3920XM in a P150EM: User experience

I'm looking to snatch up a 3920xm in the near future. Here are some things I worry about.

Temperature when running 4Ghz+ clocks: the 150EM doesnt have the best cooling out there, I know, but would I be able to stay under 95° when overclocked to lets say 4.2 or 4.3 Ghz?
Flash a P170EM BIOS to unlock multipliers: do I just flash the standard 170em bios and thats it?
Power consumption: will the 180 watt adapter be enough for an overclocked xm and an overclocked and overvoltet 680m? (I dont think so )

Is there a way I can measure the power draw with software?

Has anyone done this before on a 150EM?

 

Doesnt HWinfo show power draw? I am not on my home rig so I can't check, but I do think so

 

I dont know, its a long time since i used HWinfo. Thanks Ill check it out and let you know

 

If you flash the p170em bios you will get xtu control (which can take a 3740qm to 3.9ghz), without that you are stuck at stock. The cooler just about handles 4ghz ish so save some money, get a 3840qm and flash the 170em bios to get 4ghz 4 core turbo perhaps?

 

the thing is it doesnt HAVE to be 4ghz I was merely wondering what can be achieved. since I cant really go over 4, 3.9 would be fine aswell. The thing is I have a really good deal for a 3920QS. It would cost less than a 3740QS let alone a 3840QS. something I did notice was that the 20er revisions aka the 3720 and the 3820 are significantly cheaper, whats up with that? the clock difference is only 100mhz right?

I have considered going the 37 20 route but I kinda want to future proof here and as of right now I can only get a ES of the 3720...

 

Remember that often QS and ES chips (the latter which also contain non publicly documented errors) run hotter and so will throttle more often.

With your stock bios the 3920xm will run at stock.

 

yeah I know, but oem are soo expensive right now.. ES is out of the question for me, a QS would work though.

well I would flash a 170em bios anyway...

 

ES chips are illegal for end-user/aftermarket sales anyway, to my understanding (though there may be grey areas of legislation). They're supplied to OEMs strictly for testing, not resale.

Busted: Engineers Arrested For Selling Intel Samples On Ebay - HotHardware

Source: Intel

 

I think I remember seeing an article here maybe about the differences in chips. If i recall correctly, OEM are the best, QS are quality control samples, and ES are engineering chips that didnt make the grade?

 

Last I read, flashing P170EM BIOS to the P150EM on the newer revisions, it doesn't work. I think Clevo did something to circumvent that. At least last time I read the threads about it, that was the case.

But why would you need to OC a 3920XM? Just curious what you are doing that you need a 3920XM. Please please don't say benchmarking...

 

He clearly stated that he had an offer on a very cheap 3920XM QS so was wondering what he could get out of it.

 

That isn't what I asked.

 

Yeah Im totally just gonna use it for benchmarks

No seriously Id be using the 3920 primarily for gaming and for some video rendering. Overkill? yes it is. do I kneed to overclock? i dont think so now. I get 3.8ghz on stock. Im not sure if Im gonna risk a bios flash only for a 200-300mhz gain. Where did you read about the crossflashing not working anymore? last time i checked clevo didnt have their own bios they update. Ive been using the mysn.de bios for now. what revision did they change it.

Now before you say I shouldnt get a 3920, let me tell you that a 3740qm costs the same as my deal ive got. so no point going 3740 if i can do better for the same price. 3840 is even expensiver...

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo-reviews-owners-lounges/681601-clevo-p157em.html

Seems those who tried it are back on P150EM. I don't think you need the OC either. That 3920XM should be a monster already.

 

yeah I think I will just leave the bios alone for now. do you know If I need a new heatsink for the 3920XM stock? I heard there were 3-pipe solutions, but cant seem to find one. my retailer isnt helping either..

 

hm threepipeline heatsinks are only available for alienware machines IIRC.

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Yes there are no alternative heatsinks except perhaps the full copper version from the P170 series where as the P150 series uses aluminium.

 

oh really? did they change that to aluminum on the 15" em?

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well my heatsink looks very copper-esque

But thanks Ill just go with the standard one then, shouldnt be a problem I dont think. Thanks for your help guys

 

Look at the silver heatsink fins on the P150EM above.



Look at the copper fins of the heatsink of the P170EM.

 

oooh ok, heatsink fins! those are aluminum, true that. would it make such a difference if the heatsinks were copper tho?

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haha i was looking at the actual pipes aswell. dont think the copper makes much difference tho. its kinda like the copper plates you put on the pipes, it just takes you longer to reach peak temps no?

 

i sure hope so otherwise, next order: P170 heatsink baby!

 

No one has done a direct comparison, I think someone needs to.

 

hm, would actually give me a reason to do some cpu heatsink modding if i had a second one lying around... third heatpipe anyone?

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Well it has been done, but maybe worth doing it with a copper one.

 

yep, those were exactly my thoughts

 

Did you guys get anywhere with this???

Copper has a thermal conductivity that is DOUBLE that of aluminium, so would it make a difference, potentially yes, a huge difference if done right....

the copper fin could be thinner, and would still offer the same heat dissipation to its extremities meaning they could pack more in there, might be worth counting the fins and or measuring their thickness if you have a set of verniers to hand..... still I can't imagine this would equate to more than 1 or 2 rows extra, with each row being double the difference in thickness taller (which might add up to almost the surface area of another fin)

The other thing they could do is use a smaller heat-pipe (because they can extract the same amount of heat with nearly half the surface area for contact) which would mean a bigger gap in the radiator for air to travel through, and more fin surface area.

Its all fun and games, when I get my P1*0*M in the next few months, I'll make a point of doing a bunch of testing as I need the data anyway. which ever cooler I have, I'll get the other version (and any-more if there are any??) and document it all :thumbsup:

- custom cooler projects will be on hold for this valuable information, as I really do need to know. plus I have some more simple mods to the standard heatsink I want to try out which I will share with you guys if relevant. EDIT** and if it's not actually........ just so you know - proactive myth busting