**OFFICIAL** Dell XPS M1730 Owner's Lounge, *Part 4*

Hi Guys,

I am really sorry if this has been posted before, I have read as much of the forum as I can and I cant find what I am looking for.

I am having major issues with my M1730, basically I was playing on COD and suddenly my screen went dead, so I reset my laptop and all that happened was the screen alternated between red,green,blue,white and black.

So I left it for a month and tried it again and it boots into windows, but after a while it pixelates and dies again, and I noticed that the fans arent working anymore, but If I sit the laptop up against my office fan set to max I can work on the laptop without anything going wrong, So I have come to believe that my graphics card is ok, its just the fans arent working thus the laptop is over heating.

I researched and found out about the new A11 bios, try to install it and it wont install and gives me an error, If I need to link a screenshot here I will, but basically this is doing my head in now as I really want to get this sorted but have no idea where to start, and I would be absolutely ecstatic if someone could give me some advice

Cheers

 

None of the fans are working? Neither CPU nor GPU fans? If so, the odds of all fans dying simultaneously are very little, so I'm guessing it's most likely a faulty motherboard. If you still have warranty, contact Dell.

 

Yeh I think its all the Fans GPU and CPU, I am going to have another look tonight when I get home from work to double check,

But no the warranty Ran out a long time ago, so I guess if I cant buy a years warranty from Dell I'm screwed, and I dont think Ill be covered as I have already opened the laptop to clean the vents and fans etc.... as I thought that might have been the issue originally.

 

I had a look and it is only the GPU fans that arent working

 

Opening up this particular notebook doesn't void the warranty. Unless, of cause, you have broken something while you were doing so.
If it's only the GPU fans, than it is unlikely that it's a motherboard issue.
May be a loose fan connector? You can also look for spare fans on ebay. Sometimes they have some, and they are quite cheap too.

 

Just to let anyone know who looked at my post and has the same problem, I did the Oven 10 minute baking trick and that has sorted out all my graphics card issues, fans both work now and it seems to run cooler than it did before

 

G'day guys.
I am desperate for some expert help and instruction.

Dell M1730 X9000 3.4GHz
2 * 9800M GTX in SLI
4GB RAM DDR3
Windows 7 64 bit

I don't use RAID nor know anything about it.
I have reformatted the entire PC and use it JUST for games.
I am overclocking the processor from the BIOS (not familiar with how to use throttlehold - I tried and kept getting black screen crashes).
I have attempted to overclock my GPU using Afterburner but without any noticeable difference. I'm not sure of the best settings

Currently I only have Portal 2 and Witcher 2 installed.
Portal 2 works fine but the GPU gets to 83 degrees each.

Witcher 2?
I cannot get it to run decently on anything other than LOW settings and low resolution. Even if I run in LOW settings with 1900 * 1280, I am getting fps from 16-30, average around 22.
I use gamebooster but this doesn't help much.

My GPUs have both just been replaced as has my motherboard (Dell Warranty).
My fans are clearly working.
I am using the latest NVIDIA driver for the 9800m GTX.

I have no clue why my performance is so poor.
Surely I should be able to play Witcher 2 at high settings?

It's really frustrating for me. I expected this laptop to perform so much better. What can I do to improve the GPU performance?
Should I overclock to 3.8 on my CPU, and if so, how?
If I overclock the GPU, what settings should I use?
What driver should I use?
What NVIDIA programs should I use?

I am absolutely lost. If one of you guys who know these machines and how to maximise them lives in Sydney I will literally DRIVE to your house and PAY you to make this frikken machine do what I thought it was supposed to.

Please help.

 

Do you guys recommend driver detective?

 

Hey. I had a m1730 with 9800 GT SLI and it was giving be video card issues so I want to get a new video card. Is the 8700 GT SLI compatible with my system or am i only able to buy a 9800 to replace it?

 

There is no single 9800 GT. The only card that comes in single for this system is the 8700 M GT, which is utter crap compared to the others. You will need another 9800 M GT SLI (dual card) or a single 8700 M GT, which I don't recommend.

About the above issues : drivers, drivers! make sure you have the latest nvidia driver, and the chipset also.

 

Well I bought a 8700M GT SLI video card and it was "working" when it was shipped to me and when I installed it into my computer, I boot into a black screen and don't get any picture even if i connect to a monitor. Should I edit something in the bios/uninstall drivers?

When I use my broken 9800M GT SLI I can boot and get picture and it works for a while until it crashes, so I know that the monitor and such all working fine.

 

Could be that the cards you got were not good...

I suggest taking it to a service depot, a check-up should be fairly cheap, and then you'll know more.

 

Thought I'd make an entry here. I too have an XPS 1730, 2 8800 GTX SLI, 2.5 Ghz T9300 stock, 4 GB mem. Had it for more than 2 years now. It's been a rollercoaster ride. In the first days, the mini LCD died, I thought... no biggie, won't rush to change. After more than half an year, the optical device slowly started... fading away. By that, I mean, DVDs were getting harder and harder to read, you'd need like 2-3 tries or more before some DVDs were properly scanned. CDs worked fine though. Another occurance emerging were sudden stutters seemingly caused by the hard drives, materializing later on in... "read/write errors".

About one year into my journey, the optical device situation became untenable, thus I sent my lap to service. Used this, as an opportunity to ask for a mini LCD, to replace the one that died out early. Also asked for a hard drive checkup. Laptop came back in 2 months, they cleaned it on the inside, as a remedy for the hard drive problem, worked well, but hard drives (or should I say one hard drive, as only one seemed to encounter this problem) were again showing read/write errors. It would sometimes happen, that the system would suddenly shut down due to one such error. Maybe coupled with the heat, I'm not sure. Seeing as servicing took so long last time around, plus with graduation looming, I wasn't keen on resending it in that period.

So I managed. Wasn't all that bad at first, but it did gradually get worse. Bought a "NotePal" cooling system, basically, a set of fans placed under a platform, on which you place the lap. Still use it today. At one time, as I started, Skulltag Doom2, unusual flickering appeared and didn't go away, unless I exited. Started it again... seemed OK. Tested some other games, started Starcraft 2... and bam, no 3d card detected. Checked hardware, my gfx cards have stopped working. Conclusion: fried gfx

Continued to manage, as I really wanted the system to run me til this july before I sent it for service, but the hard drive situation was worsening, to the point that, the laptop wouldn't start no matter what I did. One of the hard drive was done for. So had no choice but to send it for service. Returned, they had to change mobo, one hard drive and both gfx.

I'll be honest, I would never have envisioned so much repairing. I think it's mostly due to heat really. The laptop did and it's still doing its business, but after such a ride, now, with this new life line given by the second service, I worry another thing overheats and goes.

Currently playing UT3, UT3 works well and smooth, but there are some rare drops in FPS, sometimes even complete stutters for a few seconds. Could it be the video drivers? I'm not sure. I see the CPU is at 100% constantly. Probably because I didn't max out my graph settings. I'm not sure of the cause. Will have to test on different games, to check for reoccurance.

In conclusion, XPS 1730 looked and maybe still looks very good on paper. But the package it comes with and the price... It has been a new experience regardless. Before this I wasn't sure, but now I know, the most cost effective way to combine performance and mobility is to buy a light laptop and a gaming desktop. The sum of those, will equal the cost of a gaming laptop. The reason why this laptop hasn't been a BAD investment is that... I have no place for desktops personally. This laptop has been very practical, just these constant problems kept it from being a GOOD buy.

 

Hi everybody,

It's good to see this long thread is still going strong.

For the first time I've got a problem with my lappy.
My battery died last week and won't charge anymore. I think I've to find myself a new one, cause I'm afraid my NBD warranty will not cover this 3 year old battery.

 

Nope, warranty covers the battery only for 1 year. After that... eBay

 

Batteries should be rather cheap. Mine is showing as... "in need of replacing/ end of life", despite still being able to charge up and sustain the system for a (rather short of course) while. Good for situations where the power goes all of the sudden, situations which occur quite frequently where I live.

 

WOW... A new part 4 thread about the M1730? 12 pages already? Good Gawd, I am so out of date!! LOL. Anyway, glad to see everyone's 1730s still humming. Mine's still good.

 

Yeah, I thought so.
I found myself already one at eBay for € 34,50.

Without battery it's impossible to update my BIOS from A10 to A11.
Although I doubt A11 is a real improvement.

 

Hi everyone,
i've buy this wonderfoul laptop (used of course).

I've a problem with the webcam, i've made a fresh install of Win 7 Ultimate x64 SP1 and the webcam is not recognised (i see Unknow Device), i've try to install the driver from Dell site but the webcam don't work. The previous owner say that he installed lot of time 7 and the webcam is recognised after the fresh install.

Another question. I've buy a Crucial M4 128gb, the Crystalbench resault are good for SataII but boot and other operation seems a bit slow. Anyone with SSD have this issue too?

Thank you for your help.

 

If camera drivers from Dell website don't work, than it could be damaged camera cable. Happened to me one of the times Dell tech came to replace something.

As for SSD, you need to install the latest intel drivers for it. And it also should not be set up in IDE mode in BIOS. Here are the drivers I use on my Win7 x64.

 

I remember that Psyloid made a website with Win7 drivers for the M1730.
He also used different drivers for the webcam with a workaround to solve this problem.

I'm afraid this site isn't out there anymore.

 

Thank for the suggestion, i've buy the laptop because the previous owner made the extended warriaty and it's covered until 10/11/2013 so the better option is to call dell and let they fix it.

I've see the blog with M1730 drivers but the webcam driver that i found didn't work.

Thank you all for the reply.

 

hi, I posted at the start of the thread about a replacement motherboard.

Now three weeks gone after the replacement was made the motherboard shorted out today.(ac adapter light goes off when it is plugged in to the laptop and laptop does not switch on)

tech coming tomorrow to replace, but with refurbished parts i guess this next motherboard won't last long either.

 

So 2nd motherboard replacement has been made...

however after the tech got it turned on, I switched the laptop off and came back to it just a hour later and the laptop wouldn't switch on!

After removing battery and holding power down, putting battery back in and trying power about 15 times the laptop finally switched on again.

I guess this isn't going to end well either, while i'm happy I still have another two years warranty should I mention this problem to the tech support guy who will likely call later today.

I really need the laptop working right now (and it is) and really can't be dealing with anymore hassle right now. Damn refurbishments!

 

I'm looking for help. I reinstalled the XP system. I changed in the BIOS from ahci to ata. I installed the drivers.
Laptop performs only 6000 3dm06. I have a very low score processor - only 1113 (should be above 2000). Currently I am on the third installation. I noticed that the CPU consumption at rest is 30-40% immediately after system installation and drivers - and do not know why, just look at the pictures. If someone could something ... losing my power
T8300/8800GTX . No overheating

 

After baking my 9800M GT SLI and then getting new fans my computer is back up and running!!!!!!! I am so excited!!!! I was out for so long try to get this fixed.

 

Anyone recommend a driver for the 8800m gtx's? Are there any good modded ones or is everyone just using the most recent 275.xx drivers?

 

I was recommended the 275.33 ones, from laptopvideo2go. Well, they do the job nicely.

 

Since you still have so much time left on the warranty, you should push for Dell to replace the system with an Alienware M17x R2 (refurb) or M18x. Even the M17x R3 would be a better option than what you're putting up with.

 

Thanks, I'll give them a shot.



I've got another 12 months left on my NBD warranty and had the graphics cards replaced twice along with the PSU. Is there a minimum amount of replacing parts before people get offered replacement systems?

 

If your GPUs crap out again, that should be more than adequate reason for them to offer you an equivalent or better replacement system. You should extend your NBD warranty so there is at least 2 years left. That also provides an incentive for them to do more than replace one defective part with another known defective part just like the first.

 

I have 290 days of my 4 year NBD warranty left.
Dell offered me to extend my NBD warranty for a next 2 years for € 179,99.
I think it's worth the money.

I really like this lappy a lot. It didn't let me down yet. Except for a broken battery 2 weeks ago.

 

When I first purchased it there was 12months nbd, i was offered an extra 3yrs for a special price of £180 or thereabouts.

I might wait until they get in touch if there is an offer of extending the warranty rather than just contacting them, as no doubt it would be very expensive!

 

It will be expensive, but not as expensive as buying your own defective replacement parts, and not nearly as frustrating as watching your previously replaced defective replacement parts go T.U. more than once under warranty. I've never owned a computer with as many serious problems as the two XPS M1730 systems I had.

So, spending $200-$300 now if it ultimately lands you in a system that is significantly better or pays for expensive replacement parts over and over again is a smart thing thing to do. (One set of GPUs for the failure-prone M1730 SLi setup is more costly than extending the warranty.) I'm speaking from my personal experience, but your mileage may vary.

 

Don't think so. It's more like the time frame between issues. If you get repeated failures within a short time frame, then you should go out for a replacement.

I for one, have warranty until March 2013, so I feel safe

 

I just got my m1730 back up and running after some video card problems. I baked the card and now it is working but I am having some heat issues. When the computer is on, and running just the home screen (no applications open except for a temp monitor) the video cards steadily climb higher and higher until they reach 75 c. The fans then kick in (both of them) and brings it donw to 68--69, and it just climbs back to 75 very quickly.

After a 3-4 times of this cycle, the fans stay on until the card reaches roughly 52 c, but it just climbs back up to 75. Then it repeats this new cycle.

When I load up SCII and play the game itself never pushes the laptop above 75, it usually hovers around 73 with the fans going, which is fine (and probably normal). However it seems strange that the card runs so warm when nothing that graphically demanding is running on the computer.

Anyone have this issue?
Running Nvidia 275.33 drivers on my 9800M GT SLI

 

what bios are u using?

if u have a x9000 ; use a10
if not use a11

(fans will run at 100% sooner rather than later)

btw; i have read thru bits and pieces of the m1730 owners thread... can not wait until i get my m1730 back!!

 

The A11 BIOS should keep the overall temps lowered, but full fans are the best idea.

Even with full blast, my 9800M GTXs get upto 82C, so it might a good idea to clean the fans...

 

Upgraded to the A11 BIOS and everything is staying much much cooler! Thank you so much!

 

I really don't understand why my m1730 can be so terrible at some games! The m1730 with 9800M GT's should be able to run NFS:Hot Pursuit right? I tried it again yesterday, got my X9000 running at 3.8GHz, both 9800's overclocked to 640/1600/950, latest nvidia drivers, windows 7 64bit and it runs fine at the menu/car selection screens, but as soon as you start playing the FPS is all over the place, it will be on 60FPS then drop down to 16FPS for no reason, nothing has really happened in game and then it just goes all over the place, complete range of FPS figures. I really don't understand it lol! Anyone got any ideas/experience similar problems?

 

Yep, experiencing the same problems with NFS:HP. Updating to the driver which came out with past couple of months definitely helps. However, the problems doesn't disappear completely. Bad optimisation is the reason.

 

thanks, atleast its good to know its not my laptop in particular playing up.

 

Is it for just a split second or so? I have that matter and I think it is buffering the world. However mine isn´t so bad, it just drops to around 30 fps.

 

it starts of fine around 60fps, but then you go round a corner or sometimes do nothing and it will just drop to around 16fps and then its all over the place, but its completely unplayable

 

Magnus, still waiting on those bits for Duke Nukem

Haven't played much lately, been gone for a while, and I feel like gaming freakishly

 

Yeah you are right, I hade forgotten about those bits Been on vacation and all I will get them for you.

 

Pretty much decided I'm going to finally move on to an alienware, my xps just isn't playing the games I want it to, the battery is completely dead on it and the screen still has fuzzy lines on it due to a problem with the gpu connector! Looking at the m17x r3 with a single 1.5GB GTX 560m, 6gb ddr3 and a 2GHz i7 quad, anyone got any idea if that will be much of an improvement over the 9800m gt sli, from my reasearch I've done so far it seems it should be, but was just wondering what other people thought as I don't wana go rushing into something if its not that much better?

 

The CPU should make the most difference, but I don't know much about the newgen GPUs.

According to the specs, it should best the 9800M GT SLI...

 

thanks, yeah thats generally the same conclusion I came too, just waititng for funds to clear in my account now

 

Hey, I found this thread while doing some research on upgrading my m1730. Would any of you help me out on this? I'd simply like to know what is the absolute best processor and graphics card upgrade for this machine?

I'm currently running the T8300 @ 2.4Ghz and the 8700M GT card. Thanks!