For those considering the MSI MS-1761 Barebones Whitebook (GT780DXR)

For those considering the MSI 1761 Barebones model:

I have recently decided on this model for myself. After considering the Clevo/Sagers np8130 and the np8150 -- I came across the MSI MS-16F2. After some consideration and recommendations from board members and I decided to step up to the MSI MS-1761 VS the 16F2 15in model - which is not too much more portable at all.

I figured my use would be, on avergage, about 90% home use and 10% carry. The benefits of the 17in screen at home outweighed the burden of transporting this machine when need be.

I contacted many retailers prior to my purchase. The best retailer based on my customer service and price seemed to be Ken at GenTechPC. I chose him despite being told I would have to wait over a week for my MSI MS-1761. He was out of stock, but also was immediately able to tell me exactly when the new units would arrive, be built and be shipped to me (unlike others).

So my decision was mainly due to the AMAZING customer service I received from Ken himself. The man is a computer building, sales, and servicing MACHINE! His email responses were always: 1)FAST 2)Correct 3) Helpful 4)Never "short" / meaning all questions were addressed in detail. After hundreds of hours of reading these boards I have found that the electronic paper trail left behind on this forum, by Ken's expertise and willingness to help, is BAR NONE (period).


SO, For those considering the MSI MS-1761:

Any specific questions you may have for a new 1761 owner can be asked directly here. I would be happy to oblige in any way I can when the unit arrives.

What would like to hear about in my review of this unit?

Do you have any suggestions for a review?

Any specifics things you would like assessed?

Now's your chance to let me know what you would like to hear from an unbiased third party/new owner of the 1761.

 

i agree, he was way more helpful and in depth than every other retailer.

 

Hi, could you let me know the temperatures after about 2 hours of straight gaming? Which GPU did you get?

I'm currently torn between this MSI barebook with the 580GTX or the Sager 8150 with the 6990. The Sager has a dedicated fan for the GPU and a dedicated fan for the CPU, whereas the MSI has one fan for both.

Thanks for your inputs.

 

The owner of PowerNotebooks has extremely good feedback as well. Basically all these small dealers seem very good. It's nice hearing from a customer directly though.

 

Yes, in my very brief experience with Powernotebooks, Donald was very helpful as well. Although, for unknown reasons he just could not compete with going prices when it comes to this model in particular. I would recommend you consider him for any other models though, He seems like a great guy and was very quick to respond. But, when you can't keep prices competitive or even close - the market will move on. (maybe this will change soon?)

Their certainly is something to be said for the owner/operator retailers. They are directly invested in the success of their business and the in the case of GenTech - he makes it all work.

 

I considered that as well. From what I gained here on the forums the 580 is a big step up from the 6990(in terms of price and performance). The middle ground would be the 570m which comes standard on the MSI's.

I chose to keep the 570m with my MS-1761.

The 1761 temps with it's one fan are stable. So the lack of a second seems a non-issue to me.

Here is a test last ran by Ken at Gentech on the 570m running furmark with stock thermal paste:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/msi/584869-official-msi-gt780-gt783-owners-lounge-415.html

 

I wouldn say the 580 is a big step from the 6990 in terms of performance. They are pretty closely matched in most of the games. Certain games favour the Nvidia card while the rest favour the Radeon. The only gaming related features that the Nvidia card has an edge over the Radeon is Physx and CUDA both helpful in offloading physics calculations from the CPU. But only games that support these features can make use of it. At Malibal an upgrade from a 6990m to a GTX580m costs 330$.

Satori P170HM - MALIBAL

It s up to the user to decide if he thinks the brand name of Nvidia, CUDA and Physx is actually worth 330$ more when you can get the same performance without the features in a 6990m.

This article might give you a better idea as to how close the gaming performance of these cards are.

Mobile GPU Comparison: GeForce GTX 580M and Radeon HD 6990M | PC Perspective

It is basically an article comparing the mobile GPU and the PC GPU to show how much performance is ripped off for size but I think it still makes the point clear that the 6990m and the 580m are too close to separate if not for the features.

 

How loud is it when gaming? Loud enough to easily hear from the next room?

 

I have heard from a VERY REPUTABLE re-seller that even though the Sager's use dedicated CPU/GPU fans, there cooling is not on par with MSI due to using cheaper heatsinks and fans. The same re-seller told me he ran Furmark on a Sager with a 6990 and it hit 103 Celsius.

I can tell you from my personal experience with my MSI 1761 that I max out between 66-69 Celsius after a couple hours of playing Battlefield. My 1761 has the 570m which is overclocked. My re-seller applied IC Diamond thermal paste for free since I upgraded the CPU and I know for a fact, that helps with the temps a little bit. I've seen multiple others report temp drops after switching from the stock past to the IC Diamond.

Most people who have the 580m are maxing out in the high 70's with their MSI's.

 

Not too loud. My Asus G51 with a GTX 260m was louder. You can still hear the fans but they do not stay maxed out the entire time. They will kick into high gear every 5 minutes or so for a couple seconds and then go back down. You do have the option of hitting the Turbo Fan Button which will keep the fans running at 100%. I've never felt the need to use it. When I'm not gaming, I keep the laptop in Balanced mode and I do not hear the fans at all. I only hear it kick in every 15-20 minutes for a couple seconds and then it sounds like it completely turns off. In the end, your not going to find a silent "Gaming Notebook". There is just too much power running through these machines. I'm sure some day we will see it but right now it's impossible it seems.

 

Glad I ran across this thread! I've pretty much gravitated towards an MSI GT780something too. the specs that I'am basically looking at are 17.3" gloss ( 1920 X 1080 ), I7-2630 or 2670 QM, GTX570m, 12GB RAM, a 128GB SSD & 500 or 750GB 7200 RPM 2nd HDD, IC Diamond, system.

I'am not sure if I should up to the BD drive because I'd most likely watch .MKV files instead of actual disk? ( any thoughts?? ), or what kind of wireless network??? ( is going with Intel Advanced N-6230 or Bigfoot worth it over standard built in 802.11 worth it????)

Then I ran across the barebones MS-1761 at places like GenTech & XoticPC ( Force 1761 ), & Prostar.

Definately better $$$ ( all though, I would up to the steelseries Backlit )...the only things I can tell so far is that ( correct me if I'am wrong ), aside from it being a plastic case......it dosen't have a fan boost button, or GPU boost button, but you can boost with Nvidia OC Tool that you can pin to the task bar. All other tools ( MSI Afterburner, S-Bar software, BIOS, Drivers, etc. all work the same since it still being the MSI MB ???)

My question for 'eelkered' is after having yours now....what are your thoughts on it verses paying the extra $$$ for the ' regular MSI-GT78##-### '..Is it close enough or for the $$$'s, are the few bells & whistles worth it???

Any comments would be MUCH APPRECIATED!

 

I have the MSI 1761 and I ordered it from none other than Gentech. I pretty much have the configuration you want. 17" Glossy 1080, i7 2670QM, GTX 570m, 8gb RAM 1600, Bigfoot N1103 w/ 3 antenna, Bluray reader, 128 SSD Samsung 830 series and a 750gb HDD. I also upgraded to the Steelseries Keyboard.

You pretty much hit the nail on the head. The Barebones systems have a different chassis and only come with a 1 year warranty rather than a 3 year warranty. The 1761 does have the Speed Boost button and I overclock using Nvidia Inspector. I make a short cut for my overclock settings and pin it to the P button on the S Bar. All I have to do is tap one button and it overclocks my GPU to the settings I want. The Bigfoot Card is also very worth it man. I am getting a signal where I never did before. My ping has also dramatically improved.

Call Ken at Gentech. He will match any price and provide better customer service than anyone else.

 

Fist off,let me say you can't go wrong with either a branded MSI GT78x or a Whitebook MS-1761 from any of the resellers listed on page 1 of the GT780/GT783 Owners Lounge.

I wish them all success,especially GenTech and PowerNotebooks that have a daily presence and are very helpfull to posters on these MSI forums no matter who they have bought from or will buy from.

Secondly,we're getting very close,a little more than a month away,to the expected availabilty of Ivy Bridge models.Buying now would mean a need for a unit immediately or very soon.

I think of the barebones models as something to buy in a close to stock configureation where the price is very low.

The more you have a dealer customize them the closer the price is to that of a branded MSI that often have a rebate or some added bundle.

If I were to buy a current model the GTX580M graphics,a SATA III SSD and a 3 antenna BFN 1103 would be at the top of my considered options.

If you buy a little cheaper now,you may be able to replace the aging notebook sooner?

 

I think it is more than valuable to get the specs listed in my signature for under $1500 rather than $2000 on an MSI branded model. It already includes the backlit keyboard. I could care less about the logo/branding. I feel if I ever go to sell this laptop that the potential buyer (who will be a gamer) would be looking at the specs versus the branding when purchasing. I mean if a person wants a laptop to get a particular job done and can get it without a logo for 20-30% less, then they should see it is a great value. I think is the proper place to put your money over a branded model. But that's just my function over form perspective talking. And lack of need for a safety net in every step I take.

If you feel the need to have the brand name and extended warranty then so be it. It is up to you. I have a budget to adhere to and could NOT find a better place to put my money to get every last drop of performance in return for it.

I won't receive my machine until next week. Stay tuned for the review and please feel free to suggest anything you would like to hear in the review - if you can hold out that long before ordering one yourself.

Ken is doctoring it up for me now as we speak. The guy was even willing to install windows for me with my windows product key so that it is ready to boot when it gets here!!!!!!!!!!! Oh and I also felt I got such a great deal that I had him add the glossy screen and blu ray drive too.

Well, I appreciate all of the info and insight I gained here on the boards and stand by ready to help others when mine arrives. In the means time I am waiting to record and prepare for your requests....

 

I think it is more than valuable to get the specs listed in my signature for under $1500 rather than $2000 on an MSI branded model. It already includes the backlit keyboard. I could care less about the logo/branding. I feel if I ever go to sell this laptop that the potential buyer (who will be a gamer) would be looking at the specs versus the branding when purchasing. I mean if a person wants a laptop to get a particular job done and can get it without a logo for 20-30% less, then they should see it is a great value. I think is the proper place to put your money over a branded model. But that's just my function over form perspective talking. And lack of need for a safety net in every step I take in life. Although I do feel secure knowing Ken at GenTechPC has a great record of having his customer's backs.

If you feel the need to have the brand name and extended warranty then so be it. It is up to you. I have a budget to adhere to and could NOT find a better place to put my money to get every last drop of performance in return for it.

I won't receive my machine until next week. Stay tuned for the review and please feel free to suggest anything you would like to hear in the review - if you can hold out that long before ordering one yourself.

Ken is doctoring it up for me now as we speak. The guy was even willing to install windows for me with my windows product key so that it is ready to boot when it gets here!!!!!!!!!!! Oh and I also felt I got such a great deal that I had him add the glossy screen and blu ray drive too.

Well, I appreciate all of the info and insight I gained here on the boards and stand by ready to help others when mine arrives. In the means time I am waiting to record and prepare for your requests....

 

Man, you are kinda scaring me... LOL.

But, really? "a NEED for a unit immediately or soon? "

I cannot see that in the next year. Maybe a NEED to play the latest game two years from now at medium or even low resolution... Maybe. But a "need for a new unit when Ivy bridge comes out? Drinking the Kool Aid! Lol, don't take this wrong at all whatsthepoint... I respect all of the help you offer us on the boards- but a "need" for a new unit because of Ivy bridge? Elaborate in specificity please sir. I eagerly await more info about the sky falling.

Any second opinions on ivy bridge are welcomed as well!

 

A word of warning (and food for thought):

When the first generation of sandybridge first came out, there have been massive recalls because of big, serious bugs (Google it).

I'm not saying initial ivybridge units will have unforseen outcomes. But as I said, these are words of warning and food for thought

For me, I sacrificed the benefits of using the more efficient/faster IB over the trusted and tested stability of SB. Also, SB is available now while IB isn't

 

Also, everyone needs to understand that the biggest gains Ivy Bridge is bringing to the table is graphics. We don't need good graphics performance from our CPU's. We have our GTX's to take care of that.

In the end, if you really feel compelled to upgrade to Ivy Bridge, just purchase the new CPU and sell your current one on Ebay or something. I've read that Ivy Bridge will be compatible with Sandy Bridge motherboards. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong. I was planning on upgrading my CPU in a year when I upgrade to the GTX 680m.

 

good points there jrwingate6

 

The MSI machine has a 4W fan that does not even have to run at 100% to keep the notebook cool when overclocked. I think that tells the story.

 

I'am really not sure what story that's telling? Can you elaborate?

 

MSI left spare cooling capacity.

 

This thread helped me to decide on purchasing a DIY kit for this notebook, do you have any reccomendations on places to buy parts to change out the default ones (gpu/processor/matte screen)? I plan on upgrading it as I go along.

 

No I'm sorry. I don't know where... I let Kenshiro build it for me.

I just got mine a couple of days ago and after days of agony of installing and updating windows and all my drivers - then moving over my music and photo library to my 2nd hdd - I finally can say I am ECSTATIC!!!!

I am OC'ing my 570m as we speak and FINALLY topped it out with a BSOD after hours of trying.

Keep an eye out for the review and stats coming soon.

 

Gentech pc is where I bought mine.. they were pretty unbeatable in price!

 

I just bought this barebones system.

What RAM are you using? I'm having a hard time finding the RAM listed as compatible on the MSI site.

Also, I'm taking the i5 cpu off another motherboard. Is it difficult to install on the MSI 1761? is it just a socket like a desktop cpu has?

 

Did you get an SSD on yours?

This is mine I just ordered today from xoticPC and im pretty happy with the way it looks from this standpoint how does it compare to your loadout?

1x FORCE 1761 / MSI 1761
- Antivirus Software: No Antivirus Essentials Software Bundle
- Back Up Software: No Back Up Software
- Battery: Smart Li-ion Battery (9-Cell)
- Bluetooth: Internal Bluetooth + EDR
- Build Time: Standard Production Time
- Camera: Integrated Digital Video Camera
- Car Adapter: No Car Adapter
- Case: No Carrying Case
- Dead Pixel Warranty: Contact us about our Significant Savings on our 30-Day No Dead Pixel Warranty. Heavily Discounted!
- Display: 17.3" FHD 16:9 "Glare Type" Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Glossy Screen w/ 72% NTSC Color Gamut (1920x1080) (SKU - X1R565)
- Exterior Finish: Standard Finish
- External Display Video Adapters: No Video Adapter
- External Hard Drive (Back Up): No Back Up Hard Drive
- External USB Optical Drive: NO External USB Optical Drive
- Fingerprint Reader: No Fingerprint Reader
- Graphics Video Card: nVidia GeForce GTX 580M 2,048MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11 (SKU - X3R510)
- Headsets: No Headset
- Memory Card Reader: Internal 7-in-1 Card Reader (MS/MS Pro/MS Duo/MS Pro Duo/SD/Mini-SD/MMC/RS)
- Microsoft Office Software: No Office Software
- Monitor Calibration: NO Professional Monitor Color Calibration
- Mouse / Keyboard Accessories: Razer Orochi Wired/Wireless Bluetooth/USB Notebook Gaming Mouse
- Notebook Cooler: Full Size Black Aluminum Notebook Cooler - Dual Fans - USB Powered (For up to 17" Laptops)
- Operating System: No Operating System Standard - Drivers & Utility Software Only
- Optical Drive Bay: Combo Dual Layer SuperMulti DVDRW/CDRW Drive w/ Software (SKU - X7R451)
- Optical Drive Bay Hard Drive Caddy: No Extra Optical Bay Hard Drive Caddy
- OS Redline Boost: No Operating System Redline Boost
- Port Replicator / Dock / Adapters: No Dock/Hub/Adapter
- Primary Hard Drive: 750GB 7200RPM 16MB Cache Buffer (Serial-ATA II 3GB/s) (SKU - X5R304)
- Processor: 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7-2670QM, 2.2-3.1GHz, (32nm, 6MB L3 cache) - Limited Availability (SKU - X2N167)
- Raid: HDD Raid Settings - OFF
- Ram: 8GB DDR3 1333MHz Dual Channel Memory (2x4GB SODIMMS) - Default (SKU - X4N340)
- Second Hard Drive: 500GB 7200RPM 16MB Cache Buffer (Serial-ATA II 3GB/s) (SKU - X5R203)
- Software Bundle (Not Installed): No Software Bundle
- Sound Card: Sound Blaster Compatible 3D Audio - Included
- Spare AC Adapter: No Spare AC Adapter
- Thermal Compound: Stock OEM Thermal Compound ( IC Diamond Thermal Compound - CPU + GPU Provided FREE with Processor Upgrade!)
- TV Tuner: No TV Tuner
- Warranty: 1 Year Complete Care Warranty - 1 Year Parts with Ground Shipping, 24/7 Telephone Tech Support & Lifetime Labor Warranty (SKU - X9R000)
- Wireless Network: Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1102 (2x2) (SKU - X8R051)
- Wireless Network Accessories: No Network Accessory
- Xotic Gear: No Xotic PC Gear
- XOTIC PC Redline Boost™ Extreme Performance: No Thanks, Please do not Overclock my system

 

Why do so many people skimp on warranty when they spend a lot of cash on a new notebook?

Whitebooks have only a stock 1 year warranty from the reseller.After the 1 year expires it's all out of pocket if issues arise.

 

I see it as a learning experience if something happens.

Unless its something whacky and unfixable like a motherboard issue or something.

But if its an individual part? It's something anyone can do, like you know, fixing part of a car.

 

I just replied to your PM, hope it helps!

 

yeah you can replace parts pretty cheaply.

 

I just found out this pos dell xps 15z I destroyed has the CPU soldered to the main board.

So I ordered an i7-2670qm for it.

120 gig ssd Intel hard drive. it'll mostly be used at home and networked with my desktop.

Should be pretty nice. Using it just for doing research on couch or hooking up to my onkyo stereo receiver and HDTV as. windows media center htpc. I have LAN lines to my router for this. And an HDMI cable to plug in with.

Do I need more than 8 gigs of ram?

 

No way. Even 4GB would do just fine for that.

 

You think this G. Skill DDR3 1333 will work? Their qualified vendor list shows only 2 modules that Ive never even heard of as being compatible.

 

If a GTX580M goes bellyup after the one year stock warranty expires take a guess what it will cost to replace it.A GTX570M won't be as much as a GTX580M but still far more than the cost of and extra year or 2 of parts warranty.

How about the motherboard?

Extended warranties are cheap price for peace of mind even if you never need to use it.

I've owned a fair number of notebooks and desktops that I built over many years and have used warranty repair on all but 1;and it wasn't rare to use my extended warranty for mainboard,lcd and graphics card replacement.

I owned a Toshiba Tecra S1 for 7 years than never needed to go in for service.I only needed to rebuild the battery a few times.

I have 3 years on my present GT780DX but who knows if I'll keep it that long.If I do,I'm covered.

 

its probably your fault for not cleaning out the fans...

You contradicted yourself...

Generally I believe if you take care of things (anything, car, laptop, any equipment in general) in an adequate manner they will last you untill you can afford to replace them with something better/newer/faster/stronger.

Warranties are for companies to swindle an extra bit offa you at the last moment.

 

Hm, I don't see any contradictions on Whatsthepoint's post. He said that out of all his notebooks, only one did not need the warranty.

I didn't get extra warranty with my 16F2, but then again I live in Brazil... So warranty is pretty difficult for me.

If I lived in the US, though, I would get the extra warranty 10 times out of 10. As Whatsthepoint stated, peace of mind.

 

I've learned a lot from your post.

 

I will live in the US only for 4 to 5 more months, and I would have no need for a warranty, and if anything ends up being faulty in 6 months, well you could say im just F***ed.

I cant decide whether to buy (now) the gt783-625 OR a barebone with better insides and cheaper. However, I am a complete computer retard, and I have not a single clue on how to's except some basic tinkering around lol. the reason i prefer the gt783-625 is because it gives me the shortcuts on everything, like the overclocking with a button and initial configuration which i don't have to deal with. Is it easy to overclock a notebook like MSI?

And honestly the new ivy bridge and all that I have no clue what it is, and waiting for the gt70 seems out of question because I want a laptop by the time diablo 3 is released. and honestly is a gt783 or a barebone equivalent different at all from the gt70?

 

The MSI GT notebooks have a 1 year global warranty so if the country where you will be has an authorized MSI service center you can have warranty repairs done there or anywhere's in the world.

Secondly,talk to the resellers,especially GenTech and the others that are always present on these MSI forums on how you can get warranty work done without sending the whole notebook.

Often only the part with issues can be sent but you may need to pay the shipping costs.

The GT783-658 can be purchased with 1 hard drive and a DVD instead of a BD burner to lower the cost.

The barebones 1761 is a fine unit and when configured with a GTX580M you have similar to the GT783.

The GT70 looks good going forward with an Ivy Bridge CPU and HM77 chipset but a NVIDIA Kepler GTX680M may not be released by the time you exit the USA.