Dell Precision 7540 and 7740 Owner's Thread

HI everyone
I am giving up on this dell 7740 will try to return it.
I've hard nothing but problems with it, it might just be mine, but can't not recommend it to anyone.
I do hope I am the only one.

 

It's not you...

 

Hi,
Is BIOS 1.4.0 (Precision_7X40_1.4.0.exe) pulled back by mistake or on purpose from list of drivers & downloads?
Today is there is only version 1.3.3 (Precision_7X40_1.3.3.exe)
New computers from factory are delivered with BIOS 1.4.0.

 

Have you tried using it in dedicated GPU only mode, with the nVidia ISV driver from the Dell support site?

 

Thanks, this worked. Looks like I head a bad paste application, as only core4 was getting to 100c. I also got a strange spot on the chip, looks like a patch of rough surface which wasn't there last time I opened it up, most probably got it from all the excessive heat.

Spoiler: Photos

And corresponding patch on the heatsink

At any rate, it got better after another repaste and washer mod. Temp peaks at 96C, then stays at around 80 under full load once the fan kicks in. Good enough I guess.

 

Hello guys, I just joined the Precision 7540 group.

I was able to snag the following for $891 (I originally got 7530, but Dell did not have my configuration in stock and upgraded me to the below). I do not use a discrete GPU as I always use eGPUs for any heavy workloads (ML/AI).

15.6" UltraSharp FHD IPS, 1920x1080 AG, NT, w/Prem Panel Guar 100% sRGB
15.6" FHD Non-touch, WLAN/WWAN Cover
15.6" FHD Non-touch, Cam/Mic Bezel
Intel® UHD Graphics P630
Intel® Xeon E-2276M, 6 Core Xeon, 12M Cache, 2.80GHz up to 4.70GHz Turbo, 45W, vPro
6 Cell 97 Whr Long Life Cycle Lithium Ion Polymer Battery(3 Years Warranty)
Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2x2 .11ax 160MHz
M.2 256GB PCIe NVMe Class 40 Solid State Drive
8GB, 1x8GB, DDR4 2666MHz Non-ECC Memory


I will be upgrading the SSD and the RAMs.

1. I got 2 of Western Digital Black SN750 1TB NVMe SSD. Will these play nicely with the 7540?
2. I will also be getting 2 of G.SKILL Ripjaws SO-DIMM 16GB 260-Pin DDR4 SO-DIMM DDR4 3200 (PC4 25600). Will these play nicely with the 7540?
3. Are there any throttling issues that I should be aware of for the Xeon E-2276M? I would assume heat/performance will be better considering I am not running a dGPU inside.

Thank you for all your help guys!

 

No problem using nvme ssd in all slots.

Even though Dell sells 7540/7740 with 3200mhz ram option, several users have reported here compatibility issues with sticks purchased by their own. Just go for hyperx cl15 @2666mhz 2x16gb and you're good to go.
Remember that with this type of ram you won't get data parity check, a feature enabled by intel on xeon processors provided you have ecc ram of course.
For this you have to look for one of these (they're all 2666mhz but cl19):

Samsung M474A2K43BB1-CTD
SK Hynix HMA82GS7CJR8N-VK
Crucial CT16G4TFD8266

Basically 2276m is a slightly worse binned i9-8950hk. On 6c/12t cpus, Dell has set PL1=60W and PL2=90W (but you should be able to go over if you read last messages in this thread).

Code:

             C/T        L3      TDP      Base          1           2           3           4           5           6
E-2276M      6/12      12 MB    45 W    2.8 GHz     4.7 GHz     4.7 GHz     4.6 GHz     4.5 GHz     4.4 GHz     4.2 GHz
i9-8950HK    6/12      12 MB    45 W    2.9 GHz     4.8 GHz     4.8 GHz     4.7 GHz     4.5 GHz     4.4 GHz     4.3 GHz

If useful, take a look at this user's experience who has 7530 with i9-8950hk+quadro p2000
http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...0-owners-thread.820539/page-139#post-10819355

7530 and 7540 have identical chassis and heatsinks.

He claimed that:
-100 mV, I get a stable 4.6 GHz on single core. Multicore gives 4.2 GHz and then throttles down to 4 GHz, but stays there
(http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...0-owners-thread.820539/page-140#post-10819920)

At -145 mV CPUs are able to sustain 4.2 GHz on all cores (no throttling)
(http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...0-owners-thread.820539/page-141#post-10820088)

These results were achieved without repasting.

May i ask you if you can check the panel model on your unit ?
Could you post a screenshot like this: https://shurikenskribbles.files.wordpress.com/2018/09/hwinfo.png to see complete specs of your display ?
The software is called 'HWinfo' and you can download it from here: https://www.hwinfo.com/download/

I want to see if Dell is now offering 8-bit panels even on FHD ones.

 

I would love to do this for you, but my order hasn't actually shipped yet.

For the RAM, i did some research and I decided to opt for the 2x of G.SKILL Ripjaws SO-DIMM 16GB 260-Pin DDR4 SO-DIMM DDR4 3200.

I chose the 3200mhz to make myself more future-proof. Also, I don't really have a use for the ECC memory for now on the laptop (I do use them in my desktop).

 

Does anybody have/had issues with the charger? After the weekend I started the laptop connected to the port replicator. Once logged in I get the message that it is not charging. Only way to use it continuously right now is to disconnect the battery and just use the charger.

 

Yes. The panel is 8-bit. See my earlier post regarding my recently purchased 7540 with Glossy Ultrasharp FHD Screen with Touch. Attached below as well for easy reference.



After using for sometime, I feel the screen is as good as the FHD option of XPS 15 2-in-1, which is known to be one of the best panels out there.