M18XR1 dead

Hello,

I have M18XR1, bought end of 2011 which is dead, for 2 years now.
It had following configuration:
I7 2860QM 2.5 Ghz 8M,
16GB (4X4GB) 1600MHz DDR3
1TB (2x500GB) Momentus XT,
1.5GB GDDR5 NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M

First issue was that by normal usage the display became black / blank after a random time.
So I shipped the laptop to Dell to get it repaired but as it was returned, it was even more defect: motherboard cannot detect any harddisks anymore so I lost also my personal stuff...
Should I considere throwing that laptop away, it will however cost a lot of money to recover lost personal data by a specialised company.

However I have another laptop, a Dell Latitude and also tablets, so if I repair this laptop, it is just because it is a nice toy for multimedia. I don't intend to play anymore with it, except FSX and old stuff like this, I am not looking for performance.

Question is... Is it possible to replace M18XR1 motherboard with a newer release like M18XR2 for example and even later?
Because then, I will consider replacing defect parts by more powerful ones. I am not really considering questions like value for money... I am aware it will never be so powerfull like a brand new powerfull 1000€ notebook...


Thank you

Regards

Sebastien

 

Unlikely motherboard died, more likely GPU died. 6990M and 580M were both bad cards. Try replace one GPU with 7970M, 680M, 8970M, or 780M, or 880M, probably fix your problem. You can also try to bake GPU in oven at 375 F / 200 C for 10 minutes and see if it revive dead GPU.

 

Hello Raidriar, thanks for reply.

I will then buy a GPU upgrade, I read positive comments on 780M.

I was thinking that if by booting the disks are not recognized anymore it is because the MoBo raid controller is dead. So I have to replace it. Don't you think so?
In that case, can I put a M18XR2 instead? If i put a M18XR2, are there any other parts to replace as well, or are all my R1 components also compatible? Purpose for me of putting a M18XR2 MoBo is afterwards eventually to put more powerful upgrade parts (next generation I7 Processor, WiFi etc...), or am I wrong?

Regards

Sebastien

 

I must have missed the part with the mobo not reading HDD....make sure option in BIOS is set to AHCI and test again. Remove both GPUs from MXM slots, boot only with intel processor to test if mobo is good.

To convert to R2, you need new bottom housing (for msata slot), r2 motherboard, r2 daughterboard, and r2 sata cable/hdd caddy. I have all these parts if you wish to purchase except R2 motherboard. You can reuse CPU, wifi, RAM, hard drives. Example I have 2920XM from m18x r1 in my m18x r2 motherboard, works very well. In that case don't buy 780M, get 980M instead after flashing swick/raidriar BIOS to m18x r2 motherboard

 

Hello,

What are the m18x releases that suit in? Should I have to replace the M18xR1 motherboard, what MoBo releases suit in, for which compatible upgrade possibilities ? I see you have only R1 and R2 Alienwares, is it because their parts are compatible and suit in?
Do the R3 and R4 have a different format and dimensions?

I will check this evening the AHCI setting. Should I have to open the laptop to remove GPUs, I don't know when I will have time to do so.

Should I have to buy some MoBo and any parts U don't provide I believe I should manage to find some on alibaba or anywhere else U could suggest, as I already tracked some parts.

However could pliz contact me in PM?

Thanks in advance

Regards

seb

 

M18x R1 mobo maximum GPU is GTX 880M SLI and CPU is 2960XM, max RAM 1866 MHz
M18x R2 mobo maxiumum GPU so far is GTX 1070 / Quadro P5000 in SG/Optimus mode or GTX 980M SLI in PEG mode, CPU MAX is 3920XM, max ram speed 2133MHz

M18x r3 m18x r4 not exist, impossible to put m17x r3 or m17x r4 motherboard into m18x.

you must open laptop completely to remove GPUs, only way to test 1000%

Motherboard now expensive and hard to find, cheapest is 400$ from ebay, and 320$ US from aliexpress. Daughterboard now also hard to find and sata cable as well, but I have spares, sell you the lost for 100 USD + shipping.

 

@Raidrair you got a spare m18x motherboard for sale ? I Want to build a m18x.

 

unfortunately no, I don't have many spare m18x parts. just a couple cables, media key, red base, sata cable/caddy, etc

 

I have a spare to sell. Where are you located soni can figure out shipping cost.

 

pm and we can make arrangements. i still need to know if its a r1 or r2 ?

 

If I didn't buy a new laptop, I definitely would've upgraded my M18x into an R2. I'm content with it having 780M SLI at the moment.

 

Interesting, why did you return the 15 R3?

 

I tried to make it work for a month. Temperature issues. It has a well-known design flaw. Unless you have all the right tools to tweak it, you'll have an annoying time to make sure that your core temps are good. I regularly saw @Papusan over the AW section while I was trying to fix my issues.

After spending on some stuff (paste, LM, pads, cleaning materials, etc.), I thought that it wasn't worth all the effort. Yes, it looked "stunning" to a certain degree, but I wanted good performance for the price I paid for it. I remember writing a long post about the whole ordeal in one of the busy threads at the AW15 section.