sometimes for some games.

 

Thanks for the quick reply. Yes so I heard, and that is pretty frustrating. Is that why both games keep identifying it as the primary card though?

All my drivers are fully updated, and I have set the executables to run using the gpu and the gpu is even set as primary in the global settings.

What do you mean tweak the profile? For overclocking?
PS: I already use Nvidia Inspector to underclock my gpu to around 600 MHz, because otherwise my games would crash.

 

the adapter is detected.

not sure why some apps detect it as intel hd 3000 and others as nvidia gt card.

for example, dolphin emulator detect it as nvidia gpu



I supose it is related to the gpu selection system with the optimus drivers and the app to be run itself.

some older dolphin versions detected the hd 3000 gpu while the new ones detect nvidia, so appart from this I dont know too much about the subject.


about nvidia inspector,nope, I never used it for over or under clocking, I use it to edit game profiles, because some profiles hardlock some executable files or link them, meaning if you select intel graphics for one of them, the other ones will also be run with that gpu (apps with multiple executable files, league of legends is an example, having pvp client executable files, and the game executable itself)

you can try also set nvidia configuration to use the nvidia gpu for all apps by default, that may fix the issue.

 

Yeah, it seems hopeless at the moment to figure that out.

How do you use it to edit game profiles? And where do you find a game's profile?

I have set Nvidia configuration to use the Nvidia GPU for all apps in the Nvidia Control Panel, for Global Settings it is set as preferred. And even for application specific settings, I've set all the executables I found for each game to use the Nvidia GPU. Is there anywhere else I can configure apps to use the Nvidia GPU?

 

just download nvidia inspector, you can get it from the first post or google it.

open and if it ask for a update, update it, when it is updated, click on the tools icon, wait till it loads, then select your game name profile, and you can edit it, it looks like this



as you can see, it offer a little more options than the control pannel offers

 

Oh I see, silly me didn't notice the tools icon lol

Thanks, this will come in very handy.

 

Just a quick follow up to my previous post here.

http://i.imgur.com/4zURx7Y.png

This is the issue I was having, where the clocks would spike and crash the pc.

After a bit of research, turns out I was infected with a bitcoin miner malware - something that I thought the Kaspersky IS would protect me from.

I followed the instructions on these two threads:

https://forums.malwarebytes.org/index.php?showtopic=124731

Problem with bitcoin mining virus - Virus, Trojan, Spyware, and Malware Removal Logs

My 525m is now working flawlessly, with the latest 0.85v/0.85v bios and averaging at max 55°C during gameplay. No more crashes and no more overheating!

Thanks again for the amazing bios mod Kasar.

 

so it was a virus after all lol

well, glad you fixed it, thanks for sharing the info, and yhank you

edit:

mmm, are you sure 800 mhz was stock for memory?

I though 900 mhz was stock for both 525m and 540m memory

 

Yeah the stock is 900mhz, I forgot I had underclocked the memory as well.

Btw I have a few quick questions if you don't mind:

What's the max RPM on the fans supposed to be? I tested on Aida64 and mine is reaching 4800rpm when maxed through the Rw, but on the OP you mention 5284rpm. I cleaned the entire notebook yesterday and the entire thing is 100% dust-free.

Also, is overclocking the RAM to 1600 a good idea? I'm going to test overclocking the g525m now that the issue is gone, and I was wondering if there would be a noticeable improvement in performance by OCing the RAM as well, and if it would be stable enough to do so.
My temps are very stable, 40ºC idle and around the 60sº during stress.

 

well, I got 5284 rpm on mine wth the RWE trick.
feel free to test what rpm you get with that ^^

about the memory, if it handle it without being unstable, why not?

however, chances of getting 1333 memory working at 1600 mhz without errors is very little, with my bclk OC I have the memory working at 1400 without any issues.

well, before overclocking the GPU, first test it run stable with the stock clocks, else you can only OC from your already stable point and raise it slowly from there (from your previous underclocked stable point)

 

Hello sir, I just want to say thank you again for creating this BIOS mod, I've been using it for over a year now! It's the 1V 525M BIOS mod version.

When I set my RAM to 1600 MHz in the BIOS the speed still remains at 1333 MHz. My CPU is the 2630QM by the way.

Thanks!

 

@smsmasters

thank you a lot

is for those kind of comments when I feel happy while doing this kind of stuff ^^


yeah, that happened to me with my 1333 memory, I supose it detect it isnt compatible at all and the bios detect it.

it works for people with higher ram speeds anyway, you can decrease the speed to lower speeds anyway, that works, I tested it ^^

oh, as for the mods you can check the latest v6 version.

what is also your max stable GPU overclock you can reach with 1V?

 

Hi,
do you think the 540m in our XPS 15 is capable handling a custom resolution of 3840x2160 @30Hz?
Bandwidth should be sufficient at both, displayport(1.1) and hdmi(1.4).

 

mmm, not sure, that is too much resolution, and I dont have big screens to test, the bigget screen I have is a 1080p at the kitchen and I ocasionally connect it with hdmi.

so unless someone give us more info, testing will be the only way to confirm it ^^

 

Maybe I should take the laptop to a local electronics store and test it.
I would not be happy ordering a monitor from Amazon or similar and shipping it back.

 

yeah, that is true, however, if it is for media playing, it may work, but if you are planning to gamming on that screen, with a decent frame rate .... it will not be a good idea ^^

 

Hehe, no, I dont intend gaming with that resolution using the 540m.

Using 16bit colours bandwidth of hdmi1.4(8.16 Gbit/s) and dp1.1(8.64 Gbit/s) should be sufficient for 60Hz.

dp1.1: 8.64 Gbit/s / 2160 / 3840 / 16bit = 65.1 Hz
hdmi1.4: 8.16 Gbit/s / 2160 / 3840 / 16bit = 61,5 Hz

Edit: I just read in german Amazon comments about Dell UP3214Q that it works at 30 Hz with Intel HD 3000 which belongs to Sandy Bridge

Unfortunately I also read that working with 30 Hz is not nice. Scrolling and movement of mouse seems to be very laggy:-(

 

I reached 800 MHz on the GPU core The RAM was stable at around 950 MHz max.

As mentioned previously in this topic, my laptop also freezes in Windows 8.1 when I try to install the quickset drivers in UEFI mode.

 

800 mhz core and 950 mhz memory, , that is crazy

I just have now 650 and 900 , your card performance is way higher than mine

I may try again switching to 1V, however 0.85/0.85 was the most stable one for me for the moment.

well, uefi mode seems have some issues since it doesnt have full support from dell, the even removed that feature, I just re enabled it and it works for some stuff.

 

I had to use nvidia inspector though to get 800 MHz but the voltage drops to 0.98V. MSI afterburner's slider only goes up to 780 MHz but the voltage stays at 1V.

Do you know if there are quickset drivers that work in Windows 8.1 UEFI mode?

 

well, if I could reach 780 mhz with mine it would be fine, I also like MSI afterburner, profiles, easy to use, good looking interface.., all of it are advantages

I dont know about any 8.1 drivers, I keep using windows 7 and am happy with it ^^

 

Disabling UEFI seems to be the only option to stop the freezing for me.

 

But why do you need QuickSet drivers at all?

 

ok, my new proccesor finally arrived



I will take the unit appart in following hours, so if someone need me to take pictures of something from inside or test something, the moment to ask is now

I think I will also investigate the misterious aditional usb port I was looking at the schematics, I will post about it after the tests.

about the proccesor upgrade, I switched from my old crappy i3 2310m to a i5 2430m, not a big upgreade but well, not bad for just 25 eur, I will also have turboboost feature now for testing stuff.

 

ok, upgreaded the cpu fine


comparision




I also noticed the EC chip is also easly accesible from outside like be BIOS chip, this can be usefull if needed to replace or repair the info inside it



also made some progress adding aditional usb ports to the unit.

more info here

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...xps-15-r2-l502x-internal-usb-how-proof-6.html

 

hi !! i am new to this forum , i also have a dell xps 15 l502x laptop , i am currently struggling with this same problem while gaming !! but i would like to inform you that , that link given in the thread for the bios mod !! are not working at the moment !! when i click it , it just directs me to a blank page !!
pls help !!

 

@finatic12

it works for me, wich one are you trying to download?


if you have a gt540m , try this one

http://l502x.lag.re/L502X_A12_540m_83_85_Unlocked_Menus_v6.rar

 

It's definitely just a SIM tray holder for factory 3G modem equipped units. No wonder it only partially works as the data lines are supposed to be assigned to secondary mini PCI-E slot.

Sent from Huawei 3C using Tapatalk

 

huh?

are you talking about the little stone module port I am trying to get a working usb port?

 

Exactly I accidentally backed from the link you posted, so tapatalk ended up posting it in this thread.

Sent from Huawei 3C using Tapatalk

 

@timewalker75a

well, I dont think it is a sim holder.

my laptop already have a sim reader under the battery, it allow the 3g minipcie to read sims and connect via 3g

the module I am trying to solder looks more like a wifi or bluetooth expansion module


also, long time ago I googled and I found this while looking for dell BT375 (the connector name from the schematics I found the pinouts.)

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...ed-bioses-download-gpu-voltages-more-242.html

 

Hello everybody.

I am wanting to perform the unlock my bios.

I just want to unlock the bios to be able to install windows in UEFI mode.

Questions: Is it worth perform the unlock just to acquire the UEFI mode?

If yes, can you give me a link or tutorial to make just unlocking the Bios A12 for XPS 15 L502X?

Thanks for the replies.

 

What do you expect from UEFI mode? Better performance? Wrong place Maybe (and maybe not) you'll get 1 second faster boot. And some problems too. Read first post (and link to my post from that) for more info about problems.

Unlocked BIOS doesn't have negative aspects. Enabling UEFI is pretty easy. Enter BIOS>Boot Options>Enable UEFI - enabled > save.

 

For enable UEFI, the first unlock BIOS, correct?

 

i tried this link and it worked for me ,thank you for that , but the problem is that , everything was working fine for almost 15min after that it got stuck , i dont know whats the issue here is the detailed config of my laptop

OS Name Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium
Version 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Build 7601
Other OS Description Not Available
OS Manufacturer Microsoft Corporation
System Name FIN-PC
System Manufacturer Dell Inc.
System Model Dell System XPS L502X
System Type x64-based PC
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2670QM CPU @ 2.20GHz, 2201 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 8 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date Dell Inc. A12, 9/7/2012
SMBIOS Version 2.6
Windows Directory C:\Windows
System Directory C:\Windows\system32
Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume1
Locale United States
Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "6.1.7601.17514"
User Name ellish-PC\ellish
Time Zone Pacific Daylight Time
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 8.00 GB
Total Physical Memory 7.90 GB
Available Physical Memory 6.03 GB
Total Virtual Memory 15.8 GB
Available Virtual Memory 13.8 GB
Page File Space 7.90 GB
Page File C:\pagefile.sys

 

Yes, it's necessary.

 

@Moretto

yep, like agalin said, you need to DL a modded bios, download the propper one, depending your GPU and enable UEFI option on BIOS, advanced settings, boot options like agalin said.

@finatic12

yeah, many users have crashes after some minutes gamming.

like it has been discused on this topic many many times, try following:

- download the bios I pointed to you and flash it.
- if that doesnt fix the problem fully, underclock the GPU until it stop crashing.
- you can also try some hardware mods like adding heatsinks to the voltage regulators or remove the dustfilter.

 

Hi,

again, great thread. I've got a pretty big problem, and I'm hoping you guys can give me a solution...

While messing about with efibootmgr (basically a tool like BCFG in efi shell), tweaking my efi boot options etc (which are stored in NVRAM), I made my XPS 15 hang on every boot, no matter what I do (F2/F12 don't help).

I loaded your recovery bios.cap, but that actually didn't help, since that recovery bios actually uses the same screwed up NVRAM and still hangs.

What I'm looking for is a way to clear the NVRAM, when I'm in the situation when the machine can't boot at all.

 

@justinkb

mmm, didnt the recovery capsule reseted your nvram?

in that case, you may need to try external programmer.

chip location and instructions are avalible.

 

Hmm. I'll explain what happened.

Remove plug -> Hold End -> Connect power plug -> Release End -> Starts loading bios.cap from flash and boots from it, yet it hangs at the same spot as the other.

So I suppose it indeed didn't reset the NVRAM. I'm using your iso image, but from a fat32 usb drive instead of a cdrom, but given that it loads the bios.cap from the fat32 formatted usb drive, that is irrelevant, right?

Edit: I see the bios chip is 25Q32BVSIG, I actually have an EEPROM programmer which is compatible with 25Q64VAIG lying around, would that be compatible with this one too, you think?

How hard is it actually to remove the chip from the system board? Can't quite tell from the instructions (no pic of the system board pre-mod?). Here is a picture of my EEPROM programmer: http://postimg.org/image/9yssg2thn/ Note the 25xxx socket

Edit2: Ah, I see the problem is some images are broken links now...

In particular http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/804/bioschip.jpg

The chip location image... Can you reupload these anywhere if you still have them?
...

Another question (sorry, but I'm kind of anxious about this... since my sweet laptop is now a brick ;-)), once I have the EEPROM programmer and the chip from my laptop in place, do I first clear the entire chip, then flash the "wph" onto it, to proceed with a good bios and clear nvram?

 

mmm, I cant find that image in my hdd right now

meanwhile the stupid imageshack site comes back, you can use this one instead.



ignore the wires I added, they are part of another project.

the bios chip is marked with a red circle

about the dumps, you can use those ones (download the BIOS dump, that is the one you need)

Badcaps Forums - View Single Post - dell inspiron L502X NO POWER

I would send mines, but mines are password locked.

I also suggest you hex edit the bios dump after download it, so you unlock the descriptor, this will allow easier reflashing and mods after the chip is soldered back.

all you need is change

00 00 0B 0A 00 00 0D 0C 18 01 08

to

00 00 FF FF 00 00 FF FF 18 01 08

then your dump will be descriptor unlocked


and nope, you cant flash the wph directly in the chip, thats why you need those dumps.

after you flash the dump back to the chip and you manage it to boot.

you can update normally using dell or my modded bioses in order to upgrade bios dump to the latest version.

the tricky part would be desolder the chip, get the programmer working, and solder it back without damage.

to remove the chip, I suggest to use a sewing needle with the help of the soldering iron, so you can lift chip legs one per one, be carefull, those pins are very easy to break, and if you break it you will need to order a new one from ebay.


about your programmer, I think It will work.

if you have issues with that programmer, you can use mine, it is pretty easy to build, all you need is a PC with LPT port

 

This is all very interesting stuff, thanks for the help.

Really incredible, you guys in this thread are like angels, just helping random people on the internet.

Here is a pic showing my EEPROM programmer right next to the system board I just removed from my XPS15, with the socket right next to the chip, so you can see the relative scale. (Also visible is my thumb... lol) It turns out the socket is about twice as big as the chip. Will I need to solder the pins onto the EEPROM programmer, you think? Guess so.

http://postimg.org/image/60k777w2f/

I'll refresh my (de)soldering skills on some rubbish PCBs and then try to remove the chip from the system board... Fingers crossed...

Edit:

have you got any clue which range (of the 4MB) of the chip actually contains the nvram data?

 

well, as for me, I'm just glad my info help others, that makes me happy

yeah, it would be soldering in there , however, not sure about the chip orientation, you dont have the programmer pinout?

because the chip have two posssible orientations/positions.

aboutthe nvram positiion, I have some guesses, but it is easier to just flashe the other dump

remember to unlock the descriptor, you can even reflash the whole chip from windows if needed with the descriptor unlocked, it is also way faster than the LPT programmer, it can be made in just secconds meanwhile the LPT programmer takes minutes to flash the whole 4 mb chip. (plus the soldering and desoldering times ^^)

 

There's actually a tiny half circle hole in the socket at the 'top' (near the 25xxx label), so I'm pretty sure if I match the orientation of the chip (tiny circle on the bottom left op the bios chip, "left" being when oriented with the WINBOND text readable as normal), that will work... Would be really evil if it were the other way, haha...

PS. I have several DIP packages I can safely destroy while trying the orientation. Assuming the text labeling is always consistent with the pinouts for these 25QXX packages, I can find out before I destroy the bios chip... I hope

I actually flashed the bios of the PC I'm typing this on with that EEPROM programmer so it definitely works. Long time ago, so I don't remember the details ;-)

Edit: is there space enough in the case near the system board to solder the chip back onto the board with wires, so it's easier to desolder later? I don't have any one of those handy easy insert sockets...

Now, just practiced some desoldering... I'm a bit rusty, any tips? The sewing needle trick, you mean liquifying the solder on individual pad-pin links and using the needle to lift them from the pad within seconds while the affixed tin is still liquid?

 

if you are planning several solderings and desolderings, sockets are really recomended, else you will probably damage the chip after couple flashes by soldering and desolderings, it happened to me, it even do happen with sockets that some legs broke sometimes, but after way many flashes.

mmm, well, I needed to modify the case by cutting a small piece of plastic so the new socket fit in there.

you nay need to do the same if you plan to add more stuff than the laptop had originally.

you can use this as adapter for your programmer

SOIC8 SOP8 to DIP8 EZ Programmer Adapter Socket Converter Module 150mil U | eBay

and this one for the motherboard side (I used this socket for both programmer and motherboard sides)

SMD Sockets | SOIC ZIFF Sockets, PLCC SMD Sockets



(SOIC 8 SMD ZIFF Socket)

 

I had same situation some time ago Try loading BIOS from CD Drive. It really matters - bios recovery doesn't reset NVRAM settings but allows boot from CD if I remember correctly.

 

Well I changed the cd bay to hd caddy and literally can't find the original cd bay in my house. Lol...

But I doubt it would work anyway since it hangs at the same point all the time. Can't even get into bios setup (f2) or boot selection menu (f12)...

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

 

You can't because your NVRAM settings are corrupted. But if I remember correctly, on BIOS.CAP use, CDROM will boot. Not sure, but better try this than solder I think.