First Alienware M15x, what to upgrade?

Hi all, I just got hold of a M15x which has an Intel Core i7 720QM and Nvidia GT 240M. I've swapped out the original hard drive for a Samsung 840 Pro 120GB I have lying around and also swapped out the ODD for a hard drive caddy which now has a 1TB drive in it. I also plan to upgrade the 8GB RAM to 16GB. Now I only have the GPU and CPU left to upgrade but I'm having trouble deciding on what to upgrade to. I plan on using this laptop for some light gaming like Cities: Skyline and stuff but mostly development work like programming so I need a good enough GPU which isn't too crazy like a GTX 970M. I'd like to also upgrade to a better i7 but I'm having trouble deciding on a specific model that will suit my needs. If anyone could give some suggestions, that would be great and maybe a link to the item on fleabay or something would be nice too. Thanks!

 

Just tore down the laptop and found out that the CPU heatsink has its screws stripped. Any ideas on how to loosen the screw?

 

Try the rubber band trick with the stripped screws (google it). 920xm for the cpu ( they go for about 90$ now, or 940xm for 150$) and replace the thermal paste, cpu fan too if u can (720qm come with the low cmf fan). For Gpu mayb 7970M or firepro 6100m/6000m.

 

I got a 920XM on my watch list currently although I'm still trying to get that cpu heatsink off. Previous owner stripped the screw really badly, it's literally a hole instead of a cross now. Tried the rubber band trick as well but there's literally no threads for the screwdriver to grip on to.

I've already replaced the solidified thermal paste on the GT 240M and I'll look out for a 7970M on ebay. Do I need to get a 240W power adapter as well or does the stock one work fine?

 

Stock work fine with a center pin pulled right angle adaptor ( or u can grind down the center pin alittle and dont plug it all the way in) if you dont do heavy gaming (stress both cpu and gpu). 240W brick will work with less stress and heat tho.
For the screws you can try pliers, super glue, or dremel.
And you throttlestop if you can solve the cpu heat problem , mine cap at 86C at 25x all 4 core (26x not stable) after I mod the fan with 11cmf one (there's a thread about fan modding here)

 

In that case, I'll look out for a 240w brick as well but it's not that high on my priority list. I'll try the super glue trick and see if it works. Hopefully I can get the heatsink off so I can replace the CPU

 

Try different sized flat-head precision screwdrivers. You may be able to get one to fit inside the stripped hole just enough to grab the screw and loosen it.

 

I'll try it and report back. Hopefully it isn't too tightly screwed down

 

I believe 680m is also a good option.

Definitely get a 920XM and overclock that thing since it'll be a bottleneck to the GPU.

680m and 7970m are good upgrades, 970m would be a really good upgrade if you can find one cheap.

965m should also work and run cool.

 

I used a flat head to try and unscrew it but the screw is screwed in so tightly that it bent my flat head screwdriver (Rip screwdriver) and it didn't even budge at all. I think this is really it. Darn D:

Yeah I was also thinking of a 680M as well. I'll look out for that card

 

So no further luck with the screw?

 

Yeah the screw is completely stripped bare and I couldn't replace the thermal paste on the CPU at all. I've been using it as my linux laptop so far and it's been okay. Still looking to upgrade the GPU tho

 

Have you considered doing the solder trick? What you need to do is stick a small bit driver into the screw head. Melt some solder to fill in the void. Once the solder hardens, try to unscrew the stripped screw. You will most likely need more than two hands to set the solder correctly.

 

I actually have not. That would be a good idea when I have someone around to help me. Thanks!

 

Make sure you get 4gb version of 680 as 2gb is anemic. Another good card is the 870M which is basically the same card but higher clocked and 192bit bus