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

any news on the gt72 i7-4710 models getting the IPS screen soon?

its going to cost me $4300 AUD to get the 512gb 444 (4870HQ) model here

 

GeForce Game Ready Driver - 344.48 - WHQL

 

New GT72 owner checking in.

Finally decide to stop feeding my Precision M6600 new graphics cards.

Currently spending my time tweaking the audio so the subwoofer isn't overpowering...

I do miss the hardware wifi on/off control, fingerprint scanner, and expresscard on my M6600.

 

Someone knows if the msi gt72 with only 1tb hdd config and no ssd/m.2 has the adapter includet for super raid?

 

Kevin@GenTechPC says no, still waiting for the replies from our MSI rep MSIGeno and retailer.

Regards

 

It is bad sell to say msi has super raid 3 and it doesn't offer the m.2 adapter included in all models no matter if it has or not m.2 ssd included.

The price in romania is 1600euro for the gtx 970m 1tb model and no ssd
Is expensive this config and it doesn't worth it to buy,the g751 is not in stock yet

 

Yea its time for me to do some research on the 3 screen ordeal and get to it lmao

 

Just got my GT72. I have to say it is much bigger in person than it looks on photos(my first 17 inch laptop). Loving it so far.

One thing i noticed was that the MSI shift (FN+F7) button doesn't seem to do anything. Should it be showing some indication? Or do I have to install drivers to get it to work?

 

so far no, only the i7-4980 SKUs will have IPS panel.

 

Hi Striker! Thanks for the answer.

I got it!! it´s in my car!! Unfortunately I´m still at work, I can´t do nothing until this night.

I have good news for me. A community manager from msi has confirmed that the panel is EDP (I hadn´t tried any search with Edp label, only with Ips).

With that on mind I have found another store with that laptop listed, and is listed with a 17.3-1080p eDP screen.
here is the link MSI GT72 2QE-293ES Dominator Pro

So things are sounding fine for now! I will update once i put may hands on it.

Could you indicate me a good program to check the panel? Since I come from a Tn panel I hope to see de difference at flight, but I want to be sure...:thumbsup:

Thanks again!!

 

I have a hunch your notebook has the same panel as all the 4710HQ models. eDP refers only to the type of display port, and the CMN-1735 (N173HGE-E11) panel is described as, "a 17.3” TFT Liquid Crystal Display module with LED Backlight unit and 30 pins eDP interface".

This is what I was suggesting in my previous post to you.... that the GT72 2QE-293ES is most likely a 4980HQ model, without the IPS screen. You can easily check which panel model you have in the Device Manager, by checking it's 'Properties'.

 

Gonna have to agree with the NO IPS scenario. In Portugal they just released the GT72 2QE-294PT and there is no mention of the IPS screen. Shame has I was really looking forward to getting one.
I think they might be releasing the new cpu with the old screen in some markets to keep it affordable, or they just think we won't know. Either way it a no sale for me.

 

Congrats on your new laptop!
You are the first here to have on with 4980HQ.
Can you post some temps under load/gaming. I would like to see if there is any difference if any from the 4710HQ.
Thanks

 

I am looking around for a top laptop so I am going to various sections of the forum.
What I would like to know is which model has the IPS screen as I have read most of the models have a TN panel? There seems to be a lot of models for this specific laptop.
Also how is the cooling system in this laptop and the fans get really loud.
The final thing is, is this laptop cheaper abroad as it is fairly expensive especially here in the UK?
I look forward to any replies.

 

Hi again guys!

You both said the true thing. Sadly , the panel is the Chi Mei one that Striker said.

So it´s time to make decissions. I have to decide if I keep it with me or doing a devolution....

It is an incredible gaming laptop, but i´m a bit dissapointed with the screen. Maybe is for the fact that this is my first matte screen.

Since I come from a glossy one from my M17xr3 and i found this one a little... dirty, granulated, i can´t describe exaclty the sensation. I feel this happens mainly in videos and navigation, playing games is less noticieable and is very pleasant.

As I said, i think this is for the change to a matte one, perhaps in a ips one the feelings had been the same.

I´m downloading a few games to make some tests, and get more feelings. Apart from the screen little disappointment, the laptop is amazing and powerful. Special mention to the sound system.

I will keep you informed of my sensations and measures.

(Sorry for the bad language, my english, quick typing and a bunch of nerves are a bad combination)

Pd. I will post the temps later Ikas.

Edit: Firestrike bench : 8320 Graphic: 9616 max temps : 82ºc cpu 70ºc gpu (with an abnormals 27ºc here in Madrid)

Edit 2: 50 mins of intense playing with Tomb raider and The Witcher 2 with max settings. Almost the same temps. 71º and 80º max. Very very far from my old alien, and the chasis mantains ultra cool sensation, no hot hands or similar, amazing performance.

 

The CMN-1735 screen does do video and gaming quite nicely, and yes, if you are coming from a glossy screen, a matte screen does take a little getting used to...... but once you get used to it, you will appreciated the lack of glare and background reflections.

I am glad you are enjoying the new notebook, and as a new owner, Welcome To The Party!

 

thats some great weather for october. even here in los angeles its only about 23c today. 27 is basically summer.

if the screen looks granulated, the only check i can think of, is updated drivers and verify refresh is set to 60hz (note intel and nvidia modes for gpu have separate refresh settings).

too bad about the i7-4980 does not seem to generate a notably/significantly higher 3dmark score than the 4710.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781

out of curiosity can you please try installing intel xtu and enabling the "free" bins (max out the multiplier setting in intel xtu, and hit apply) and see if that gets you a higher 3dmark score?

i assume it's 2 bins (i assume you can increase multiplier by +2 like the 4710), but please let us know if its more

intel xtu: https://downloadcenter.intel.com/SearchResult.aspx?lang=eng&keyword=xtu

 

So far, the only models with the IPS screen are the GT72 2QE-445US, and -444US, but this could change at any time. Also, no this notebook is not loud. The only time it may get loud, is when you set the fans to 100% using Cooler Booster 3, but this feature is optional, and not really needed. For more GT72 2QE info, please refer to the post HERE and HERE.



@Dilligaff, I think the graininess he is referring to, is simply the difference in appearance, between glossy & matte screens.



@Kendral, your Fire Strike score is fine, especially given that it represents your stock, out of-the-box experience. When you ran the benchmark, what was your 'CPU Score'? If you are unfamiliar with XTU, it's probably best not to mess with it. Also, have you updated your NVidia drivers to version 344.48?

 

Hi Guys,

I had been deciding on which gaming laptop to purchase for the last month. After being pretty sure about buying an Asus G750 for the majority of that time, I made a last minute U turn and went with the MSI GT72. I was on a budget and went for the 2QD version which comes with no SSD. Reading through this entire thread I have seen that there is no definitive answer as to whether or not, this unit is supplied with the adapter needed to install SSD.

I did actually call MSI UK before the purchase and was told that the adapter is indeed included. On the strength of this I went ahead and ordered an SSD to install and use as a boot drive as soon as the laptop is delivered.

As I said I was on a budget (Which was £1400 all in) The laptop was £1299 which left me £100 to get a case and an SSD.

My question is: Assuming the SSD adapter unit is included (as the MSI rep said it would be) will the following SSD that I purchased work with the laptop:

Amazon.com: Crucial M500 120GB SATA 6Gbps M.2 Internal SSD [Crucial PN: CT120M500SSD4]: Computers & Accessories

I was a little rushed when making my selection. Has anyone used this SSD on the GT72?

Thanks,

Stevie

 

Yes, the M.2 SSD you have selected should work fine, however I notice most of the custom resellers are using Crucial's M550 series.

Crucial M550 M.2 on Amazon

GentechPC's MSI GT72 2QD configurator

 

Thanks Striker. I appreciate the feedback.

I will post on this thread on Wednesday to confirm if the GT72 2QD model does include the SSD Adapter.

This thread has been most helpful.

Cheers,

Stevie

 

Could any of my fellow GT72 owners please try this out and let me know? Thanks...!

 

Have you tried this from the Dragon Gaming Center? This is where you will see the change in power modes.

 

i was not saying his score in firestrike is bad, just not that big of a difference from 4710.

TLTR: the machine is very efficient with 4710, and neither overclocking components, nor buying the faster-cpu sku result in significantly faster game benchmark scores at 1080p. all the tweaks combined get you about 10% gain. imho from where i sit the more expensive sku without ips for 1000$ more, seems like a raw deal for gamers. unless that ips is a dealbreaker, buying the cheaper sku and spending the rest of the money on ssd's , hash, girls etc seems like the more rational approach. also it seems like unlocking the 2 free bins on 4710 puts it on par with 4980 for bench purposes.

Details:


here is my score from the stock os with bloatware on the 4710, with 1 128gb drive. this is the "out of box" score. same score i posted on page 14 of this thread (note drivers are older 344.24).

this is baseline.:

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
8150 overall
9075 physics

new OS install without bloatware, stock cpu, also from page 14 (note drivers are older 344.24):

EDIT: wrong number in wrong place
~.7% overall gain. 2% physics gain from baseline. :
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
8264 overall
9262 physics


i ran each below scenario 3 times and took the middle score

new OS install with cpu unlocked to +2 bins (newest drivers 344.48, in xtu i only slid over the sliders for cpu multiplier and hit apply. did not touch anything else. same link as i posted as response to his score.

2% overall gain. 6.8% physics gain from baseline.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
8321 overall
9733 physics


new os AND cpu +2 bins AND 980M increased +135mhz core via msi afterburner, driver 344.48:

6.5% overall gain. 7% physics gain from baseline. :
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
8720 overall
9755 physics

new os, cpu +2 bin, gpu +135mhz and gpu memory +500mhz via msi afterburner (from 5000 effective to 6000 effective) 344.48. NOTE: on gpu memory past 6k, i get some minor artifacting after looping firestrike graphic test for a while (longer than ~15 minutes). out of all the tweaks in this post, this gpu memory tweak is the only one i would not run constantly at 6k, as imho it's the most likely tweak to cause a game crash. my guess is you can probably run up to ~5500 effective all the time, but someone will have to investigate further to figure this out specifically, and it will depend on your ambient temp, specific laptop goop job, etc etc.

10.5% overall gain.7.5% gain physics from baseline.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
9097 overall
9805 physics


all the above tweaks AND Cooler Boost enabled:

11.2% overall gain. 7.1% gain physics from baseline.
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M video card benchmark result - Intel Core i7-4710HQ,Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. MS-1781
9177 overall
9761 physics


observations and extrapolations

( i am assuming nvidia did not include major, hidden driver optimizations in the last driver revision, and i assume none of the gains come from the updated driver which should be the case- the readme file does not indicate any updates to 3dmark performance in the last revision):

doing all these "tweaks" combined gets you ~11.2% overall performance increase in this benchmark.

cooler boost is not very useful for overall performance only providing .7% overall gain (thats point seven percent if you cant see the dot) . the fact that the final physics score is lower is simply due to the machine being slightly warmer toward the end of all these benchmark runs, resulting in a tiny bit less turbo....the difference is within the margin of error as well. the downside of cooler boost, is i can hear laptop with cooler boost enabled, and cannot hear the laptop when cooler boost is not enabled, when it is on my desk about 1 foot away. i am leaving cooler boost off, unless i am in the desert or some other extreme circumstance. imho the noise is not worth the tiny gain in performance. this may vary with your geographic location and circumstance.

+2 bins on the 4710 seems to put it on par (~ in math terms) with the 4980 at stock speed, at least for gaming-benchmark purposes. this looks like the "poor man's" way of getting the perf of the 4980 without paying for one. the difference between the two is proving insignificant in overall scoring, and while the difference seems measurable it's practically within the margin of error.

with cooler boost out of the picture you get 10.5% gain overall, with about 8.5% coming from gpu core and gpu memory OC, and ~2% from os reinstall and cpu oc.

with cooler boost out of the picture,
gpu core oc and gpu memory oc, provide the bulk of the gains. so it seems like the 980m is bottlenecked by the 980m for the most part. gpu-card tdp is bigger bottleneck to perf than cpu speed.
extrapolated: you get ~8.5% overall increase by increasing gpu core+gpu mem only, and not doing any other tweak. ~4.4% from gpu core oc, ~4.1% from gpu memory oc. its hard to extrapolate specific gpu/mem contributions since the numbers are within the margin of error.

with cooler boost out of the picture,
os-reinstall and cpu oc 2 bins get you ~2% increase in overall score, and ~6.8% physics increase
extrapolated: ~.7% overall score increase, ~2.2% physics increase by just reinstalling os.
extrapolated: ~1.3% overall increase, ~4.6% physics increase by overclocking cpu only.
hard to extrapolate specific cpu/os-reinstall contributions since they are within margin of error.

NOTE: these "tweaks" will definitely decrease battery life, since other than OS-reinstall , they increases tdp demands on cpu and/or gpu.

 

Dang, my eyes got tired with all that analysis and extrapolation.

 

I don't know about the rest of the world but all the gt72 minus the 970m one are getting the Ips screens here in Australia

 

the one thing i want to know is if TPM is implemented on the 4980 version. TPM maybe reason enough by itself to pay for the upgrade, even if the performance gain is not worth it

without tpm its a pita to utilize the bitlocker encryption even on a drive like the m550 which has hardware encryption. ( i just tried enabling it,and i would need an additional external flash drive to use bitlocker easily)

according to intel ark, the 4710 lacks the vpro support, and in turn should lack tpm support:
ARK | Compare Intel® Products

but the 4980 supports it, question is if msi implemented it, since i believe it requires an additional chip on the mobo...


If Kendral can't confirm...we probably need meaker to confirm...

i am guessing it's not implemented but its nice to dream...

 

Well I am going to wait for the 4980hq version now so in the future if you remind me I can check out the available options.

The difference will mostly be going forward as a platform as the next generation of gpus launch and if they fit, putting them in.

With some work you can maybe get 3.6-3.7 out of the 4 cores on the 4710hq. On the 4980hq you hope to hit around 3.9-4.1 ghz depending on chip quality and tweaking the heatsink. Maybe a little more for benchmarking but that all depends again on the options and controls. I'm sure I'll be able to figure it all out when I get the machine.

For now I grabbed a cheeky k3000m for my current machine, will give it a 80-100% overclock and get by

There is no doubting though that a 970/980 combo with a 4710hq and ips slapped in (either by msi, users or resellers) will hit the sweet spot for a lot of people. It will serve well for years most likely.

 

Hi there!

I just recieved my GT72Pro and wanted to participate in the community. So first of all "Thank you Striker for the Information in the OP!"

This said, I have some Questions:

1.) I Do not want to use Gamecast. How Do I rebind the Media Key to the left with an other program?
2.) I tried to run a nvidia Inspector profile at startup (through Autostart) - but this does not work. Any idea what I did wrong?
3.) I as well can not run dxtory via Autostart folder?!

Thank you very much!

phila

 

EDIT: i just messed with this and i was wrong- you can right click scm in taskbar and change the binding of existing P1 and P2. this only works if you have a bind already setup. if you have no bind setup for those keys, and you uninstall gamecast you have to push P1 or P2 to bring up the scm menu:



3 options to try for startup stuff:

i am not sure which folder you put that stuff into, but you can try putting the profile shortcut into 2 different folders.

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\StartUp NOTE: the programData Folder is hidden by default.
or
C:\Users\DILLIGAFF\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

last option is use Windows Scheduler , which i get to via Right click "computer" then select manage, then open the scheduler under System Tools. you can use the scheduler to run things At User Login, which should solve that problem if the startup folders dont work for your apps.



also you can try msi afterburner app instead of nvidia inspector which has a checkbox-option to run at startup.


on another topic i still have 2 questions i am looking for answers myself, so i'll throw these out there for anyone reading:

1) do people have the D bios or E bios when you are receiving your new laptop? i have D, but on the support site E is posted, but doesnt say what changed.
http://www.msi.com/support/nb/GT72-2QE-Dominator-Pro.html#down-bios&Win8.1 64

2) is TPM support included on the 4980 version of the gt72?
http://blog.unlockforus.org/2010/03/how-to-check-if-your-computer-has-tpm.html

if anyone knows those 2 things i would appreciate the help!

 

Thank you very much Dilligaf!

Best regards

phila

 

Thank you for the reply.
Do you know if there are any reviews for GT72 2QE-445US, and -444US as these have the IPS panels?

 

Thanks Striker!

Turns out I had to update the Dragon gaming center for MSI Shift to work...

 

2qd or 2qe model? With m.2 configuration or 1tb hdd?

 

These models indeed have the IPS screen, but they are currently in a 'Pre-Order' status:

MSI GT72 DominatorPro-445

MSI GT72 DominatorPro-444

 

Ok thanks.

What are the main differences between these two?

Do you know when there would be reviews of these two with IPS panels?

 

Did you even check to see for yourself? its 512 vs 1tb of storage (msata ssd)


For the review: It will be the same as the non-IPS version just with a n ips screen....

 

I think you meant m.2 SSd.

Regards

 

Sorry I did check but I was skimming through it.
Ok only reason I am waiting for a review is to see how good the IPS screen is compared to the non-IPS one?

 

Guys I need a suggestion on how to configure my gt72 980m. Here is the deal. I purchased the based configuration available in the US (16gb, 980m, 128ssd and 1tb hard disk).
Anyways, I happen to have an extra Samsung 840 pro SSD. In addition, I ordered a Crucial m550 512gb m.2 ssd . So my question is, what is the best way to configure and use my hard drives. I know it probably makes sense to just use the solid states, but I have been told that the ideal configuration involves using ssd for programs and hard disks for data (which is what I have used in the past) because ssds have a limited amount of read writes before they start failing. Anyways here are my tentative config scenarios, please let me know if this makes sense or not.

1- either use the factory ssd for boot partition (since its already set up and working), or use the Crucial m550 m.2 ssd for the boot partition (I heard the crucial is faster, just wondering if cloning and changing the drives is worth it for the potential performance gains). Regardless one m.2 will be primary and the other will be a secondary.

2-Use either the Samsung 840 pro ssd for data files or the 1 tb factory hard disk for data. here the question is, do I go with realibility of the rewrite stability of a hard disk, or get the super performance increase of the ssd, at the expense of a potential data failure

Any thoughts? Or more importantly, is this concept of ssds failing vs hard disks counterparts not a valid issue anymore?

Thanks in advance for any input you may provide

 

I would use m550 for system, 128gb m.2 for file history, samsubg 840 for system backup, 1tb hdd in external closurer for data storage.

You'll most likely move on to a better computer after 3 years before the ssd failing you (assume no quality issue).

I have a crucial 1tb m500 ssd for 2 years, filled with programs and games (mostly games), laptop is powered on almost all the day and everyday, not failed once. SSD's relatively low usable life (compare to HDD) are only a concern if used in enterprise level.

Regards

 

Hello guys im interested in this laptop I mainly just play Arma 3 anyone tried it on the msi gt72?

 

The non-IPS screen is thoroughly mediocre. The IPS will be a huge improvement.

 

but i dont think ips is gona be that much of an improvement over the stock TN as far as color accuracy. my best guess is you get longer lamp life, slightly better viewing angles and improved contrast as the big selling points

here is why i think this.

here is the TN in the gt72 211 i own (this is fact) : CHIMEI INNOLUX N173HGE-E11 Overview - Panelook.com

here is the likely ips candidate ( this is not fact but my GUESS): LG Display LP173WF4-SPF1 Overview - Panelook.com

here is a very recent (today oct 26), external review of a laptop which uses that IPS display:
Lenovo Y70 Notebook Review - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

EDIT: here is another review of theirs which includes the IPS with a table comparing measurements to the same TN as we have (gigabyte laptop has the chimei)
Acer Aspire V17 Nitro (VN7-791G-759Q) Notebook Review - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

compared to their review of the gt72 TN here:
MSI GT72 Notebook Review - NotebookCheck.net Reviews

for color accuracy they got 79 percent of sRGB and 58 percent of AdobeRGB for IPS and 73% sRGB and 54% AdobeRGB without calibration. (note my result at the bottom of calibrating the TN)

the reason i think it will be that particular ips is if you go looking for any 17" ips displays meant for laptops, which are in production today by any manufacturer, the choices are not that many, there is basically 2-3 models total in production today, with that LG model being the most popular/documented/accessible/affordable. i also suspect MSI would prefer Matte over Glossy since the TN is Matte. this was also the only 17" ips matte laptop display with EDP and matching electric voltage/amp etc. basicallly its the only laptop ips which seems to be compatible with the edp port on the gt72, without having to change voltages etc. if i was gona try to upgrade myself from tn to ips i would probably try and find this monitor on ebay. do be carefull if you go the ebay route- there are many variations of the lp173, and even 1 letter difference in the model number will result in a different display experience.

here is the spec table comparison of our tn and that IPS:

Panel Specification Compare - Panelook.com

from that table you can see the following difference between these 2 specific models :


tn has a hard surface coating, ips may not
both 6 bit, 262k colors. This is why i dont think color accuracy will improve.
both are 300 cd/m^2 brightness.
ips has better contrast at 700:1 instead of 400:1 for TN
ips uses slightly less power at max brightness 6.7w versus 8.3w of TN
IPS , has slightly better viewing angles 80/80/80/80 versus 70/70/60/60 degrees on the tn
ips does promise much better 120k+ hours screen-lamp-life minimum, versus 15k hours minimum of the TN. (to put this in perspective, a monitor turned On, for 16 hours a day, 365 days a year = 5840 hours a year. so even if you dont use power savings to turn off display after inactivity, the TN will last you 3 years minimum)
IPS also has slower response time at 25ms versus 2 or 6 ms of the tn
ips also has higher white luminance variation than the tn 13 points instead of 5


now besides spec, there is real life where on my gt 72 TN i get:

stock i get
272 candelas (28 short of the advertised 300?)
unknown srgb/ntsc/argb %
gamma 2.8

after calibration i get
213 candelas
2.2 gamma
96% srgb
69% ntsc
74% adobe rgb
delta UV (delta-e without specific target brightness) at whitepoint .7 delta uv at 50% gray delta uv is .3

basically after calibration the colors are very accurate, much more accurate than non calibrated ips at the expense of brightness as expected with any display. if you calibrate the ips it will go down in brightness as well we just dont know how much. the calibrated ips may also provide more than 74% adobe rgb i got, but someone will need to calibrate their ips to find out. on my tn since delta e is below 1 after calibration implying very accurate color reproduction with any faults not being perceptable by the human eye.

 

So you're saying a calibrated TN screen is ~ an IPS???

 

Yeah, my eyes are hurting too, but I think he saying a TN panel will do, vs. the added expense of IPS models.

 

it seems calibrated TN in this specific comparison is much more accurate than uncalibrated IPS

uncalibrated tn = 73% sRGB and 54% AdobeRGB

uncalibrated ips = 79% sRGB and 58% AdobeRGB

calibrated tn = 96% sRGB and 74% Adobe RGB

calibrated IPS = ???????


thats what the data is saying, i am just the messenger

edit: your eyes hurt cause your display is not calibrated j/k

 

Ok then, I'll say it..... the GT72 TN panel will do, unless you MUST have the latest tech, LOL!

EDIT: Nope Dilligaff, my eyes hurt because I am getting old, I refuse to wear my glasses (heck, half of the time I can't find them)..... AND YOU MAKE ME READ TOO MUCH!

 

dude i totally feel you about the eye thing, i can never go back to a 15" laptop for that reason- i cant see that small anymore.
in a few year i fear, i may need bigger than a 17".
I hope by then, they make laptops slimmer and lighter - the gs70 is a step in the right direction, they just need to fit the top gpu in there !!!!!!

 

Has the eye doctor ever told you that computer screens can affect your eye sight? Well Gee Thanx Doc, shoot me now!