MSI gx660r-060 is what we've been waiting for

anyone that bought this model on J&R can tell me if their site info about this model is wrong or they really have this model with GTX285m (instead of hd5870)?

MSI Microstar GX660R-060US 15.6" Notebook PC - Black in PC Notebook Computers at JR.com

im worried caused maybe ill buy it from them on Amazon and on their description they say gtx285m too

 

They have it named wrong. If it had an nvidia card, it would be a G T model, e.g. GT660R.

In any case, why not just get it from GenTechPC? Zero chance of problems.

 

im not american and im going to travel to California this friday... im staying 17 days and im not sure about buying at gentech for some reasons:
- they dont accept my international credit card
- i would need to pay california sales tax
- they dont let me pay in person or pick it up even if im 10 minutes far from them

on xotic the issue is the credit card, im not sure yet but im not interested in sending my money or check by mail to them... and im afraid it can take too much time to receive my laptop. (bank wire is no option for me)

so im basically stuck on Amazon and any physical store i can find near Anaheim.

 

10/03 will be a month with my GX660R-060US.

Just happiness with this note in this time.

BR

 

Hey guys, I got my laptop RMA'd quite a while back and have had it working in perfect condition for about 2 weeks now. The only problem(small nit-picky thing) is that the hard drives (bottom left and top right is where the sound is coming from) are randomly making clicking noises. It's not that loud, and most of the time i don't even notice especially if i have music on or am playing a game, but when i'm sitting around typing a paper or just browsing forums, it's kinda noticeable. I know that a couple other people have said they hear the same thing. Is there any way to stop them from clicking?

 

HI Guys.. I have a few questions...

Can you turn all lights off? if not all which ones?
also, if you turn them off are do they still go on on boot up adn later turn off or they are just off all the way?

what is the thickness of the laptop at its thickest point?

can u run vista?

ubuntu?


thanks.

 

Yes you can turn off all the lights and if you do they won't come back on until you turn them back on, even with reboots.

The thickest point is in the rear of the laptop with the sppeaker area and the Display hinge.

You COULD run vista but why would you? 7 is better IMO.

 

Ubuntu works as well, but you will have to disable raid and install on the second hard drive, also bluetooth doesn't seem to be working with Ubuntu for me (I haven't tried 64 bit Ubuntu so I don't know if that will work yet)

Just remember to create a /home partition to experiment how you want to.

I dual boot Win7 Ultimate 64, and Ubuntu 10.04

 

I still never got an answer, does anyone know what exactly is on the recovery partition when you first buy it? Does anyone have an image available? I deleted my partitions, removed raid and opted for 2 500gb's, but i feel stupid not at least looking to see what was there.

Tg

 

I'm wondering if I should get replacement drives sent to me from MSI, or is everyone getting the clicking from the 320gig hard drives? If it's a problem with the hard drive model i might just go out and get a couple different hard drive models that aren't western digital. Suggestions anyone?

 

Harddrives can click specially when performing S.M.A.R.T. tasks, but it is a problem when such clicking is a hardware failure that ends up freezing/hanging the system making it unresponsive.

You can try other HDDs, but I have used several brands and most had low clicking noises.

 

I've done some research and apparently it happens with a lot of the newer hard drives. I guess it has to do with the AAM and APM features or something. All of the software that's available to turn off those features is not available in 64-bit versions however. The people on this forum are probably a lot more tech-savvy than I am, so is there anyone, including you, ryzeki, that could help me to turn off these features?

 

Just fyi, I've had mine for about 3 weeks now and I just started noticing some light clicking sounds coming that seems to be coming from both drives. It isn't constant, but it is noticeable. It isn't loud either, but slightly annoying. I've had one hard drive on a desktop fail before and it's nothing at all like that, so I think the drives are fine.

 

The WD3200BEKT--the stock HDDS--had clicking when I had them in an entirely different computer. No problem except for the noise.

 

I know there's no INTERNAL problem with the drives, I know what a failing drive sounds like. The matter is that the clicking itself is just plain annoying and there absolutely must be a way to fix it. Like I said, I've been told that the APM and AAM are what cause the clicking(it's a power-save function of some sort in the drives themselves) and most users I found on various forums said they fixed it using a program called Notebook Hardware Control(NHC). The only problem is, NHC doesn't support 64-bit OS. Is there any way I can go into the bios or use an alternate program of some sort to turn off these functions manually? Also, it's worth mentioning that I called Western Digital and the tech told me that putting a jumper on the drive to enable "reduced power spin" might resolve the issue. Could anyone confirm this?

 

Hi guys,

I am also thinking about buying this laptop. However I have on little question. The earliest report about the MSI GX660 mentioned that it suports 3D content. Now I can nowere see it mentioned. Does it support 3D content? Has the screen the right technology for it?

Example:
MSI Announces GX660 3D Gaming Notebook With Intel Quad Core-i7 and ATI Radeon HD Graphics

 

Thank you guys for the answers... i know win 7 is an improvement on many things as it is vista enhanced, but there is little annoying things which is in the "super bar" or the start bar in the way it handles open applications.

besides i never had problems with vista.. i had xp for a while then got vista after most problems where gone.. and i knew to turn uac off.. so i never had an issue..

memory resources.. all gaming laptops now have at least 4GB


i like to move around the several applications that i have open really quickly as i am a developer and usually work with 7-10 windows.

i know there is an option to not group them and have each window show separately on the start bar (as in more than one browser window would have two icons instead of just one).. but the fact that they are not sized equally really annoys me , i loove that you can move them around.. this would be super helpful in vista....

its maybe a getting used to issue.. but i think its more than that.. its made for the normal user that likes nicer stuff, for me i like the one less step to get things done..


so its those little things, some are better in win 7, and some are worse.


my remaining issue is the raid and ubuntu... this is the reason i am getting a gaming laptop: two SSDs in raid, well plus the gaming part..

thank again...

 

PS: a GTX 460M is coming to am MSI
MSI launches 15.6-inch GT663 laptop with NVIDIA graphics -- Engadget

 

Natively, no. You need something like a 120Hz screen in order to use 3D. The GX660R only has a 60Hz "standard" screen. Don't know if it'll support it on a 3D-capable external monitor, though.

I hear you. I never had problems with Vista, either, at least not a problem I didn't cause myself and couldn't correct myself. Still, Win7 just "feels" better.

Not sure if I'm understanding you right. You want the windows not stacked together at all? There's an option to do that. See attachment. And my bad if I compeltely missed what you were trying to say.

 

it seems like stock clocks on my system are 700 900, I though it was 700 1000? But star craft 2 still ran like a champ. Around 52 fps stable all ultra with the mouse accuracy thing disabled sine that lowered fps by about 10 >.>. I'll put on some IC 7 and do some over clocking tomorrow if I get the time since i recorded my stock furmark temps and I want to see the difference IC 7 will make. Btw for anyone that wants to know with stock paste no OC i maxed at 85 then the fans cooled it to 83, then want back to 85 then 83 then 85........ you get the idea =P

 

Has there been a new bios posted for the GX660-R? Anyone flashed it?

 

I would love if a new bios came out...Possibly one with more features. Still haven't gotten a response from anyone about how to turn off APM or AAM when drives are in raid0.

 

BIOS Type AMI BIOS File Size 1155KB
Version 3.0D Update Date 2010-09-30
Description 1. Improve auto detect Bluetooth/Webcam/WLAN function.
2. Improve USB 3.0 transfer rate.
Download 16f1_30d.zip
Note GT660R, For RAID 0 SKU.

This one is newer than 309 right?

 

hmm the improve usb 3.0 parts looks interesting.

 

Hi guys, I'm a 6x660r owner myself (bought in august/sept) but came across this thread via google. I was wondering if other users have been having the same problem as me - basically, overall performance in games is excellent, but there's this weird stutter that sometimes occurs in around 50-60% of the games I play (even old ones). The screen will totally freeze up for between 1 and 6 seconds and sound will either go silent or "stutter" (e.g. "h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-h-ello there")

This seems to be related to audio, because it almost always occurs before a new sound (a mission briefing, the player taking damage and making a noise, selecting a unit, "activating" an NPC to make them say some lines etc.), and it seems to go away having played that specific sound once, but even after looking at the sound drivers and audio devices then updating, uninstalling and rolling back, uninstalling/diabling completely in device manager so there's no sound etc. I still seem to get the stutter (at least in the games I've tested with disabled sound). It's been happening since the very first game I installed (FEAR 2) and is fairly common in the original Blood on DOSBOX, Blood 2 from GoG, Starcraft 2, Star Wars: Empire at War, Judge Dredd: Dredd vs Death from GoG.

I've played all of these games on my old WinXP desktop (except SC2) and don't recall ever seeing this issue. So I thought I'd post in this thread just in case it was a known issue with the GX660R If nobody else has noticed it I suppose I'll have to consider formatting and reinstalling, because I've tried everything else I can think of.

 

Hey guys I just got a MSI GX660 (not R verison because I didn't want Full HD so I could have better gaming performance, and figured I'll end up putting in my own i7 down the road when I find it completely necessary. Some things I've noticed..

Whenever I use the USB port on the right side of the laptop and my wireless usb mouse, it wigs the moues out, and requires me to take hard to open windows, and sometimes double click to get it work open. Sometimes it does nothing and completely misses that I left clicked... I moved the usb sensor to the left side of the laptop, and all is good?? Same thing if I move it back to the right.

2. My sound is crackling when listening to youtube videos. Like sometimes it cracks or sounds lagged out for a brief second or 2.

Also, what catalyst driver or driver updates should I be getting?

One other thing.. My memory shows up as 3.92gb installed?? ? Also windows score shows my memory as a score of 5.9?? My old G51 RX05 scored 6.7 on 4gb of DDR2!!?! What gives here?


As far as the clicking noises go, I had that after installing a new HD in my old laptop. It was just a random click, and I found a fix for it using my 64bit Windows 7. Installed a program called quiet HDD, and if that was running in the background it adjusted the APM and AAM, and made the hard drive QUIET!! You can download the program here, and I bet it will fix all your clicking noises!

quietHDD

It doesn't say that it will run in windows 7 or 64bit, but I used the program for about 5 months and never had any issues and it stopped the stupid clicking noises.

 

Hey guys I just got a MSI GX660 (not R verison because I didn't want Full HD so I could have better gaming performance, and figured I'll end up putting in my own i7 down the road when I find it completely necessary. Some things I've noticed..

Whenever I use the USB port on the right side of the laptop and my wireless usb mouse, it wigs the moues out, and requires me to take hard to open windows, and sometimes double click to get it work open. Sometimes it does nothing and completely misses that I left clicked... I moved the usb sensor to the left side of the laptop, and all is good?? Same thing if I move it back to the right.

2. My sound is crackling when listening to youtube videos. Like sometimes it cracks or sounds lagged out for a brief second or 2.

Also, what catalyst driver or driver updates should I be getting?

One other thing.. My memory shows up as 3.92gb installed?? ? Also windows score shows my memory as a score of 5.9?? My old G51 RX05 scored 6.7 on 4gb of DDR2!!?! What gives here?


As far as the clicking noises go, I had that after installing a new HD in my old laptop. It was just a random click, and I found a fix for it using my 64bit Windows 7. Installed a program called quiet HDD, and if that was running in the background it adjusted the APM and AAM, and made the hard drive QUIET!! You can download the program here, and I bet it will fix all your clicking noises!

quietHDD

It doesn't say that it will run in windows 7 or 64bit, but I used the program for about 5 months and never had any issues and it stopped the stupid clicking noises.

 

Anyone have any ideas?

 

about the crackling sound and video issues, i had the same thing on my Asus G50vt with GeForce 9800M GS, depending on the version of the gfx driver.

I'm guessing it's an issue with your gfx driver, or flash support - I never found out the source of these issues, but I was able to find better versions of the driver.

 

Thanks man, you are right about the video driver cause. I just updated the video drivers for the laptop to catalyst control center and I guess mobility driver 10.8, and it seems to be even worse now! But game performance and overall crispness of the laptop screen seem much much better from the previous version. I don't know if I can go back now that the screen looks so much better.

 

Well I want to tell you guys that Windows rates my GX660 memory with the same score (5.9).

My desktop PC with 4 gb DDR2 is rated with a 6.3 lol!!!!

any help here guys? I've read on some forums that sellers are tricking people packing PCs with DDR3 1333 while only quad core i7 can support that frecuency, so any dual core i5/i7 will handle 1333 as 1066.

You can see that with cpuz reporting ram speed as 533 mhz (533*2=1066)

 

Well I want to tell you guys that Windows rates my GX660 memory with the same score (5.9).

My desktop PC with 4 gb DDR2 is rated with a 6.3 lol!!!!

any help here guys? I've read on some forums that sellers are tricking people packing PCs with DDR3 1333 while only quad core i7 can support that frecuency, so any dual core i5/i7 will handle 1333 as 1066.

You can see that with cpuz reporting ram speed as 533 mhz (533*2=1066)

 

Well I want to tell you guys that Windows rates my GX660 memory with the same score (5.9).

My desktop PC with 4 gb DDR2 is rated with a 6.3 lol!!!!

any help here guys? I've read on some forums that sellers are tricking people packing PCs with DDR3 1333 while only quad core i7 can support that frecuency, so any dual core i5/i7 will handle 1333 as 1066.

You can see that with cpuz reporting ram speed as 533 mhz (533*2=1066)

 

Hmm. My RAM is rated at 7.2.

 

I believe it's because you have the i7, which supports 1333mhz ram as previously said. I've got 1066mhz myself, but I've OCed it to 1333mhz and it works as well as 1333mhz ram, even though gpu/cpuz doesn't report it as 1333mhz for some reason. By the way, to avoid any confusion, i have an i7.

 

Ah. I thought Talon's was i7-based. Guess he has the i5 version.

 

What's the point of OC'ing the ram to 1333MHz? Offers close to no performance increase, except a little arbitrary score in Win7 Perf Index.

 

Forge i believe you are rated with 7.2 because you have 6 GB.Whats you score miahsoul?

I think Bearclaw is right.Windows only reads your ammount of memory and speed and then rates your system whitout really benchmarking it.Thats the only explanation. However I cannot understand why my desktop pc is gettimg 6.3 with 4gb ddr2.

It'd be good if some gx660 owners post their ratings

 

I have 4Gb of RAM and it's rated at 7.3 on the WEI scale. Remember, this is overclocked to 1333mhz through the bios. W/o OC it was like close to like 6 or something...

 

How do you overclock it to 1333? I can't find the option in the BIOS. I have 8gb of ram (upgraded via gentechpc) and it supports 1333mhz.

 

5.9, same as yours

 

A friend of mine got a GX660-053US which has the i5 450m in it and put in an i7 720m in it, I'm wondering how, if possible, we can get the memory to 1333mhz. The memory is rated to go to that frequency and the i7 720 in the asus G73 of my friends goes 1333mhz. Any idea...

 

I have an M15x. :S
I'm not sure if your BIOS supports it. But if you already got 1333mhz ram you're good to go.

 

It depends on the Bios and the motherboard wich I don't know if they are the same. You can't change the frecuency on the Bios as its tottally capped, but there could be 2 options:

-If the mobos are the same, maybe you can flash with a GX660R Bios (very risky)

-You can "overclock" by software. I think MSI has an utility to do that.(this method is more safe)

 

i want to try to modify bios hd 5870m because my gx660 have a vga clock memory -100 mhz if compare clock memory user gx660R. 900 mhz vs 1000 mhz

 

I'm so sad...my GT680(practically same as gx660r) came with a couple dead(black) pixels...even after I asked gentech to check for dead pixels, AGGHHHHHH! Do you guys have any idea what the Dead pixel warranty consists in? I really need to keep my laptop on hand until the end of this semester(may sometime) but I have no problem RMA'ing it after I am outta school. Must I do it immediately for dead pixels or no?