DIY eGPUs for Alienware's Possible?

The cooling in my m15x is terrible and half of the time I pray that my GPU doesn't overheat and off itself. I know it's possible on some of the "newer" Alienware's available but what about legacy devices pre-Dell acquisition? I might be better off asking in the DIY Vidock forum but I just want to know if anyone has gotten it to work. Hope to hear that somebody got this to work!

 

You are talking about these correct? From the site it looks like it just needs an express card slot which most alienware laptops have dating back to at least the M5700 & M5500 series. If the device supports the OS you are using I don't see why it would not work. From the DIY part though it seems you want to make your own? Google-ing I found this. Not sure if it will help.

If the card is overheating this much I assume you are running an 8800 or similar Nvidia card? Have you thought about switching to a AMD/ATI 3870? They work with your unit, are all over ebay, support more modern drivers with your machine, and run cooler.

 

If you have the express card slot, as protvakid said: much alienwares have it, then I don't see why it shouldn't work. IMO you should start thinking of some cooling mods to your laptop GPU.

 

Thanks for the input guys. I came from a 3870 and found it lacking so decided to try an nVidia card(FX3700m). While the card is super powerful, it will die eventually as it is based on the G92 architecture like the 8 and 9 series nVidias. I would do more modding but the chassis of the m15x doesn't give me much to work with. As it is, I'm already doing the copper shim mod and would add another fan but I am reluctant to start drilling holes through this thing. The only reason I ask is because the m15x doesn't move much essentially becoming a desktop replacement. While Vidock is a great option it's just not worth it in terms of money as you can make your own for much cheaper and far more powerful assuming it works. I've done the research on hardware compatibility and the m15x has 2 mPCIe slots and an expresscard slot available and I can make use of 2 of these for a 1.0x2 link with a pretty decent desktop gpu. What I don't know is whether or not the Alienware bios will identify the upgrade and whether there will be driver problems as the m15x it's end of the line 186.9x drivers which would prompt me to get an ATI card which also may have problems. I don't want to spend $200 on a project that won't work from the start so I just figured I'd ask if anyone has done it.

 

If I were in your shoes, having already tried the 3870, I would search the net for one of the rare "red pcb" mxm 2.1 4850 / 4870 cards like I have in my older alienware... or build a desktop which I did when I graduated college a year ago.

 

+1 on this idea.