M15x GPU Thread: General Discussion on Upgrades, GPU Troubleshooting & Repairs

Unless there has been a stealth effort during the past few days, no one has yet tried a 580M in the M15x.

 

So I have a GTX 260 on my M15X, and It's starting to drop my LoL fps from 60 to around 20 or 30 after an hour of play. Is it time for a new card? Or should I try some fixes first. Thanks in advance!

 

Time to check your temps and also your BIOS revision.
What are the max temps when you play some games for a while? Do you have BIOS A09?

 

I'm using A09, not sure about the temps. Usually they max in the low 80's, but I haven't checked in a while. I'll play some after class and post back. If they're high, I should probably redo my thermal paste, correct?

 

That's right. Anyway, low 80s is high for a 260m.
Also check your CPU temps.

 

Checked post-game temps, 92 might be a little on the high side >___>

 

Definitely, especially for the 260m. Also take a look at the CPU temps. Then make sure the copper fins where the air gets blown out are free from dust and then I'd say it's time for repaste fun.

 

Sounds good, thanks for the help! I've been planning on doing maintenance for a while, but I was hoping to wait until Christmas, heh... now its looking more like this Saturday

 

Which card should i go for and any installation instructions information would be good. I've been reading all the posts about the the 6970m and i'm thinking of going with that one from ebay...should i go with something different? Thanks

 

With that budget, hands down 6970m. There is a thread on the main M15x subforum with all the info you need.

 

hi guys , am new out here .. am from india ..
My GTX 260m stopped working . I even tried the dry soldering method and also heated it in 300 deg. But its still not working . So i am in need of a new GTX260m or u guys suggest me something to do ?








P.S. Am sorry if i havent followed any forum rules . Am new here . Just trying to understand the rules here .. Sorry for the Inconvenience moderators

 

it's better off looking for a better GPU. Look at the marketplace if you just aiming for second handed ones. A 5850 is a good choice if you are not going for the extreme performance cards.

 

yea .. but now my laptop is not working . should i change my bios if i add a new card ? how ll i change it without my laptop working ? sorry enlighten me , am a noob in all this

 

Always update to latest bios A09. get that from dell. That is the 1st step.
Congrats on having M15x there are many choices of GPU card you might like. The 260 is a little bit outdated not to say Very old .. but 4 less than 100usd on eBay.

Take a time and read in the forum to get ur opinion right

 

I actually have a GTX 260m haha...are you able to PM me?

 

no .. am not able to pm anyone

 

Guys,

I am asking your help I am about to sell my MSI GTX460m for a guy who wants to upgrade his M15x from the 260M.

Firstly, the installation should be straight forward, isn't it ?

Will he then need to flash the MSI video bios by the DELL 460m vbios ? Or it will recognize the card ?

I read that the modded drivers would do the job instead. He doesn't want to mess around too much so I need to advise him how he could to that smoothly.

Thanks for the inputs.

 

hey, i have a problem with my M15X, last night i was using it on battery and i shut it off cus the battery was dying, well afterwards i plugged the charger to it and the blue light of the charger immediatly turned off and so it wont charge, the laptop wont turn on at all (no flashing lights, no nothing), even though the battery still has 1 blue dot of charge still.

wel then i started investigating, and found out the posible escenarious were, fired mobo or fried gpu.

i dissambled the laptop and took off the gpu and tried to turn it on. this time the blue line in the charger doesnt turn off, but, when i tried to turn on the laptop, the alienhead just keeps flashing.

i dissambled the laptop again and put back the gpu, and it went back to the beggining (wont turn on, no flashing lighst, and chargers light keeps turning off everytime i plug it to the laptop)

does it means its the gpus fault? should the laptop be able tu turn on without the gpu?. if its the gpu i could buy another, but i want to make sure that if i do, it will be fixed.

ps. i have a nvidia gtx 260m

 

have you tried turn on without batt plugged? happen to me last week, can't turnj on, only alien head flashing

i tried unplug my gpu, cleaning the paste that leak to the side and touch the GPU part, check every display connection, etc

but at the end it turned on when i unplug the battery, till now i don't know what actually the problem is...

 

i tried it, the batery ligh keeps turning off and the laptop does nothing at all... imma try later without the gpu

 

Hey there,

I have an M15x with the Nvidia 260 and I have a potential video card issue. Temps are 79C and below. Random video glitching (artifacts and patterns) while gaming. I've done the usual video driver removal, cleaning, re-installing with both Dell's and Nvidia's drivers. My next step is reverting back to a clean factory install.

Having said all of that, the reason I am pinging the group is that if for some reason it comes down to a hardware issue, my machine is still under warranty (I purchased the 3 year at-home service plan). What is Dell likely to do? Is there anything I should know before I call them? Do they even still have 260m video cards, or would they replace it with something else (newer?).

Thanks!

 

I bet they still have some 260M's, if not you'll more then likely get an HD 5730.

I'd try restoring to factory default, then definitely call support. I think the "3 year at-home plan" is the one where they come to your house.

 

ok, tried with the gpu and without a battery, and without the gpu without battery, and i got the same bahevior from before.... exept that without the battery nor gpu it doesnt even flash the alienhead.

i also tried taking off the gpu fan and heatsink, and this time the alienhead doesnt flash, it stays lit, like the battery is charging or something... but other than that... nothing

 

Hello this is my 1st post, and I am hoping this is the right area, but I was wondering if I could get some info on upgrading my system.

Currently I am using an m15x with a 240m, and I was wondering what upgrade options I had, and where I could go about getting said upgrades. I have checked on dell's website, but I can't even finding any laptop video cards online.

Any help from a complete laptop noob would be much appreciated.

 

You can look over this it may help you some .
.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/554016-wanna-upgrade-my-video-card.html

 

I recently had Dell replace the 260m with a 460m in my M15x. I noticed the card seems to be downclocked by Dell to 570mhz for the core (and possibly the memory and shader). The core, I believe, is supposed to be 675Mhz. I'm not an overclocker by nature, but restoring the intended clocked speed from Nvidia seem like a safe bet since it's through a Dell bios update. I just don't know if it's meant to be run on an M15x.

Can anyone confirm what the stock core/memory/shader Nvidia clocks are for the 460m are and how much it's downclocked?

Also, Alienware released a new vbios for the 460m (as well as the 560m and 580m). From what I've read, the new bios lessens throttling issues and it removes the downclocked stock clocks.

I am thinking about applying this vbios update, but I wanted to see if anyone knew if this caused any issues, thermal, driver or otherwise. Right now, my 460m hits about 65C during heavy gaming and 70C (using a cooler) after a few minutes of Furmark and I'm curious how much my temps might rise.

 

Sorry to open a new thread but i am confused with the other threads. I want a simple advice from the Alienware M15x experts that i need to upgrade the GPU to play Battlefield 3 on high/Ultra settings

Currently i have M15x with 8GB RAM i7 & nVidia GT 240M

Regards,

 

tbh i can play bf3 on nearly maxed settings wit my 5850m...it is a difficult card to find. You can look into a 6970/6990m. About $325-500 upgrade.

 

Is it easy to replace GT 240M with ATI 6990M ? I mean plug & play or i need to do some drivers tweaks etc.

 

Here
Not easy that munch

 

If you guys could help id appreciate it i have the 240m here is my laptop, (Newegg.com - Recertified: DELL Alienware M15X Notebook Intel Core i7 740QM(1.73GHz) 15.6" 4GB Memory DDR3 1333 250GB HDD 7200rpm DVD±R/RW NVIDIA GeForce GT 240M) i know little to nothing about computers but i would like to upgarde my video card every where i look though people say its impossible because i would have heat problems, please help!

 

Don't listen to the people telling you that you can't. The 460m is a officially supported by the M15x, and is offered by dell as an option. Naturally, it will produce more heat than a 240m, but it is all within safe limits. Upgrade to that card without a worry.

 

So i can just buy it and have someone put it in? i have no clue how to put it in, lol but thank you very much for clearing that up

 

There are various tutorials online that you can find just by googling "upgrade M15x graphics card," make sure you also know how to tear down your laptop (M15x Teardown on youtube). I don't have the links right off the top of my head, but they should be fairly easy to find. Check the marketplace on this site for the card first, it's usually cheaper than eBay.

 

Here is a video for you.

Accessing the Graphics card on the M15X - YouTube

and

http://forum.notebookreview.com/nbr-marketplace/

 

alright thanks guys

 

Hi all,

I overclock the 5850M in 800/1100/1.05v with Sapphire TRIxx. No problems on any game, very stable, good temps ( no more than 82-85°C ).

But a problem comes when I ran a game and a video ( VLC or Youtube ) in same time when the 5850M is O/C. The screen become full grey, the PC freezes, whereas I don't have a too high temperature ( 82-85°C ). I modified the voltage, not fixed.

I don't understand, any solutions ??

Thanks ^^

 

^^ That is a sign your overclock is not stable.
Lower it a bit or overclock when necessary. I'm sure you don't need those values to play a movie or browse youtube

 

The problem appears too when I downclock to stock (625/1000/1.00v) and I play a video and play in same time, the full grey screen comes and it freezes.

Example : play a video on youtube for listen a music and play in same time

 

Try disabling hardware acceleration (right click on the video and select Settings) and see whether that eliminates the problem.

 

Just a repost of some questions i asked in another thread about the 5870m.

I'm using the A09 bios...will it be compatible with my new clevo card or will I have to revert to an earlier version?

What is the best driver for this card?

Will I need to download fan control software? (HWinFo64)

 

I feel like I'm on some really old drivers...like the one this laptop shipped with a couple months ago. So the 11.7 cats are the best out now?

 

11.11 drivers are out.
http://support.amd.com/us/kbarticles/Pages/Catalyst1111cperformance.aspx

 

12.1 drivers are out as well. I personally like the 11.7 drivers for my 5850m, no shutdowns/blue screens/freezes or anything else. Can overclock nicely with no problems. Had issues with both 11.9 drivers, and bsod with 12.1 drivers.

http://support.amd.com/us/kbarticles/Pages/Catalyst121Previewdriver.aspx

 

Got a BSOD during the install but it restated in safe mode and I continued the install. Now every now and then the CCC window pops up says its not working properly...

 

Good morning. I have been an avid Alienware user for the last 5 years, and I currently own a M15X which I got in 2010 while deployed. I love the machine. However, since I began playing some of the newer games I realize that my
Geforce 260M is not having the desired performance I expected. SWTOR is the main culprit these days, having ran a 16 man last night and experiencing horrid fps issues on big pulls. Anyways, I realize that this is probably for 2 reasons. 1, the game needs serious bug fixes and driver optimizations, and 2, I probably need a new video card.

TLDR version; I need a new card, and have been an avid follower of these forums for a while now, but have been loathe to actually post anything as I was usually able to find what I'm looking for. I need help. (original I know)

Here are my system specs:

Windows 7 64-bit home premium
GTX, 260M (overclocked to recommended settings per these forums)
I7-740QM, 1.73, 6MB, Clarksfield, B1
8 GM RAM, Kingston (again, recommended by the forums)
HARD DRIVE..., 250GB, S2, 7.2K, P11, SGT-HOLL
BIOS update A09

I want a no-hassle card that I can order directly through a vendor. I understand that some may recommend I go through EBAY, or call DELL directly (I have, they gave me the "None in stock, we'll call you" routine.) I don't care if the card is NVIDIA or ATI or whatever. I want a card that is within the 500 dollar pricerange preferably, however I am ready to spend a little more if the difference is substantial. I would prefer a card that is pretty much plug and play. I don't have a lot of time and/or resources to fiddle around with a card while I don't have an expert from these forums sitting next to me the whole time. (Though, that would be awesome). You gentlemen/ladies have truly impressed me with your tech know-how and ability to communicate your knowledge to even knuckle-draggers like myself.

I also know theres a bunch of threads that answer this question, albeit sometimes not directly. I just need someone to say "get this card, it will run whatever the hell you want on high" and doesn't involve a TON of legwork on my part. If someone wouldn't mind keeping correspondence with a Soldier who desperately needs help upgrading his M15X GPU, I would be indebtted to you. Thanks in advance!

p.s. I am also prepared to use thermal pads/paste if need be, I can always watch a video and train myself up. )

 

Well if what you want is simply plug and play and with out additional install and post install hassels i would say you need a ati 5850m or an nvidia 460m. Best thing to do is search thru ebay for one that has been pulled for a dell alienware. As for paste and pads that goes for any gpu upgrade you go for, it's a must

 

Would this card work?

NEW 1.5GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 460M Video card | eBay


Additionally, is there no step up from the 460m that is hassle free? I understand that with small modifications to driver files (easy from what I have read, thanks to the savy tech guys here) that a much more (?) powerful card can be put inside the m15x. I just basically want to make sure I don't have to upgrade at least for another year or so. The 460m has pretty good ratings, but isn't it starting to show it's age?

The only real problem my current 260m has is that it slows down exponentially during intense group fights in MMO's. It can go from 40 fps in a congested area down to 15 fps due to spell effects, etc. It's just frustrating.

 

^^ thats a clevo card i dont know what kind of problems you could encounter as im not savy when it comes to nvidia gpu. but if you want an nvidia 560m here is the thread that can help you with that, http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/602655-m15x-gtx-560m.html
anything better than a ati 5850m or an nvidia 460m (dell) will require more work

 

Thanks. After reading that thread I am looking at buying 1.5GB Nvidia GeForce GTX 560M MXM 3.0b VGA Graphics Card | eBay

I hope this card works. I asked a few questions on the other thread so hopefully I get some answers soon. I want this card. Unfortunately there is going to be some modification of drivers from what I read. Hopefully I can figure it out while reading the guide.