Newb with a Gen1 XPS(9100)?

Hey, all. As the title says, I'm new here, and am sporting the original first-generation XPS notebook, on the honkin' huge Inspiron 9100 chassis. I've had this one for six months, and so far my feelings have been mixed. The power this system has in everyday apps far surpasses any other notebook I've used, and me being the oddball that I am, I actually like the size and weight of this one; it feels sturdy and durable, and probably is just that. Also, I'm not a fan of touchpad pointing devices at all, having mainly used Thinkpads... the fact this XPS has a trackpoint-style 'eraser mouse' is a major saving grace, too.

Now, what I'm not so impressed about is the general 'dual personality' this laptop has during gaming sessions. As far as the specs go, it is the Gen1 XPS with the 3.4Ghz P4, MR9800 video card(the better of the two offered), 1GB RAM, running a brand new 100GB 7200RPM HDD.

Firstly, the XPS runs Source games(HL2 and the like) almost flawlessly, all settings maxed, at native resolution. The only trouble I had was when I experimented with the Omega ATI drivers; Source games wouldn't even run, but they did with the old drivers. No huge bother. However, most anything else I play(Stalker, Sims 2, Oblivion, even Morrowind) runs well for a bit, then gets really laggy, then goes back to normal for a little... you get the idea. It gets really annoying, and lowering graphics settings/etc doesn't seem to do the trick. I understand that the MR9800 is far from the best thing on the market right now, but I'd suspect it still has a little horsepower behind it.

I may be going to college soon and while I'd like to, my chances for upgrading to another, newer XPS are probably going to be nil. However, I could swing throwing a little bit of bank into this one and see where how far I can push and tweak the Gen1 for now.What I was thinking was the following:

Firstly, a RAM upgrade. Pretty expensive for this particular machine, but I'm assuming 2GB would help extend its useful life a bit longer. Secondly, I was thinking about getting an external DVD/RW drive and placing a spare 120GB HDD I have in the second drive bay; using that for noncritical file storage and page file(I have heard that placing the page file on a different physical drive than the OS helps performance a bit; makes sense to me at least). Another option I had been thinking about doing was trying to find a P4 EE processor; does anyone know if the 3.73Ghz EE will work on these laptops?

Also, I have noticed that this sucker runs pretty hot. I know the P4 CPUs run pretty toasty, but I'm constantly running 160F, with spikes up to 178F. I've blown out the fans a few times and cleared the heat sinks, but haven't actually opened up the system to blow dust out. I'm assuming this would help some, but I'mnot sure to what extent. However, if anyone who might be an original XPS guru on here could chime in, I'd be grateful. I don't want to throw a lot at a system that's getting too long in the tooth, but at the same time if I can keep this old bad boy kicking around for a bit longer it'd be very helpful. Thanks in advance!

 

Yes old ram are expensive...I am running a pentium M with MR9700 with 2 GB ram...I just stuck with the original drivers. I tried omega's offerings but it didnt make much of a difference so i revert back to its stock ones.

As for cooling, have a look at the cooling guide. Personally I dont recommend you spending to much on it...you are better off saving up and getting a cheaper notebook such as a refurb Vostro 1500 with 8600GT.

 

I just upgraded my XPS last year. Spent almost $1000 total for a CPU (P4 EE 3.4), GPU (9800 Mobility), RAM (2 x 1Gb), and 8x DVD burner. I don't think the 3.73 EE works on this mobo (they're all socket LGA775 I believe), but the 3.4 EE gave a very nice performance boost. I had no idea that 2Mb of L3 cache would make so much of a difference. It's very easy to upgrade the internal parts on the XPS, Dell has all the manuals available on it's website for doing so. The upgrades in RAM and the CPU will probably run you $500 total. Don't bother trying to find a new 3.4 EE, hit up eBay for one, They still cost well over $500 for a new one.

 

Hm.... interesting. I already have most of that on my current rig; the MR9800, the DVD burner(although I have swapped that out for a second HDD module; I noticed a pretty decent increase by that alone)... everything but the RAM and 3.4EE. I have wondered if it would be more prudent to keep this one as-is and save up for something a little more edgy, like an XPS M1710(on a budget) or an M1730(if I have a bit more to spend). I am going to be in school for three years; I'd love to have a pretty good notebook so it won't be totally out of date by the time I get out and into the 'real world,' so to speak... heh.

Actually, what have you tried playing on the Gen 1? How's it doing on more modern games? I don't expect it to be a major contender with, say, Crysis, but I am able to play Stalker on high detail settings(grass density turned to practically nil, with no AA(don't really need it at native resolution, I think), and I forget what AF setting) with little to no noticable lag.

 

I would forget about Crysis on any laptop. Even the new beast of a machine I'm getting this week can barely handle it. I havn't been much of a PC gamer for a while, but I did get into Oblivion lately. I just played it with Fraps on and the FPS would rarely dip below 20 (usually when there's a LOT going on on-screen) with the rez at 1280x768.

A note about the performance boost from the std P4 to the EE. All my upgrading happened at about the same time. The 9800 arrived first, and there was a nice boost from it.... for a day until it died. While the 9800 was being returned, the EE P4 arrived. When I put the old 9700 and the new EE in the system, the XPS performed just as well as it did with the 9800 and old P4!
Also, it runs a LOT cooler. The only time the high fans kick in is if I happen to block the fan intakes (like on the bed).

Cost-wise, it may be a tough call. The $1000 cost to upgrade to the EE when the XPS was released 4 years ago really wasn't worth it, but spending $300-400 (on eBay) for one now ain't so bad. I chose to upgrade last year because I would have to give up too much if I got a newer laptop (once you go wuxga, you don't go back). Either that, or spend a LOT on something that would actually be a step up from the XPS.

If you DO decide to go new, shop around
I was looking at the 1730 myself, but something about it didn't draw me in.
The Alienware m15x really caught my eye, until I had it configured and saw the price.... $5000 after tax and shipping BLEH!
Then I came across the review for the NP9262 here at NBF, WOW! Most people think it's too big and heavy, but it's not much bigger than the XPS you and I are used to lugging around. I was pretty leary of a brand very few people have ever heard of, but eveyone here seems pretty happy with their systems. Then I saw the price!!! The config that's in my sig cost me only $3300 (you can cut it down to $2800 if you don't want to go blu, and I ordered mine with no OS). Just like the XPS we have, I can upgrade this new one later on to SLi and/or a faster Quad. Check out www.XoticPC.com if you get a chance. You might also like the NP5793. They may not look pretty, but they sure pack some power. The NP9262 scores 9k to 14k in 3dMark06 (depending on the config), while my XPS scored just under 900. And with the money I'm saving on it, I'll have it custom painted later on (by the same company).

I can't say the XPS would last you 3 years, even with the EE in it. It's an amazingly nice system, but the new games are just too much for it to handle. If you only needed the XPS for another year, I'd say keep it and get the EE. But more and more apps and games are utilizing multi-core processors. That's why I skipped the core duo and went straight to quad

 

Here are some fun XPS projects:

Watercooling - http://www.overclockers.com/tips1234/
Unlocking the 9800 pipes - http://www.notebookforums.com/thread121549.html

 

Interesting... I may consider getting the EE as well as the RAM upgrade and see what it does. That way I can devote a little more time to saving up for something nicer, and still get acceptable performance from the Gen 1. It's either that or looking into the 1710. The 1730's a nice piece of machinery, but I'm also not exactly strapped for cash, and while I'd love it I don't need the latest and greatest. As long as I can play Fallout 3 on whatever I go with I'll be fine.

The watercooling and pipe unlocking links are pretty cool, but... heh. I move my machine around way too much to make watercooling feasible, and I really don't want to risk frying my MR9800.

 

I just tested out the Crysis demo. 1280x768 rez with all the settings on Low, I get just under 20FPS. It's surprisingly playable, lol.
I'm with you on Fallout 3, can't wait for that one. If it uses the same engine as Oblivion, you should have fun with it

I came across those mods back when I was looking at upgrading myself. Unlocking the 9800 seems to give a nice boost, but it'll cost $400 for a new one if you screw it up. The watercooling is just plain silly...
Another thing I'm still considering doing is installing a couple 3cm fans between the rear vents and the internal heatsinks to help force are out through the back. The trick is powering them...

I'm sure you've taken out the fans and cleaned them, but i'd also suggest opening up the system and cleaning the heatsinks. When I swapped out the CPUs, I found a LOT of dust on the CPU's heatsink.

 

Hm... I'll have to blow this thing out as well... this machine has spent some time in the great Mideast sandbox via the previous owner. Time to get some canned air and give it a thorough cleaning, especially since I'm starting to run temps around 155-165. At the very least it won't hurt.

I have cleaned the heat sinks once or twice, although I do have cats and have seen that I do get some cat hair residue in the sinks... it's really annoying, but what do ya do, right?

 

How much are the upgrades going to cost you? If you look at the Dell Outlet right now with the 15% off coupon you can get a good price on a M1710.

 

Eh... can't really afford the M1710 right now, although I'd like to. If anything any new notebook I purchase will have to wait until the end of the year at the earliest. Getting a new lappy is a bit on the back burner, unfortunately.

 

@ richierich

2 x 1Gb RAM and the P4 EE should only run him $500. A new laptop that would do justice to the XPS would run at least $1.5k to $2k.