Deadsmiley's Review of the Sager NP8278 / Clevo P170SM-A

Having the latest is nice but if you are happy with the current performance don't sweat it. There is usually something new every few months. Waiting longer means you can usually grab more feature upgrades like pci-e m.2 slots, ips displays etc.

 

Hi Deadsmiley,


Thanks for your review and cooling mod, it has been the standard by which I compare my system to. However I've had some problems with my Sager and I was hoping you and/or any of the others in this forum could give me a hint as to what I could do, so here's the deal:

I received my Sager on the first week of October from XoticPC with no operating system, and I finally had time to set it up correctly around two weeks ago, though I have only played The Witcher 2 for a couple of hours. Everything was working flawlessly until last week when I installed the latest nVidia driver (344.48 WHQL), then I started getting BSODs relating to nvlddmkm.sys crashes, and the games running on the intel HD 4600 instead of the nVidia GTX 880m, so I unistalled the driver with Revo Unistaller Pro and Driversweeper, but that didn´t work.

Ultimately I've had to format and install the OS (Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bits) on my Crucial 120Gb SSD 5 TIMES, and each time things have gotten far worse: Sudden freezes, Lags, Failure to Boot, Failure to repair boot using the Windows DVD, Black screen after I log on to Windows, Not recognizing the second harddrive, unrecoverable bootmgr.exe dissapearance, and in general, problems installing and using even the simplest of updates/programs.

I'd like to ask you to help me rule out hardware failure (the Crucial SSD 120 Gb) and/or if there's a way to revert everything to factory settings in a different manner other than using the Windows 7 DVD to format the hardrives.


Thank you for your time and I'll be eagerly awaiting any response from you guys

Sager NP 8278-S | 17.3" 1920 x 1080 Matte | Intel i7 4810MQ 2.8 - 3.8 GHz | GTX 880m 8GB DDR5 | 8 GB RAM | 120 GB Crucial M500 mSATA SSD | 750 GB 7200 RPM [SATA II - 16MB Cache] | 6X Blu-Ray Burner + 8X DVDRW/CDRW Super Multi Combo Drive | Windows 7 64 bits |

 

Have you tried installing to the HDD to rule out a SSD issue?

What are your CPU and GPU temps?

Are you running stock system BIOS? Are you running stock video BIOS?

Try running Memtest86+ on individual sticks of RAM.

 

If anyone wants some high quality photos of the laptop, here are the photos in my Google Drive:

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B5I_q70mNuR4ZW5yRkt1OWc0bzA&usp=sharing

As far as the laptop goes, I've owned it for a little over a month. The specs on mine are :

-Core i7 4810mq 2.8ghz
-32gb DDR3
-Geforce GTX870m 6gb
-Dual Samsung 500gb SSD's in raid 0
-OCZ Vertex 4 256gb (for running Linux)
1tb Hitachi HDD for storing data
BluRay burner
Windows 8.1
Intel Wireless AC


It's fast and versatile and everyone here can attest to how good the specs are even if you buy the base NP8278. It doesn't get hot but the fans do kick in a lot. I used some Arctic Silver 5 and applied it using the plastic sandwich bag method and it did drop the temps around 5 degrees and the fans don't come on as much and they aren't as loud. There are a few annoyances with it though. The AC Adapter Cord from the brick to the actual laptop is too short so I have to put the brick on my desk which completely stinks. The touchpad buttons aren't raised so if you're not looking at the touchpad it can be hard to find the mouse button you want (I end up clicking on the fingerprint reader by accident thinking it is a touchpad button.) It would have helped if the fingerprint reader wasn't in-between the touchpad buttons. On mine the power button feels a little mushy. I can't explain it other than when you press it, it does not omit any kind of clicking noise and feels soggy. I press it as light as I can and I'm hoping it holds up in the long term. I play NBA 2K15 on high settings with no lag as the Nvidia card seems to handle everything I throw at it. All in all the laptop is super fast and I'm quite happy with it. If anyone wants me to do a YouTube video review of it let me know.

 

Is there anybody who use clevo 170 sm-a with 970m?


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has the airgap been adddressed in the exhaust vent or is that still a mod for the willing?

 

It's pretty much plug and play for the 970M and 980M.

 

The air gap is still present, so it's indeed a mod for the willing. I have all the mods done that I am going to do. My laptop just keeps on running fantastic, especially after my yearly format. I do this in December of each year because of all the niche programming software I install over the year. The registry and drive gets pretty cluttered up...

 

Anyone knows if DP1.3 requires a connector change or just support in the GPU? I can't find any precise data on that, and I'm wondering because I'm interested in a Clevo, but with Oculus Rift CV1 coming next year having support (even aftermarket) for dp1.3 is pretty important.

 

What did you mean?


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He basically means that you just take out the old card, put the 970m or 980m in and it will work. Only a BIOS update is helpful .

 

I've got the NP8278 970m 6gb model, and I love this thing. Build quality, price, and performance are all excellent. If you move around a lot, get the 15" version. I have the 17" and it's not light. A decent backpack is also recommended, as it's a little heavy on the shoulder. I cant believe how cool this thing stays either. GPU hovers at around 70-75c at full load, where as my old MSI with a 650m would hover in the high 80's!

 

The larger die area of the 970m certainly helps keep it cool, lets it take advantage of the heatsinks.

 

I have already clevo 170 sm-a 970m


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Hi;
Which laptop"s gpu oc capacity is better and why?
-Clevo 170 sm-a 6gb 970 vs Clevo p650se?
And i own clevo 170 sm-a 6gb 970m.
Thanks.


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The 170 sm due to the larger size of the fan and heatsink.

 

I see that there is also a 3GB variant with the 970m. Is the 970 really fast enough to benefit from 6GB anyway?

 

You said that 170 sm-a"s gpu oc capacity is better than p650se?

Right?


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I am still waiting your reply
Thanks


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I said that the cooling capability is stronger, exact overclocks will depend on chip quality etc but on average the 170 has more cooling so should come out a bit ahead.

 

Heatsink quality may also be an issue.

 

Thanks again but clevo p650se has 2 gpu fans?although Clevo 170sm-a"s cooling is better than p650se?


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Added ASIC quality of the GTX 880M

 

That's a lot higher than mine, I wonder if youryours clocks much differently to mine.

 

The heatsink on the P170 is much thicker and the fan is also taller in height. This may or may not make up for better performance than the combined power of the two fans with the P650SE.

 

Taller fans make up the shallower ones and move more air.

 

My everyday overclock is 1045 (at the moment...)

 

I'm at 1266/1500 (boost) at 1.075v.

 

Anyone notice ghosting/difficulty with the keyboard typing T-H-E? When I type quickly, the E does not register

Holding down T and H, pressing E does nothing on my keyboard

 

Yes that pattern is one the keyboard cannot manage.

 

I never got past 1170 stable, so the answer is: You win!

 

Hello gentlemen,
I am a new board member here, and a new owner of a
Sager NP8278 - Clevo P170SM
right now I'm looking for a pdf download of the Service Manual for this notebook, and not having any luck.
I've been googling around and checked the Sager website, plenty of drivers, but no manual.
Since this is the home of the Notebook Deity, I am hoping that someone here can provide a safe link for the Service Manual?
I apologize if this is an inappropriate place to ask such a question.
Any assistance or redirection is appreciated.
Thank you.

 

I believe prema put the set up at tech inferno.

 

Thank you Meaker,

I went over to Tech Inferno and found Prema's thread
[REPAIR] Clevo Service Manuals
http://forum.techinferno.com/clevo/3837-[repair]-clevo-service-manuals.html

The Sager NP8278 - Clevo P170SM-A Service Manual appears to be there, unfortunetly, I am required to make FIVE "Quality" posts before I am allowed to either download it or even make PM contact with another member there.
And my initial post was not even visible, so it may be a while before I'm able to finally download & look at it.

As I mentioned in my post over there, I have never paid so much for any computer in my life, and likewise, never had such difficulty in getting something as essential as a Service Manual for it.

Based on the responses to that thread, sadly, I am not alone.

But much thanks to you, for directing me to a place where the manual can be had..... eventually.

 

Search google for "Palkeo ftp clevo" Choose your model and there will be a downloadable service manual as well as bios updates.

 

Thank you steberg
Did as you said and located
http://repo.palkeo.com/clevo-mirror/
Went thru the list and found the closest to what I am looking for
http://repo.palkeo.com/clevo-mirror/P170HM/
However this was for P170HM/P170HM3 with a latest Service Manual date of 03/04/2011 (mine is a recent (late January 2015) build Sager NP8278 - Clevo P170SM-A.

Although the cases are similar, the older model has no mSATA SSD slots, as well as other recent component additions.
The download link over at Tech Inferno actually has the P170SM-A_ESM.zip (9.75 MB, 14 views) listed as a Service Manual download.
But every post there has to be reviewed by a moderator before posting, and my last one took a day before it appeared, so no timely communication, even if another member is reading the thread at that time.
I have "timed-out" several times while waiting for my post to "post." (Sort-of like watching a pot of water for a boil.) It quickly grows old, and I end up just walking away from the site and return to it later, and later, to see if I've actually posted, and if maybe someone has replied....

Of course one can apparently bypass all this with a membership fee, but without a trial run with them I'm not sure if I want to make such an investment, at least not yet.
So, in the interim, there is a 5 QUALITY Post requirement before allowing a download from their server/s.

As others have posted, it appears that the SAGER/CLEVO manufacturers and resellers value their Service Manuals highly. To the point of excluding their customers & owners of these units from easy access and therefore hindering us from knowing precisely what is inside (parts/part numbers, etc.), how it is all arranged, and a logical and efficient way of extracting & replacing components, even those upgradeable components, without risking damage to the unit and voiding the warranty.

 

I do have another, unrelated question.
This a new machine, and I have noticed an odor emiting after I turn it on and while it is running. Not a "new car" smell, but a rather unpleasant, difficult to describe smell, somewhat metallic in nature.
I am thinking that it might be a normal "burn-in" odor, that I am hoping will gradually go away the longer I use the machine. But because the room I most often use it in has no ventilation (in the winter all windows are sealed tight) I am alittle concerned about how safe my breathing these fumes might be.
Can anyone comment about this?

 

The forum would not let me reply on your former message, so I replied to your latest. About your service manual... You're not looking for the right machine. You will find it under P1XXSM-A not under P170HM, that model is over three years old....

http://repo.palkeo.com/clevo-mirror/P1xxSM-A/

When you scroll down that list you will find Service manual for your Clevo P170SM-A, There are plenty of places on the net to find service manuals for your laptop. Google is your friend.

 

Thank you again, steberg
That is the Service Manual for the P170SM-A. I wouldn't have thought that it would be under P15xSM-A/P17xSM-A Series. Thanks for directing me to it.
It does show that I have to remove the keyboard to gain access to the primary RAM slots #1 & #2 of four.
The remaining upgradeable components (2 HD bays, optical drive bay, CPU, GPU, etc.) are pretty straight forward.
Regarding the second mSATA slot location...
It appears to live under the primary HD slot. The manual indicates an SSD is there and the illustration looks like it is an mSATA card.
The manual is dated 05-30-2014, but aside for not addressing the recent 980 GTX GPU upgrade, seems to current on everything else.
Thank you.

BTW, any comment on the running odor that I mentioned in the other post?

 

All new electronics have a certain smell to them yes, but if you are concerned contact your reseller.

The slots are mSATA yes.

 

It has been about 6 weeks since my last post and I've noticed that the "smell" which I previously posted, seems to be abating (or perhaps I am just getting used to it). At any rate, it is not getting any worse at this time.

However, at present, I have a "different" concern that I am seeking advice about.

I installed Open Hardware Monitor software so I could keep a periodic eye on my temps.
I have 5 drives in my 8278, All Samsung, 4 SSDs at 1TB each, (2) 850 Evo SSDs, (2) Evo 840 mSATA SSDs, & (1) Spinpoint Momentus 2TB 2.5" (mft by Seagate)
I have not played any games on this machine yet.
Just normal day to day work & online activity.
With ambient room temp at around 70-80F, Noticed that the i7-4910MQ CPU package keeps itself below 120 F. (49C) The fan will kick in if it gets up there and bring temps back down to 110-115F (43-46C).
With these minimal demands, the GTX 980 has not ever kicked in yet, so the GPU core temps are aren't even registering.
My OS is on the primary 850 Evo and it usually runs in the low 120's F, and it is being accessed all the time ( 122F as I write) 50 C.
The second 850 (which at this point has minimal mostly unused data) runs much cooler than the primary ( 104F as I write) 40C.
One of the mSATA 840's, also with minimal, mostly unaccessed data, runs much hotter ( 118.4F as I write) 48C.

But the second mSATA 840, also with minimal, mostly unaccessed data, runs very HOT (right now it's at 161.6 F just sitting there) 72C !
I have the most data on the mechanical HD, which I used as a back-up. Amazingly it runs the coolest of all, usually well below body temp (98.6F) 37C.
I thought that SSD's would use much less power and run much cooler than mechanical HDs...
However, I am concerned about the apparently excessive temp of that one mSATA Evo.
Since the second mSATA runs considerably cooler I was thinking that the temp may be due to either the location of that 840, or is it possibly a defective mSATA?
According to Samsung specs the MAX running temp range is on these SSD's is 158F (70C)???
Not sure whether or not this is a "routine" issue for 8278's with this configuration?
Aside from the spare HD in place of the optical drive, anyone with 2 mSATA's would have them in the same location as mine are.
Is it "normal" for one of these mSata's to run hot like this (163.4F as I write, 73C)?
This Samsung Evo 840 mSATA memory chip is running hotter than my old descktop GPU during a game... Should I be concerned?

I'd be afraid of how hot it may run if I should ever run an intensive program or game from that drive???

Per the service manual, I'm Not sure of the location of this particular mSATA, but thinking that it is probably in the "hidden" slot below the keyboard.

If the Open Hardware Monitor software is reading the temperatures correctly (?),
Is there any danger of the heat possibly damaging surrounding components?

One further observation. Per Open Hardware Monitor, The temps on these drives and that particular mSATA 840 EVO Don't always get, or stay that high.
In the same location, with the same ambient temps, they have run as low as 120F (49C), with the "cooler" mSATA 840 running at 113F (45), the OS 850 EVO has run at 113F (45C) & the non-OS 850 EVO at 96.8F (36C). And the mechanical Spinpoint will run at 95F (35C).
This temperature shift can ocurr within hours of continuous operation from one extreme to the other, from low to high or from high to low.
But it can remain in that excessive high range for hours at a time.... with no noticable difference in performance ( albeit, which up to now has remained pretty low on demand).
Since the temps do fluctuate, would that rule-out a faulty chip?

Can I trust the Open Hardware Monitor software?
If not is there any a more reliable freeware temp monitoring software program that I should use?

My primary concern is that that particular 840 mSATA apparantly can run so hot (greater than the high end 158F (70C) for hours. And then later cool down, and maybe heat up again, back and forth?
The temperature extreme, and fluctuations are disconcerting...

This machine is only 2mos old now, and under warranty, if I need to contact the seller.

Could anyone familiar with these drives, this machine and this configuration please offer constructive comment about this issue?

 

What do peoples temps look like? I feel like mine went up since I went back to W7, from W8.1 This is from about 40 mins of MechWarrior Online at max detail. I was playing on lower graphics settings in W8.1. Why? I don't know....

I've had this laptop for a few months now, and I'm happy. I only wish I had sprung for the canopy protection, for piece of mind.

View attachment 124189

 

That is quite hot, you might want to repaste.

 

Urg. It came with aftermarket Diamond something or other paste. What a mission!

Any brand recommendations?

 

Ic diamond is a good paste, grab a tube and refresh the application. Done correctly it should last ages.

It could be dust build up too so use some compressed air to clean out the fins.

 

I'm still loving my laptop, but after shifting back to W7 (long story, don't ask ) Hotkey is driving me nuts. I've heard that v3 is much better than v2, but I can't find a link. I've looked on the Sager page, but can't find this model on Clevo's download page.

Anyone have a link for Hotkey v3?

Update on temperature issue: Problem solved by going to power options, and lowering max CPU use to 96%.

 

I had the same problem with Mechwarrior Online. My solution was to cap the FPS to 60 as it will run away in the main screen and the loading screens. This helped my temps a lot.

You can either run vsync or use RTSS to cap your fame rate if you don't like running vsync.

If the OSD bothers you, the newer Hotkey allows you to disable it by right clicking the tray icon. Or, you can edit the oem.ini and get there too.

 

If there is a short burst of activity like a loading screen it should return to normal pretty quickly afterwoods.

 

I would think the same thing, but in reality it does not. The temps just keep climbing until it throttles due to thermals. It's really strange.

 

Interesting, that would suggest the heatsink or paste job needs looking at.