***EVGA Precision X and Windows 7/8/8.1 and especially 10 bricking systems***

No. I always have that disabled because I hate it. Some of the machines with bricked displays may not even have that functionality available.

 

So I know that EVGA Precision X is bad bad bad for laptops, but what about EVGA OC Scanner X? Does that brick/overwrite EDIDs as well?

 

No, I use EVGA OC Scanner all the time for running a mild Julia 3D benchmark in a window to set up HWiNFO64/RTSS OSD output all of the time. It does nothing to the screen and it's not brutal on the GPUs. The destructive burn-out tests that are based on Furmark should be avoided. It has those features, but I do not use them.

But, it's only the newer versions of EVGA Precision X that cause issues. This version here has never caused me any grief. I still use it all the time. It's based on Afterburner, but the voltage adjustments are not crippled like Afterburner.

 

Hey,

Wow, that is fantastic news to hear that it does not change EDIDs. Which version of EVGA OC Scanner X do you use, even the latest one 3.6.1.2 is safe?

Thanks!

 

Hello all, registered so i could share my experience with this issue. Little background on my M17xR3. Purchased it new back in 2011. Never ran evga precision x or any other oc/monitoring program. Upgraded to win 10 jul of last year. Everything running flawlessly until...

The macine was starting to show its age in newer games. Ive been reading up over the past year on what i could upgrade. My stock gtx 560m and 2670qm was my targets for improvement. So i ordered a clevo gtx 780m and a 2860gm on ebay. I know the gtx780m isnt officially supported but there are steps to follow to get them work on the R3.

I followed the guides over multiple sites and even followed up on problems people ran into. So the card artives i prepared the laptop for the upgrade. Installed the 780m and powered it on for the 1st time. Black screen,no post 8 beeps! I tried everything until i came upon this issue.

Tested everything with another stock R3 and found it to be the lcd. So last night i sat down to rewrite the edid. I hotswapped the screens and it works. Problem is the edid header is 0's. Now i wont proceed further,because in the guide it says it should return FF,ect...

And the point of this rant is. Should i proceed with rewrting the edid with the proper header or is there something deeper and more involved with the screen?

 

Copy/paste the output and we'll see if it's indeed a corrupted header or whether it's stored in an off-set location. If it's the latter; there can be more data than just the edid, the lcd controller firmware can be sometimes be accessed as well and you really don't want to accidentally overwrite that with edid data.

 

Thanks t456 for replying,
Btw its a LP173WF1 (TL)(B3) panel .

Code:

00: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 30 00 00 00 00 00 00 00    ........0.......
10: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 0a f1 95 00 00 00 00 00    ........???.....
20: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 01 01 01 01 01 00 00 00    ........?????...
30: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 80 b0 70 38 21 40 30 00    ........??p8!@0.
40: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00    ................
50: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 18 00 00 00 00 00 00    .........?......
60: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 57 46 31 0a 00 00 00 00    ........WF1?....
70: 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 02 01 0a 20 20 00 00    .........???  .

 

Holy !!! There's nothing left of that thing ... by far the worst example we've seen so far. Anyway, you're good to flash; the few bytes that haven't been wiped are in the same place as with the good edid:

Spoiler: LGD02DA - LP173WF1-TLB3, good and corrupt

Only thing is that there's a v0.2 and a v1.0 and the bytes left are identical between the two versions. The differences are a different Dell part nr. and the v1.0 has an extra 40 Hz timing. Doesn't really matter since either is fine, but I'd flash the newer v1.0. However, since you went through a lot of effort to get to this point you might as well take advantage of the opportunity and flash an edid with an extra display timing set:

LGD02DA - LP173WF1-TLB3, 90 Hz mod.7z

It's the same as the v1.0, only with an additional 90 Hz option, which should then be available to choose from within the driver and windows' device manager. Benefit of using an edid for that is that it's 'native', so no need for external tools. The panel is a TN, so it should be perfectly capable to run such an overclock, but in case it's struggling then there's always the default 60 Hz to fall back on.

 

Another victim of the 8 beep at POST.

I just recently purchased a used M18x R1 and it was working great with the exception of a degrading power brick. I remedied that issue with a new one and things were going nicely. So naturally I'd have to screw that up, right? With Windows 10 already installed, I decided to give EVGA Precision X a spin and I guess you guys know the story from there. I'm not sure if it was the very next reboot or a couple later, but I now have the 8 beeps at boot just before POST.

My M18x screen will show the RAID configuration screen briefly, but once that screen disappears and right before the the normal Alienware logo screen appears, the dreaded 8 beeps starts. No further options from there. I tried connecting an external monitor via HDMI and I can see the same RAID configuration screen on the external monitor. If I select "CTRL I" to enter the RAID configuration and the monitor will remain on displaying the RAID utility indefinitely, but the second I exit to attempt POST, the 8 beeps starts immediately. I can also see that my SSD RAID is still intact.

I've read through countless threads and hundreds of pages. I see the same names popping up everywhere contributing a great deal of information and help, but I don't feel I'm savvy enough to simply read and flash if that's even what I need to do.

1. With all of this said, can someone confirm that what I've described sounds like "EDID corruption"?
2. If so, is there a consolidated "how to" on the steps needed to attempt correction of the issue?
3. Will simply buying a new display and replacing my current one fix the issue without any further requirements other than the now obvious removal of EVGA Precision X?

I sincerely appreciate any help offered.

 

If you have any image on the screen, even a simple boot splash image or 'Hit Ctrl+I for RAID controller'-thingy then it is not may still be a bricked display.

Sounds more likely that EVGA is forcing full power to the dGPU, which either it or the power brick can no longer handle. See if booting safe mode makes any difference and also check if booting from a usb stick with live DOS or Linux is possible. For the latter you can use the edid-tools image here, which is also the answer to your second question. It's also possible to use it merely to make certain that the edid is still peachy.

edit:
Correction due to Mr. Fox's excellent vault-o'-knowledge.

 

I think it still could be the display bricked. The M18xR1 has subtle differences than the M18xR2, such as no UEFI or GOP support and the timing of when the BIOS starts searching for an LCD/EDID may be a second or two later in the boot process.

I found with the M18xR2 when this problem was happening if I opened and closed the lid rapidly several times while the machine was trying to POST it would momentarily light up the display and I could see my svl7/ @Johnksss@iBUYPOWER vBIOS HWDIAG splash screen and Intel Option ROM, but when handed off to the BIOS to shake hands with the display it would go into the 8-beep problem. If I tried to boot with the display open and did not do the rapid open/close bit it would stay black and go straight to 8-beeps.

 

Gentlemen, first and foremost, thank you for your fast responses.

@t456 I got a bit excited when I read your post, but that dwindled quickly when I realized that I can't do anything once the RAID configuration screen disappears. It simply begins the 8 beep sequence. Inserting a Windows installer USB does nothing because the system never officially completes or even begins POST as far as I know.

@Mr. Fox I read one of your many posts on the subject and remembered that you had something very similar where the RAID configuration was view able, yet the screen was still bricked. I fear that is what's going on with me. Sad deal that I didn't take the time to search Alienware m18x + Windows 10 + EVGA Precision X before installing Precision X on the laptop. Doesn't everyone do a configuration compatibility search on every thing they do with their computers before they do it? All jokes aside, this guy will from here on out.

So I have a few choices that I would like to run by the experts.

1. Can I just buy another screen and install it without having to do any additional "flashing" to make the laptop work as designed again? Naturally, I would immediately reinstall a fresh copy of Windows before letting it completely boot back into the same install with EVGA Precision X installed. Probably best to pull the SSDs so that I can't screw that up.

2. If I pursue the repair of the current screen's "EDID", will any cheap "dent and scratch" type monitor from a m18x R1 or ms18x R2 get the job done provided the screen actually works?

3. Lastly, the little time that I had with the m18x R1 functioning, I found it to be a pretty good laptop. So much so that I thought about buying a version with an Extreme CPU and better GPUs and borrowing the screen for the repair of my current one. I could then give the original one to my oldest son while stepping up on my setup. I kill two birds with one stone this way. My only concern is how relevant is this platform now and is it worth it to pursue an Extreme CPU configuration?

Here's a video of what's happening even though I'm sure both of you already have an accurate picture.



Thanks again for your help.

 

You're welcome.

1. Yes, and you can flash the old one and have a spare. Definitely get rid of the Precision X. The old versions (based on MSI Afterburner, only better because of voltage control,) are still safe.
   Here is a version that I have found to be safe with LDVS notebook displays: EVGA_PrecisionX_4.21.zip
2. Yes
3. It is a fantastic laptop. Extremely well made and a real beast. Yes, the Extreme CPU is worth every penny. You'll want to get a 3-pipe heat sink. The non-Extreme heat sink will not provide adequate cooling. 780M and 880M are the newest GPUs that will work in the M18xR1. You will need to either buy 680M or 7970M heat sinks designed for an M18xR2 because the M18xR1 100W heat sinks will not cover some components on the Kepler GPUs that need to be cooled. You can also mod the M18xR1 100W heat sinks to make them work, but it is better to get the newer heat sinks. They are beefier and will do a better job. Do not attempt to use 75W GPU heat sinks.

At the end of the day it might not make good sense to upgrade anything. The parts for the upgrade will cost you more than buying a complete M18xR1 that has already been upgraded. If you're wanting the best performance possible, might be best to buy a Clevo P870DM with a 6700K CPU. You can even get one of those used with a 200W 980 (desktop GPU) or 980M SLI for a decent price and it will outperform any possible M18xR1 configuration by a wide margin.

 

Ninja'd, but adding some extra info:

1. You might want to make an image of the current install first, provided you can boot with an external monitor hooked up. It's possible to edit the image later on and remove all Precision X files, that way it'd be safe to use and no re-install would be necessary.

2. Even a 15.6" or 17.3" can work. And there's no need to limit the search to Alienwares only since panels are more or less generic; a poor, cracked-but-working lcd can be had for as little as $30. Which panel did you have? Should be possible to find a cheap substitute or even use one from another laptop you have access to.

Thanks, had forgotten about that. Kinda wonder if it's possible to use the magnet trick to rapidly turn on/off the display and have it bungle into a successful boot ... no hot-swap or external monitor would be required then.

 

Perhaps. I tried numerous times to trick it into booting and never could, but if I had been persistent and tried longer it is possible a glitch might have allowed it to boot. It's really a shame that the BIOS looks for a valid EDID. It would be a good thing if the BIOS could be modded to remove that. My P570WM with LVDS got bricked as well, but because the BIOS did not require a valid EDID to POST I was able to flash the LCD by using an external display. The screen would stay black, but it would still POST. It's unfortunate that Dell went overboard with the control freak thing. I don't understand what their rationale is/was for doing that, but I think it was a stupid move on their part.

 

After further research and discovering the "end of the road" for the m18x, I think I stick with buying a new screen for a direct swap or a scratched and dented one to attempt the EDID repair.

I did an even trade of a 2013 or so Lenovo Ultrabook with a struggling i5 and 4gb of RAM for this current m18x with a far better CPU and 560 SLI. It's only duty is to serve as a backup with the occasional light gaming when the wife and kids want to blow some stuff up as a family.

I'll follow your advise and go the route of something like the Clevo P870DM when that time has come.

Thanks for the concise answers and most of all, your time. I do appreciate it.

1. Great idea and I'll look into doing that once I get the extra screen so that I can get this thing to POST.

2. Excellent. I'm not sure what make/model panel I have as I haven't broken the rig down yet, but I plan to get started this afternoon. Once I determine that, I'll check out the panel in an older 17" HP Pavilion that's sitting in the basement collecting dust. I would imagine that I'm just looking for a similar connector? Anything more specific that I need to look at? If that doesn't work out, I'll research compatible panels and go from there with either a direct and simple one-time replacement or any panel that will function so that I can attempt the EDID fix.

Thanks again. You guys take that extra step and it helps a great deal.

 

The connector is the main thing, but there's a few other specifics to make sure of. Easiest is penning down the sticker at the back, looking up that part nr. on Panelook should tell you all we need to know:

Spoiler: Samsung LTN154X3-L09 (example)

With an 18.4" it'll have '184' somewhere, a 17.3" is '173' and so on.

 

Great. With that said, once I get my m18x torn down, I'll do the same to the HP Pavilion 17.3" laptop and see if the panel is compatible. If so, I may luck out with a very low to no cost repair. Now I just have to figure out how to do that whole flashing thing with the link that you provided. I've never used anything, but Windows so my skills are lacking. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Based on what I'm seeing that is required for the removal of the m18x screen, I might as well replace CPU and GPU thermal paste while I'm doing all of this. It doesn't look like access to the GPUs and CPU involves too many more steps.

 

Assuming it works, you only need to use the HP screen long enough to allow the machine to boot up without being halted by the dreaded 8 beeps.

If the HP screen and its LVDS cable works you won't necessarily need to do anything except remove the keyboard so you can access the LVDS connector by the left display hinge. If the HP screen works, boot the machine with that screen plugged into the M18xR2 motherboard sitting upright on top of the palm rest in front of the Alienware screen. If you have a USB keyboard and external mouse use them and leave the laptop keyboard laying face-down on the palmrest with the ribbon cables connected. Once on the Linux desktop, unplug the HP screen and set it aside, then plug in the Alienware screen that is bricked. It should work fine once the BIOS is beyond the POST phase and the OS is loaded. At this point you can follow the steps in Brother @t456 excellent instructions to flash it.

 

I'll find out soon enough. Even if I end up having to tear the m18x apart, I feel pretty confident in doing so thanks to the fact that this pretty cool dude posted an hour long video with painstaking detail on how to do so. Unfortunately, YouTube was doing their best to block most of the music, but I was able to make do with my own similar collection.

Thanks for taking the time to make and share that. I'm sure many have benefited.

 

Well, I wasn't lucky enough. The HP Pavilion screen uses a completely different connection type so it looks like I'll be ordering another screen.

 

It keeps getting better and better.

I got my hands on a Alienware 18 and initially had high hopes after removing the screen and hooking it up to my m18x R1.

Despite having the same connection, nothing happened. So I then tried the screen from my m18x R1 on the 18. I started the 18 with the 18's original screen installed, but when I hotswapped it for the screen from my m18x, the m18x screen didn't display anything. I could see it power on and could see the grayish blank screen remain on, but nothing was showing up. I had an external screen hooked up at the same time and could see everything clearly on it. I then hotswapped it for the 18's original display and it displayed everything normally.

Even though they have the same connector, I don't think the screens are compatible.

I figured I'd try it out before spending money on a m18 R1/R2 specific screen. I just hate the thought of throwing parts at a machine without knowing for sure that it's the problem. I'm fairly confident that it's the screen's EDID so I'll just buy another screen.

To further compound the problem, while hotswapping the two screen, I accidentally shorted one of the wires on the ribbon cable that goes to the media controls on the keyboard trim panel to the m18x. Now I need a screen and another ribbon cable. Hopefully I didn't damage whatever controller that the ribbon cable ran to. Like I said, this keeps getting better and better.

 

Ok I really don't know much about laptops ect ect. I got an Alienware 18 with Intel Core i7-4810MQ and gtx 880m SLI running windows 8.1. My question is there still a problem to update to windows 10? What about a clean install? I have 2 500 gb Samsung evo running in raid. Thanks in advance!

 

Pretty safe. But why Win x? Use latest Win 10 build, not some old saved Os build. And remember to stay far away from EVGA Precision X in any case. Maybe also Msi Afterburner. Use Nvidia inspector if you are going to OC your graphics!!

 

so would just updating to windows be ok you think or the clean install? I wont use anything like afterburner. the guy I got this from does have a custom bios for the gtx 880m 80.04.f8.00.1d? Thanks for any help again

 

I would do a clean install of any Os. Run Disk part command and wipe(clean)your old Os disk before installing new. Guidelines in the forum or on the web if you don't know how to do it. Mod vbios shouldn't be a problem.

 

Thanks for the advice.....I am running windows 10 now. do you think running gpu z would be ok? thanks again

 

Yeah no problem. Use whatever you want, but don't use Evga Precision X as stated You can use Evga... But only a older model version is safe(I can't remember the model version nr)

 

thanks again I was starting to wonder what to do since I paid $700 for this

 

Hi everybody, i am new to the forum but only wanted to share my experience with my Broken Alienware 18 monitor also. I talked about 6 diffferent computer shop specialist and they all told me that my screen had to be changed before i found the Mr.Fox solution. I purchased a 15 inch monitor and plugged into my Alienware 18 setup to start the process on the Linux solution.Everything worked really great for me and i can now say everyone can do it by themself if they have the patience tho. To be honest , i had more trouble installing back the freaking bezel properly then that. Thanks alot for pushing me to do it myself Fox. I am really proud of me -_- , Sincerely, Louis
Here's a little picture of my 15 inch monitor before the process.

https://postimg.org/image/q47sl7oqn/

 

Is there a way to install RTSS without having to install MSI afterburner?

Regards

Edit::
Nvm, got it.

 

Download latest RTSS beta from http://www.guru3d.com/files-details/rtss-rivatuner-statistics-server-download.html
Also latest full version in the link

 

375.70 with 880M SLI + Win10 Anniversary working fine here.

 

Sadly Microsoft is pushing users to upgrade to Windows 10, if we want to play the last games they are available only at W10. Is it safe for an AW18 user to upgrade to Windows 10? I do not use any EVGA software.

 

It should be fine as long as you stay far away from first build of Win Crap 10 and EVGA software.

 

Yep count me in ,,, My p375sm got infected, now i have been trying to install this ubuntu img for two days with no luck at all, changing many things in bios didn't help either all i get after i click in try ubuntu is black screen in cms mode or freeze with missed up graphics in uefi mode,,, any suggestions ? all i need to do is flash the firmware.

Edit,
i managed to use the original iso from ubuntu website, everything goes fine, so what to do next to flash the monitor, how can i get the EDID folder? I have read this thread twice and looking here and there couldn't find anything!

 

There isn't an EDID folder or tools on a stock iso, that's what the img is for. Now, does this new iso boot successfully on the P37SM with the bricked panel or on a different system?

 

Thank you t456 for you super contribution not just to this community but for the whole world, you saved many people not to buy a new screen, for me i am still in dilemma because i couldn't get your image run in my system, the official Ubuntu worked fine with the same system but the bricked panel is black and i am using an external monitor using HDMI, but until this moment and i was trying with your image but still no luck at all, i am just getting black screen or freezing screen if setting bios to uefi. i really need help to edid my monitor.

by the way my monitor works fine when the driver kicks in and i get to windows start screen, but i have to use a second monitor to access bios or Ubuntu or even safe-mode!

how can i get your image to work in my system?

 

Ah, but you do have an image on the second monitor when booting the live image? Or do you mean only on the stand-alone Ubuntu install? Either way things are good; neither the live image nor the clean install will have a working internal screen. All that matters is that the internal lcd can be accessed by the tools and re-flashed to a working edid.

Hmm ... also not sure I'm following things correctly; did you mean that the img worked before, but doesn't now? If so, then just rewrite it to the stick and it should work again. Remember that this image is not only live, but also persistent. This means that, apart from saving your wifi password, it'll also remember low-level changes that took place during boot time.

 

What i meant is, when installing the official Ubuntu things works fine but not showing anything on the laptop monitor it shows only on the external screen, but with your image nothing work at all for both screens,,,

 

Ok, that makes sense.

The image uses nouveau and you likely need to switch to nvidia's own driver for it to work (incompatibily with your card; which gpu is it?). Need a different system for that, of course. Would've done so myself and make a separate image seeing that others have had the same problem, but sadly don't have any compatible nvidia systems.

Alternatively (and probably easier), you can install the necessary tools on the working install and copy the required edid from the archive ( archive correct edids, v12.7z). Out of curiosity and for statistics; which panel is this?

The tools and script to install:

1. lm-sensors
2. i2c-tools
3. edid-rw
4. write-edid

Think there's a few prerequisites, but it's been ages, so ... can't remember any of it . At least on a separate install it will be much easier; no size constraints or hiccups and limits due to the rather ancient build. Mind the location where you install them and deviate from the instructions accordingly.

As the instructions also mention; the write-edid script blindly assumes address 50 and a 128 byte edid. So for a different address and/or a 256-byte edid you have to modify the script a little (the image has both versions).

 

Thank you t456 my panel is AUO149D / B173HW01 V4, I will be away for few days but diffidently will try to do that some time next week.

 

Good luck; that screen is a gem, so very well worth the effort to resurrect it. These are hard to find too, apart from 'compatible' models which are, of course, hardly comparable.

 

Sager np9370. win7 680m all I did was use evga precision x for about two days I don't usually turn off the computer. I installed intel xtu restarted and didn't have a screen. the laptops backlight is working but no screen have to use external screen. I think its part number is 6-50-nb260-d00. Where can I find a good EDID to reflash?

 

try the linux usb repair disk and use an apropriate edid from there or one close to your lcd as i did wih mine

 

what codes are in the files? I mean how do I find out what my monitor is? using the codes from on the image?

 

so i think my monitor was N173HGE-L21 but the panel.txt only has N173HGE-L11. also when i installed the linux img to a usb i dont have the write-edid folders to drop in the lcd bin?

i guess im just talking to myself now?

 

holy crap i finally figured it out....thanks so much i wish i could hug you. I guess i just didnt realize that everything was really on the img file. I kept looking for the instructions through windows. All i had to do was restart and boot from it and all instructions were there. i used the L-11.bin and it seems to be working i think the L-26 i have is the glossy version, i cant really figure out the difference.

 

Nice job !

The instructions were also in the post with the img link (under the 'unabridged' spoiler). But included them with img just in case the live distro didn't have the system-required lan or wlan drivers and, hence, no internet being available. Same with each of the tool's separate instruction sets; pages saved within the img as a local mime html.

And you're spot-on; the L21/CMO1726 edid is 1:1 identical to that of the L11/CMO1720. Even the colour coordinates are the same, so it's merely the name that is different and the glossy vs. matte, but that has no bearing on the edid.

 

dear all - today I have managed to follow t456 guide and resurrect my laptop (dead from November last year) ... i went with the culprit to warranty and my screen was changed 4 times (also my motherboard was changed 2 times ) - thank you so much for the guide in previous post t456, and for the dedication and hard work.
Truly appreciated.