MSI GS40 Phantom-001

Yes, it was my big headache. Official MSI support says:
"For BIOS update we need SSD data or algorithms to ensure compatibility. Because we don't cooperate with Samsung it can be a long time while MSI BIOS engineers will answer. You can replace SSD by Kingston or Toshiba for the quick fix". No responses from MSI, no bios update. The last BIOS release Date is 2015-07-22. Laptop still can't recognize my Samsung SSD 950 PRO 512GB in BIOS. Slot is "empty"

After all, I really disappointed MSI service and some product quality specification. It was inspiring marketing campaign from MSI about NVME opportunity and Dynaudio branded sound. But in fact, for my 2000$ I have unbelievable quiet speakers and official BIOS which even doesn't support most popular NVME SSD. And, BTW, I saw few review, and nobody mentioned about sound! Accidentally, of course .

I respect the fact that the MSI does much at the market of performance laptops. I'm always was ready to pay for this and I'm also realize that I will suffer from some disadvantages and defects, which are not peculiar to other manufacturers. But this particular case is disgusting, no other word for this.

Ok, it was minute of hate, sorry for that
______________

Well, it works, actually, What eventually help for me: I used AOMEI Partition Assistant Technician Edition 5.8 (possible, 6.0 also work great) for Samsung 950 pro in windows. After that Samsung data migration software from official samsung site detected SSD correctly and I copied OS_install local disk from HDD without any trouble. It still didn't recognize in BIOS and I also was forced to pull out HDD from laptop because didn't find the way for boot from SSD. Then I used AOMEI on the desktop, formatted HDD (GPT) and back HDD to laptop.

Eventually it works as a system boot disk and I really happy about it Speed is nice and honest, but looks like it have some throttle, because it became little bit slower after 30 minutes of working, according to test.

 

There is a new BIOS and EC firmware. The dates were not updated on the MSI website, but the version numbers are newer.
http://www.msi.com/product/notebook/support/GS40-6QE-Phantom.html#down-bios



The BIOS has a new option under advanced for SATA mode selection - AHCI or RAID.

Now that it has the SATA mode selection, you could follow the advice in the following thread for the gs60 6qe, which also did not recognize the 950 pro nvme. The SATA setting also affected BIOS drive detection on the NVME controller.
https://forum-en.msi.com/index.php?topic=263388.0

 

Hey lads, the fan problem i kept moaning about has been kinda fixed by the dudes at MSI, didn't notice that there was a new EC/firmware version that was released last month, this one apparently aimed at "updating the fan tables' as you can see in the desc, which apparently works, it's slightly better now, the fan kicks in only once the CPU reached temps like 54/55*C on my laptop instead of 45*C and at startup, the laptop doesn't make its fans run like crazy for nothing ( a few seconds tho) anymore, it just starts up quietly (so yeah nice improvements there).

I even feel like overall while gaming the fans are less noisy, i feel less bothered when playing fallout 4 (ultra preset), i feel like since the computer never went above 66*C in my whole game experience it's not triggering it's loudest fan preset unless you make it reach something like 75/80 which never happened tbh . Haven't found a game yet that makes it cry so badly. The witcher caps at 68*C on a long session.

So yeah quite a nice update it makes the experience with the computer slightly better.

Here's the link : http://www.msi.com/product/notebook/support/GS40-6QE-Phantom.html#down-firmware

Go for it, it takes few secs to install and it rocks. The stock firmware of my laptop that i bought in christmas, was like uber old (prolly they threw at it some 7-8 months old version , back in the days the laptop was probably being crafted, so there is no risk with installing that firmware i think, unless you've already installed it (there can't be a fresher version). )

Cheers

 

Great, thanks for the heads up! Must download and install that this evening, i was a bit disappointed by the loudness of the fans under such minimal load when i first got the laptop i must say, but i figured i was being unrealistic with my expectations as it wasn't meant to be a low voltage ultrabook

 

How do you find this laptop in day to day (non gaming) use with this new update? It's on my shortlist of possibles, but I was concerned about the noise levels if I was to take it into a meeting for example.

 

very helpful, thank you. Would you recommend it as a work/gaming laptop? I don't game as much as I used to, but I still want the option, and would like to retire my aging desktop and just have the 1 computer for all purposes.

 

good to know. Is it particularly noisy when gaming? I can certainly use a headset, but my wife will throw a fit if she can't hear the tv over the fans...

 

It is quite good, actually. It's easy stay alive about 3,5 hours with wi-fi and power saving mode (which is enough for 99% of meeting). Because screen is mat, it's easy to use laptop even with extra-low brightness. It also ok with noise level, no problem with that. I disappointed with keyboard - only because it's a bad choice for fast typing. But - nothing really criminal about it.

And yes, it has horrible MSI logo, but actually, i make a decision just forget about it once. I work as one of the leading political consultants and strategists in Russia and laptop seems surprisingly affordable for most of official meeting. Black and red color with chopped brink really make it better. But it's personal, of course

Also i can recommend it as a occasionally gaming laptop. There is pretty high fan noise and warm air under the pressure, it also have horrible external speakers ever (you ALWAYS need a headphones). But more important - it have no throttle (maybe only a little bit reduced TDP). I also don't game much, but I exactly need the option. And after all, I really happy that I at last have 1 computer for all purposes.

 

I read that the GS40 has an issue with the power brick not being able to supply enough power to keep the unit from draining while at max performance. Is this true or did I misread that?

 

Never noticed the problem.

 

If you run all the components at 100% (both CPU and GPU), you can draw more power than the brick provides. Then, your battery will start draining. How ofter this arises, is up to your usage (it's very unlikely that an application will be both cpu and gpu intensive).

 

Yup, that's correct. Power boost kicks in automatically when needed.
It can be short it can be long depending on the needs.

 

My GS60 would do it while playing Shadow of Mordor on Ultra. It has the same GPU and power brick as the GS40. I'd see a slow drain between 95-80%. It was never anything severe though and that was over a 2-3 hour span

 

Few more questions about subject:

- can someone give the link for razer Blade Ultra SLIM power adapter with international shipping (Moscow, Russia)? Can't find slim version;
- so, eventually, how i can be definitely sure about thunderbolt specification? Thunderbolt driver installed correctly;
- for those, who follow the news. If i potentially in the distant future will be use external GPU adapter, it will be some restriction for using HDMI port with external G-Sync Hi-hz (144-200) monitor?
- someone have prints from buttons like this on the screen after transportation?

 

I had the same markings on my screen. im sure its just prints when there is some pressure on the lid.

heres a link with shipping to russia from Razers website: https://www.razerzone.ru/store

From what i have heard about thunderbolt 3, it will be supported later on. WATCH:

you might as well wait for the GS40 with dock to get anymore performance greater than a GTX 970.

 

Yes, it's offical distributor in Russia, but surprisingly Razer don't
supplies power adapter in our country. If you lost this, for example, you even don't have a option for buy

 

If you check out their website ( https://www.msi.com/product/notebook/GS40-6QE-Phantom.html#hero-overview), they actually updated their ad page and the specifications page to Thunderbolt 3, which probably means they got the certification. Also, when I got mine, it already had the Thunderbolt driver on it.

As for the eGPU question, if MSI or someone finds a way to get something like Razer Core (just an example but I'm sure there will be more eGPUs to come in the future) to play nicely with any Thunderbolt 3 capable laptops, I don't see why it would not work. HOWEVER, for 144-200 Hz monitor, you'd probably have to use display port or something on the dock/USB-C/Thunderbolt 3, because as far as I know, HDMI v1.4 only has enough bandwidth for something like 60~80-Hz at 1080p or something. If I remember correctly (I may not be remembering correctly as I don't really care too much about monitors as long as they work on 1080p at decent refresh rate), HDMI 1.4 is basically 1.3 with added 3D support or something. May want to Google around a bit though.

Personally I do not get those prints, but I pretty much only carry my laptop, charger, mouse and a water bottle or two in my backpack. Maybe something is pushing the screen onto the keyboard for you? I don't know. But I don't think it's a huge issue.

 

Hey guys,

I saw the PCper video regarding the new edition of the GS40 with egpu support. Is there any information regarding possible release dates and pricing?

 

after a while looks like the gs40 is TB3 40gbps capable! good to know, thanks

 

Ok, with the new dock and the official TB3 capability listed, I think I have made the right choice over the other brands. Although that also means that I have to invest more in order to get onto any VR goggles later on, but at least I do not need to get another PC to do it.

 

Hello everyone.
Is anyone else experiencing coil whine?
It recently started for me, and it happens when it's idle or if power is on at all.

It def is not fan, because I turned it on with the bottom off, and when fans were off, it was coming from around where CPU and GPU are housed.

 

I get "coil-whine-like" noise at idle from the mechanical HDD. It goes away when the HDD turns itself off eventually. I can't wait to remove it!

 

Hmm. I actually don't have an HDD and have long replaced it with SSD... Meh. It's not too inconvenient. I guess I'll live with it for now since I have 2 year warranty


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Hello everyone I just created the account here specifically to post in this thread and ask about this sexy looking beast. I understand some of the questions here were already answered but most of the answers were in the first week of the users ownership of the machine so I wanted to ask after people spent some time with it.

Anyway straight to the case.. I would be very thankful if anyone could help with my questions:

- First and foremost I am quite an enthusiastic gamer and while performance is amazing on this machine I have read about some heat problems (noise as well but I see firmware solved it partially).
From what your experience is with it so far do you think this laptop can handle some intensive gaming? I don't play as much anymore but sometimes I get a free day or plan a gaming night with my friend and need the laptop to be able to handle it. I also know about the issue of the case and the keyboard warming up but that doesn't really worry me. I mean just the longevity of the system as I plan to use it for a long time. Also if anyone has found a great cooling pad solution I would greatly appreciate him or her sharing it

- If it's possible what is your ASIC % (can be viewed through GPU-Z) just wondering about the silicon they apply to the GPU and CPU

- I have seen from the posts before that the notebook has WiFi problems... Was it just a driver issue that has been solved?

- does it support the ThunderBolt 3 port?

- How is the build quality handling the use?

And other than that I think I did enough research to know the rest.

Thank you in advance for answers I am very interested in this notebook since the price is appealing and it's an extremely convinient option for someone who wants to travel with it but I am just concerned about it's long term survivability..

Btw pleased to meet everyone!

 

Hello!

So I just wanted to answer a few of your questions.

1. Intensive gaming wise, I'm not 100% sure, as I only play Blade and Soul, LoL, and a few titles like Civ or Total War series here and there. Overall, it's been great, and if you're looking for benchmarks, there are a lot of numbers out there, but to me, it seems to be pretty damn good for gaming. For the heat, I do use laptop fan, but nowadays, I just have it elevated, not necessarily the fan on. I usually have it "docked" on my desk on the cooler/raiser, connected to a USB hub, 2 10080p monitors and peripherals, and when I ran Heaven benchmark thingie (not too savy on the benchmarking stuff), it never went past 78~80 ish. When I did Prime 95, I don't think temp was even close to 90 or even 85 at all if I remember correctly.

2. It's showing me 83.7% (First time hearing this and have no idea what this is)

3. No problems whatsoever even with the default Killer, but felt like it wasn't doing anything so I installed drivers only package.

4. Yes, I believe I linked somewhere here. MSI officially changed their website to advertise TB3.

5. Build quality seems fine, there are a few videos showing flex on keyboard part, but for me to make it do that, I need to press fairly hard. When I just use it regularly, I don't really see or feel much flex. Now, toward middle of the keyboard, I do see some, but then again, it's cheaper. (I put plastic here before I don't know why so I edited that) Coming from MBP and Razer Blade, which have unibody designs and no flex at all, I didn't think it was noticeable at all. But it may be more noticeable to some other people I suppose. IMO, it's perfectly fine, and given that this is what, like 1k cheaper than Razer Blade with more customizability? I'll take that any day. (Oh and 2 year warranty and 1 year accidental is a bonus )

Let me know if you have any other q's or pics or whatnot.
Although, I did manage to leave a little white dent-like spot on my palm rest when I accidentally flung my jacket and literally smashed the large part of the zipper into it lol. But I think that would've happened at that force with any other laptop.

 

Just to chip in my thoughts.

It is winter time right now, I am sure the temperature issue may come up in a hot summer day, but so far so good as you can see that there are basically no complains here so far.

As for the Killer wifi, I have a slight glitch using some extended AC channels set on my Asus RT-AC56 modem. The wifi software that comes installed is not the best but it is more like a software issue. Simply by uninstalling it an install the standard driver will fix the disconnection problem.

I believe that TB3 is pretty much confirmed as standard. I do not think anyone here have tried using the port at its full speed though.

Build quality is pretty good, my only complain is that the keyboard panel is a fingerprint magnet. Position of the ports are also quite reasonable as I hate to have the USB ports placed towards the front.

 

Did you use the driver from Killer Networking's site? There have supposedly been some fixes/patches applied to the latest releases concerning connection issues.

 

Make sure to update the firmware on your router too because sometimes it's not Killer issue.

 

if you or anyone is concerned about its durability, why not purchase it through best buy with a 3 year drop/spill protection. i mean its a $300 insurance which will garantee you a new laptop in 3 or less years.

in 3 years when the keyboard craps the bed, which im sure it will, spill some nice OJ on the laptop and return it. Squaretrade or any insurance company are more than willing to replace!

 

The full amount? Don't they factor in depreciation?

 

no, its the full "original item price". squaretrade will also pay shipping back and forth (forth and back). everything is garanteed to be resolved WITHIN 5 days too. these people are loaded with $ from people who dont even use their drop insurance. getting a full refund or a new laptop is like pee in the ocean. as long as their reviews rock.

 

Thanks everyone for such quick response it really helped me get some more insight into the build!

I am still looking at the options but the GS40 is definitely up there for me!

 

Everyone check out the websites latest Audio drivers and Nahimic. BETTER AUDIO! this pc is perfect now

 

Did you meant the release on Feb 25th?
[ Download]

 

YUP! thanks for posting the link too

 

No, thank you for providing the news update.

 

Does the model of m.2 ssd be able to be swap for the 128ssd

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00TG...ds=m.2+ssd&dpPl=1&dpID=31z0TS+w38L&ref=plSrch

 

It's usable, but if possible try to get Samsung 950 Pro because it supports PCIe signal.

• 1 x NVMe M.2 SSD by PCIe Gen3 X4 / SATA-SSD Combo

 

Is there anyway for anyone that owns the GS40 to confirm that it has a TB3 port? I know that the website was recently changed but I can't currently find it on the features list. I'm looking into eGPU solutions and this laptop looks like a very good competitor to the Razer Blade Stealth if it does have a TB3 port. I know that the new thinner dock will be coming out with a new GS40 but perhaps the Razer Core will work with this version of the GS40. Currently it's $1000 for a Razer Blade Stealth with a 6500u, 8GB of RAM, and a single SSD. I'd much rather pay the $1500 for the GS40 with a 6700HQ, 16GB of RAM, a 970M, and a chassis that can hold multiple SSD/HDD but I'm not all that interested in the big, bulky dock that MSI is developing. I'm much more interested in the Razer Core that connects by a single cord.

 

its confirmed on the websites driver page. update BIOS and firmware to activate TB3 as of feb 25 2016

https://www.msi.com/Notebook/support/GS40-6QE-Phantom.html#down-firmware

 

Alright, cool. I really hope someone that has this laptop can get their hands on the Razer Core when it's released. This is a very good competitor to the Razer Blade 14 which will undoubtedly come with Core connectivity.

 

The speaker is really soft.... YouTube and levels on volume are at 70%

 

The CPU fan on my 1 month old GS40 has died. Made a horrible grinding noise whilst booting, which stopped. Got to desktop and watched the temps rise on dragon control centre with no CPU rpm's reported..
Not impressed!

 

I've found the fan profiles to be greatly improved with the later EC, as you would hopefully expect. That was pretty much my main issue with the GS40, although I've only had it 24 hours!

Sound wise, I've got rid of Nahemic (or whatever it was called). Pretty the new audio drivers and minimal manipulation..

 

Hey guys, just bought my Gs40. I know I should have searched the forum, but maybe anyone could answer me before ill find such needed information:

1. Does everyone have the issue with the Tab button? It sticks sometimes, especially if you press it in the left corner. Is it critical? Do I have to ask for replacement or it wont help? Have the same issue as described here: http://www.ultrabookreview.com/9542-msi-gs40-phantom-review/
2. What about screen ghosting and blurring? Anyone has faced it so far?
3. Am I right that the low volume issue has been fixed with the latest driver update?
4. Anyone migrated OS from HDD to SSD (W10) by usage of Msi BackUp software?
5. Any other important updates out there yet?

Thank you very much in advance.

 

1> my tab button is okay
2> my screen is great
3>My volume is FIXED!!! finally
4> never tried
5> TB3 and the sound driver are the most substantial updates

 

Thank you very much for your reply.
Could you please share the info about the model of your screen?
Good to know that volume issue can be fixed.

Did you try to press tab in the left corner of the button? Mine stuck only when i press in the left side. Damn, it really upsets me.

What is your experience with the laptop? Are you satisfied with it?

 

And why did some users ask about razer blade 14" charger? Is it compatible with Gs40? Cause the retail "brick" is really ugly and heavy.

 

no sticking even pressed from the left. I am now satisfied with the laptop. the volume issue was the only thing for me. the fans dont bother me much, although there also an update for the fan profiles.

The razer charger works with this laptop. is it worth spending $150 for a power brick? not for me. i dont travel that much

My previous gaming book and a power brick x2 as big as this one with a built in fan for cooling.

 

Well, thanks. I've found a lot of posts about troubles with Tab button, so maybe it would help someone to know, that they are not alone. Contacted MSI support, they keep quiet on the issue, but i will reveal their reply asap.

Reinstalled the new drivers (Audio drivers which were released in March) - no significant increase in volume was detected.