Overclocking CPU on NP8690

I’m in the market to buy a 15-16” high performance laptop and I’m strongly leaning towards Sager NP8690.

Can you overclock the CPU and GPU on NP8690? I guess you can overclock the GPU by RivaTuner but does the BIOS let you overclock i7-920XM or i7-720QM and i7-820QM?

I guess there is an option to overclock at least the i7-920XM cpu through BIOS but I want to make sure this works in NP8690 before I purchase it. Do I need to purchase the laptop originally with the i7-920XM from SAGER to receive the BIOS that enables overclocking features?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5947135&postcount=97

In the case ATI or GeForce releases a better GPU card that is compatible with the MXM slot on the NP8690, will an upgrade be possible?

One last question is how is SAGER on warranty and service issues, especially considering the fact that I live in Istanbul, Turkey and all parts will have to be sent overseas?

Thank you.

 

Hello neighbor ;-) I'm also living in Istanbul right now.

The 720QM and 820QM cannot be overclocked unless with some hardware mod, but nothing has been done in that direction so far.

If you ask for the bios version with overclocking enabled you should be able to overclock your i7-920XM via bios. However, that version is old and the newer bios versions are recommended. You can still overclock the i7-920XM under Windows using software.

An upgrade will be possible. Nvidia will release their next card end of June, beginning of July. That card will most likely be MXM 3.0b and therefore fit into the laptop. Any future card may or may not be MXM 3.0b, but it is expected that this standard will last for another year or so. There will definitely be more MXM 3.0b cards, just maybe not the utmost high end cards.

Why don't you just order the laptop from one of the European resellers? It will be cheaper than shipping the laptop over to the US for everything.

 

Hey there neighbor. The weather is great lately here, huh?

When you say “if you ask for the Bios version with overclocking enabled…”, do you mean I can order the NP8690 from SAGER with BIOS version that has overclocking enabled or disabled?

I haven’t heard of overclocking i7-920XM in a laptop using Windows software. You are not talking about RmClock or ClockGen, right? I have yet to see somebody actually overclock the CPU on their laptop with these software.

I have a friend coming from NY in couple weeks and I will have her bring me a laptop. I’m trying to decide on what to buy.

 

Yeah, I really enjoyed the last days, weather was great... unfortunetely not today :-( Always sone crazy weather changes in Istanbul ;-)

Back to the topic. If you ask SAGER to send the laptop with the bios version that has overclocking enable, they should do it. One German reseller, mySN, told me they would do that, but only if I ask for it. There is also bios version for the W870CU flying around that you could download here and that has overclocking ability in bios. But no version for the W860CU is available for open download, as far as I know, and although from the E-Mail I got, it looked like mySN told me that they have a bios version with overclocking ability for the W860CU as well, I'm not 100% sure if this is the case.

For overlcocking you can use eVGA's E-LEET Tuning Utility. RMClock, ClockGen and older stuff will not work, because the i7 has no FSB. Also overclocking will work different than you may think. You can only increase the Turbo Mode multiplicator. The CPU will still - on its own - decide when to use the higher multiplicator. So if it gets too hot, it will never use the overclocked multiplicator. And too hot means something like over 60°C. Since the i7-920XM is a 55W TDP CPU it may go over the 60°C threshold easily and then Turbo Mode will not be used. It is not possible to deactivate Turbo Mode to fix the clock at rates such as 2.2 GHz. The bios overclocking would work the same way, only allowing you to raise the Turbo Mode multiplicator a bit.

Could be a good idea to let your friend from NY bring the laptop. In Germany custom controls would kill you but so far nobody ever checked my luggage on the way in, at Sabiha Gökçen or Atatürk Airport (thing he would land at Atatürk, eh?). But if he lands at another airport in the EU wirst, he may get a lot of trouble with customs. Your not allowed to bring electronics in that are above 400 or 600 euro of value without paying customs duty which is extremely high in these cases + if they discover it they will fine you for trying to avoid customs duties. Just so you know. That's what kept me from buying the laptop in the US when the euro was so strong... would have saved me a lot of money but now it does not really make a difference anymore.

 

My friend will directly bring it with her to Ataturk Airport with no box so there won’t be any issues. Having said that I think the 42.18Wh battery of NP8690 is a joke.

I am leaning towards buying a G73JH or G51JX-A1.

How can I download EVGA E-LEET Tuning Utility software?

Thanks.

 

For G73, you will have to wait for a long time. While G51 is severely underpowered compared to 8690, while the G51 with 260M GTX version is still severely underpowered compared to 5870MR, moreover, the 260M GTX have tons of overheating and BSOD issues, therefore, I won't recommend that you go anywhere near a G51.

 

What do you people expect? You cannot have high end components AND long battery life unless there is a dedicated GPU and an integrated GPU. But that is no option yet and even then a CPU like the i7 920XM would eat your battery alive even if it downclocks. In any case even if you could disable such strong components, the laptop has a certain weight as copper is needed for good cooling and copper is heavy. One cannot really complain about low battery life on a high end laptop. Why would you run it on battery anyway? The main reason to buy a high end laptop is power. But you don't have that power on battery anyway as no battery has the power output needed to run those components at maximum performance. If you really need mobility and carry the laptop around everyday, then even if the W860CU had a long battery life, its weight is just too much plus I wouldnt want to carry my 1600 € machine in a crowded Minibus in Istanbul ;-)

We are all spending too much money on a high end laptop anyway, so just spend some more and get a cheap netbook, then you have awesome performance and awesome battery life. There are enough programs out nowadays that help you keep both laptops perfectly synchronized.

 

You can download eLeet from here: http://www.mediafire.com/?kdyz0tzytjy.

Have to have a 920XM to use it, and then it has limited utility because of power restrictions. The overclocked CPU can't get enough juice to operate at the elevated multipliers.

 

How to resolve this ?