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    can you run it?

    Discussion in 'Alienware 14 and M14x' started by winkawak, Jul 7, 2011.

  1. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    can anybody plz go on canyourunit.com with your m14x
    and run the games on the list and tell me the results along with their pc specs
    -Metro 2033
    -GTA 4
    -Crysis 2
    -Street Fighter 4 Arcade Edition

    have any1 tried running PS2 emulators on them14x?
     
  2. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Crysis 2 on my m14x runs well. 1600x900 resolution on advanced settings, with 25-45fps. When I overclock my gpu to 700mhz, it runs even better, really smooth even in intense situations.. If you don't want to overclock, it run's great on 1366x768 on advanced with over 40 fps in most situations.
    You can try hardcore, just a bit laggy, especially when the shooting happens.
     
  3. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    whats a good fps running at any setting? 60fps?
    will overclocking break or overheat my m14x?
     
  4. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Well it depends on you. Keep in mind that the screen is a 60mhz screen. Meaning it can only display a maximum of 60 fps, even if it says you're getting higher frame rates. Having high frame rates are good for when intense battle situations occur, it wont dip too low. So anywhere between 30 on the low end and +60 on the high end.

    Overclocking the gpu doesn't cause any real problems. You're going to have to judge the heat yourself based on your variables. Room ambient temperature, humidity, etc will affect your gpu temps, so you gotta do a trial and error. I say 75c is the max. I wont go over that personally. But you can overclock the core to 700mhz, have the shader clock adjusted accordingly to the core clock (lock the two bars together) and the gpu memory to 1000mhz. That's an average overclock. Temps wont really go over 70 on those settings. If you want to get the most out of your gpu, some people have gone to 760 on the core. Gpu memory doesn't really have a huge affect for overclocking. So i keep it at 1000.

    Just have to check the temps and artifacts/faults in the images after an overclock. It doesn't make a huge difference, but it makes high detail gameplay noticeably smoother. I only apply my overclock settings for games that need it. Crysis 1/2, BFBC2, etc. Source based games, older games, and a lot of newer games the gt555m can run just fine. If you're worried about temps, you can always turn the A/C down a bit, (thats what i do) or use a cooling pad to help airflow.
     
  5. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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    My GPU with a 765 overclock only maxes out at 76c in a low 70f air conditioned room. I think you don't run into problems with the GPU till it hits around 90c.
     
  6. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    i have never overclock a computer before
    does overclocking applies only to the gpu n processor?
    video card for example i got the gt555m overclocking meaning changing wat on the gt55m?
    also what does the number mean 75c or core 700Mhz
     
  7. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    75c in the temperature in Celcius. You can download MSI Afterburner for overclocking. It's an easy, light program. It only overclocks the gpu. When you overclock, you're changing the core speed, shader speed, and ram speed. Just download it and move the sliders :p

    It monitors the temperatures over time too, so you can game a whole session, then read the temp logs and see where to go from there.

    Gt555m Factory defaults are:
    Core: 590mhz -
    Shader:1180mhz
    Memory: 900mhz

    My overclock.
    Core: 700
    Shader: 1400
    Memory: 1000

    And there's a handy reset button which reset's it to factory default. And you can save your settings and apply them when needed. You can also download GPU Observer. It's a widget that tells you the current temperature, core speed, memory speed, so you know you're overclocked.
     
  8. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    im still confused about oc
    gt555m above for example
    i dont get how can we oc a hardware when its only capable of doing
    Core: 590mhz -
    Shader:1180mhz
    Memory: 900mhz
    where is the extra power coming from?
    or is it there already just not brought out to its full potential
    do i need to oc the processor too or just the video card?
     
  9. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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    When they make a CPU or GPU series or model they take a large sample of the speed/clocks of whatever they're making. they may find that when they make said chip that a few may max at say 3.2 GHZ while others can only do 3.0 GHZ. Since they are mass producing these they would set the default speed at say 2.8 or 2.9 because out of all the chips they tested all of them could run at that speed and since they don't want people's new PC's to over heat an crash they play it safe. Now when you get this new chip rated at 2.9 it's 100% guaranteed to be stable at that, but maybe you have a chip capable of running 3.2 safely? So people will over clock a GPU or CPU to get the most out of their system and basically tailor it to what it's actually capable of doing. Obviously Nvidia or intel can't set every chip up with custom speeds, it would be impossible.

    What intel does when they make a new chip and test them they may have a huge range of speeds from say 2.8 to 3.5. They get less chips that run higher so they charge more for them (and they know people will pay it) because they are stable at such a higher speed. This also applys to GPU's and memory to a certain degree.

    I hope this helps and if anyone has a better understanding of this than me please chime in, this is my take on how this all works.
     
  10. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    i get it now
    wat ur trying to say is
    when company put in mass pruduction of something
    the product dont always come out to be exactly, some are higher while other are lower
    hence why they average out the performance n so it dont over heat
     
  11. SpectatorZero

    SpectatorZero Notebook Enthusiast

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    Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition runs very, very well. Averages over 60FPS on max settings, and 120FPS with AA turned off. This is on a 900P screen, so you'll get better performance if you've got a 720P screen.
     
  12. Gearsguy

    Gearsguy Notebook Deity

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    A much simplier way of looking at overclocking is youre just making it run faster than it originally came with.

    @Spectator, yes and no. On the 900p screen, 1366x768 is still avalible and gives you more frames, while the 900p screen does cause more pixel densitiy. But all in all the 900p screen is worth like the 1fps difference on running a game @ 720p. So agreed, but I think itd almost be stupid to miss out on the 900p screen. It rocks
     
  13. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah, Most CPU/GPU's are capable of doing more than what the factory set their clocks at. It's just that for heat, warranty, and reliability purposes, they dont use it to it's exact highest potential. Most all gpu's can be overclocked, and processors with unlocked cores can be overclocked too if your bios/motherboard allows it. But it may not be covered under warranty, with an exception of some gpu manufacturers, like evga.

    It does require more power, but not too much more, which is why you don't mess with the voltage slider on the overclocking software. If you know what you're doing then you can add more voltage, but i wouldnt touch it. Which is why you wouldn't want to apply an overclock when gaming on battery.
     
  14. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    anybody ever own a origin gaming laptop?
    these gaming laptop looks pretty serious too
     
  15. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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    Exactly, so sometimes you might get a CPU or GPU that overclocks awesome sometimes it wont OC at all. Generally everything over clocks at least a little.
     
  16. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    wow and i thought alienware overcharges their gaming laptop
    just heard of origin, so i decided to customize a gaming laptop there
    and they do got more option as for almost everything
    but it comes with a very expensive price
    weird no reviews on youtube on any origin laptops
    also wats the most effective and safest gpu/cpu oc settings on m14x?
     
  17. everythingsablur

    everythingsablur Notebook Evangelist

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    Origin is just another reseller/builder using Clevo barebones notebooks. Origin, Sager, Eurocom, Malibal, Kobalt, MySN, Powernotebooks, XoticPC, et al. They're all Clevo notebooks.
     
  18. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    custom gaming laptops - Welcome to Sager Notebooks

    Check that out, 1299, same 2630qm processor, but you get the gtx 560m as well. Not so much on the portable side, but not that much heavier than the m14x either. Battery life might be a little less. But the performance is great for the price. Plus you get a full 1080p screen, 8 gigs ram, and a fingerprint reader.

    Safest oc settings would be anything under 75c for me. Test and see what temps you get, everyone's oc temps would be slightly different. start at 700mhz and move up for the core clock, keep the memory clock at 1000 and let the shader move with the core slider.
     
  19. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    sounds like a better deal than the m14x i ordered
    should i get this instead?
     
  20. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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    You might as well order a m17x it's almost the same size as that sager.
     
  21. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    the np8130 is 15.6"
    hows the battery on this computers?
     
  22. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah, it's probably nowhere near the size of the m17x lol. The sager is 6.8 pounds, m17x is closer to 10 pounds. I would've gotten that sager, but i love how the m14x looks. Plus the light show it puts on, but even I must say, that sager is a great deal. But I imagine it would look old really fast. Not a very eye catchy design.
     
  23. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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    sager is closer to the m17x than the m14x. The m17x is only 2 inches deeper and 1 inch wider and about 1 1/2 lbs heavier.
     
  24. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    m14x does look nicer than most gaming laptops out there
    sager have some wide configuration on their 15.6" laptops
    -Matte or Glossy screen
    -GTX 580M 2GB GDDR5 ($495 Extra while alienware charge $1000)
    -16GB Ram
    -Thermal Compound
    -Blueray Burner
    -TV Tuner
     
  25. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah i know, even that gtx 560m would be nice. But if I had to choose a gtx 560 laptop, it would be the Asus g53, but I'd still want my m14x.
     
  26. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    the GTX560m(high end graphic card) would be really nice :)
    compare to the GTX555M(fast middle class)
    i cancelled my M14x order today
    im planing to wait for more video card option
    hopefully GTX560M or above soon
    but the asus u mentioned
    is pretty sweet too, but the design....
    looks like an ufo when is close
    [​IMG]
    lol on the spec page the company puts the dimension in cm instead of Inches like most company do
    try to make the system seem smaller than wat it really is
    way too bulky
    if they were to slim it down
    i will not hesitate to buy one
     
  27. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    The g53 is almost comparable to 16 or even 17 inch laptops. It looks sweet. Modeled after the F-117 Nighthawk and the Navy sea shadow. But it's really bulky, but still really sexy. See the two vents at the back? Ones for the cpu, the other is for the gpu, two fans. That's why it's able to have a gtx card. To be honest, I doubt the m14x would have a gtx card in it. The gtx card is an actual dedicated modular card that can fit in most other gaming laptops that has the pci slot. The m14x's gt555m is just a chip, non modular, soldered to the motherboard. It's like a fast integrated graphics card, but with dedicated ram. Basically, the m14x would need a second fan as well as a port for the graphics card, that'll require a whole new redesign. The gtx line card's are meant for bigger gaming laptops. I highly doubt we will ever see one on an m14x. And if we do, that's a bad strategy by dell, having the m14x have the same gpu as the m17/18x. And by the time they make an m14x to fit it, it'll be closer in size to the m15x, and weigh a few pounds more. If you want portability and gaming, go for the m14x.

    The m14x's gt555m is a good card. A lot of people, including me, say it isn't great. But that's not saying anything negative about it. A lot of people who are hesitant about buying the m14x because they read that the gpu isn't great, are thinking that since they say it isn't great, it sucks. Not true, it's a really good card (not great like a gtx 460/560), capable of handling a lot of recent games at high settings with decent frame rates. I wouldn't say the gt555m is the best gpu you can get for the price with the m14x, but it's still a good card, the only games you can't really max out is crysis 1,2, metro 2033, and other high demanding games. But even on medium settings, they look really nice.
     
  28. Gearsguy

    Gearsguy Notebook Deity

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    Unless they do a redesign on their cards and make the GTX ones produce less heat

    Never say never
     
  29. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    i disagree
    i believe m14x is capable of handling more powerful graphic card
    than just gt555m
    they just havent decided to give the consumer more option
    sager's NP8150 for example
    is a 15" laptop that can go head to head with the m18x
    it is capable of handling a GTX580M graphic
    and many other features like Ram up to 16GB, i7-2920XM Processor...etc
     
  30. Gearsguy

    Gearsguy Notebook Deity

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    But its HUGEEEEE


    M14x is very light and compact. If a GTX card could be integrated like the 555M then yes one couldve been put in. But for the same exact size, a dedicated card would not be possible
     
  31. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    ohhhh they will make it fit lol :D
     
  32. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    I know it'll be great if it had a gtx gpu, but this laptop is in its own class. Not really meant to be compared to other 15 inch laptops or bigger. At least for now, you can't have a highly portable laptop with a gtx processor. If you want great gaming , and lower portability, sager or asus wins, but if you want high portability and good gaming, the m14x owns in that category. There's no other laptop that can do what the m14x can.
     
  33. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    true
    but i hav a feeling
    less than 6 month (countin frm the time it was released)
    m14x will receive a new video card
     
  34. everythingsablur

    everythingsablur Notebook Evangelist

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    Not going to happen. The NP8150 is a much bigger laptop than the M14x in pretty much every dimension. That added size and weight lets them put in an MXM card. The GT 555M is part of the motherboard here.

    There's also the matter of power management. As any M14x owner would attest, power management leaves something to be desired. The battery can simply not support the already included 555M, which is only a 45W TDP part. The 560M would crush the poor battery being a 75W TDP part. Let's not even think of how ludicrous a GTX 580M being a 100W TDP part would be. Maybe if you want battery life of... 5 minutes?

    The laptop you want from Alienware's lineup should not be the M14x if you want beefier graphics without a big 17"+ laptop. You should b*tch and moan and get them to update/rerelease the M15x.


    Both ATI/AMD and Nvidia have already launched their GPU lineups for this year. There is no new 45W TDP part that is available for Dell to replace the 555M with until some time next year. I suppose they could switch to AMD for the 6770M, but that's not really an upgrade.

    No GTX card will go into an M14x without a complete redesign of the motherboard and the power system, and there is zero reason to do that until at least Ivy Bridge.

    You are going to turn blue in the face if you hold your breadth for a design change in 6 months...
     
  35. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    even tho NP8150 is a 15.6"
    its system dimension is only slightly bigger than the m14x
    m14x
    Height: 37.8 mm (1.49 inches)
    Depth: 258.34 mm (10.17 inches)
    Width: 337.00 mm (13.27 inches)
    Starting at Weight11 with 8-cell battery: - 2.92 kg (6.45lbs)

    NP8150
    6.83 LBs with Battery Pack
    14.80" (w) x 10.08" (d) x 1.38"~1.69" (h)

    And why r u getting all mad and pissed off?
    m15x would be nice but its discontinued
    so why did u even bring it up and gotta be a b!tch about it?
    Technology is always changing
    getting smaller n more portable
    how can you be so sure thats its impossible
    plus 6 month from now, will be 2012 (omg its coming faster than i thought would be)
    im pretty sure more advance technology is on the way
     
  36. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    What it means, is that if that if alienware wanted to put in a gtx card, it'll be a totally newer computer. It'd basically be an m15x, and have you seen the comparison from the m14x to the m15x? Its huge. Makes the m14x looks like a netbook. In my opinion, waiting wont seem like the best thing to do, especially since the m14x came out a few months ago. And it'll be fiscally irresponsible for dell to take time and money to construct a newer version right after this laptop just came out. And also irresponsible to make most their laptops with the same gpu. Trust me, notebooks with gtx cards aren't really meant to be under 7 pounds. Maybe they'll make an upgrade when the ivy bridge comes out, or even bring back the m15x. But sandy bridge and the new gt/amd line are fairly new products. They gonna sell all that they can before releasing a newer version.

    Take a look: http://images.hardwarecanucks.com/image/skymtl/GPU/400M/400M-6.jpg
    Thats a mobile pci express graphics card. meant for gaming notebooks.

    There's no way that's fitting in the current m14x with it's own fan, heatsink, and the card itself. Even if it did, the fan's and heatsinks would be so small that the cooling wouldnt even be effective and it'll overheat. There's a reason most gaming laptops are bigger.

    If you need/want a laptop now, get the m14x. They only revised the m11x twice mainly because of the new processors that came out, and design faults. The first two even kept the same gpu. M11x r1 had to core two duo, r2 had the older core i series with optimus, r3 has the sandy bridge and the nvidia gt540m because that was the new gpu at the time. So unless you're waiting for ivy bridge, you're wasting your time ;)
     
  37. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    i know what he meant
    and wat u said is true, m14x will not be compatible with gtx cards
    but he didnt have to be a a$$ about it
     
  38. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah true, but honestly there's no real reason to wait for a revision.
     
  39. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    yea ur right
    m14x is as good as it get being a 14" gaming laptop
    i just started looking into gaming laptop
    and i got alot to learn :D
    and that ivy bridge u mentioned sounds pretty sweet
    30% GPU boost 20% CPU boost compare to sandy bridge
     
  40. niko2021

    niko2021 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yes, but why wait that long? With that logic, why buy anything just because it'll eventually be replaced in a year? ;) Not to be mean or anything.
     
  41. KSSR1211

    KSSR1211 Notebook Evangelist

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    (With apoligies to Donald Rumsfield)

    You come to game with the computer you have, not the computer you wish you had.
     
  42. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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  43. clienterror

    clienterror Notebook Consultant

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  44. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    i understand that ivy bridge can boost GPU n CPU performance while
    lowering battery use
    but will graphic card like GTX series be able to fit?
     
  45. everythingsablur

    everythingsablur Notebook Evangelist

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    It will boost performance of the IGP, not a dedicated GPU (at least not directly).
     
  46. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    than wats the graphic performance are they talkin about?
    Ivy Bridge
    "Intel is targeting a 30 percent graphics performance and 20 percent CPU performance boost compared to Sandy Bridge."
    Sandy Bridge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
     
  47. FlipBack

    FlipBack Notebook Evangelist

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    The IGP. The GPU built into the CPU.
     
  48. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    how much difference would IGP performance boost make?
    better fps?
     
  49. everythingsablur

    everythingsablur Notebook Evangelist

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    If you run a game using the GPU? Then none at all.

    A boost in IGP performance will only boost performance when you use the IGP (i.e. game on Intel's on-board graphics chip).

    So unless you are buying a cheaper consumer laptop with only integrated graphics, you will see no graphic power benefit from Ivy Bridge's enhanced IGP.
     
  50. winkawak

    winkawak Notebook Consultant

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    what about the less battery consumption?
    does it implies to gaming on on-board graphic chip?
     
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