How loud is Alienware M14x R2? Need your impressions!

Hi guys,

I'm going to order a new Alienware M14x R2 setup. Likely I will go with 3840QM CPU. So I need some fresh impressions about how noisy is M14x's fan?
It's not a problem if it will make some noise due gaming sessions and heavy loads but I want to have a really silent machine in idle, browsing or torrents etc.
How do you think: can M14x handle a such task? Any thoughts?

Thank you in advance!

 

It's a loud machine when gaming, and the fan does turn on when you browse and do such mundane tasks and is not a silent machine when idle. I highly suggest you go with ASUS G55 or G46 they are some of the quietest (if not the quietest) gaming laptops even when gaming, are cheaper, and through HIDevolution you can customize your own ASUS. If you read through the forums many people are having heat issues with their M14x in which even a repaste of the CPU/GPU does not help, meaning the fan is on all the time even when idle. Stay away from Alienware honestly there are far better alternatives now that weren't available before.

 

I disagree with thegame4ever in almost every point here. I didn't have any heat issues nor did I repaste, and my machine is dead silent while browsing / torrents etc, the fan once kicked in while playing a flash-game, but on lowest level. But as thegame4ever already mentioned, it is a kinda loud machine while gaming, but every laptop has his fan kick in while gaming.
The thing with the heat-issues was mainly there with the first version of the m14x, the r1, but compared with the heatsink and heat-management from the r2, it's like day and night.
There sure are cheaper alternatives, but you won't get the solid build quality of an alienware, nor find it's super customer service anywhere else (the one from ASUS sucks by the way, bad experiences I had to make..).

Plus, I personally think bashing against an alienware laptop in an alienware forum isn't a thing you should do, but hey, freedom of expression to anyone

 

I read that it was a pretty loud machine, but I havent really found that to be the case. I mean, the fan spins when gaming but it's about as loud as you'd expect most notebooks to be when under stress.

 

I've found that my M14x R2 does not have any problem with sound while doing simple tasks. I use mine alot while taking notes in my university lectures. I've found that in those situations while simply taking notes, reading PDFs, and browsing the web, my alienware is as silent as my girlfriends mac. Mind you, I do have some special setting and configurations in place to achieve this, but nonetheless, it is possible to keep it silent while performing normal tasks. Now when it comes to gaming, that another story...

 

It is dead silent when not gaming. When you game on, it is very noisy. If you turn off Turbo Boost, it is quieter but if you're not gaimng, you shouldn't worry at all. I use mine everyday about 10 hrs for work and there is no problem with fan noise at all.

 

Mastaa one question, how long have you had your laptop?

 

about half a year now.

 

It is a silent one but it sometimes isn't dead silent duing eve idle state. While gaming, it can have fun with sound(if its not full)

 

Our laptop is pretty quiet during surfing, but it does get loud when the gf plays Sims 3 on it.

 

My first question is why are you trolling the AW forums to discourage purchasers, but I'll leave that one alone

I own an M14x-R2 that I use for work and play (upgrading from a very trusty M11x-R2 used for almost two years in that role). It is my 5th AW system btw, so I know a good bit about life with them.

The M14x-R2 is a very good computer; not perfect but very good. Sound at idle is NOT a problem it doesn't wind up on normal (non-gaming) use. During gaming it is moderate but will spin up a fair amount if the action gets intense BUT it does keep the system cool. I'll concede that the ASUS system in general is quieter but is that all you care about? I'll bring up on primary ace in the whole in favor of AW - that is far superior support than either ASUS or Clevo/Sager can offer. For a road warrior who uses a computer for gaming and work this is critical; for a 22-year old who can live without a system for two weeks this is not so big a deal, and price/performance becomes the deciding factor which is why we so many Millenials being anti-AW (its also hip - as if that's a real guide to anything enduring in life).

Get what you like but make sure you consider all the details. Price/performance is one consideration, coverage with laptops is another key point that one must consider too. To deride AW by staying "stay away" is a ridiculous statement that doesn't take all the factors into account.

 

I used the M14x R2 for school and it was dead silent while taking notes and surfing the web. The fan kicks in when gaming, but I don't game at school so the fan noise wasn't a concern for me. WHen the fan kicks in, it's a bit loud but nothing too bad.

 

I've seen that they are pretty quiet surfing the net but when the fans kick in for games it can be loud.

 

I'm not trolling the forums. I've had my laptop since it was released (June 2011) and after a year and few months it started having the fan on even when not gaming or browsing. It's on as I type. Thought alright maybe I need paste, did a repaste no dice. Look on the forums you will find similar problems other users have be it R1 or R2, and a host of other issues besides this one. At the time I bought the laptop there was no other 14" gaming laptop on the market. Now you have the ASUS which is quiet even when gaming and not to mention cheaper, so go for that and save yourself a headache. Maybe AW were far better in the past, but after the Dell merger I feel their quality has dropped. To each their own, but I'm thinking of the best interests of the user.

 

Internet issues triple post

 

Internet issues triple post delete please

 

Well I've only had my R2 for about a couple of weeks but I find it super quiet except when gaming. Though to be honest my husband has the sound so loud when he plays his X-Box in the room that I can't hear the fan even on full blast

 

I've over clocked my m14x r2 with the 2GB Nvidia GT650m in it and left turbo boost on and the system still doesn't overheat. The fan will crank out the heat whenever your gaming though. This is not the worlds quietest computer. But who cares? Just turn on some music and carry on.