GPU upgrade - NVIDIA 460m vs AMD 5850

No, I never set up a BIOS password. The laptop was working just fine until I decided to repaste the GPU. Once I got everything back in place the screen decided not to work.

 

Time for the battery drain then.
Take out the battery, unplug the A/C adapter, and hold the Alien power button for ~10-20 seconds. put the battery back in and see if it works.

 

Found out the problem, just dont know how to fix it. The problem lies in the display. While the laptop is turning on I moved the screen back slowly and I got the windows log in screen. Is there a way to check if there is a lose cable in the LCD?

 

I'm pretty sure the LCD cable is located underneath the strip that covers the Alien head.
You can view the service manual here.
Page 73 for the LCD assembly

 

Dont know what to do. The cables all seem to be in place and I wouldnt dare to go further in the disassembly. I was thinking to call in Dell for the warranty but I dont know what to say since I upgraded the GPU. Should I put the old GPU back and call in for the warranty?

 

Upgrading components on this machine isn't frowned upon, but if you're still in warranty definitely give Dell a call. Good luck!

 

I managed to hook up the laptop to my monitor so I'll place it just like it was before the upgrade. I'll give Dell a call and see how it goes. I'll post back once the display issue gets solved.

 

Do you know where can I buy these pads while I wait for Dell to help me out with the display? Also, I've been thinking on replacing the AS5 and give another thermal paste a go, any suggestions?

 

FrozenCPU is a popular source. Great service, broad selection. Fujipoly Premium System Builder Thermal Pad - 1/4 Sheet - 150 x 100 x 0.5 - Thermal Conductivity 6.0 W/mK - FrozenCPU.com. Also available in 1mm thickness.

They also carry MX-4 thermal paste, which is highly recommended. Arctic Cooling MX-4 Super High Performance Non-Conductive Thermal Compound (4g) - FrozenCPU.com. Many other choices.

 

The pads which I circled aren't really necessary, you can just try it without them.

MX-4 is definitely a good paste, easy to apply, but AS5 is excellent as well. I had good results with both of them.

Sorry to hear about your issues with the screen...

 

Yeah I was starting to get nervous when the laptop didnt display anything but I when moved it to my room to continue troubleshooting it I found out the screen flickered for a moment and I could see that the laptop was in the windows log in screen. So I plugged it in a monitor and it worked (with both cards) so I'm a 99% sure that the LCD just died but I could be wrong. So, I called Dell and told them what happened (without mentioning the upgrade ) and just a few minutes ago I got off the phone with the technician that will replace my LCD tomorrow morning .

 

Awsome! I'm grabbing one of those ASAP. Thanks Rev.

 

Good news. Hope you get a decent tech.

 

Do post your final results. I am very interested in upgrading my GPU too! =)

 

Will do! I bought both items that Rev recommended so Ill be posting temps with those.

 

OK, I got results but they are not good. LCD was switched and it works again but now the AMD card wont work. I installed it back without the pads and the idle temps were in the mid 40s. Ran the OCCT GPU test and went AFK for 1min and when I came back the screen was all black. Tried restarting the laptop but I got nothing, no POST. Reseated the card and this time the alien logo popped up but when the Windows menu came up (the one saying that it was not shut down propperly) the laptop turned off. Reseated it again I decided to get in the BIOS but when I got in it turned off again. Tried one last time and the alien logo loaded a tad slower than normal and after that I remember seeing a line in the POST and what I managed to read was something about a firmware. So, I dont want to give up on this card, any suggestions?

I have the A09 BIOS, should I downgrade the BIOS?

 

Sounds like a thermal shut down. Try this; place thermal paste on the die and then reinstall the heatsink with the thermal pads. After about 2 minutes, remove the heatsink from the GPU and check to see if the thermal paste is spread enough on the die. If it's not (i.e. you don't see enough thermal paste across the die ), then try removing the thermal pads and try it again to see if you have any improvement.

Also, what is your room temperature?

 

Cant tell the room temp. but where I'm working is well ventilated. One thing I'm noticing is that the fan goes very fast and then the PC shuts down. I'll place the pads back and post back with the results.

 

Managed to get past the POST and Windows is loading. Any suggestions on testing the GPU temps?

BTW, aparently your suggestion did the trick ichime so thanks again. Idle temp is 47C

 

That's good to hear. At this point, I'd leave it that way (no thermal pads) until you get the .5mm thick pads. The stock pads are thick and are really meant to accomodate the stock setup that uses thicker paste. You should be able to do things normally as the memory banks won't get extremely hot, but let us know how your temps are looking like during gaming/benching/etc.

 

Tested the GPU with OCCT and the MSI Kombustor but same thing happened, screen turned black.

 

Here is how I have the pads placed just in case. The VRAM pads are attached to the heatsink.
http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff499/chinopr86/Photo_9512D399-AE68-10E7-8A91-B27C6FE18EED.jpg

 

Remove all of the thermal pads (including the ones on the heatsink) and then reapply thermal paste on the die. The trick is to use as little thermal paste (pea shaped aapplication) but to decrease the distance between the die and the heatsink. The thermal pads increases distance (which is bad) and makes the temp sensors super sensitive.

 

I removed the thermal pads but I still have the same problem. When the GPU goes under load the PC just stops working.

 

And quit using OCCT or Kombustor or Furmark until you have established temperature control; they can be dangerous to an unprotected GPU. There will be time for testing when you have the new pads and paste; otherwise, you're going to get a continuous stream of thermal shutdowns.

 

Alright, I'll stop using them. I'll put the Alienware away until the pads and paste arrive.

 

Did you also remove the thermal pads that were placed on the GPU capacitor(s)?

 

Yes, all of the pads are gone. I'm hoping that when the new pads arrive this temp issue gets solved.

 

Hmm, that's odd because it should be able to be stable without thermal pads. Anyways, let's see what happens when all your thermal gear gets there.

 

Well the laptop is stable as long as I dont use OCCT or MSI Kombustor. Havent tried any games yet (ie Crysis 2).

 

Try a Vantage run if you can.

 

Just tried Crysis 2 and the PC froze after a couple of seconds. I'm still trying to figure out what could it be because I was able to use and test the card before the LCD went bad (just got bad temps but not to the point of it freezing). Gonna try to reisntall the drivers just to be sure.

Can you send me a link plz?

 

11.6 links: http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/586229-catalyst-11-6-whql-drivers-leaked.html

11.7 (leaked) link: http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/590970-catalyst-11-7-drivers.html

 

Chinopr, just curious... the as5 you're using, have you had it for a while?
i'm asking because i had a similar issue with temps because of a tube of as5 i had was old.

also, i found that AS5 did poorly on my (then nv260m) gpu. repasted at least half a dozen times but had poor results (in comparison the cpu did great)
i ended up replacing AS5 with another paste (shin etsu 7783D) and all my temp problems were gone.

 

Thanks for the links but I dont think I'll be using them . I reinserted the GTX 260M back without the pads (just like the 5870M) and its working flawlessly. Idle was sitting in the high 40s and with Crysis 2 it got to a max temp of 75C. Another thing that I noticed with the 5870M was that when I tried to play Crysis 2 (the second time) a few seconds after the PC froze there were lines and dots that were scattered across the screen. I guess I just got unlucky in this GPU upgrade attempt and got a very expensive paper weight .

Well, the AS5 is not that old, I would say it has no more than 4 months.


Left MSI Kombustor (used DX10, AA off and full screen) running for 15mins and the max temp was 89C so I'm guessing the paste is working as intended.

 

Does anyone have the Dell 5850 VBIOS? I'm going to try and reflash it and check what happens.

 

Attached is a copy of the Dell vbios A02. Rename the file to VBIOSA02.rom to flash.

View attachment 67247

Can also download it from here: Drivers and Downloads.

 

Thanks again Rev.

 

I had the same issue but i just change the pads and reinstall the ac5 then the temps stay on 85c! On fullload a bit hot maybe gonna try to buy a 460m so i can play 3d on my lcd !

 

Was your laptop freezing too when gaming or under load?

 

If i change the bios of a dell 5870m to a dell 5850m bios would work the card as a original 5850m ? 100% compatible with the m15x?

 

i would highly recommend NOT doing that.
sure it might work, but i suspect it will just brick.

the bios has many settings, most of which are hidden from us... even using the RBE or various editors. it's already enough risk flashing bioses from various manufacturers which "tweak" the settings, but flashing a bios from a different model is asking for trouble.

 

I agree with xeroxide. Besides, even if it worked, what would you gain? Substantial risk, little or no payoff. Don't do it.

 

I'd go for the 460m GTX 1.5GB 'cause of Nvidia CUDA

 

cuda's a great reason to go nvidia.
but only if you'll use it.
only thing i ever used cuda for was video encoding
i loved how quickly badaboom could perform. that reminds me, i have to find a good app which utilizes ati stream.

 

Ok, so the thermal gear arrived and got everything set-up and the results are not good. When I first turned on the laptop there was no display so I turned it off and tried again and that time I saw the POST but now when the Windows logo popped up the display was distorted. Then the Windows log-in came up and I lost display but apparently the laptop managed to log in even though there was no display. So, is the GPU dying on me or is there still hope?

 

Chinopr, I've lost track. Do you have a 5870M or 5850M? If it's a 5870M, it sounds a lot like the wrong vbios. In order to work in the M15x, a Dell 5870M has to be running vbios A00. The more recent vbios (A01) causes distortion and blackscreens, much as you describe.

 

Sorry, the GPU is the 5870m. I believe ichime sold it to me with that VBIOS, the A00, but I have no way to tell.

 

Yeah, I flashed it to A00 before selling it, but I would try to reflash it again on your system to see if it improves matters.

 

If he said it's an A00, then I'm sure it is.