Possible GPU upgrade for Precision M4600

You actually can do 4K/30Hz on DisplayPort 1.1 without an adapter. I was referring to 4K/60Hz which is what most people want. For that, you need DisplayPort 1.2 or HDMI 2.0.

 

Ok great! I am still debating if i want to purchase a 4k monitor only to run it at 30hz. I just can't justify a computer upgrade because i have all that i need with the M4600 for now. I thought about grabbing another precision in a few years but can't drop that cash yet. Anyways, what are the best GPU that can be installed in these machines these days? I have been looking at the AMD M5100 but it looks like more recently there have been others that work? I will keep searching...

Thank You again!

-Ulysses

 

No.

M5100 and w5170m are the best GPU's these laptops can accept. I would go with the w5170m just to get the extra features added to the same core. Though if no application you use can take advantage of DX12 / Vulkan and if the m5100 can be had cheaper than just get that instead.

With the m4700 the best gpu is the 965m.

 

I am not really sure what DX12/Vulkan are. I mainly use Adobe software editing photos. I plan to get into video in the next few years and will upgrade when i see the need. I recently realized that i had been working with an AC adapter that was not providing the accurate 180watts that it was rated for and i was loosing a lot of my performance (turbo boost). Along with the fact that the fans were "gunked up" with dust between the fans and the heat sink that had been slowly packed in there since I got the machine in 2012. It definitely feels like a new machine now this it can breathe and cool properly.

Thanks for your input.

- Ulysses

 

So i did some more homework and determined that i CAN benefit from the W5170m GPU because of the accelaration feature in adobe lightroom that requires DX12. So what part number should i be looking for???? I know that for the M5100 there are the blue, green and red cards that are different (red being the correct one for the M4600).

Requirements from Adobe:
Graphics processor acceleration requirements

• AMD: Radeon GPU with DirectX 12 or OpenGL 3.3 support.
• Intel: Skylake or newer GPU with DirectX 12 support.
• NVIDIA: GPU with DirectX 12 or OpenGL 3.3 support.
• OpenGL 3.3 and DirectX 10-capable video adapter for GPU-related functionality.
  
• 1 GB of Video RAM (VRAM). 2 GB of dedicated VRAM (4 GB recommended) for large, high-resolution monitors, such as 4K- and 5K-resolution monitors.

Thank you for your input!!

- Ulysses

 

Punk_Oll,

Were you able to get the W5170m working in the M4600? I am curious to hear about your experience. Did you say you had an IPS panel?

Thank You

Ulysses

 

Anyone know the reallife speed difference between M5950 and W5170M?
I have M5950 now but always willing to upgrade

 

What do you mean by Real Life speed difference? It defintely is an upgrade from what other has stated and the numbers show that as well. Just depends on what you do and if its worth the upgrade for the price you pay. I am actually in the same boat looking for the AMD FirePro M5100 because they can be had somewhat cheaper for the most part and are proven to be direct swaps. I have not heard much of the W5170m upgrade even though I have discovered the M5100 to be just about the same performance if running on Windows 7. If you already have Windows 10 loaded you might want to do some more digging if you can benefit from DX12 (only works on WIN10) or Open GL 4.4. See below some comparisons.

http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-FirePro-W5170M-vs-AMD-FirePro-M5100-FireGL-V/m67974vsm12267
https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/...irePro-M5950-vs-FirePro-M5100/3470vs233vs2818
http://gpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-FirePro-M5950--vs-AMD-FirePro-M5100-FireGL-V/m9906vsm12267

Hope that helps.

Ulysses

 

It has been 3 months since i upgraded to firepro m4000. My m4600 is working great now.

The only issue i got last month was sudden shutdown. I found out that when i select Ultra Performance power plan, the system just randomly shutdown and i cannot restart if i dont unplug and then plug the adapter. This issue seems like some sort of thermal problem but it just happen randomly, even when idle. The issue happen more frequent when i play Starcraft 2 or in the afternoon when the temperature is highest. The weather is really hot last month though, sometimes reach 40C and I dont have air conditioner at home. And the bottom of the machine get really hot especially near the docking connector.

Anyway, selecting balanced power plan fix the problem somehow. The cool power plan keep the fan running and really lower the temp but it also limit the cpu. Tried to create custom power plan with Cool fan control policy but it always limit CPU.
The GPU fan always top at 35%. The temp is fine, though it would be better if it can run faster. I tried Dell fan ultility but no luck.

My next upgrade will be an external monitor. My m4600 panel start to leak light at the corner. It is like having a small white curved triangle at every corner.

 

Have you looked into the cooling system? These old machines can build up lots of dust accumulation where the fan is located and will block airflow (I just recently had this issue and it has changed everything for me!) and not allow the cooling system to perform as designed. Changing the thermal paste can be a culprit and the system will shut down on high temps for protection. You might even have a similar issue that i did when running in Ultra Performance (although mine didnt shut down) and it will stop all power till temps are right.

Hope you get it figured out.

Ulysses