Alienware m14x Bios questions!

Hi,

I just got my i5 2430m m14x and im very very happy so far, i have had no real issues so far like a crooked spacebar or the keyboard scratching the screen.. also the build quality seems excellent, im pleasantly surprised

I have the bios a05 btw since this is a newer m14x.. The only thing that bugs me a bit, is that the fan spins even when im doing light tasks like browsing and skyping (with webcam) I have read that the stock a05 sets the first fan kick in at 55 degrees, which seems legit, since alot of users report that they have idle temps of 45 -55 (but in most cases i7 users)

Now I have a few questions about the various Bioses

1. If I flash the unlocked a05 bios, will I be able to reflash the stock a05 bios?

2. Can I flash an older Bios like the a03 or a01, even when im on a05?

3. Does the stock a05 allow hotter temperatures then the a01 or a03 (Thats what ninjahunter wrote for example)

4. Are there any risks involved when flashing the unlocked a05 bios? And how does this work? I would guess via windows executable, im not that computer savvy but often people say this is the unsafest way of flashing your bios, they often recommend flashing via something bootable (although im not sure how) If there are any risks, are their ways of rescuing the bios without disassembling the m14x?

5. And the last Question: What does the Voltage Mod do exactly? And is this combined with the unlocked a05 bios?

Sorry for the many questions, but im thinking about flashing the unlocked a05 bios and setting the fan speeds myself (for example that the fan kicks in at 60)

Thanks in advance

 

Yes you can flash back to the stock A05 bios.

I believe it is possible to flash an older bios. I've never tried it, but never heard of any issues doing it either...

What do you mean allow for hotter temperatures?

All dell bioses are flashed via a windows executable now. It's not the safest way if your computer is unstable, but it's fine in 99% of the cases. I've flashed so many bioses over the past years in windows, I could never count the amount of times.
Here is a link to the M17x recovery bios procedure, which should be applicable to the M14x if something goes wrong.

A voltage mod does exactly what it sounds like. It allows you to increase or decrease the voltage going to the GPU. Increasing typically allows for an increase in overclockability, where as decreasing allows it to run cooler. I haven't seen any voltage mods coupled with the unlocked A05 bios, but I haven't really looked into it. If you're not comfortable flashing the standard unlocked bios, I would hold off on a voltage modded bios.

 

1&2. You can always change what bios you are on with ease going from old to new

3. what do you mean by allowing hotter temps, examples please

4.Its always an at your own risk type of thing, i have changed a setting in my bios and completely bricked my laptop but there is a recovery file i can give you if you corrupt your bios and it is easily recovered

5. i have and love the voltage mod, i have pushed my gt 555m to 850mhz running stable, it does get a little hotter but just dont block the fans and your good, there is a voltage mod for the a01 a03 and a05 bios, i can give you more info about it if you like

 

hi with allowing higher temps i mean that the a05 bios is supposed to keep the fans quieter even at full load with the cost of the cpu running a bit hotter than on the a03 or a01 while being really loud

oh and thx for the answers!

which fan speed settings would you recommend??

i mean which fan table ?

Like 60 degrees 3000 rpm, 70 degress 3500 rpm etc.. since i have no clue about it xD

I think i will flash the unlocked bios then

 

You will get this.

 

Do you have a vmodded modded A05 bios? I'd like to pick up a few more clocks on my 555, but I can't live without the modded A05 bios.

 

[Mod] Voltage increase Nvidia GT 555M - Page 7

 

c69k, i got the idea of changing the fan speed from one of your posts!

You wrote that you use minimal fan speed at 60 degrees for example! could you please show me your exact fan speeds, because it seems that your screenshot shows the stock fan settings, maybe a screenshot aain?

i dont want to add any risk to my m14x

thanks in advance

 

Yes, the screenshot is from default settings. My current settings are:

shut down....100
low fan speed....65
low fan temp.....65
High fan speed....100
high fan temp.....75
throttle....90c....important one for CPU demanding games

Please note that I have re-pasted GPU and CPU with IC7 Diamond, so I never get over 82c since on processor and 70c on graphics (BF3 two hours Single player gameplay 1600x900, all maxed, no AA). Before repasting I saw max 98c for processor, and about 78c for graphics. Please monitor your temps, especially the processor. I just saw you have i5 2430m!!! Then your processor should run colder than mine and my settings should do fine for your system.

 

many msny thx friend !

in my case i wasnt concerned about max temperature but about thr fan spinning while doing light tasks.. seems like you had the same problems

thx again friend

 

I asked this in another thread, but embarrassingly cant find it!

Is it possible to underclock the i7 to get lower temps but overclock the gpu and by doing so do you end up with better fps/more stable system?

 

I turned off turbo and hyperthreading on my i7 and it runs quite cool.

 

btw c69k, you are getting the best max temperatures i have seen so far from any quadcore i7 in the m14x.. many ppl did the repaste but most of them say it only drops about 3 degrees max..

did you undervolt your i7 or did you take any other steps?

I actually only bought the i5 2430m, not because of the cheaper price, but because it stays alot cooler and even with turbo boost, the max temperature it reaches is about 80 degrees +-

theoretically i could overclock it with the unlocked a05

 

Unfortunately there is no overclocking or undervolting in any laptop with a second gen i7/i5 processor (outside of an XM in something that supports it).
You can use throttle stop to keep the processor running in turbo mode, but that's the best you can do.

 

You could easily undervolt the CPU, but it requires a hardware mod.

 

didn you write this?

So its not an official way of undervolting but it is one?

And is it possible to limit the turbo boost to like 2.4 ghz instead of 2.9?

 

I'm interested in this. Links?

I did write that, so you can limit the amount of current going to the cpu (which happens to limit the turbo boost). The voltage that goes to the cpu is determined by the frequency it is operating at. Undervolting would allow you set the vid lower than what the frequency requirements are. My choice of words for undervolting was poor as the voltage is predetermined based on the operating frequency.
For instance, it wants 1.181v to run at 2.3ghz. With an undervolt I'm sure you could run it at 1.081v at 2.3ghz...
Hopefully that makes sense.

 

Yes, I was very surprised to see so much DELL paste. I believed in IC 7 diamond, read a lot reviews, and here we go. Please note, in idle I see almost no diff (2-3c), but under load it REALLY shows. And I also have an SSD, so no extra heat and no DVD drive and freshly cleaned vents.

I have processor OC to the max allowed by the system (103.1, 55, 56, 99). And my laptop is 2 cm above my table (2 thick permanent marker pens under).

 

Well, it's similar to what I've done with my 6970m (see here), but to decrease the voltage you need to increase the resistance between the feedback pin of the VR and ground.

You'll need to disassemble your machine, find the voltage regulator of the CPU, then the datasheet and then you can start modding.

 

How did you turn of hyperthreading? Does the stock alienware bios allow making this change?