Asus FX502 Owners Thread

So far as I can tell, this model is just a cheap version of the GL502 with a different case.
But wow, it's CHEAP. I didn't expect to see anything pascal this cheap...
https://www.amazon.com/FX502VM-Gami...?ie=UTF8&qid=1480090841&sr=8-1&keywords=FX502
Snag one at Amazon for 899.
i5-6300HQ, GTX 1060, 16GB RAM, 1TB HDD, Win 10.
I'm expecting overheating like crazy, but I can't complain for the price. The thickness is nice, too. If it is better than I anticipate, I may sell my P640RE and keep this. If it's an overheating / throttling problem, back to Amazon.

Anyone else pick one of these up?

 

Saw the deal elsewhere and came here to look for more info. I'm tempted, but I have some reservations in regards to the build quality of the unit. Lack of ROG branding is a plus in my book.

 

Exactly, we shouldn't bring our high-end colored glasses out to pick a low-end bargain entry 1060 laptop

That $899 price is amazing for a 1060 laptop!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LXO0PO2/





This one says it has a 6700HQ, could be a different config for another region, but it's got views of the internal build, I thought would be of interest...

 

Is it possible to swap the display with a 120Hz G-sync unit?

Also, the specs mention a USB type-C port. One of the pics also shows a type-C cable but I can't seem to locate an actual type-C port on any of the pics. On the GL502 the type-C port is located on the left side in front of the type-A port.

 

Placed my order. Finally replacing my 2011 Lenovo Y570.

Edit: I cancelled my order. After reading about heat concerns with the similarly designed ASUS GL502 VM, I decided to spend extra for something that brings me more peace of mind.

 

yes, this looks like a cheaper version of the 502vm. In fact, the support page shows that it uses the same bios as the gl502VML, without thunderbolt

in 4 months, plastic i7 1060 machines will be about this price.

a core i7 1060 6gb sager clone was recently on sale for $1099.

Rushing to get a core i5, which handicaps some games by as much as 25% compared to i7, is not a good decision.

Also cheap TN screen on this one with 45% ntsc. awful cost cutting.

I wouldn't be comfortable making so many compromises and sacrifices so early.

That video does not show it having usb-c. This is pretty barebones for $900.
Way too many cut corners when you evaluate it compared to a decked out $1100 core i7 1060 6gb IPS screen machine.

 

Link to an actual system on sale for $900-$1100 with a 1060 so buyers have alternatives right now?

I don't think they want to wait 4 months for "plastic i7 1060 machines will be about this price"

 

Please let us know what you find and order instead

 

So I also ordered this yesterday morning and apparently it was already at my doorstop once I woke up late today.

Bought as semi-impulse; had originally been looking into a 1070 based machine but when I saw this one sale I started wondering why I'd want to spend ~$1500+ on a gaming laptop when I already have a desktop as my primary platform. In hindsight I think I should've gotten the $1100 P650RP6 link626 referenced when it was available 2-3 weeks ago, especially since the difference for me would've been ~$125 due to being taxed on this FX502VM but no the P650RP6; I knew about it at the time but was mentally setting it aside for a 1070 system instead.

I'll post my impressions of the machine once I get a chance to set it up and play with it for a bit, hopefully by tomorrow afternoon, although I can say two things right now: 1) it's not going to be worth it at its $1250 MSRP asking price and still highly questionable at its current $1050 Amazon price, and 2) if this is in fact equipped with a TN panel it's going right back.

 

I did see Eluktronics' Newegg sale P650RS for 999 a barebones No OS, HDD/SSD, RAM, etc. that included a i7-6700HQ / 1060 vs this one. I considered it, but since I didn't have a windows license, and only 8GB of RAM on hand, the Asus' 16GB w/ Win 10 for 100 dollars less and a slimmer and better aesthetics (albeit hotter) chassis seemed like an OK deal.

My desktop is nicely configured with a 1070 and a curved 35" G-sync panel so really, this is for on the go. Will I miss the frame rates a few times a year when I'm at PAX or cons or over a friends / LAN party'ish setting? Nope. 90% of the time I'm going to be playing games on my desktop anyway. Web surfing, movie watching, playing simple games in bed, working, office documets, etc. will never see any difference. I can see the concern if this was your only machine, but even then it's very low for 900 dollars. For the original 1250 asking price yes, there is better for cheaper. But for 900? It's not a bad deal.

Anyway, mine should be delivered tomorrow- so we'll see!

 

I watched the videos, the tear down looks super easy, which will be good for repaste purposes.
It didn't look like it ever throttled, so we'll see how it compares to the P640RE, which is my benchmark to beat (if I'm to keep it, that is!) and isn't exactly the coolest running machine on the market either.
Has the GL502 benefited from a repaste?

 

not anymore. that deal is long gone.


$900 for this machine is like paying msrp, considering the build quality and lack of features and cost cutting.

The gl502vm is selling for 1229, no sales tax for most. That's the current "msrp" market value. Considering the fx502 only has an i5, gimped 1060, and nothing else, AND you pay $60-80 sales tax.... yeah, $900 is "msrp".

in california, $1229 vs $983 = ~250 difference, which covers the core i7, ips screen, 6gb 1060gtx, and thunderbolt 3 upgrades

Lukewarm deal. Fine for people who don't need all the bells and whistles, but you're still paying market value, and not getting a steal of a deal.

 

MSRP for the FX502 $899 deal was $1249, IDK why you are wanting to bad mouth this machine, but please stop, it's not nice.

There are people out there that for them it's a reach to afford it, and they don't need to be told it's not good.

Plenty of people bad mouth the GL502VM and you don't like hearing that do you?

Each laptop configuration is built to satisfy a need and a price point.

Saying nasty things about someone else's dream configuration - something they can afford - really isn't nice.

Lighten up, let people enjoy what they can afford, and hopefully the sales will come back around - keep looking for them

 

Confirmed that this in fact has a TN panel, despite the same language used in the GL502VM description page, minus G-Sync. Color me disappointed, it's going back as a return as I promised myself. Also wouldn't power on upon receipt until power brick was plugged in (it's 180W if anyone cares), as if battery was not charged at all prior to shipment from factory.

Back to the drawing board, if I decide to get anything else at all...there's that Cyberpower Tracer with 965M for about $800 after tax with some freebies and it might be enough for what I plan on using it for. Living in CA, I get taxed just about everywhere that isn't a Clevo reseller not named HIDEvolution.

From Amazon:

[quote][/quote]

From Asus web site:

 

"Wide-view" is the clue, that's what they say about the "new" TN panels.

I am not a TN panel hater myself, I've had lots of great displays that were TN, and lots of good IPS as well.

I started out on TN's and older displays, so I am used to tapping the laptop to face the display directly in front of me - it's an automatic thing I don't even realize I am doing - so the TN's are always facing correctly for my view.

It's a small thing, but it's made it easy for me to live with TN display's.

Getting a Quad Core CPU and a 1060 for $899, I could easily live with a TN panel.

Give it a chance, it'll grow on you. Invest in a nice $100 IPS 24" display for home

And the 1060 3GB performs close to a 1060 6GB, 5%-7% average difference:



3GB vs. 6GB GTX 1060 - Benchmark Comparison


A 965m won't even get close to the performance of the 1060 3GB

 

I don't care if people badmouth the laptop I want to get, or have. I know exactly the cons of each notebook I get, and I'm willing to accept them.

That $1249 msrp was pulled out of Asus' azz, and such random number should never be used to judge whether something is a good deal.

I'm not being nasty, just trying to inform.

In fact, you would have to be a dumbass to pay $900 for a core i5 1060 3gb....... when this weekend, you can get a Core i7 6700hq, IPS 17.3", gtx 1060 6gb, 240gb ssd, for just $1000., with no sales tax for most states except stupid california. Yeah it's ugly and heavy, but my point is that you have to look at the value of the hardware in comparison

Here......





Pascal notebook prices are dropping like rocks, and the coming new year, the market will be flooded with gtx1050Ti notebooks that will fill in the price gaps.

Don't do it. Those "freebies" are just junk to pad the price.

At this point, the 965m machines should be worth a lot less. I got my G501vw core i7 960m thunderbolt 3 for $800 out the door, and build quality is tons better than any cyberpower notebook.
This was 8 months ago.
If you're still paying $800 for a maxwell machine that is only marginally better than a 960m, with a sh** build quality, you're getting ripped off.

 

Interesting option, also a good reminder to check Cyberpower in full for any other promos. Any idea who the ODM is for this model? Fangbook is MSI, Xplorer is Clevo, but no idea who developed the chassi for the Vector and the aforementioned Tracer models.

 

I purchased a custom MSI GT72VR-6D from HIDEvolution. This laptop is going to replace my laptop and desktop so I wanted to invest my money well. I went with HIDEvolution after comparing their offerings with XoticPC and LPC-Digital. The Black Friday deal they have going on for MSI was too good to pass up.

I've been considering Alienware and Sager as well. I actually had a 13R3 ordered the day orders opened. Cancelled that and had a 15R3 and even an 17R4 on order but cancelled them as well. The heatsink issues left too much uncertainty and I don't feel like needing to repaste.

Sager was favorable but I like the build quality and styling of the MSI after watching several reviews on the GT72VR.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Well, I guess I'm a 'dumbass' then. I will tell you this though, I would not want to walk into any of the boardroom or conference rooms at my job with that monstrosity. It's fine that the hardware is what matters to you, but it's not the only thing that anyone buys a laptop for. I need a slimmer, work acceptable machine. I'd prefer not to own 2 laptops, and want one that can still game when I'm not near my desktop. The ROG logo I might be able to get away with, but would still raise some eyebrows I think. That's why I have a P640RE, there's no logo. The Asus logo on this machine will be fine though, as this just looks like a regular laptop.

As for the 6GB vs 3GB thing, I think - and I could be wrong - that the shaders are the same count in mobile. Even if they aren't, I hardly run into the issue on a 3GB 970m, so I'm doubting very much would change with a 1060.
Who knows? I may still send it back if I can get a better deal somewhere else or if the throttle is too much. Let's wait and see. The only one that was delivered didn't even give us a decent idea of what this machine can do.

 

Great news, it was just delivered. Nvidia control panel confirms that the 3GB mobile version does in fact have the full 1280 shaders unlike the desktop version. More coming shortly.

 

76 degrees max CPU, 77 max GPU on Firestrike (normal setting)
5886 CPU points, 11460 GPU.

These screenshots were taken with Asus bloatware still installed and score was on stock Asus driver. I'll swap out the driver for the Nvidia one and test again later with a cooling pad under the unit.
See the above image where Asus calls the laptop a "GL502VML" heh. Also note that there is no optimus - there isn't even a driver in here for HD 530.
Theoretically (!) you should be able to swap in a G-Sync panel and it would work.

 

The FX is only 999 at Amazon right now. A harder choice for sure, but with a lot of the black friday deals drying up, not a horrible price.
Adding an m.2 was extremely easy, and the system is much quicker now. The temps have not risen past 77 in the days I've had it and I've done quite a bit of gaming on it so far. I can honestly say that the i5 is not the bottleneck I thought it would be compared to my P640RE. The i5 does get maxed out, but usually the Video card isn't far behind or is maxed out at the same time so it wouldn't really matter.

 

To anyone else who may have ordered this:
I don't know if this is because I brought it to Amazon's attention that the laptop did not in fact have the USB C port, but was advertised with one, and they refunded me an additional 53$, bringing my total to 846 for this machine.
Please notify them that this machine did not have the port, and maybe you too can save some extra cash!

 

I'm tempted as heck to buy this within a week. I see them going for 1050 on ebay at the moment. I'm experiencing a bit of dilemma however.
Option 1-I buy the fx502vm with an i5 and a gtx 1060 3gb with an hdd.
Option 2-I wait and purchase a more well rounded laptop with a 1050 ti, i7 quad core, and perhaps a ssd.
Either way, it's an upgrade from my Y50.
Templesa, how is the build quality on the machine? The temps look manageable, especially if undervolting can be achieved.

 

Hey @ChowMeow
I think its' quite good. Comparable to the GL502 it's based on for sure.
Very little flex in the body. Screen can wobble a little, but is still good.

Right now, check out the MSI GP62MVR linked below- It's 1049 as well but it's got 100 dollar rebate which is pretty cool, and has the i7 you want. But to be completely honest with you, I haven't seen a scenario where the CPU has been completely out-paced by the GPU. I think you'd find that the GTX 1050 Ti wouldn't be enough reason to step down. I'm sure that the i5 maxes single core applications that need higher clock speeds, in which case, you'd be better off with that MSI there, but there's never enough GPU power and far less games need excess CPU power.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834154373

Edit: As for the internals, it's perfectly fine without an undervolt from what I can tell. I haven't at any point in time gotten any throttling, nor have I had temps over 80 at any point either.

 

Well, they already took that deal down. Oh well. Keep watching the prices- they'll drop eventually.
Let me know if there's anything else you want tested!

Edit:
Use this link instead, was able to find the apparently same laptop on Newegg with that deal still up.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834154446

 

Haha, can't really use newegg. That tax really kills the otherwise solid deal. Either way, I'll be chilling with a decent machine. Hopefully I can answer some questions in the future if I also pick up the fx502vm. Might even do a review in English, there's not a lot of info on this laptop online sans this thread.

 

newegg charges tax?

 

Yeah, if you live in CA. I used to live right near them, got a lot of stuff in a day or two. A big purchase on a laptop would kill me.

 

Maybe you can find someone outside of CA willing to hold this laptop for a few days to prevent this tax cancer from spreading.

 

http://www.execute.be/ficheprod_en.asp?idprod=743296138
We got a leak boys. If it's under 1100, this looks to be a decent deal.

 

Sweet! A Kaby Lake version would be awesome. For the absolute steal I paid I'm not sure I'd upgrade (though I do have the option to return until the 1st of February thanks to Holiday sales policy on Amazon so I guess we'll have to see what the price comes in at! Remember though, other markets got this laptop at a more expensive price point with a i7 as well- so we'll have to see what the US version brings. A Kaby i5 with some higher burst speeds ~3.5Ghz sounds really good for this machine.

 

I added an SSD to the machine and it's quite a bit quicker. That was to be expected, but it's still nice to have, and pretty cheap / easy to do. 10 screws on the underside, carefully lift the panel off, take the included screw out of the box, put in the SSD, close it all back up, clone Windows to the SSD if you want - or just play games right off it - and you're all set!

Also of note, the motherboard has the USB C 3.1 connector cut out on it, but there's obviously no adapter connected or the hole in the side of the chassis. Someone who is a much more extreme tinkerer than myself might be able to do something with it.


I'm wondering if Asus is trying to combine these lines together - maybe they'll drop GL or FX altogether in the Kaby lake version for International now that there's a few other sku's?? Or the FX line will fall to the 1060 and below market and the GL 1070 and above?

 

Good job on the ssd-it should have come with one, but it is a budget device. With the 1060 3gb Asus uses, I hope it stays around the 1000-1100 price mark. Anything more and the drawbacks of the system start to outweigh the benefits of moving to the gl lineup.
As for the lineup, I would think the models would stay the same or similar.

 

So I have three choices now:

ASUS GL502VM - € 1599
i7 7700HQ, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD, GTX 1060 6GB, FHD IPS G-Sync

or

ASUS FX502VM - € 1549
i7 7700HQ, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD, GTX 1060 3GB, FHD IPS

or

ASUS FX502VM - € 1399
i5 7300HQ, 16GB RAM, 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD, GTX 1060 3GB, FHD IPS

Disadvantages of the FX502:
- No Thunderbolt (but I understand that the TB of the GL502 is crippled at 20Gb/s so no use for external GPUs?)
- No G-Sync (I tried it and it only made playing CS:GO worse so I don't think I will miss it)
- No metal lid (?)

I am leaning towards the FX502 series because the Kaby Lake models finally have IPS displays, it's the same chassis as far as I can tell and the extreme design is toned down a lot (no orange accents and WASD keys and no ROG logo's, yay!) and because I don't think my games will benefit a lot from the faster 6GB 1060 (was already extremely happy with 1050 Ti).

Is the i7 model worth the extra cash? I like that it has a big SSD to store all my games on and more RAM than the GL502VM. Does the i7 help with framerates?

Are there any other reasons to go for GL502VM instead of the FX502VM?

 

I think it's even closer than that for laptops since the laptop version of the 1060 3GB has the full 1280 shaders, unlike the desktop one that has only 1152 shaders.

So yeah it's a full 1060, no reason to perform slower than the 6 GB except if you game on ultra textures.

I have this laptop with the i5 6300HQ and this is sometimes a bottleneck in some recent bad optimized games. But not that much, the cpu always runs at 2.8 ghz on 4 cores, which is pretty nice considering the awful 2.3 ghz base clock. Only deus ex mankind divided pissed me off, it's very heavy on cpu. I would advise the new i5 7300HQ model which should run above 3 ghz. Of course, if u got the money get the i7 6700HQ or 7700HQ.

The soldered ddr4 memory module is only 2133 cas 15.

Overall i'm reaally happy with this laptop, got it at 880 euros only.

This laptop is so quiet when browsing etc, it's a delight. U need to do a heavy cpu task to make the fans start.

I find the TN screen very nice, it's no ips sure, but i come from an horrible 720p display so...

Sound is very good.

HDD is a 7200 rpm. Strangely i don't really feel the need for a ssd right now.

i have no use of thunderbolt or usb-c or g-sync so i don't miss it. Maybe i'll swap for a better screen if i feel the need in the future...but i doubt it.

 

WHy does Asus fx502vm say 100% sRGB but this says no as does the notebookcheck review on youtube?

http://laptopmedia.com/review/asus-fx502vm-review-an-outcast-republic-of-gamers-laptop/

 

Since the establishment of Republic of Gamers in 2006, ASUS 'new brand of gaming from ASUS has grown enormously. You can distinguish regular Asus laptop with its ROG version through seriesnya writing. Where the types of Asus ROG usually begins with the letter G, the G-Series which the letter G this indicates gaming laptop. visit my blog Asus Driver Download

 

Bought this laptop and found out the temp was blazing hot while playing heavy games like the rise of tomb rider. touched 94C.
Bought AS5 and repasted the original factory thermal paste. It performs the same while idle at 51C but it managed to suppress the load temp from 94C to 86C.
Undervolted the 7700HQ by 125mV using Intel XTU & I turned off the Intel boost by setting 99% on Processor Power Management. That pushed the load temp down to 83C.
Then I undervolt the GPU using MSI Afterburner and managed to push the load temp to 79C.
Lastly, I bought CPU cooling pad (Deepcool Multi Core X6) and that squeezed another 1C to 78C
Now I'm still waiting for 2 units of vacuum cooler (Opolar LC06) to attach to the exhaust, since drilling holes directly below the fans is not recommended. Drilling intake holes below the fan might cool down the CPU and the GPU drastically, but some said it would mess up the airflow for the rest of the laptop (like ssd, hdd, and other stuff).

*edit*
O yeah, forgot to mention that the screen quality of this laptop is ****ty. I am quite tolerant to most LCD screens but man the screen really is ****ty.
Changed mine to AUO B156HTN05.2 screen with 120hz response time. With a little calibration it became so much better.

*update*

Spoiler

The design of the LCD panel is the worst, it closes the exhaust path when the LCD is opened.
Installed 2 units Opolar LC06 vacuum cooler, now this laptop tops at 76C with auto fan speed. These vacuum coolers only works half their performance because of the exhaust blockage.

-125mV cpu offset turns out to be too much, new offset at -110mV and working perfectly.
Changed the way my laptop deal with turboboost through registry edit to advanced power management setting. explained on point 2.4 HERE.
GPU running Core 1900 MHz / Memory 4000 MHz
New max temp gaming at 71-76C.
Realbench stress test 5 mins 81-82C

*update*
Sealing the gap between the screen lid and the mainboard with silicone tube really improved the airflow & performance of the vacuum coolers! The airflow is almost completely sealed and flows one way to the vacuum coolers, now they could draw in more heat from the laptop.

SSD drives monitored idle at 32-34C and load at 54-56C. They are being cooled indirectly, I must say I'm surprised and pleased.


*update*
drilled holes under the laptop fans.
max load temp at 71C now.
i'm totally satisfied.

 

*update*
drilled holes under the laptop fans.
max load temp at 71C now.
i'm totally satisfied.[/QUOTE]

Hey would you recommend this mod also without the 2 Opolar LC06 at the back of the laptop ? I have also considered in the past to drill holes below the fans but did not dare to do so.

 

if you want to cut a hole like i did, you don't have to use opolar fans(though it's much better if you do), but it's recommended that you use laptop cooler on the bottom of your laptop.