~Asus G73JH-X1 Official Owner's and Technical Upgrade Enthusiast's Thread~

But, I heared the Turbo mode actually doesn't help or hinders the perfomance.
Can anyone answer me if it is true?

 

Oh alright, I'm gonna try it now. Thx

 

What I have found for the i7 720 at least, is if your running a full load (e.g. encoding, some games, benchmarking) the Asus Twin Turbo retards the performance.

While your BCLK will increase from 133 to 142 and your CPU will be @ 1.7GHz, you will lose the x13 multiplier that the i7 Turbo sits you at with 1.73GHz.

Now increasing the BCLK does increase the other components of your system, my tests have shown to me that for full loads, you want Asus TT off. With small loads, I can't comment as you can't get a grip on what the Asus TT is doing to the i7 turbo multipliers. I only assume it still retards the i7 turbo as I cannot really quantify it.

This is all until we have a way to OC our i7 turbo multipliers on the 720 like the extreme edition can do. Then we can keep our i7 turbo multipliers and raise our BCLK like only Mandrake can do right now. for us non extreme.

Q

 

i tested 3dmark06 in turbo mode and my score was 400 points higher with turbo mode on.

My understanding is that turbo mode also allows the 5870 to overclock for brief periods under load - this also seems to be the case with my benchmarking test.

Something caused that bump in 3dmark when i switched turbo mode on.

Also to the poster who is having problems with WoW - you are doing something wrong - I have never been so impressed with a laptop running WoW - ever.

Other games are a different story but WoW is stunning and is a showpiece for what this thing is capable of.

 

I'm thinking the Twin Turbo mode from Asus was more geared toward the non-turbo CPU's of the i7. Not that I could say first hand but I would think it would be a difference in some tests with it on with older CPUs.

Also the problems I was having lock-ups in config/launcher menus for games and with FancyStart are now gone after I formatted and reinstalled Windows.

Well I got rid of FancyStart completely as I don't need it and I only picked the utilities that I would actually use when installing from the Asus cd.

So far not one lock-up or any problems *knock on wood*

Hope that can help someone.

 

That "something" could be attributed to the tired 3DMark06 benchmark. Have you run any tests with anything else (e.g. Vantage, Unigine, games, etc.), especially where you can monitor CPU activity under full load?

I use everything but 3DMark06 as I am tired of that bench and refuse to move the OpenAL file from it's installed folder to the Futuremark folder, again. I'm not lazy, just citing principle for calling an end to that bench.

Like I said, the TT does raise the BCLK and other main components will get a net gain for it because that's how BCLK works (just like raising the old FSB), but if the OP was getting confused because I was the one saying the Asus TT was useless, I wanted to point out how and with what scenerios I was using to come to that conclusion.

Q

 

How is everyone managing the OS swap from the factory 500 gig to their SSD considering no install disc came with the laptop? The recovery disc that came with it automatically installs on the HDD and creates the default (3) partitions.

I've tried Acronis' Migrate Easy but when I clone the HDD OS to the SDD, it's like the booting of the SDD OS is still holding onto the HDD's data because when I delete the HDD, Windows freaks out and tells me I'm missing things.

Also, is it possible for me to not have the recovery partition (which takes almost 12 gigs) on the SSD?

 

I would really like the answer to this too...as I may be getting an SSD...wish there was a thread with all the HOW TO'S for this lappy!

I am thinking to solve all of these types of issues, I will just upgrade to Windows Pro, and that should solve the problem with the separate OEM disc.

Also - you get XP mode, which will be nice for older software, etc...

 

Fellas, most of the info you're looking for is in the same thread you're asking for it in:

1) Remove the Seagate from bay 1 and leave out for now.
2) (Understand how your SSD will hook up in Bay 1) Put a few small pieces of 3M non residue double sided tape on the SSD opposite end of the SATA connections. Put your SSD into bay 1 holding your taped side up a little while firmly pushing into the sata connection, then firmly push down on the other end so the tape holds. This is a rock solid hold on my machine.
3) Insert and boot from your Asus recovery DVD and select "Install Windows to entire C Drive" (or something like that). Windows will install to the SSD.
4) When you get a popup looking for the driver disc, just reboot. Windows will finish installing and then you can put in your driver disc and select what drivers and applications you want to install.
5) Now you have a fresh W7 install on a SSD and only the bloatware and drivers you selected. Shut your PC down.
6) You will have to reverse the Seagate drive in it's cage so it will fit into Bay 2.

Here is where you will have to use your own solution to get rid of the Windows 7 install that still resides on your Seagates C: drive. I simply used my bootable Vista DVD going through the process of installing a copy, but stopping short and using the menu to format the Seagates C: drive before anything had an opportunity to boot from it. (You can find a Vista Recovery ISO on the internet that will do the same thing).

After I did that: I had:

1) Fresh W7 on SSD with selected bloat.
2) Seagate with a 19.5GB partition (Asus recovery partition), 116GB partition (former C:, now E: for some games) and a 300+GB partition for data, etc.

I am leaving the Asus partition alone for now in case I have to put all this back to original form for warranty work. Any questions, feel free to hit me up.

All the info is in the G73 threads. What you're really asking for is someone to pick out all the info and place it in some nice tidy page for you. I invite one of you to do this and then you may realize how big of a project that actually is.

corpfan1, you might want to research that XP mode, it's not quite XP on your pc from what I hear and even MS words it carefully.

Q

 

I was reading a few pages back about sound issues...it seems I am having some issues too.

The sound on mine seems to work with no problems at times. Like when I adjust the volume via the interface I hear the ping. When I was playing dragon age. The sound also worked fine. When I was trying to play a dong via windows media I got nothing though. The wired thing about that is I could see the volume equilizer going up and down but no sound output. I was also playing a video on a web page and it sounded like on the subwoofer was working.

The master volume was up, the application volume was up, but no sound via media player and a muffled baselike sound when plating on web not YouTube.

What audio drivers are you using on your model.

I have realtek and the ati installed.

 

I thought the sound sucked until I removed the Creative software. Much better after that.

 

Same here. Without the Creative software installed, the sound was not nearly as rich and a lot of the equalizer/bass booster settings are either missing or don't work.

 

I think he meant that the sound sucked WITH the creative software.

After uninstalling the creative software, the sound became better.

 

How do you format the SSD to new state for a fresh W7 install?
Looking to get the SSD back to top factory setting for performance.
Thx

 

Oh.

I thought the sound was better with the drivers, but I broke my laptop so what do I know?

 

I'm using realtek sound driver and it's working fine.

 

Hey Jody, did you get your G73 back from newegg yet? I saw you review, did you see mine? I blasted newegg for their crappy boxing, lol. I'm gonna wait a few more days before I do a revision of my post there. So far, I haven't game yet. I'm still install all my Steam games, and that's almost over 400G of them.... I'm only at 77G....

 

Well installed the other 500 gig with the velcro....seems to b working descently...finnaly got to game a bit on this beast.... all games maxed out it desroys fps... installed gta4....it maxed the game out for me lol..... doesn't lag at all either.....nyce... very happy with my purchase.... I know this was covered pages back but what is the 20 gig partition?...can I get rid of it... also has anyone made a list of the bloatware that can b taken off of this without screwing anything up? Would appreciate it thx

 

I still don't understand the audio drivers. Is the sound handled by creative or realtek?

 

Also what's the easiest way to figure out if u hav the 1066 or 1333 ram thx

 

Yes, if you look carefully there's a bloatware guide in this forum.

just keep the one that comes with the laptop. It has no problems.

hwinfo32.

 

Just FYI maybe I got lucky but I revived mine from Newegg on Friday and it was in a large box with a ton of packing material around it. So maybe Newegg heard the complaints and responded?

 

If you don't want to open it and look at the label on the ram, download this program in .iso format and burn it to a cd and boot off it. It will tell you what speed your ram is:

http://www.memtest.org/

 

You could just download cpu-z. Go to the memory and see if it's 667, then you the 1333.

 

What Wireless card does it come with AND what is the shipping weight of this?

 

Atheros AR9285
8.0 lbs on the packing manifest from Newegg. [mine was also double boxed]

And for the record I'm curious too about why they included creative software with realktek hardware? Does realtek buy the chipset from creative and just rename it?

 

EAX would be my answer.

Q

 

Yeah but EAX doesn't work on vista or windows 7. You need alchemy to enable it and last I've heard Creative still doesn't have it for windows 7. It won't matter as it only works in some games. You're better off going with realtek. I think creatives' software combime with realtek is a dumb idea and caused my X1 to BSOD while on steam.

 

It's in my creative folder accessible from my start menu.

 

Yep, alchemy is installed with the creative software package included with the G73.

 

I've always wondered which games need Alchemy and which don't. My understanding is that it is for older games being used on Vista/7 that don't pump out 5.1

 

anyone swap in a intel 6300n adapter yet?

 

I was thinking of cloning the partition using this: http://www.disk-image.net/ or this: http://www.livecd.com/. Seems to be the only software that is compatible with Win7.

 

I saw yours on there too! I'm still waiting. Mine is received by NewEgg, but they haven't issued a replacement yet. I used the backup feature on my desktop machine to back up steam to a terabyte drive. Then I run the restore on the new laptop. It takes forever to download all of that from Steam even if you have a great connection.

 

Question: Why is my memory running so slow, and how do I make it faster?

 

Yeah tell me about it, lol I got over 400G to download and I'm only on 190G. I do have a external Hd but it's only 320G and that's already used upover 250G so I can't save my steam games onto that. It's much easier to just install steam and transfer the folder over.

Newegg should ship it out on Monday unless they get lazy. Then it might be Tuesday. Make sure you call and asked for the G73 to be double boxed as you don't want any surprises.

It's already running at 1333mhz. You talking about the timing? I don't think you can change that. It's not like a home built pc where you can change things in bios to your desire. You're limited to what you can do on a laptop.

 

Oh, I'm a computer n00b. Can you explain to me how I would know its running at 1333mhz as opposed to to 665mhz shown in the picture. I'm clueless

 

Multiply that by 2 and that's your ram speed.

 

Oh, that was simple. Thanks!

 

We've been swapping in the 6200 because there are only two antennas.

 

shouldnt be too much hassle to run another antennae. most ebay kits include all the antenna's i just would hope it is supported in the bios...

 

One could if they wanted to. I assume you have use for the extra bandwidth.

 

I always have use for extra bandwidth!

 

I was going to preorder an A2 tomorrow (unless the keyboard fears change my mind), and was going to get the intel 6200 card upgrade for about $35, assuming it'd have a better connection than stock. I remember reading about the antenna issue before, but am I right in assuming that the 6200 is at least worth it over stock?

 

Yes. 300mb/sec vs. 150mb/sec. IIRC.

 

ANOTHER WAY TO INSTALL AN SSD DRIVE

- Dowloaded and installed the trial version of Active@DiskImage. The trial is fully functional for 21 days.

- Shut down computer and move the Seagate 500G to drive bay #2 and install the SSD drive to drive bay #1. Yes both drives will be connected.

- Boot the computer. System will automatically find the active partition (C:/ drive)

- Opened Disk Image and proceeded to "clone" disks. You want to clone just the current Seagate C:/ partition to the SSD disk.
*Note: You do not need to prepare or active the SSD drive first. The only gotcha is that DiskImage will only clone to a drive/partition equal to or smaller than the source partition. For example the C:/ partition on the Seagate is about 116GB and if you have a 60GB or 80GB SSD drive it will no let you clone unless you shrink the Seagate's 116GB partition equal to or less than the SSD drive/partition. Not to worry this is only temporary and you can use the included Partition Magager in DiskImage to resize and then at the end resize back again.

- After cloning the drive right in windows using DiskImage, shut down the computer. At this point I took out the Seagate drive and booted just to the SSD to make sure all was ok. I also connected the Seagate to a SATA to USB connector to another computer so that I could clear the OS (active partiton) on the seagate.

- Reinstall the Seagate into drive bay #2, boot and then go back into DiskImage to clean up and resize the partitions.

It really is easier than it sounds and this program worked great. Hope this helps someone.

The SSD makes if fly! Definitely worth the upgrade. I just wish my SSD was larger! That's what she said!

 

**Fix for the Crackling Sound**

Ok guys, I finally found a fix for the random crackling noise in Win 7.

Here's are the steps :

1) Unistall the "Realtek High Definition Audio Driver" from "Programs and Features" in the control panel.


2) Goto http://www.realtek.com.tw/downloads...=24&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false, check the little box and click next. And on the next page, download the Win 7 (64bit) Driver Version R2.42.


3) The most important part is to install the driver in compatibility mode to "Windows Vista (Service Pack 2)". To do this right click on the download driver setup, Goto "Properties" and click on the "Compatibility" Tab..After doing that just install the driver and restart your lappy.


3) After you restarted the comp, open "Sound" from the Control Panel. There should be 2 playback devices named "Speakers". The 2nd one is already set as default driver, so to make your sound better just Set the 1st driver as default playback device and after your done with that, just mute the 2nd "Speakers" device by going to it's "Properties".

Finally your "Sound" window should like this :


The Creative software won't work this method, so just uninstall them. They are kinda useless to me anyways.

Well hope this helps for anyone whose having sound problems with their G73s. Good Luck and Enjoy

 

^^^good job!

How does this affect disk alignment?

 

With reference to what exactly?

 

On a new install Windows 7/Vista properly aligns the partition at the beginning of the install. I wanted to know when you use this method, are the disks still aligned?

Edit: Use this <strike>trojan</strike> script in this forum to check alignment.