8GB 800 MHz RAM and X9100 CPU in HDX 16

I have upgraded my HDX 16 to 8 GB PC2 6400S 800 Mhz RAM and X9100 CPU. I also have Seagate 320 GB 7200 RPM ASG Hard drive.

I was going to try the QX9300 but I was told that QX9300 will not work in a HDX 16.

It looks like the GPU is the bottleneck in this laptop. I’m running DOX’s 185.20 and when I try to overclock the GPU for anythingh over 574 MHz Core Clock or 535 Mhz Memory Clock, the screen starts freezing.
Let me also say that I’m running BIOS F13-A if that has anything to do with it.

I have read some users overclocking up to 660 Mhz Core Clock in HDX 16. How do you do that?

 

If you upgraded the CPU later why didn't you just get the HDX 18t in the first place with that CPU?

 

I don’t see any advantage of the HDX 18 over HDX 16 besides the fact that it can accommodate quad core CPU’s. Double HDD without RAID is not that great either. The HDX 18 is gigantic. The HDX 16 is the max size laptop I would use. Anything bigger is just too big. It already took me some time to get used to 16” after 15.4”.

 

How much did you pay for that CPU I am actually very interested in upgrading my DV7 to that CPU...how's the performance on your HDX16t apart from the GPU???

 

Actually I bought the X9100 even before I got the HDX 16.. The X9100 is great for CPU intense tasks but gets a little hot compared to let’s say T9800 2.93 GHz. Depending on what you do with your laptop, it may be worth to buy it.

Having said that, if you can find a way to overclock the CPU and use X9100 what it’s really built for with the unlocked multipliers, then it’s worth every penny. But I have yet to see anyone overclock an X9100 on a HDX 16 or any other HP laptop. I still get jealous of those XPS M1730 owners as Dell provides CPU overclock feature through standard Bios (only in XPS M1730 though).

It has been a while since I bought the X9100, but I guess I paid somewhere around $500 for it. But then I ordered my HDX 16 with the cheapest CPU to compensate for it.

 

Just out of curiosity, did you buy you 8GB of RAM beforehand also? I'm looking for 8GB and these are the best price I found

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226047

Of course, these are only 667 MHz, so if you got yours for a reasonable price, I'd look into those instead.

Thanks in advance.

 

You know that the standard RAM on the HDX 16t is DDR2 800 MHz PC2 6400. So by buying 8GB DDR2 667 Mhz PC2 5300, you will be increasing the capacity of the RAM but slowing down the performance.

I bought my 8GB DDR2 800 MHz PC2 6400S RAM from Elpida. The Elpida RAM is very high quality and comes with a heat shield mounted on both sides of the RAM. They are the stock 8GB DDR2 800 MHz RAM provider for DELL. Elpida RAM is fast and high quality but a little pricy.

 

That's a stacked laptop you have there. Good luck with it.

 

Try Dox's 182.05, that's the best video driver I've used. Are you using rivatuner to overclock? I have no problems at all with the clocks in my sig, but even the same chip won't always have the same tolerance for everyone. And yeah, what's the point of an extreme CPU if you can't oc... :/

 

Thanks for the input. Actually, from what I hear, as of today most PC2 5300 RAM has lower latency than PC2 6400 RAM. That is unless your paying a premium for the better performance RAM. Because of that the access time difference would be minimal. I'm assuming your RAM is of the higher quality, but as long as the difference in speed doesnt make me wan to throw my laptop through a window, I should be able to live with a minimal drop in performance.

Also, I agree with the guys above. Doxs 182.05 from laptopvideo2go is the way to go. I believe the 182.06 is out also, but its not optimized yet.

 

I have been using DOX’s 185.20 but I will try the 182.05.
Yes, I’m using Riva Tuner 2.23 and EVGA Precision to check the clocks.

Actually, there is a way to overclock these Extereme CPU’s if you have the money to spare. There are companies out there (like BiosMan) that will write a custom BIOS for your laptop that will enable you to overclock the CPU from the BIOS. I haven’t seen anybody do that yet but it could be done.

The overclock specs in your sig look very impressive by the way. Congrats.

 

Hey I have a question regarding overclocking my 9600 GT in my HDX 18.

Riva Tuner 2.22 AND 2.24 both only allow my Core Clock and Memory Clock to be overclocked to 600MHz, and my Shader Clock to 1200MHz. Not that thats the highest it'll go before my system freezes up, but it actually only allows the bar to slide up to 600/1200/600. Is there a reason for that, because I know other people are able to overclock higher withe Riva?

 

are you serious ? Ill spend the $$ to get my x-9000 up to 3.4 or 3.6 ghz ! biosman, i'll look him up ! thanks

 

where did you buy this memory Elpida???

 

how pricy is 8gb of pc2 6400 ram?

 

AFAIK the Elpida is CL6 for PC2-6400 although other manufacturers offer CL5 and IIRC there was someone (re)selling 5 new pieces on ebay a little while ago for 80GBP per piece so about USD230 for 8GB.

Although prices have dropped a lot, around USD600 for 8GB of PC2-6400 SODIMM, I think it will be a while before they are reasonable in terms of GBs/USD, then again maybe DDR3 will become dominant before then leaving the large memory DDR2 SODIMM a small market and hence a high price (just speculation on my part).

 

so the question remains, where were they ordered from. My searches yeilded one place that was charging THIRTEEN HUNDRED DOLLARS for 8gb

I kid you not

 

New Egg has 8GB PC 6400 DDR2 Crucials at $525. But like I mentioned above, with the faster speed, you also get the higher latency.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148232

Wow $230 is a real good price compared to anything I've found. I havent been able to find anything similar.

 

Open Riva Tuner
Go to Power User
Go to Riva Tuner \ Overclocking \ Global
Enter 100 for MaxClockLimit
Enter 100 for MinClockLimit

Now you should be able to overclock your clocks even higher.

Let us know what clock settings turns out most stable in your setup.

 

I’m serious. This is their website. http://www.biosman.com/
They are able to write custom BIOS for your motherboard. You will have to remove your BIOS chip and send it to them for reprogramming / replacement. Depending on the type of your BIOS chip, being a PLCC or DIP BIOS you will need a special tool to remove the BIOS chip from your motherboard without damaging it.

Please let me know if you contact them and get pricing for a custom BIOS that will enable CPU overclocking. Depending on the price, I might be interested in it too. I would love to hit 4.0 GHz on this X9100..

 

For everyone interested, I bought the Elpida 8GB PC2 6400S DDR2 RAM brand new on Ebay a while ago. Somebody had 2 pieces in hand and I got one of them. They are very high quality and work excellently.

Having said that, you know there is a program called MemSet (Currently Version 4.0) which allows you to tweak your memory timings. It definitely works and the settings can be saved. I would be very careful with this program though as you can damage or fry your RAM by going too low on the timings.

 

I hope that was a joke ??

seriously, I've seen the 16", there's no diff between that and a 15.4" laptop... did you really see a diff ? or was that a joke ? I'm confused.

I'm debating going with the 18" but yes, it is big... but the 16" ? I find it no larger than my current 15.4"

 

I was being a little sarcastic with the size difference between 15.4” and 16” but this HDX 16 barely fits in my laptop bag that I’ve been using for the 15.4” one.

I have seen the HDX 18 in person. It’s not big. It’s gigantic..

 

Hey XPS-MANIA

ah ok ! LOL. Ok I get ya

P.S. - I think the 18" is small..... right now I'm on my slightly older HDX949nr which is a 20.x" ! ... and that..... is HUGE !

I'm going to check out the 18" in person at Bestbuy to make sure it is a lot lighter than this one, this is way too heavy, weighs in about 15 lbs, just moving it around the house is not fun. You really have to support it well, and the screen has some special / wonky hinge system, which I have to be extremely careful with or it could be easily broken.

Other than that, it's a sweet machine to do stuff on.

I just want the 18" because it is a quad.

 

Just remember. Once you start using 18 inchers, youll find it hard to go back. Plus, I dont know if its just me, but the HDX 16 looks wierd that size. It doesnt look right. The HDX 18 looks just right.

 

I have the HP 20.1" HDX laptop,( model HDX949nr )
I believe some call it the "Dragon" ( not sure why )

well, this is one HUGE laptop, it's very heavy, 15 lbs or so. It's huge. It really isn't meant to be moved around, but I do it from time to time, but it is indeed a hassle.

Now, - yesterday I went over to BestBuy and looked at the Quad Core HP laptop which is an 18.4 " model.

First thing I notice ? -- it's SMALL compared to my 20.1" HP laptop. It is very manageable ! ... and it makes the 16" look very small.

For graphic work, I will be very happy with the 18.4" , you really have to see the 18.4" in front of you, pick it up, hold it closed, look at it, and you quickly realize it is not that large.

Sure the 16" is nice, but for me, it's a bit small. I have a 15.4" and it's just too small sometimes for graphic work.

The 18.4" is a sweet laptop, and it's about 1/2 the weight of my HP 20.1"
laptop ( model HDX949nr )

And yes, I do like the 16", it's great for regular work, email, surfing the net, sitting with it on your lap while watching TV, etc.... but for serious graphic work it is in the small size, however it DOES pack a punch for what it is.

Ah decisions, decisions

 

i am dead serious ! e-mailed them , waiting for reply , if possible I will let you know . Not sure they can or will do it . i paid them for a bios once and all they sent me was the latest bios I could get at the MB manufacturers site . So I hope they can WRITE a new BIOS for my comp .
and i have the tool to remove the chip , I see on their site they sell the same ultra tool kit I bought from tiger , a bit more though , i paid $20.00 and it came with the PSU tester

 

HDX16 is an awesome laptop!!!