Asus M50VM Owners Lounge

I've had my M50VM a little over a month and a half now. I'm starting to get this very faint but annoying constant beeping. I've searched the web and the most likely culprit is usually the speakers, but I have them on mute. The beeping seems to disappear when the CPU is in use and when idle it starts beeping all over again.

Anyone else have this problem? It doesn't seem to affect performance but when I'm trying to do schoolwork the beeping pisses me off!

 

Weird, huh? lol, I havent gone into any presentation modes yet either..

So, if there's a fix for this, kindly tell us. Thanks

 

JUST WANTED TO SAY HOW happy i was with the ASUS repair people.

2 weeks ago my m50vmb1 spdif plug stopped working and optical drive started to rattle. i brought it into an asus repair centre 5pm on one day and it was ready for me to pick up noon of the next day. they replaced my IO card for audio and replaced my ODD no questions asked. Customer service was very friendly to boot.

I love this laptop even tho this happened b/c it feels good to be backed up with this kind of service for 2 years.

 

Guys, what is the GPU driver version that you are currently using? Thinking of updating mine, just need opinions on what to get due to the huge options available to be at laptopvideo2go, haha.

Thanks.

Oh, and also, a follow up to my previous query, if anybody knows. Thank you

 

This is probably the "CPU whine" that some Core Duo and later CPUs have. The whine is made when the CPU enters a certain power-saving state. Google for more info.

I am not sure of a good way to fix it. One way included runing HLT instructions on the CPU when idle, but that also means that the CPU cannot speedstep (vary speed according to load) properly -- it is always forced at full speed.

 

I'm using the official Nvidia 179.28 notebook drivers and I haven't had any trouble in the two weeks or so that they've been installed.

Has anyone tried this multitouch driver with the M50VM? I don't want to mess with it without some idea of whether or not it'll work / break everything.

 

hello everyone. this is my first post here. i have had an asus m50vm-b1 now for about 5 - 6 months, and its been wonderful so far.

remembered seeing a post a while ago where someone wanted to know how to turn off the media control buttons thing on the touchpad, and i don't remember anyone posting a response so here goes.

to switch it off, go to "control panel --> mouse". select the "device settings" tab, then click on the "settings" button. expand the "tapping" node, then select the "dual mode" node. to disable the media buttons, uncheck the "switch to button mode..." check box.

there are also lots of other cool settings that can be tweaked here, so you might want to experiment a bit.

hope this helps.

 

Only had this notebook for a couple weeks, turns out I got the keyboard problem too. Downloading the latest synaptics driver from the synaptics website and disabling the touchpad seems to have gotten rid of or minimized the problem.

I'm hoping it's gotten rid of it... the few mistakes that pop up are hopefully just me.

 

Thanks, from laptopvideo2go?

 

Straight from the Nvidia site, actually - go to Download Drivers -> Notebook Drivers.

 

Did you just install 179.28 over your previous GPU drivers? Or did you uninstall, driver sweeper, install?

And they have 179.48 now, what do you think? @_@

 

anyone used the ar928x wireless card to crack your own wep/wpa network?

 

How is the heat and noise of M50?

 

My daughter just destroyed the enter key on the keyboard, and I am pretty sure that it cannot be re-attached. It would appear that the keyboards for these machines are out of stock in the Asus e-store, and I cannot find anywhere else to buy them. Anyone have any ideas?

Also, the touchpad seems to be rather problematic (as in not working at all at times), which is coinciding with the keyboard problem. Any idea why this would be?

 

I have an M50vm-B2 and I'm curious why a new BIOS has not been posted on the asus website. From my understanding the G50 is the same motherboard inside a differently styled chassis. The G50 has newer BIOS posted on the asus website. Why not the M50? It should have the same BIOS no?!?

Also I'm sick and tired of the keyboard lag. What is the solution? It's been over a year so I'd assume some one has found a solution that doesn't involve disabling the touchpad in BIOS.

I'm about to whipe the HD and reinstall Vista so I was also wondering if anyone has posted a list of the needed driver packages to install and in what order. Also if anyone has compiled this files/packages with the latest and most stable versions.

Thanks

Solid-State

 

The motherboards on the M50 and G50 are different. And since the M50 is EOL for about a year, there will be less and less BIOS updates for that particular series.

As for the keyboard lag, I don't think there's a definitive solution.

All drivers should be installed with a Vista restore and can be found on the Asus website. If you're referring to the Asus utilitize (bloatware), it's really up to you which ones you want and don't want. I've created an Asus bloatware guide for reference if you're interested.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=380681

 

How do you know the mother boards are different? If you look at the chassis I/O it's IDENTICAL including the access cover to mainboard on the backside etc. Also the cooling "module" is IDENTICAL! just go to the asus parts store and check the thermal module, battery, keyboard on and on and they are IDENTICAL!
It could be the motherboard is a different "revision" etc but the board layout again is identical. For all intensive purposes the M50 and G50 are the same animal... (correction from M50vm on it changed to Montevina but board layout remained identical) Sure there could be slight differences on the video board used and some of the top chassis buttons but those are not "onboard" on the motherboard. They are I/O, PCIex etc separate PCBs so a manufacture could change these components but still use the same main/motherboard.

Solid-State

PS Did anyone else notice with BIOS 209 boot times were horribly affected. Using 209 would increase my boot time by a minute. Perhaps this just affects an existing Vista installation. I wonder if 209 wouldn't screw boot times if it was flashed and then new OS install... wondering if anyone has new Vista install with BIOS 209 and has the boot time lag. IF they could flash to 207 and see if boot times get faster this would prove 209 has issues...

 

I got my Asus m50vm-b2 in january and it has been perfectly fine until recently when it just got a plethora of problems. I've decided to do a factory default setting restore via the hard drive instead of the disk, but I do not have an external hard drive to store all of my files.
When I received my computer the 500gb hard drive was partitioned into 2 250gb portions called C: and D:
I have moved all of my important files to the D partition and was wondering if there was any way that I can do a system restore with only the C: partition so that I can still have all of my files intact.

Any responses would be MUCH appreciated! Thanks in advance!

 

Not sure if you can do this with the recovery partition, but you can restore using the recovery disks, its more less like a fresh install of vista, you choose which partition to install windows to and you're all set. On the plus side, you can choose not to install some of the asus apps that come with the factory configuration by rebooting when it asks you for the 2nd disk.

 

eek. I'm at home right now in california and i left my recovery CD at school in New york, not thinking I'd need it.
Is there a way during the system restore that I can tell it not to touch the D: partition?

 

I think you can do it using the recovery partition, but i'm not 100% sure, sorry mate.

 

I came across this link here:

http://btoforums.com/showthread.php?t=1542

If i select this one during system restore:

Recover Windows to first partition only.
This option will delete only the first partition, allowing you to keep other partitions, and create a new system partition as drive “C”.


would it work?

 

That's what i suspected, i think you're good to go.

 

You should use the option: "Recover to 1st Partition Only." If you don't see that option before starting the HDD recovery process, delay the recovery, and wait until you can use the recovery DVD...

or get some storage to store your files.

Be aware though, there is no guarantee that you won't lose your data, there can be bugs etc. So I'm offering no guarantee.


In any case, having a complete backup of your files is a necessity! HDDs can (and often do) die unexpectedly.

 

Hey all,

Wondering if you intelligent folk can help. I own an M50VM-B1 and my headphone jack/port is buggered... someone got their foot caught in the lead that was plugged into it and now the sound doesn't work coming out of the jack.

Rang ASUS service centre in Scotland (why they have no centre in London is strange). BUt anyway as it is not warranty cover I'd have to pay courier + parts = around £100 ++. For a headphone jack!!!

Does anyone know where I could but the spare part so I can then give it to a local repair shop to install??

Any ideas much appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Fillo

 

I've had my m50vm b1 for just a year and have rarely used my dvd rw. after installing win 7, i tried to install my programs from my dvd's and was getting random lockups ect. this was from the dvdrw having problems reading various disc. Device Description HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GSA-T50N ATA Device came with firmware RR04, and after a quick google search lead me to cdfreaks forum and found the latest firmware RR07. after flashing my read problems dissapeared.

hope this help others, drive is also much quieter.

 

I was just visiting the asus site for some updated drivers/programs and stumbled on to a couple of cool things. after reaching the download support page, i select for notebooks and under models i selected APPS, and will list all the uptodate programs for the notebooks. i liked asus secure delete, nice program runs under win 7 fine. same thing when you select drivers. apps and drivers are not model specific but for all notebooks. now my win 7 install is complete, everything, everything works perfect. this notebook is made for win 7!!!

 

I haven't visited NBR for quite some time now @_@

Anyhoo, do any of you have the experience to clean the dust inside this laptop? Teach me how @_@ I feel that my temps are going higher cos of dust blocking the vents of the laptop (sorta..)

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

 

On the Info Booth you will find both a generic cleaning guide, and a disassembly guide for the M50 series to help you reach the fan.

Make sure you don't remove and "warranty void" stickers on the CPU heatsink screws if you're still under warranty.

 

Hi does anyone know the difference between "wireless console utility" and "asus wireless switch utility"

I want to be able to switch through bluetooth and wireless....

also which program do i download to enable my webcam?

 

Yeah, I checked on the info booth before posting, guess I just missed it.

Plus, I'm kinda scared to be doing something like this, (first time, tbh, lol)

 

Hey, what do you know, first post.

In any case I've owned a M50Vm-A1 for about a year and a half now, and it worked fine... for the first six months, that is.

After that, awkward things have been happening. I had XP Home installed on this laptop instead of Vista to start, and it worked fine for awhile, but now I will get random errors at times. Occasionally if I disconnect from the internet be it manually or forced, Windows will give me a svchost error and force my computer to restart. After looking into things I found out that that is most likely the work of a virus, and set about getting rid of it.

The other problem, however, is the system just hanging at a random point in time. Typically it will do this while trying to load a webpage, and after loading it, the computer will completely freeze, cursor, windows and all. I think it's because the GPU is overheating, though I could be wrong.

I actually have a brand new 320GB laptop hard drive that I plan on installing in the next week or so, so most software issues will be remedied in that case. But as for the computer locking up, is it most likely the GPU? Or is it something else completely out of my control?

 

Does anyone know how to update the recovery partition?

I upgraded from Vista 32 to Windows 7 64bit and I was wondering how to update my hidden recovery partition to the new one. Is there an easy way to do this? Or do I need to buy more software to do it?

 

The recovery hidden partition is pre-loaded with original OS and it can not be upgrade to Win7, what you can do is purchase Win7 Pro or Win7 Ultimate that has full HD backup features to a external hard drive.

 

Thanks - any recommendations for alternatives other than buying Win7Pro or Ultimate? I got the student upgrade offer (which was a nightmare to install). I used to have Vista-32 and I upgraded to Win7-64.

 

For those who have upgraded to windows 7, are there any issues with the install?

Any problems you ran into regarding drivers?

Where did you guys find drivers for everything (for previous re-OS's i used the driver disk that came with the laptop)?

 

if any m50vm previous ownders can take a screenshot of the drivers required that would be very helpful for me

if anyone still didnt upgrade to windows 7

i seem to be missing two base system devices

 

I'm running Windows 7 Professional 64-bit without any problems. Most of my drivers were installed automatically by Windows Update, they work fine.

There are no Windows 7 drivers available for the ASUS M50vm on ASUS Support, but you can use the Windows 7 drivers available for M50Vc and M50vn to your heart's content. All of them should be compatible (the only exception might be the Card Reader, but it works out of the box as I recall), but you might want to skip the VGA driver and get notebook graphics drivers from nVidia directly.

 

I've been having some very odd problems with my M50VM-B2 over the past year of owning it. Hopefully some of you can share your own similar (and especially dissimilar) experiences.

First off the keyboard lag, I know many of you have this issue. I was hoping Windows 7 would alleviate it but unfortunately it still exists. I tend to use only an external mouse and use the laptop as a "desktop replacement" rather then as a laptop because of it.

Secondly, the light sensor has not worked ever since I performed the first BIOS update on my laptop. It is not a software issue, as it is malfunctioning on Windows XP/Vista/7 with a variety of different drivers (basically it doesn't detect light changes, and the on screen display for it appears corrupted).

Third, over time my laptop keyboard has deformed I suppose, and now it "pops" out of the laptop. I've tried removing it and manually "bending it" to try and fix it. I've had some luck but curious if others have had their keyboard just pop out like this.

Finally, I'm now experiencing CPU/GPU thermal/heat issues. First off I find I have to disable PowerMizer and leave it at max clock because it just does not work properly on Windows 7 (and Vista). With Aero enabled everytime the clock changes from it's lowest setting to higher settings it causes problems with whatever I'm doing on the system (music will crack/pop, videos may skip a frame, etc etc) which is extremely annoying. So my GPU temperature is almost always around 65-70C idle. I'd really like to have PowerMizer enabled but not with these performance hickups.

As for the CPU, it's idling around 50-55C which seems oddly high, as I recall it being lower earlier in my laptop's life. Is this a normal temperature for all of you, or is it closer to 30C?

My warranty is now expired as my M50VM was a replacement issued by ASUS for my original laptop (G1S) due to it's fatal GPU problems (at least the revision I had). So there's nothing preventing me from breaking the warranty seal on my laptop. I've looked at the disassembly guide but if any of you can give me further instructions (what to use to clean it, what to look out, etc etc) I'd appreciate it.

I know this post is long and a time investment, but I appreciate all of you taking the time to read it and hopefully assist me .

 

I bought my M50VM-a1 two years ago and it's still going strong, despite severe abuse. Over the past two years it has been dropped countless times onto hard surfaces from varying heights of up to 5' and has rarely been treated with the respect it deserves. There is a good sized dent in the top casing which may have been caused by a chair leg. One of the most devastating events involved an eggnog accident just over a year ago - evidence of this can still be seen in some of the laptop's smallest crevices on its bottom (and likely inside its casing). I had a USB device cause a short circuit earlier tonight but, despite losing power and being unable to power back on for about 15 minutes, it's up and running again as if nothing happened. I swear this thing is a tank! I feel I've gotten my money's worth and then some out of this machine. Adding to the value I have gotten from it was my decision to switch from Vista to Ubuntu Linux - Vista was a major resource hog and, as fast as the laptop was before the switch, it's WAY faster with Ubuntu. I ran into a few issues but the Ubuntu community was already aware of them and fixes were available. Before Linux, the only problems I ever had with my ASUS were malware, viruses, and spyware. Now it runs smoothly ALL the time

 

Hello Friends i have the M50VM-B4 , did you know do our main board supports DDR 3 ? Thank you . Btw i am pretty happy with my asus already 1 and half year .