New M15x Owner Information

You are truly awesome dude! Thanks soo much! As I wait for my laptop I will keep this in mind and be sure to bookmark this page until it becomes second nature!

 

Hello all, my name is Indiran, can call indi . Im going to be a (hopefully) a proud owner of new Alienware M15x. Im planning to purchase it this coming thursday, 30 Dec 2010. My specs given are:

Inter i7 740QM processor
6 GB Ram
ATI Radeon 5850 GDDR5 1GB
Full HD (1080p) 15.6"
Primary 9 Cell Battery

Those are the basic main items on the system. Im getting it at RM 5999. Im from Malaysia and thats the currency they use. xD

Hope there will not be any problems with it. Apart from the mouse pad, i think its ok with me. Is there any precautions on this model builds? Should I get it?

 

Ordered my M15x on the 18th December and got it on 24th! Record??

 

Wow Klay, it took 5 days? Hope mine will be like that

 

Hi Guys.. I got my Alienware M15X this tuesday.. When I checked the bechmark of Mafia 2 in high end settings I'm getting only 20 to 23FPS.. Is it the maximum my Graphic Card can play? BTW i got i7 740 1.73Ghz,4Gb ram, 1.5GB Nvidia GTX 460..

 

Hi cooldude44, well, even mine not here yet, but i might have a guess what is wrong after reading all the posts in Alienware problems thread. I think your computer is in stealth mode. Go back to the first page of this thread and check for the stealth mode indicator mod. Stealth mode, if im not mistaken, will cut down performance automatically to safe power. Gl

 

Indiran, Stealth Mode is off and Laptop is running at High Performance.. Graphics have been plugged in.. Still the FPS rae is at 20FPS at High -End PhysX Enabled.. I think that's highest GTX 460M 1.5Gb can play..

 

^ you can still overclock the card. A friend of mine gets a pretty good boost when overclocking his 460m in his Asus.

 

svl7, How to Overclock? sorry this is my first Laptop.. I'm sort of weak in it..

 

You need a programm to set the clock speeds. My friend is using MSI afterburner for his 460m and has the speeds at 800/1350/1600 (GPU Core clock / Memory /Shader) which should be safe, he didn't push it to the limits as he's using it for gaming.
As every card is a bit different, you'll have to raise the speeds slowly in little steps, say 20-30Mhz to find a stable clock speed. I'm not very experienced with OCing, but it's really not that hard and as long as you don't flash the clocks to the card you can't really do any harm if you use some care. You can always just close the program to get back to your old speeds.

There are several useful threads in this forum regarding overclocking the GPU. Just read some of them and you'll find a lot additional information, if you need it.

 

svl7, Thank You.. Downloading MSI Aferburner Now..

 

Great!! Already glad to help, hope it works fine for you. As I mentioned, there are a lot of very helpful threads of people who are quite experienced with OC on this forum, so if you have any doubt I think you'll find a lot of help there.

 

svl7, With MSI Afterburner I'm getting Maximum upto 745/1490/1500 Core Clock/Shader Clock/Memory Clock.. Nearly 10 to 30% Improvement in Graphics.. But is it Safe? I mean does this decrease the life of GPU?

 

Ok, cool! This doesn't hurt your GPU as long as the temperatures are okay. Nowadays the chips are pretty tough and can work on high temperatures. They will shutdown automatically when they get too hot. However, it's not recommended to have the chip always on the temperature limit.
Make sure that your M15x always gets enough air, maybe use a book or similar to raise the distance between the table and the fans at the back of your laptop (make sure not to cover the fans ^^)

What are your temps while gaming?
When you think they're a bit too high you can still reapply the thermal paste on your GPU which can make quite a difference as the standard paste which is applied when you get your M15x isn't really the best paste available.

 

svl7, While Gaming at High End Graphics, temperature would be from 60 to 80 Degree C.. Not more than that.. Apply Thermal Paste? You mean turn off MSI Afterburner?

 

ok 60 is no problem and 80 ist still fine imo. By applying thermal paste I mean changing the thermoconductive stuff on the GPU core (thermal paste) which makes sure that the heat of the GPU die gets to the heatsink. By reapplying the paste you can lower the temps by several degrees.

Inap made a nice little guide for this procedure, you can download it here.
Check it out and you'll understand what I'm talking about. Changing the thermal paste isn't as difficult as it seems to be and it will lower your temps when done correctly. However I don't really think it's a must for you, as your GPU will be able to handle your temps.
Nevertheless, cooler is always better.

 

svl7, All Right.. I'll have my Look on it.. Just played BFBC2 At High End Settings with 8Q and 16X.. FPS average was 32.. 72 degree C was the Highest.. MSI really works well.. Thank You..

 

svl7, Just Checked that out.. It's a lot of Hardware work.. I got warranty up to 3rd month of 2012.. So I don't think I should do that Much.. What do u prefer?

 

Well, 72 isn't bad at all. No actual need to change the thermal stuff, especially if you don't like to open your machine...
Just keep an eye on the temps when playing a new game for the first time.
Glad it works for you!! 32 fps isn't too bad. When you have the 1080p screen I recommend disabling the AA but setting vsync to on. AA is really power hungry and the difference isn't too big imo.
But this is up to you. You'll see for yourself what you prefer.

 

svl7, Okay.. I'll lower the settings a little down then.. Did you ever tried using an external keyboard for gaming? I'm actually using my external keyboard,screen and mouse for gaming.. Everything works fine until I start gaming through my external keyboard,none of the buttons work properly while gaming..

 

No need to lower the settings, I just recommend trying out different settings and you will see what's best for you and your system.
I never played with an external keyboard... seems like a weird issue you're experiencing. Maybe you need to update the driver of the external keyboard?

 

svl7, Yes it is weird.. It automatically updates whenever I connect it.. I also manually updated it.. But still I'm facing the problem.. I even contacted to dell support.. They are saying to change USB pin or Keyboard.. Tried both of them and also used Logitech and other company keyboards,still didn't work.. Last predictable try would be using an USB Keyboard.. I'm in search of it..

 

svl7, Right now I actually connected Keyboard and Mouse through single USB to PS2 converter pin.. VGA to my screen Samsung 2233SW..

 

Wattos, i would like to add another suggestion to this post to add at your first post.

How bout adding below all the information on : What to test on M15x when it arrives

Many people have mouse issues, speaker issues, bootup, and ect.
So, what to test when M15x arrive would help new owners to identify whether their system is ok or not.

So, juz for a start...

Alienware M15x Arrived and Followed all instruction from Wattos. What to do next? Check it of course.

1. Start laptop, check if start up normal.
2. Check mouse movements (satisfied ok, not satisfied follow Wattos guide).
3. Cold start the laptop (turn off completely and on again).
4. Go into sleep mode after getting in to windows (many have problem cant start back after sleep mode).
5. Start playing sound/mp3 to test speakers (gradually increase volume to check if there is tear/crackling noice <--- indicates problem)
6. Start a movie to check smoothness of it. Go for some HD clips if using FHD screen)
7. Leave system to idle for 20 mins to check if there is steady performance or fluctuation.
8. Then, you can go for heavy performance testing like playing a high end game (SC2, NFS: HP, ect.)

These are some i can think up of. Just the basics. Hope you can add/modify it and post it in the front post. Since i never used a AW before, hope you can include some checks on CC and AlienFX.
Thanks and appreciate what you have done for us ^^ i bookmarked this thread and open it almost everyday

Mine estimated to arrive at 21 Jan. Hope so sooner ^^.

 

Another thing, the resource disk warning, is it for the older version, or those who bought the laptop after the release of A08 bios can use them? I mean newer version of resource disk is it use-able? How bout burning the current one into my own disk for recovery?

 

any 1 can tell me what need to be done on new delivered com ? need to install all the driver from system ? And is the turbo boost mode automatically activated ?

estimated delivery on 19 jan 2011.the current status is ship from factory.

i need a software to check the temp too. Ps new with AW.
my spec are :

Intel® Core? i7-740QM Processor (1.73GHz, 4Core/8Threads, turbo boost up to 2.93Ghz, 6M cache)
15.6 " Full HD (1080p) WLED (1920 x 1080) Display with TrueLife(TM )
6GB 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM (1 x 2GB + 1 x 4GB)
500GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X DVD + /-RW Drive with DVD + R double layer write capability
1GB GDDR5 ATI Mobility Radeon? HD 5850

 

Hi AlienDex, first thing u need to do as I did was to check if all lights are running and followed all the methods I wrote above. As for other things, not much because your new laptop will come with latest bios and drivers. Jus enjoy your new toy when it arrives. Oh yes, allow the windows to configure for first start.

All temp check software you can get here: HWiNFO32 Download

The Revelator gave the link, kudos to him.

Good luck ^^.

 

okie ^^.. thx for ur reply and thx for Revealator`s link..

xD

 

Does anyone else have that 1 in 100 startup where the fan runs at full speed and will continue to do so until a restart?

 

Yes, from time to time... but I never had to restart the system... when you're patiently enough it should stop after 2-5 min, never took the time but must be something like this (at least it does in my case).

 

Oh wow, thanks! I am usually patient, but I never thought it would correct itself on it's own.
It's not really that big of a deal either, as I rarely ever turn off my laptop, but I just wanted to see if others had this problem.

Does anyone know what causes it yet?

 

Same here, however, juz for a short time, longest for bout 1min which is the time taken for me to completely log in to windows. So its juz something we have to deal with it.

 

I am having trouble installing the new bios for my Alienware that just came out A09.
In A08 , the software can prepackaged with a program that created a bootable flash drive. But this time the A09 doesn't. Can someone help me so that I can flash A09 please

 

Well, the easiest option is to create a bootable disc with the .iso file. If you want to do it by using a flash drive check out this post:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware-m15x/549258-m15x-bios-a09-discussion-thread.html#post7075006

That's also the thread related to the BIOS A09, so that would be the best place to ask further questions about this subject.

 

Can someone tell me how long it took for your initial order to be processed and charged? I ordered on friday and all i have from dell is the order aknowledgement, not the actual confirmation... was you guys' instant or did you wait a while too?

EDIT: Have been in contact with dell and the order has gone through, just takes up to 48hrs for the aknowlegement email to be sent... EXCITED!!!

 

Gl on your new babe ^^ You will LOVE it!

 

Thanks! Just noticed dell sent me two emails with two separate order numbers, one is in production the other is 'a work in progress' the latter has a EDD of April lol. I wonder if I'll get two!!?

 

Wattos, is it possible to add how to clean your keyboard or how to keep it clean and protected info on the first thread? If anyone have info please let me know.

 

xkcd: Keyboards are Disgusting

 

LOLZ! thats y i want to know proper way to clean it.

 

Best is porbably to remove the keyboard and clean it with compressed air.

 

Thanks for info. Im afraid to open it up lol.

 

Yeah, I know what you mean.. but it's really not that hard at all. Take a look at the service manual.

You only need to remove the touchpanel cover with the alienhead and a couple of screws as far as I remember.

Best way to clean it.

 

I tried follow this to update the 460M driver, not success at all! Got 'couldn't find compatible hardware'.

 

I was wondering the same thing. I downloaded the drivers from nVidia's site this morning and my M15x won't play nice with them - do we need to modify them in some way to get them to work?

 

^^^ Yes, you need to download the drivers found in laptopvideo2go.com and the modded INF file as well. Just extract the latest driver(265.** series) and overwrite the INF files with the modded ones and do a clean install. I suggest you do this asap b'coz the drivers from Dell do no justice to this Awesome video card. Just install the latest driver and then you'll really unleash the BEAST inside that 460M. ^^^

One slight hiccup though, with modded INF you lose the control of brightness settings from the nVidia control panel. I never use this feature anyway so it didn't bother me but the increase in performance u get after installing this mod drivers is just UNBELIEVEABLE..!!! Overclicking is better using new drivers as well and the temps are just fantastic. :0

Hope this helps.

 

It appears all the 265.xx drivers have been taken down temporarily. Just my luck

 

Any reason why 265.**, not 266.**? It seems like 265.** has been removed.

 

hey Guys

I'm getting my son a M15x for his birthday (and pre-college gift)

What are current turnaround times on ordering?

Also - what's the current bus speed on a new M15x? I have a 2GB chip from my M17-R2 that I would love to reuse

Thanks in advance!

 

Mr Neutron, in answer to your first, I ordered my M15x on 9th Feb and my delivery date is 18th. The computer is listed as shipped. I'm in the uk. Don't know if this differs from standard us shipping times but can't see why it should unless there are major snow storms. I'm afraid I cannot answer your 2nd question but someone in here will be able to