***The Official MSI GT72 Dominator Pro (GTX-980M) Owner?s Lounge***

Would any of the resellers be willing to take the msatas out of the upcoming 4980hq model and reduce the price accordingly? I'm not interested in a four drive raid thereby quadrupling chances of disk failure and I have a 1tb Samsung 850 to put in.

But I don't really want to pay the 3299 price with 4msatas either

I checked xoticpc and gentechpc but neithers configuration allowed me to do this.

N


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

They might if you E-mail them and ask nicely!

Another review:

MSI GT72 (GTX 980M) Notebook Review Update - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

 

Hi again guys!

I Have decided to keep this one. As striker said, once I have adapted to the change to matte from glossy, the display looks good enough for me, and every day I´m more in love with this thing.

The shop which sold me the laptop is an official msi store, so maybe in the future they can mount me an Ips without loosing garanty.

Temperatures mantain same, no matter what I play, Gpu never breach the 70 ºC and Cpu has reached 81º at maximum (playing Starcraft 2).

There are two models with 980m here in spain ( 2qe 293es and 225es), I believe both includes the gift pack and I think the unique difference is the processor. Since i bought with an offer of 10% discount, I purchased the 4980hq because the price was 300€ more, just the same cuantity of the discount, so i thought it would be more futureproof, maybe the 4710hq would been enough.

One doubt guys, I have an extra psu from my alien which is 240w. Is the one I use at work, for not going carrying one every day. I know the msi one is 230w, Am I running any risk?

Thanks In advance, and ask me whatever you want about the laptop.

 

psu i am not sure....at least check the writing on the back of it to make sure voltage is the same ..if voltage is very different do not try it. if amp is different then it is ok, but voltage must be same or very close. also check polarity of the charger pin is the same..is the center pin positive or negative? a reseller may know this stuff.


nice review link..confirms what we know...

this part had me a bit excited tho for you guys: "Although our PR contact stated that MSI will soon be releasing its own color profile, which is to improve the image quality like a manual calibration, the GT72 will not be suitable for ambitious users."

Ikas V - were you successfull loading my calibrated profile onto your gt72 ?

if you have not gotten it to work, i just confirmed this works: grab this CPKeeper (Color Profile Keeper)
to load my profile from Megashares - Drag. Drop. Yup. The first site to provide FREE file hosting with drag n drop support.


that sintech m.2 to sata adapter arrived at my local post office this morning..with a bit of luck i'll have that other 2.5" bay setup today with pics for you guys later today

 

Can any of the current GT72 owners help me out?

Can the shortcut keys to the left be disabled at all? I have limited mobility in my left hand and when gaming am concerned about bumping them. Not the power button so much, but the lower four. If anyone could determine if it is possible to disable them, it would help immensely - I'm debating between this and the Asus G751.

N

 

I think if you uninstall or stop running some pre installed MSI software they will not work.
I've already tried that and at least the 980m/4600 switch button wasnt working.

 

Yes try emailing for specific requests not listed on our site.

 

Thanks; I called in and no one was available so I'm waiting a call back

 

Contacting resellers directly is a good start, so maybe you can work something out. Good luck.

 

Hi Guys,

I had the GT72 Model without an SSD delivered today. I can confirm that it does indeed come with the adapter to install up to 4 SSD.

The laptop is amazing! Exceeded all of my expectations.

Cheers,

Stevie

 

@StevieV you are awesome!

Which retailer did you order yours?

Regards

 

@StevieV can u please make a photo of the inside and post it

 

Thank you sir..... for the contribution, and Welcome To The Party!

 

ok i got 3 2.5 drives up and running with lid closed. including the 2.5" drive at sata 6, bootable and all
i had to break off the side-ends of the cables using a pair of pliers. the sata extension and the power splitter-single end, were too wide to sit side by side.

i used the parts mentioned here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/msi...o-gtx-980m-owner-s-lounge-40.html#post9809673











wow i have almost 6tb in this thing total!!!!

 

What model did you purchase? MSI's answer has two versions so it can vary without notice.

 

You sir are a legend.

I am going to order the 2x 128gb m.2 sata version with the 1tb hard drive and do the same. When the IPS screen comes out for us in Australia.

SO you can do 3x m.2 sata + 1 SSD in a raid array? that will help add some more storage to the Raid 0 array thanks!!

PS.

it loosk like the SATA splitter is pushing the board upwards?? or is it just on an angle? don't want to break it if i follow this approach

SATA HDD to M.2 NGFF Socket adapter converter card [ST5111] - $16.99 : sintech adapter shop

those cables are a bit chunky... have you found any skinnier ones? how about this? ( http://www.macfixit.com.au/0-2meter-15pin-sata-power-y-cable.html )

- also, how are you holding that second hard drive in ? are there screw holes or do we need to double side tape it lol

 

it should be possible to have 2 m.2 and 1 2.5" ssd in a RAID array configuration. the bios does not care about the physical format, 2.5 or m.2, and sees all these drives.

it should also be possible to fill the last open m.2 slot with 1 more m.2 drive. there is enough space there next to the new 2.5" drive connectors. i just don't own any more m.2 drives. maybe i'll get another m.2 next year. this would in theory allow for a raid with 3 m.2 and 1 2.5".

it is a tight fit, and the connectors are chunky on the cables i bought. you can probably find cables with skinnier plugs- but at the same time, the computer does not care if the plug is stock or if you use a plier/knife/razor to modify it's looks. just dont break the electrical connectors on the cables

that power splitter you found, does look skinnier than mine and may fit without having to rip anything off. its also 16$ for a sata power splitter, which is kinda expensive- i paid 4.67 for mine.

talented and patient people could easily do a better - "cleaner" version of this mod- buy shorter, skinnier cables or use a knife or razor blade to make straight cuts instead of what i used, which happened to be the only plier i could find around the house at the time (In plain english, the parts and tools i used are super ghetto-- i used the tools i already owned and purchased cheapest parts i could find.). i already owned this plier so i used it HDX 6 in. Slip Joint Pliers-011-170-HDX at The Home Depot

other possible improvements that would help: 3 inch sata extension cable instead of 6". also 3 inch sata cable instead of 6 inch. also shorter cable on the power splitter ----- basically shorter cables would work even better with less folding/tucking. i could not find any 3 inch cables so i went with 6 inchers.

the sata splitter in my picture does not "push" up the ribbon connector- i pulled out the folds to take a picture to show what it looks like. there is very little space there and the ribbon has to be folded either over the top or underneath the new power splitter. in the end i chose underneath. so the plug and wires form the splitter get "sandwiched" between lid and 2.5" drive, the splitter conector sits in the gap next to the old 2.5" drive, and ribbon is folded underneath the plugs, in the gap. all this happends roughly near the top port in Kevin's pic here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/att...19-official-questions-msi-rep-gt72-m2-hdd.jpg

as far as fit, i had to fold the sata extension cable next to the fan (zoom on pics 4 and 5 to see this better). and also had to fold the ribbon cable connector underneath the folds of the power splitter, so it doesn't move--- the original ribbon cable is skinny/flimsy and is the "Weak link" so i figured it's best being protected from movement, by sitting deep in the case, instead of up near the lid. ( in plain english, tuck it underneath , and dont pull hard on it, so you dont rip it off). the fit is tight, but the lid allows a couple of millimeters of vertical clearance in there and all the lid edge-notches popped into place without extra pressure. the clearance under the lid, is just enough to allow the extra cables room, while not allowing those new cables to move.
just fold the cables carefully before putting the lid on,. check for fit, and make sure plugs are connected solid before snapping on the lid. this is only slightly harder than cable routing in a nano-itx desktop build. the word i would use in the end is "snug" - everything in there is snug, once the lid is on.

neither hard drive bay uses screws even in stock configuration-- both 2.5" drive bays in this laptop have soft foam pads instead of screws (the foam pads are inside the case and on the inside of the lid). with the foam pads, those spaces are ready for 9.5mm drives, which is what i used.
if you plan to use a 7mm drive (like most 2.5" ssd), i would probably use a shim like the one below to prevent the drive from moving up and down when you carry the laptop. not a huge concern since most ssd do much better with shock/drops than hdd. if you plan to use a 7mm hdd in either 2.5" bay, i would say that a shim is mandatory. (generic picture of shim) http://www.storagereview.com/images/StorageReview-Crucial-M500-SSD-Shim.jpg

so far this setup works great, i have copied a 100gig file-set to/from the newly installed drive and the copies are fast and the data arrives with no errors.

downside: laptop is even heavier than before

EDIT: MSI could really help the situation, by offering a m.2 adapter with a ribbon cable for sata and sata power. they could use the same ribbon cable they use in the other bay, with a custom m.2 adapter board.

 

Hi DelFang,

This unit came from eBuyer.

I have added the 120gb crucial SSD to the laptop and it is working fine. I would now like to make the SSD my Boot drive as opposed to Regular hard drive. Does anyone know the best way to do this?

Cheers,

Stevie

 

Thanks.

As for the boot drive, I believe you can change the order of preferable boot drive in BIOS.

(See here: http://youtu.be/G_YFn3IfwiE?t=15m34s)

So go into the BIOS, move the SSD to the top of the list and install/clone the OS.

Regards

 

thats what i plan to do. im going to get the 2x 128gb version and 1tb sata III drive with 16gb ram (IPS comes on this in australia) and buy a 512gb m.2 sata and this adapter to add another 1tb Sata SSD

it fits 9.5mm form factors? so i could effectively put a 2.5" 2tb sata III in there if i wanted to be a cheapass ?

 

Photos stevie of the msi gt72 inside

 

yep 9.5mm tall drives are perfect fit for those bays.

i used the 2tb samsung drives in both bays http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I8O6OQ4/ref=ox_ya_os_product_refresh_T1

i moved the stock 1tb drive to the odd-bay via caddy. if i run out of space i could always swap this 1tb drive for a 2tb later and gain another tb.


imho this mod isn't really about being cheap, its about providing options and being able to reuse existing hardware. i bet more enthusiasts would buy this laptop if there was some way to reuse their existing 2.5" ssd. seems silly to force buyers to spend 100-500$ to buy something they already own in another form factor.

the other use-case is my own-- i just need more space. They don't make 2tb m.2 or 2.5" ssd. even if they made an ssd that big , i could not afford them, they would be 1000$ a piece today. i don't need the speed of an ssd to store/backup all my photos and videos anyway, but i do need the extra space.

if MSI made a custom m.2 adapter with the ribbon cable/plug (something like their other ribbon cable in the other bay, connecting to an m.2 board) i would buy it and ditch my ghetto setup. but judging by Kevin's pics, MSI used a different approach/bracket in their sku without m.2 slots.

 

thanks mate!!

Could you do me a favour and take a photo of the caddy they use? and the model/part #?

 

its a standard 9.5mm tall dvd caddy. sorry but i am not gona take apart my laptop just to take pic of a generic caddy

remember that sata port is only sata 2, sata300 no matter which caddy you buy.

any of these would work: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=9.5mm+caddy

i bought this one: http://www.amazon.com/Afrom-Univers...F8&qid=1414780607&sr=8-2&keywords=9.5mm+caddy






i also have some feedback for msi since they may actually read this forum/thread:

overall i am very happy with the laptop. it's my favorite msi laptop since the gx640. In Some ways i feel it is an updated Supersized GX640. I think its the metal-esque lid and design language. Objectively I rate the gt72 laptop an 8.5 out of 10. if someone is looking for a laptop with 980m, the gt72 is very good.

imho there are 3 main things that could be done better to get a 10/10 rating:

1) add TPM module. BOM must be like 2$ for this part. my 350$ asus t100 has this module, but my 2300$ gt72 does not. without this module i can't easily encrypt my ssd with windows bitlocker. thats a shame.

2) for enthusiasts to buy this laptop, you should provide incentive and provide a 2.5" sata3 600 port in addition to m.2 raid. imho, the best way to do this is to add an m.2 adapter with ribbon cable for sata and sata power.

3) calibrate your displays for color accuracy before you ship them, and/or provide the Calibration file as an option. for both TN and IPS. to be clear--- i mean calibrate without a specific whitepoint to create a profile with the most accurate color possible for that display, regardless of how low that drops brightness. Provide the profile so people can either run max brightness (stock) or max color accuracy (profiled). notebookcheck review mentioned msi may provide color profiles in the future which would be totally awesome.

********) bonus feature-- since as a user i can get 2 "free multipliers", using intel xtu, MSI could get an edge over other manufacturers, by including this specific overclock thru the MSI Dragon Center. Maybe even include an option which provides the 2 "free" cpu bins AND the "free" 135mhz on the gpu core via 1 Dragon Center Button. this would make the "out of the box" benchmarks faster than other manufacturers laptops with the same hardware, and reviewers would show higher scores in their graphs. also users who are not comfortable working with intel xtu and msi afterburner (newbies), could easily use this type of overclock without voiding warranty or putting the machine into a non bootable state. this is somewhat similar to back in the day motherboard manufacturers used to ship bioses which ran fsb at 102 or 103 by default, instead of 100, which caused better out-of-the-box performance than the competition.


****** bonus feature 2- create an "enthusiast" sku ------with i74980 and ips with 16gb ram, 1 2.5" 1tb hdd with os on it. include the m.2 bracket without an ssd, but with adapter/ribbon from m.2 to 2.5"drive on sata 600. so people who own a 2.5" ssd already can buy the laptop at lower cost and reuse an expensive part they already own. the value msi provide via raid should be just that-- preconfigured, working raid out-of-the-box. raid can be difficult to install so its a great deal to buy a preconfigured raid, but enthusiasts who do not want raid need their own sku.

 

I need Bluetooth drivers for Windows 7.
I installed the Killer suite but no luck with Bluetooth.
Please help.

 

Hey looks neat

 

@DILLIGAFF totally agree! Especially about the RAID: what's the point of using 128GB SSD? Even with 4 of them in RAID 0 you'd only get 500GB, and I can only install half of the games I own in my 1TB Crucial SSD. And when I do filling the m.2 ports, it'd either be 4x 256GB in RAID 0 (1TB), or least 3x 512GB in RAID 5 (1+TB).

Which is one of the reason so many of us want to know if the SSD-less SKU come with the adapter, that and it's relatively more affordable.

Now if we can have a SKU with IPS, 980m, 16GB, with adapter but no SSD, and priced at £1600...

Regards.

 

I own the Dominator Pro-211.

Regardless, I've come to realize that the when I boot my laptop it starts and shuts off right at the MSI logo every time. It will, however, always start on the second power-up.

Is there I'm missing here?

 

Destinatus, the G750JZ has the Killer Wireless + Bluetooth from Qualcomm, you could try the Windows 7 driver Asus has in their support area for the G750JZ - select Windows 7 driver list...

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- Drivers and Download G750JZ

 

Something weird happened to me this morning, I woke up this morning to find my GT72 in the Bios. It didn't see the 512GB SSD either. I thought a reboot might be in order and it seemed to fix it. I hope I don't have a bad SSD or m.2 slot/daughterboard. I leave my laptop on overnight to download any updates for Windows and Steam updates. I did go in and change a power setting and that was to prevent Windows from turning off my HDD's after 20 mins. Maybe that might fix it.

Anyone else have this issue? What did you do to fix it? (I really hope I don't need to RMA the laptop or SSD and it was just a fluke. This is the first time it's happened to me since Ownership and the first time ever a SSD didn't get past POST.

 

Check for firmware update for the system itself as well as your SSD.

 

Check for firmware update for the system itself as well as your SSD.

 

Hello, this is my first post so I apologize for any mistake and if what I will say will be totally wrong... I need a little help as I'm going to choose a good laptop and I've been browsing and reading.. I got my own ideas but I need more informations...
I hope it's fine if I'm interested in the MSI GT72 with the 970 graphic card and this thread is about the 980 graphic card version... it's just too expensive for me so I will have to choose the 970 if anything...

After some research and after realizing that I am not a tech person, I think MSI could be a good choice for me (but I could be wrong too.. that's why I am here...) I am not a gamer (yet) but I would like to play some games if I want...as well as having good performances and durability from my pc... moreover I don't want to be worried about my laptop to stay cool... without mentioning any other brand, I found that there are only few laptops with a reliable cooling system... some of them make it really difficult to clean the fans while MSI seems to allow you to clean the fans easily... am I wrong..? I barely never used a screwdriver...

As last... I (think) I read about new models with an IPS screen (I hope I wrote it right..)... I sincerely have no idea about if an IPS screen is better than the "other one" but most of the people say so.. and I think I probably won't be able to tell the difference even if I see them one next to the other... the point is: I am not in a hurry to buy it.. I can wait.. do you know if and when MSI will release its GT72 with 970 graphic card and IPS screen..?
I hope I wrote all of it just fine... if not, I will try to be more specific and precise, just tell me.
Many thanks in advance

Rhona

 

@Rhona yes GT72 seems to be easier to clean the fans than certain other brands' laptop; yes IPS is better; and no, you'll definitely be able to tell the differences when seeing them next to each other; MSI will probable release a SKU with 970m and IPS, it's the sensible thing to do.

Regards.

 

Thank you for the answer DelFang... so if this IPS screen is that better I could wait more... any information about the release date of the MSI GT72 with 970 graphic card and IPS screen?

 

It appears some initial benchmarks for the 4980hq are out.
I know its not the most thorough site but i went to cpuboss.com to compare the 4980hq and the 4710hq

here was the results (4980hq left and the 4710hq on the right)
Higher turbo clock speed 4 GHz vs 3.5 GHz
- Around 15% higher turbo clock speed

Higher clock speed 2.8 GHz vs 2.5 GHz
- More than 10% higher clock speed

Supports trusted computing Yes vs No
- Somewhat common; Allows for safer, more reliable computing

Better geekbench (64-bit) score 14,583 vs 11,682
- Around 25% better geekbench (64-bit) score

Better performance per watt 31.96 pt/W vs 19.98 pt/W
- Around 60% better performance per watt

Better PassMark (Single core) score 2,217 vs 1,875
- Around 20% better PassMark (Single core) score

Better PassMark score 9,617 vs 7,944
- More than 20% better PassMark score

So it appears the new processor is 20% faster and a lot more energy efficient that the old one.

Will the professionals on this site please give you opinions. I will be using this laptop for lots of Photoshop, Flash, Premiere and even some cad. Do you think I will truly see a ~20% better performance with the 4980hq. If so it would seem a significant upgrade.

 

Hi guys, I have been following this topic and the unofficial/official tread about the 900m series in the past 2 months, as I really enjoy your advice.
Now I have to buy the laptop as soon as possible and my final choice is be between the GT72 Dominator (970m6gb, no ssd, 16gb ram) and the Asus G751 (980m4gb, 256gb ssd, 24gb ram).
Considering the need to buy a ssd for the gt72, the difference is just 200€ (10% of the price) for 40% more graphic performance, better screen and cooling with the Asus, and I would go with it.

But the MSI guarantee future upgrade for the mxm module with the future generation, so the opportunity to get the "1080m" or even a "1180m" in a few yeas for 600-800 bucks is VERY tempting, but at the same time not so solid as a pc that is finished as it is like the asus (maybe just the missing 8gb of ram for the empty slot but that it)

What would you do? What is your opinion/experience about the mxm upgrade?

PS: even if I never "touch" them in person, I prefer the msi look and personalisation

PSS: I'm Italian, but I will buy from uk as I don't care for the English keyboard difference

Thanks for you participation, I appreciate it

 

Why not just get the GT72 with 980M, you probably will not need to upgrade for at least a couple of years .
The only thing better with the G751 is the screen, everything else is just as good if not better on the GT72.

 

Because of the price: the dominator pro is 400€ over the g751 and offer the same performance (take away the +4gb of vram). Also the "will upgrade" make a lot less sense if you spend more money for a card you will use for just 2 year.
Btw as a student I can't spend mare than the price of the Asia right now

 

Is it only me that thinks the built in screen is not much of an issue anyway? I mean if you are looking for a laptop like this, you're probably like me: You travel a lot because of work or school, and you cant afford 2 or more computers between the places where you travel. Even if that is the case though, you probably spend the most time in one of these locations. Hence, it might just be wiser to buy an external monitor and keyboard for your "base" and enjoy this thing at it's fullest, while settling with the smaller, lower quality built screen when you're travelling. Personally, I'm totally fine with that compromise, considering what this machine has to offer!

 

Get the G751 if price is that important, either way they are both great choices.
Personally I like the fact that the hardware is more accessible for upgrades and maintenance on the GT72.
You don't have to take the whole laptop apart to access the fans on the GT72 for cleaning and can repaste the CPU/GPU very easily on the G751 you basically have to take the laptop apart.
But the choice is yours and good luck with your decision, both offer great performance and cooling its the other little things that set them apart, you really can't go wrong with one or the other.

 

DimitrisCSD, i think the same about the screen and like you I already have a external 27" ips monitor. For me the internal screen in not a big point as the exterior design and fancy 7.1 surround jack and other minor details

 

The screen is very good for a TN panel, just not IPS good. Response times are much better on TN panels and don't have the ghosting issues that some IPS panels have, so there are pluses and minuses for both.
I was thinking along the same lines of just using an external display if I really wanted IPS.

 

might be best to ask your country if all models of the gt72 are getting IPS except for the 970m model and the GT70 (keeping the original TN screen) as Australian models are doing exactly that

 

Thank you for the replies guys, but as I said, I don't care much about the screen, I will use it 90% of the time on the desk connected to the big external display.
The thing is: Is the future mxm upgrade the the 3rd gen maxwell or Maybe 1st pascal for 500-800€ worth it?
Again, thanks you!

 

If you want to stay at top of the performance chart, then it's worth every penny. However, top end card like 980m tend to have great performance for least 2 gens, hell, I'm still using Alienware M11x with 540m to play Civilization - Beyond Earth at 20+ fps on an 21:9 monitor, and 540m is considered a medium-low end card at release.

Regards.

 

Looks like I will be going for GT72 after all. But with the IPS display.

Can any reseller here please clarify if a cheaper IPS SKU than freaking $3300 will arrive?
I have absoely no interest of buying an SKU with 4 SSDs and 32GB RAM just to get the IPS display.

This is taking advantage of their customers. Asus got the IPS as standard for all G751 SKUs!

 

So is the Gigabyte's.

Regards

 

Why not buy the IPS screen elsewhere? I remember I upgraded my GX660R LCD without any issues, and I can't think why it would be too difficult to find a nice IPS panel that is compatible with the internal connector.

 

Hi again guys!

I need your help again. I´m planning to switch the optical drive, for another hdd with a caddy. As seen in Dilligaff posts I can use a generic 9.5mm, so I´m going to purchase this one: Bipra - Disco duro adicional para portátiles, MacBook y MacBook Pro (9,5 mm, SATA a SATA): Amazon.es: Informática

I never have changed a laptop odd, I know there has to be a secure screw or similar, and it´s simply pulling the drive out. My concern is that i have no idea where that screw is. I have searched but I can´t find any pic which shows it.

Any help would be apreciated.

Ken.