*OFFICIAL* Alienware 17 R5 Owner's Lounge

Since Alienware 17 R5 has been announced, might as well make the discussion for this model official with a dedicated owner's thread.

For those who missed the announcement, here it is
https://www.anandtech.com/show/12605/dells-8th-gen-alienware-laptops-and-monitors

For USA market, here is the link
http://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/alienware-17-gaming-laptop/spd/alienware-17-laptop

Software Changes

New 17 R5 comes with a unified Alienware command center and overclocking tool which is the same software you will find on a desktop alienware.

You'll also get some extra zones to color customize as Alienware is adding three additional spots for a grand total of 13 zones. In addition, Alienware is greatly expanding the color choices from 20 to a 16.8 million hues.

Alienware is slowly shifting their software/apps to Microsoft Store. Alienware Mobile Connect, Command center and OC tools are some of the Microsoft Store examples.

Hardware Changes

Top end configuration now comes with 8th Generation Intel® Core™ i9-8950HK (6-Core, 12MB Cache, Overclocking up to 5.0GHz)

Hardware wise, it's pretty much the same as the late 17 R4. However, there is the Tobii eye tracking hardware which is yet to be confirmed. 17 R4 is using the Tobii Eye tracking 4C IS4 platform but 17 R5 appears to be using the older discontinued Tobii EyeX platform based on the driver release information. Below are the references

https://tobiigaming.com/products/
http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/19/drivers/driversdetails?driverId=XYMPT

Internally, it has been shown in one of the pictures in the service manual to feature the same tripod design we all hate but this time, the top CPU tension arm has been bulked up significantly. The bad news is, because of the new heatsink tension arm design, the screw arrangement for that tension arm has shifted. In plain english, it's not compatible with current R4. Sorry guys.

New R5 also feature an updated thermal design inside, dubbed Alienware Crytek v2.0, includes a brand new vapor chamber for the CPU and an updated fan design allowing for 50% smaller blades and better performance. (claimed 10% faster over previous system)

RAM has been updated to support up to 2666MHz which is in line with 8th Gen Coffee Lake.

Externally, there is now a new epic black color to choose from in addition to the existing epic gray.

Dell is now using anodized aluminum and magnesium alloy in the chassis, steel reinforcements, saying these updates increase stiffness and rigidity while still remaining thin and without sacrificing performance. The weight however remains the same at 4.42Kg

Accessibility to the internals is via a thin aluminum panel using a simplified new bottom door mechanism said to be rigid and not impact the dimensions (though from service manual it looks exactly the same as previous model).

 

Hi!

Need more informations!!!

 

Easy, copy the whole 17R4 owner's Lounge thread and replace 4 cores by 6 cores.

 

hahaha... i believe there's a little more to that (details in thread #1).. but yeah, 6 cores pretty much sums it up

 

Ordered i9 with UHD IPS panel in Canada we have the option between QHD and UHD - (US only has option for QHD) I hope I made the right decision choosing the 60hz UHD IPS vs the 120hz QHD TN panel...)

 

Congrates! For gaming, the QHD 120Hz is really good. but if you are more towards content creation, UHD is a good choice too. besides, you will have a hard time pushing past 60fps with a GTX1080 on a UHD resolution

 

Here is mine,

17.3 inch UHD (3840 x 2160) 60Hz IPS Anti-Glare 300-nits NVIDIA G-SYNC with Tobii IR Eye-tracking

NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GTX 1080 with 8GB GDDR5X

8th Generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-8950HK (6-Core, 12MB Cache, Overclocking up to 5.0GHz)

 

it can be solved. if there could be a small bracket like object, attached to the tension arm, you can relocate the tension screw hole. but, the obvious problem becomes the pressure. it maybe won't press the heatsink down hard enough anymore, but that could be countered, by bending the top arm.

Edit: Attached a picture

 

The thing that makes me mad the most about having just purchased an R4 is that the R5 has a black variant lol

 

Dell claims the new cooling system (Vapor chamber?) allows the CPU to run 10% cooler. That should give the GPU a bit more headroom, so I'll be curious to see the fire strike scores on this.

I had the R4 with GTX 1070 and was very impressed with it.

I ordered same -

17.3 inch UHD (3840 x 2160) 60Hz IPS Anti-Glare 300-nits NVIDIA G-SYNC with Tobii IR Eye-tracking

NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GTX 1080 with 8GB GDDR5X

8th Generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-8950HK (6-Core, 12MB Cache, Overclocking up to 5.0GHz)

 

I'm considering buying a R17 R5 model from HID but still for some reason in two minds! (it's this or the Aorus V7 V8 DT)

is this a good choice? i see so many people say they have issues with their AW laptop...

 

That configuration would work fine. The 8750H / GTX 1070 should not even get close to the heat generated by the 8950HK / GTX 1080, so you likely could get by without repasting too. In theory the new model will have CPU Performance Mode available for the 8750H so TDP can be unlocked to support operating at higher speeds on many cores. Keep in mind that with a GSync panel you will not likely not be able to activate optimus mode, so battery life will be 2-3 hours instead of 7-8.

I would suggest getting more than a one-year warranty on it, but with Dell you can always purchase an extension as long as it is still covered, so you can wait if budget is a concern.

Another option if you do not need the QHD panel is this:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/alienw...-1tb-hard-drive-black/6228319.p?skuId=6228319

 

@alexnvidia
I surely hope this doesn't become a problem solving thread crossing 2000 pages instantly. I hope Dell fixes most issues from the factory.

 

well brother it seems to become sh*tshow number 3. brought to you by DELL and ALIENWARE TM. he repasted the TIM for grizzy kryonaught, and starts benching from the 24:00:00 minute mark. temps shoot up immediately, and it shows there is almost no thermal headroom to oc, let alone 5 Ghz. again only LM can keep the temps down (as suspected) in this thin of a chassis.

he starts benchmarking on @4 Ghz and after a minute the temps rise to a temperature of 84 C celsius and won't be pushed around. the wattage is of around 98 to 101.56 watts max. Around 32 minutes he starts to play bf 1. and again, temps rise to around 89 C celsius, this time the cpu manages to keep it's speed most of the times, and was a little bit more prommesing. but if this was supposed to show cryo-tech V2.0, i have to say i'm fairly dissapointed. the new AW command center looks nice, but in now way justifyable, not to port it back to the older models. you have software and hardware, and it seems to me that if a company cannot keep those apart from eachother (while letting them work with eachother in tandem) they have alot to learn. razor have laptops came equipped almost since the beginning of razor with Per Key RGB lightning, even in their chroma keyboards. and only now AW has been able to implement it.

the new ASUS zephyrus, comes with a gsync 120Hz display, AND optimus ! it is not something that's neccesary, but i feel like AW been milking people the last year, when there WAS a option to give us just one MOBO (gsync enabled) and a choice of a screen equiped with gsync or without (so you would give people the option to walk the upgrade path later on).

I think AW is trying to pull an Apple, and they're failing hard but this is just my opinion. i used to love those laptops out of the box, now they're no better than any other desktop replacement with lights and BGA motherboard.


Edit: @36:25 to 39:00 it even reaches 95 C degrees ! and shifts from core to core it's not looking good for AW

 

One of the cores spiked to 99c! The rest were around 85-92.

If that were stock... I'd say it's a marginal improvement, but you say those are repasted grizzly temps??

 

Depends what you have now, if you have an r4, I wouldn’t buy an r5 and I’d wait till July/August for nvidias new gpus. If you game at 4k the new 6 core cpus will offer nothing for gaming. Buy off the outlet if you really want to buy pascal gpu now...

it’s a shame Alienware won’t offer the 8750H or 8850h with gtx1080, as I suspect temps will limit the hk cpu getting anywhere near 5ghz never mind maintaining a stable speed. And prices are redicolous in the uk

 

Stock i9-8950Hk run 4.3GHz on all 6 cores. And the notebook can’t hold stock clocks. What with the advertised 5.0GHz ? I know it’s for only 1 core as usual from Dell but the stock 6 cores Oc profile should be well above stock clocks. Not below stock clocks.

 

OEMS saw your TS screenie all over this forum and simply posted 5GHz clocks.
@Mr. Fox Are you terrified or did you know BGA actually hit the power wall and thermal headroom?

 

Terrified? About? I am not sure what you mean. Can you maybe elaborate a bit?

 

What 17 r5 still have overheting problem?

Sent from my CPH1723 using Tapatalk

 

Right now i'm on a PC (i5 3570k!) but as i'm travelling/moving abroad to the states then i'm in the market for a good laptop and as i'll have alot of downtime... i wanted to do some gaming, probably not in 4k as i'm not killing my budget on that (id need a damn good monitor im sure) i've always liked the look of Alienware but i hear so many problems about them, not even sure if the Aorus are any good either...

 

WHAT THE HELL??

ONE OF THE CORES DROPPED TO 800 MHZ AT 36:28, FOR ONE SECOND!
I KID YOU NOT !!

@Papusan !!!!!

 

Wait the real, long and good tests.

 

Sure, why we should trust plain user we need pro (paid) review

 

is there no revision from alienware r4?

it seems there is no more problem overheating on alienware 17 r5

Sent from my CPH1723 using Tapatalk

 

I was asking about false advertising and all those crap which BGA can never reach without proper cooling.

 

No CPU can reach speeds BGA, LGA, FPGA if the cooling is insufficient. Notebookcheck.net reviewed a Clevo a few weeks back that also couldnt hold its boost under load.

I guess AMD needs to step up in the laptop market and offer true alternatives.

 

Oh, ok. That makes more sense now. No, it does not terrify me. It does not affect me personally, as I do not allow for accommodation of garbage. Although, I do find that the mere knowledge of these issues is truly disgusting.

 

For those who have the QHD 120hz screen (i don't think Alienware change the panel beetween R4 and R5)
Here the pantone profile for the QHD 120Hz monitor of the X7DT v7
Monitor Name: AU Optronics [Unknown Model: AUO1496]
Monitor Name (Manuf): AUO B173QTN01.4

http://dl.free.fr/hHzpHknty

For using it https://pcmonitors.info/articles/using-icc-profiles-in-windows/
enjoy

 

Thank you @Tonrac. French P4G spirit

 

ordered mine today got a system swap for my broken AW17r1 (4800MQ, GTX780,120Hz 3D) to an AW17R5 (i9 8950HK, GTX1080, 120Hz QHD, 256gb SSD, 1TB HDD). In the confirmation of my order they tell me the 23.april as delivery date... Dont belive that...

 

Whoa thats quite and upgrade.

 

Yeah, u cant believe how happy i am at the moment. Will repaste it with LM when it is here...
Hope to achieve 4.5ghz on all cores

 

So ... LOL you had like what warranty from Dell?

 

i was considering this myself, what is your experience with AW and would you think it's a good upgrade?

 

Please share stress test result

Sent from my CPH1723 using Tapatalk

 

Will do this should be here in the first week of may

I had premuim on site service from Dell. They tried to repair it since mid of january and after 35 mails and hours on the phone they told me to exchange it with a new one. Had to pay 400 euros to upgrade from 1070 to 1080.

 

Waiting stress test

 

i expect throttling under heavy load (BF1) below 3,5ghz. We will see... maybe Dell can surprise us ... wait... dont jinx it

 

Rinneh, I would like to have a conversation with you on the DC-IN cable issue on AW 15 r2 which melted the case. I will create a separate post.

 

Saw it and responded to it!

 

Its going to be a very grey area now. Intel now states that the 45watt tdp is only for the base clock. 3.2ghz on all cores eats about 95watt now.

But now a customer cant state that Intel is at fault and that the CPU isnt runnings to its specifications now. Because they do not claim that the CPU's should be able to run at full boost 24/7. Its kinda sad no review site questioned Intel about this.

 

There was a video anywhere in this Forum, an Asian test of the new aw17. He played BF1 and the gtx1080 was utilized 100%. The 8950HK was able to hold its boost at 4,3ghz all the time (except the thermal throttle)...

so I think with repaste at least 4ghz allcore with acceptable temps are possible.

@rinneh sure...clocks below 3,5ghz isn't throttling per definition but you know what I mean ... lets say it more exact: I expect clocks below 3.5ghz allcore with stockpaste and temps in the upper 8Xs

 

Im curious about the first user experiences with these machines. Keep us posted!

 

yeah already searched the net about first user impressions... but it seems no one got his 8950 notebook delivered yet.

 

In this case, what is the point of paying for an unlocked 8950HK, instead of getting a 8850H which will run at the exact same frequencies ?

 

The 8850H also drops its frequency after prologned use.

 

the 8850H has a locked TDP and throttles down to 45w after 28 Seconds... For me there is still no sense buying this CPU. Noteboockcheck tested the 8750 and 8950HK. The 8750s clock was jumping between 2,6ghz and 3,6ghz due to the powerlimit. Ingame the FPS would go up and down between 60 and 90 FPS. A NoGo for me

AND: even if the 8850H would be the better choice over the 8950HK.... Dell is not offering it...guess why

 

That's precisely my point

 

you forgot to quote the first part of my sentence, which is precisely my point

,, even if the 8850H would be the better choice over the 8950HK,, that mean it isn't the better choice