***Aorus X7 Pro owner's lounge***

dunno if i'd pay that much for two 970ms in a laptop... anyway, can keep my cpu down to 82 degrees max by lowering processor max state to 90 percent, thus disabling tubro. lowers 3dmark scores from 14500 to 12500 and slows down more cpu intensive games like crisis 3. other games don't notice the cpu running slower, like sleeping dogs. after reaching 92 degrees after 5 hours of continuous gaming and my games slowed down yet again, investing in a laptop cooling pad.

 

Ah, so your temps are without a laptop cooler. For some reason I thought you were using one. That means I'll for sure have to have one for my marathon gaming sessions on weekends. Even with repasting.

As for the Titan, it's interesting that they gave a 970m SLI option. Probably because of the high cost of the system. If you think about it though, with the 970m option, it allows you to sell more of the Titan form factor. Couple years down the road, you still have a laptop that you can upgrade at any time that is supported by MSI. And it has a mechanical keyboard for "just" $100 or $200 more.

Now of course, you won't have the sexy form factor. Nor will it be as easy to move around. And I can't see myself taking the Titan to work, on a trip, or even to a local Starbucks. Now granted, if you are getting the laptop as a desktop replacement, to move around easily in your home or to take to a LAN party, then it may be worth it.

 

The only thing similar about the TITAN and X70 is they both have SLI, other than that they are totally different beasts.
@johnnobts
Would love to see temps when using a laptop cooler and do the fans really get as loud as some external reviews say?
I know fan noise levels are subjective but is it distracting when gaming, like drowning out the speakers or anything like that?
Thanks.

 

Wait, is the 970M SLI version of the GT80 available for purchase yet?

 

They should be soon, see msi's site here

 

Don't want people thinking the CPU throttles quickly, this only happens to me after gaming for a straight 3 plus hours or so. Temps have to be above 90 degrees for a long while apparently. Even then not sure it really is the CPU that dials back or something else. All I know is playing sleeping dogs at ultra for a long long time, eventually my framer ates get cut in half until I reboot. Usin Intel xtu it shows Temps maxed out at 90-92.... since I don't normally get 3 plus hours straight to game it's not a dealbreaker.

 

Ya that is why I returned it.

 

noted. fixed my audio issues though happily. removed latest audio driver and installed the non-beta version, now speakers work great, have no problem drowning out the fans. understand why some might return the machine given the thermal issues with cpu apparently, maybe more bios tweaking will remedy things in the future. someone's return on this laptop was obviously my gain.

did I mention broadwell can't come soon enough? 970m sli with broadwell ought to be fantastic. I will post temps when I get my laptop cooler. got the thinnest one I could find, coolermaster, that I could still put in my slim backpack. its the apple incase single shoulder pack I've been using since I got my original Razer Blade.

 

Does anyone know any info about the Aorus X5? Any Gigabyte Rep here? Would like to know price and specs and launch date And I think the X5 will be the only 4K SLI laptop available ......

 

X5 looks great but only concern is if the 965M is 2GB or 4GB GPU's.
Don't care for 4K personally but understand where some might find it useful.
If you have more questions of the x5 post here
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/new-aorus-x5-gtx-965m-sli-and-x3-gtx-970m.768780/

 

cooler did nothing really to help cpu temps. still cracked 90 degrees. perhaps if I position the fan more directly under the cpu location. but even then not expecting a difference. did another thermal repaste as I wasn't sure I had the cpu screwed down securely enough. may get something instead of mx-4 paste to try some other time.

 

jeez, honestly, manually setting fans to maximum will keep the cpu under control, so far haven't cracked 85 degrees. guess automatic fans don't cut it for 3 hour gaming sessions. good idea would be game at regular fan speeds (auto) then after a few hours if you still have time to play, switch to manual.

 

Sucks to hear that the cooler didn't really help at all. I may still try one some time but I will definitely try just running the fans maxed out from the start of my gamin session and see how the temps go. 85c would be good enough for me haha

 

Looking at the design, the cpu is in between the 2 gpus and hence is the farthest away from either heatsinks, so I don't think repaste or cooling pad will help a lot. Looks like aorus sacrifices cpu for gpu, since gpu is more important for gaming. Also, looking at xotic's review, the physics score on firestrike is lower than my GS60, it didn't even reach 9000. This thing is really hot! Anyway, just a comment

 

ok, yet another bios update. I also used gelid paste today, temps after 4 hours of sleeping dogs which at one point hit 92 degrees with fans on auto, after 4 hours never got over 87 degrees. was it the bios update or the Gelid paste? Both maybe.

 

I also flashed the bios today. I'll test it later tonight maybe. Let you know if the temps went down aswell

 

So I finally did it. Just ordered the Aorus X7 Pro from XoticPC. They said through chat that they had it in stock so I placed an order. A IC Diamond repaste here, a rush delivery there, a B7 bag to tie it all together and we have another Aorus owner.

It ended up beating out the MSI GS70 (so wanted a thin gaming laptop) and the new Alienware 17 (2015) to replace my current, soon to be previous AW m17x R3.

And now the waiting game begins.

 

I got a question. As I'm waiting for my Aorus to come out of production, I was wondering. Where can I find an extra power supply for this laptop? XoticPC didn't sell any extras, so its up to me to try and find an extra one. I usually leave one connected to my desk at home and one that I travel with.

Anyone have any suggestions for a good power supply?

 

have no idea where to get a spare PSU, sorry. OK did my thermal paste ONE MORE TIME (think I've done it like 10 times now). Usual rule is less is best does not apply to the CPU. I really don't think it makes great contact with the Heatsink. Copper sheet may be helpful one day. Have used MX-4 and Gelid Thermal paste, I have Coollabortatory Ultra coming as well as good old ICD 7. But I think I will refrain from opening this thing up again for a while. At any rate, after the last bios update temps went way too high (96 degrees at one point). Usually just do the little drop method with the paste but this time smeared it all over the die and then added a droplet on top. Temps now staying below 90 degrees again. FYI, undervolting at -69mV.

Interestingly, if I disable turbo boost by lowering CPU to 90 percent, I can only score around 12000 in 3dmark11. However, CPU temps never go above 86 degrees after hours of playing Sleeping Dogs, and my framerates actually stay consistently higher. Lowering the CPU max also lets me run the GPUs a little higher, so can get a higher graphics 3dmark11 score but lower physics. Still waiting for them to do another bios update I guess.

 

Well, I hope XoticPC does a good job repasting my computer. I'm glad they were on sale too. Saves me some time on trying to do it myself. Can't wait till I get it. Hoping it will be here by the end of the week but we'll see.

I'm going to have to look around and see where I could get a spare one. Maybe for Aorus themselves. Or maybe use my Alienware one, but don't know what it could do to the laptop.

 

Looks like a new batch of reviews have come out for the Aorus X7 Pro.

It looks like Aorus/Gigabyte is still sending out laptops with the TN screens instead of the ones with the IPS screens. They are probably just rotating and not replacing the review models.

Both the good:
http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews...tops-and-netbooks/aorus-x7-pro-1283922/review

http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/laptop/3596064/aorus-x7-pro-gaming-laptop-review/

https://www.avforums.com/review/aorus-x7-pro-v3-cf1-17-gaming-laptop-review.10980

The bad:
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2476425,00.asp

 

I'm pretty certain mine is an IPS panel. I'm looking at it from all angles, even almost dead-on the side and the colors don't wash out or change much. If this is really a TN panel, then TN panels got a lot better...

 

Yeah, most owners have also confirmed it's an IPS panel. I don't know how you can verify it. It seems that there is a program or something like it that can do that for you. I'm hopefully getting mine the beginning of next week so I can confirm.
I do hope it is.

 

thermals seem under control, sticking with mx4 again. haven't cracked open icd7 which i know works well or the CLU which is supposed to be amazing. One of the things the bios update apparently did according to my Intel XTU program is raised the CPU temp threshold from 90 to 95 degrees. maybe in an effort to extend time before thermal throttling. not sure. temps have hit 92 degrees again but i think they were always going that high. can only achieve thermal throttling playing sleeping dogs for hours. other games haven't really been a problem, including dragon age and nba2k15. will have to install latest nvidia drivers and check out evolve tonight. latest bios update also gimped the 3dmark scores from around 14500 to 13950-14050 on average.

gotta reitterate that this thing handles games just fine with cpu maximum lowered to 99 percent. temps stay lower and still playing dragon age and other games at ultra settings with 40fps or so. fans also stay much quieter. also, have been able to get stable undervolt on the cpu from -50 now up to -80. May be able to go higher.

 

undervolting stable at -100mv.

 

Monitor Asset Manager[1] is my favorite.
or you can just enter the following command:

Code:

C:\>wmic desktopmonitor get pnpdeviceid
PNPDeviceID
DISPLAY\HSD06A5\5&148F8DC7&0&UID256

Google the code between the backslashes, such as "HSD06A5"

[1] http://www.entechtaiwan.com/util/moninfo.shtm

 

Is it true there's no way to

I've read all of them, but my favorite stills this one[1].
BTW, it's the only review that mentions that it's not possible to switch from the 970Ms to the Iris Pro 5200.
Is that true? Are there any hacks for that? What's needed to have that enabled? A modified BIOS?
What about disabling one of the 970M?
Or just disabling the SLI configuration (two independent devices for CUDA/OpenCL)?

[1] http://www.notebookreview.com/notebookreview/aorus-x7-pro-review/

 

Did anyone have bought/found a spare battery for the X7 Pro? Where?

 

you cannot enable the integrated graphics on the cpu at all. no option in the bios to re-enable it. you could maybe try unplugging the sli cable connecting the 2 970ms, but i seriously doubt that will work. in fact, i had an issue with my first gen x7 pro where one of the graphics cards stopped working, or at least I couldn't re-enable SLI for some reason, and it still never gave me the option to switch to integrated gfx. wish they'd gone with a cpu that didn't have a high powered iris pro gfx built in, cause all it does is produce more heat and you can't actually use it. the broadwell cpu in this thing will be wonderful. anybody using throttlestop 7 on their aorus pro yet? i downloaded it but haven't had time to play with it.

 

Yeah, that is too bad. You would think that if you disabled one of the GPUs, you would be able to have access to the integrated graphics. I still don't understand why they would use a processor with the Iris 5200. They could have used th current laptop standard of i7-4710 or 4720 for the processor. But oh well. It's these small little design choices that delayed my eventual purpose for buying this laptop.

As for my favorite review, I always refer to the Tom's Hardware review of this laptop. It was the first one I read, and the most complete one I read for specs, measurements and the like for this laptop. I would keep referring back to this so I credit this review for finally buying it.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/aorus-x7-pro-geforce-gtx-970m-gaming-notebook,3955.html

And thanks for those programs. I will check them out when my laptop arrives.

 

What SLI cable? I didn't find one in this picture[1].

[1] http://media.bestofmicro.com/J/E/459482/original/aorus_x7-pro_inside.jpg

 

I thought the thick black ribbon cable about 2 inches long is the sl8 cable. Also, did yet another thermal paste upgrade, using the coollaboratory ultra (liquid metal), and am very impressed with it.

 

I saw that small cable but it doesn't look like an SLI bridge. I think it's just to connect the little board on the side, but I may be wrong.

How many degrees did you get with CLU?

I saw this review from GentechPC[1] and it shows the Command and Control window with a button "Enable Slave GPU".
What does it do? It "turns off" the second 970M completely or it just disable SLI?

[1]

 

Can the Intel Iris Pro be used for rendering though?

 

I don't have a scientific method to test temps, other than leaving a game running for hours on end. with mx-4 (most successful paste prior to the CLU), was still able to hit 93 degrees. With the CLU, have not been able to top 87 degrees yet. room temps were the same. people say 5 degrees doesn't matter, but with laptops this close to the thermal threshold, staying at or below 90 seems to make a big difference.

 

did not try icd7, and probably won't, as I understand removing CLU is difficult and there isn't enough in the tube to reapply it anyway. CLU is a risky paste because it is conductive so you gotta be very careful, its expensive and comes with very little paste in the tube, its challenging to apply, and some reviews and youtube comments have complained it doesn't last very long and may create a residue on your heatsink. it also cannot be used on aluminum at all, just nickel or copper.

 

From what I hear, it turns off the second GPU, basically making the laptop a GPU system with the 970. I won't be able to try it til I get my Aorus on Monday. But I do wonder, if you turn off the SLI and only using one system, I'm not sure why you can't just turn on the discrete graphics that is the Iris Pro. But everyone tells me you can't. May be something in the Bios or somewhere else that doesn't allow you to turn it on anyway.

 

You guys still like this laptop or did all of you return it like me?

 

So far, out of the people on this thread who bought one, you are the only one that has returned it that I know of.

I get mine tomorrow. And I can't wait to try out. A lot of the software updates have fixed some of the early issues (like throttling at low temperatures and the like) so I can't wait to put it through it's paces once I update everything. I also got it with the IC Diamond thermal pasted from XoticPC. That, along with a cooler and I should be good to go with my system.

 

Just got word from Gigabyte/Aorus that they don't sell the battery separately.
I've just discovered it's just a big scheme to fool customers.
I will never buy a product from Aorus or Gigabyte.
If you are one of the poor victims of such criminal organization I recommend you file a lawsuit against them.
At least in the USA and UK you'll get your money back for sure.

 

uh, ok. good to know i guess. anyway, let me know what your IC Diamond temps are. I just run 3dmark firestrike in a loop for an hour or so or something. not super happy about the bios update as i mentioned earlier. was originally getting 14500ish on 3dmark11, but now get between 13900-14050. lame.

 

What did they do? Can you restore the old BIOS?

 

they don't have the old bioses on the website, just the newest one. there have been 3 or 4 bios updates so far.

 

Why the hell it's slower now?
Did it solve any problem you've noticed?

 

Alright, so I just received the Aorus! Unfortunately, I have to run out and do some work and a bunch of errands, so I won't be able to benchmark it til tonight when I get back home. When I do, I run the full gamut of benchmarks that I know of before I update any Bios(es) or anything like that.
I'll also start downloading the Steam games as I'm heading out the door as well. Can't wait...

 

So here are my scores so far. Let me know if there are certain benchmarks or methods of testing you want me to check.

Laptop has not been updated to current drivers. I don't know if Aorus updates their drivers on new systems as they come out.
I received received the Aorus X7 Pro today straight from XoticPC. System only has been repasted with the IC Diamond paste.

House temperature was around 71 - 74F at the time of testing. Fans are on High and no Laptop Coolers are used.

XTU:
15 minute stress test results:
CPU Temperatures stated between 62C - 67C
Processor Frequency stayed between 2.75 - 3.10 Ghz


3DMark:
Score was P14182. Seems low to me, but still over 14000


3DMark11:
You can see the scores in the image below. Firestrike score was 10822


Overall, I'm pretty happy with these results. What do you guys think? Too high, too low? Are there any other tests I should run?
With all these tests, temps stayed pretty low. But I haven't tried any games yet. Will try a session of either Shadow of Mordor or Dying Light for an hour or so and see what the temperature look like. Then tomorrow, I will try some GW2 for a long period of time and see how it goes.

 

Awesome!!!

 

So how do you replace the battery? do you have to RMA the whole laptop?

 

You mean fans are on Auto High or Max?

 

I didn't because I don't have a spare battery. Yes, according to Gigabyte and Aorus you have to send the laptop to the service center.