*** Official Clevo P151EM1 / Sager NP9130 Owner's Lounge ***

So some thoughts on the questions people have (from my experiences):
- I've had the Optimus issues too. However, it isn't a big deal to open up the control panel and set the GPU affinity to each program.
- It was easy enough to to install a SSD (256GB MyDigitalSSD in the mSata slot used as an OS Boot Drive)
- I'm not really sensitive to sound quality, but I've had no problem gaming/listening to Pandora on either the speakers or an attached headset.
- Never noticed any throttling issues. Intel speedstep does downclock during low power/idle conditions (so to increase battery life) and the turbo will increase the overclock when needed to run performance hungry applications. All I'd see throttlestop doing is drain your battery quicker than necessary.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but according to these various reviews (and what I've read in other threads), once the NVIDIA gpu is activated the CPU will not turbo up.

 

Hello Clevo Resellers,

On the Clevo 151EM/Sager NP9130, is it possible to to have the GPU downgraded from the standard 670M (Fermi architecture) to the 660M (Kepler architecture)?

My reason for asking is that in addition to gaming I also do scientific computing using CUDA, and the 660M supports CUDA version 3.0, while the 670M is at ver. 2.1.

Note for other users: If your primary use case is gaming, the 670M scores better. The 660M has lower power consumption, but that shouldn't matter much as you'll be plugged in when doing serious gaming.



Thanks in advance,
Jake

 

I think that's just on the NP6165 and the like, not the 91XXs, but I'm not 100% sure about that.

 

Can some 9130 owners confirm this?

Thanks!

 

The NP6370 has it.

 

I think it'd be best if you emailed them directly. I'm not sure if the Sager resellers may be able to do it (as they simply send the order to Sager) but other Clevo system builders like Maingear, etc might be able to.

I'd suggest e-mailing Larry@LPC or PMing him, he responds fast and is helpful

 

I know that I've seen a few Clevo builders offering the P151EM with a 660M; Malibal does, and I think that Mythlogic used to, but their site is down so I can't verify it.

 

Well after a few years of waiting for an efficient and affordable laptop used as a desktop replacement for gaming and video editing, I have stumbled upon this high grade laptop. The timing couldn't be better since I am currently back in college going for an applied science degree with a concentration in computer networking and my 5 year old laptop just isn't cutting it anymore. I am currently in Phase 1 and just waiting for my banks wire transfer to go through.

My Build:

Sager NP9130 / Clevo P151EM1
- Display: 15.6" FHD 16:9 Super Clear Ultra Bright LED Anti-Glare Matte Screen with 95% NTSC Color Gamut (1920x1080)
- Processor: 3rd Generation Intel® Ivy Bridge Core™ i7-3610QM (2.3GHz - 3.3GHz, 6MB Intel® Smart Cache, 45W Max TDP)
- Graphics Video Card: nVidia GeForce GTX 670M 1,536MB PCI-Express GDDR5 DX11 with Optimus™ Technology
- Ram: 16GB DDR3 1600MHz Dual Channel Memory
- Primary Hard Drive: 240gb Intel 520 Series Solid State Drive (SSD2 Serial-ATA III)
- Optical Drive Bay: 750GB 7200RPM (Serial-ATA II 300 With 16MB Cache)
- Wireless Network: Bigfoot Networks Killer™ Wireless-N 1202 + Bluetooth 4.0 (Dual Band)
- Copper Cooling Upgrade: Extra Cooling Copper Heatsinks Applied to the Heatsink/Heatpipes
- Thermal Compound: IC Diamond Thermal Compound Added to CPU + GPUCPU + GPU
- Extreme GPU Performance Boost: Redline Boost™ Overclocks Systems GPU
- Extreme OS Performance Boost: Redline Boost™ Operating System Settings and Services Tweaks
- Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit

What do you all think of this combination and setup for a full desktop gaming/video editing replacement? I am a full time student so pretty much always on the go while also an IT for the U.S Department of Labor so both school and work are very computer demanding.

 

Just did some tests playing Orcs Must Die 2:

The max turbo does seem to kick in even with the GTX 670 under load (i.e. gaming). However, the game isn't really CPU heavy, so I can't confirm that this will hold up under both high CPU and GPU load (it didn't go to max turbo when I had prime95 running in the background, but I don't know if that means its throttling or just because of the prime95 stress test).

Anyone know of a good program in which I can stress test both the CPU and GPU at the same time?

Edit: I also think the throttling of the NP6165 is due to the CPU and GPU sharing the same cooling system. The NP9130/50/70 have separate cooling systems, so it doesn't need to throttle afaik.

 

To stress CPU and GPU at same time download MSI Afterburner package and use the MSI Kombustor stress test at the same time as Prime95 (Large FFT's). This is the highest possible stress you can put your machine under.

To enable full Turbo of your CPU download Throttlestop 5.00 (or higher) and set it to Turbo.

 

So, it does seem like the laptop is throttling the CPU under high GPU load conditions (i.e. the CPU doesn't max out its clockspeed via the turbo). Here's a pic of my NP9130 running both a MSI Kombustor and Prime95 stress test at the same time:


And here's one with only Prime95 running:


A bit disappointing, but its nothing throttlestop can't fix and I don't think I'll run into a high simultaneous CPU/GPU load condition that often outside of stress test conditions like this.

Edit: Alright, here's what it looks like when using throttlestop to allow the max turbo:

 

Hey Bob, thanks for taking the time to confirm that the 9130 does indeed suffer from the turbo boost throttling problem. It's a shame that Clevo hard coded this our systems in order to keep down temperatures. I bought my 9130 from Larry @ LPC Digital and when I asked about this throttling turbo problem, he said he was unaware of it. Guess I'll have to turn on Throttlestop whenever I am gaming.

 

So the turbo is throttled because the CPU would generate too much heat? Does the laptop overheat if you use throttlestop?

 

Hey guys, I'm considering this laptop and would love some input on the speakers (it's the only major downside of this laptop for me)
I've heard that even if you plug in a mic and external speakers through the jacks on the laptop the audio still sounds mediocre.
I've also heard that a solution to this is to buy an external sound card and use its jacks, is this true?
Also if it is, will their be a lag from when sound is transmitted via the laptop, through the USB port to the external sound card, then through its jack to the speakers/headphones?
That is my main concern, that I will be watching movies or videos and their will be a noticeable delay between what is seen on screen and what I hear.
I realize that this is a lot of questions, and I really appreciate any help. Thank you so much!

 

The sound is mediocre via the onboard sound and jacks yes. They are on par with any Dell I think. I've owned a Dell xps and sound is about the same.

You can get a USB sound card to get much better sound. If you get a decent one there will be no lag.

These get good reviews and are relatively cheap. You can get better of course with more dineros.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0054L8GVK

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

So it's not necessarily the hardware, it's the software that's making the speakers sound bad?

Also.. My Sager 9130 has finally been shipped from XoticPC. Though, I thought it was interesting that it shipped from the Los Angeles area and not Nebraska, which is where XoticPC is based out of. I wonder if they're outsourcing the job of building their laptops to another part of the country. Anyone who has bought from XoticPC know about this?

 

It is the hardware.

XoticPc is a reseller, meaning they sell other companies' laptops. Your laptop is a Sager sold by XoticPc. Sager built and shipped the laptop. Unless you got customised skin, monitor calibration, copper sinks, or other customizations done by the reseller, it will be shipped from sager.

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

Interesting..I was under the impression that XoticPC kept different Sager models in stock and when a customer ordered a specific model, they just receive it from the warehouse and customize it right there in Nebraska. What is the point of ordering from XoticPC in the first place if they're going to do this? Might as well just order from Sager themselves.

 

Several reasons why actually. Warranty from xotic is better. Customer service from xotic is generally (as reported) friendly, faster, and better than Sager. Xotic and other resellers often have different customization options that separate them from the "builders", including but not limited to laptop lids, monitor calibration, copper heating upgrade, etc etc. Often times also, the resellers have cheaper deals that include discounts and free shipping.

However, there are pros and cons for each method of business. Some prefer buying straight from the builder and some from resellers for the reasons I mentioned. MALIBAL, mythlogic, Sager, Eurocom, and Pro-star (I think) are some of the known "builders" of Clevo laptops, meaning they get their chasis/mobo from Clevo manufacturer and assemble them in house with CPU/GPU/RAM/screens/etc.

Pro of going with builder is they usually have more flexibility and freedom if you have special requests and needs. Since they put the parts together you can easily request specific parts. Resellers might offer same kind of service but you'd have to ask each one specifically.

Ps. There is nothing wrong with going with reseller so don't worry about it!

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

Awesome, thanks for the explanation!

 

I presume so. Using throttlestop while running prime95 + MSI Kombustor did cause the CPU to spike into the high 80's. However, I've haven't gotten anywhere close to that temp while using regular applications (web, excel, games, etc) while running throttlestop.

 

So I finally received my Sager 9130 from XoticPC, but I just learned something that's very disappointing. Just before I received my 9130 via UPS (5 min ago and still unopened!), I received an e-mail from XoticPC with an update to my order. I had ordered an external optical drive to go along with my laptop since I will be using HDD caddy. Well, the update to my order was a new UPS tracking code for this optical drive. XoticPC ships any extras from your order separately from where they are in Nebraska.

This wouldn't be an issue, but they're just now shipping it to me! 8 business days after my payment went through! What the F, XoticPC? I was looking forward to burning recovery discs immediately upon receiving my Sager, then going to work on wiping the HDD and then setting my SSD as primary drive. Had I known this, I would've just bought the external drive from Newegg and had it 2 days ago. Quite disappointing..

Anyway, minor setback. I'm pumped to finally have my computer. And yes, XoticPC is a great company to buy from. Despite this setback, I still recommend them to anyone considering them. In my experience, they have had great support and I like the fact that they interact with people on these boards. Xotic just needs to make sure that extras are received by the customer on or before the date that they are to receive their laptop. I'll try to post my own review of the Sager soon, hopefully!

 

shutyourface, I do apologize if the optical drive was sent late. We do try to send them out at the same time the computer ships from Sager but it sounds like it was missed.
You dont need to make recovery discs however as Sager does a clean install to begin with. You can use the Windows disc (if added) and it will come with a drivers/utilities disc as well. You dont want to make back ups from a HDD and put that on a SSD as they write to sectors differently, it always best to do a clean install when intalling Windows onto a SSD.

Glad to hear the computer has gotten to you safely though! Just let us know if any questions on it come up, looking foward to your review.

 

It's alright and thanks for letting me know about the backup thing. The windows disc was added, however, because I don't have the external optical drive, I'm unable to install the SSD/Windows 7. Though, I have a friend who is going to let me use his external HDD later today to download the Windows 7 ISO and then set it up on my SSD that route.

 

So I've had three weeks to play with my laptop, and that seems a reasonable amount of time to put up some casual opinions about it here.

1. The screen is simply the best I've seen on any laptop. By a long margin. And it's not even the 95% gamut! I put it next to my old Ideapad Y560 and at full brightness, the Sager simply blew my old laptop to bits. The colours are perfectly saturated, the brightness, even at the lowest setting, is more than adequate and the matte finish really is resistant to any sort of reflection.

2. The sound sucks. Through the speaker, through earphones. It's not just bad - it's downright terrible. There is zero bass, and there is no way to correct it except to purchase an external sound card solution. Really disappointing for a laptop which is otherwise so powerful. I will have to see affordable ways to get around this problem, because I need to listen to music while I work.

3. The design is rock solid. I've put this next to my friend's Thinkpad and frankly, the build quality was almost as good. It feels solid, there is no flex in the keyboard, the hinges are smooth and make no frightening creaking noises, the screen does not bend even under a fair amount of pressure and the matte finish of the palmrest ensures that even after typing and gaming for hours, there are no fingerprints. The screen bezel is glossy, which means it does attract prints, but frankly how often will you touch it anyway.

4. Disappointingly enough, I have noticed ghosting in the WASD region, especially when playing FIFA (where I use a lot of W-E key combinations). It's rare and almost impossible to notice if you don't game, but still, I do wish there was some way around it.

5. Framerates are, of course, impeccable. Battlefield 3 on ultra gave me 25-30 fps. Skyrim clocked in at an average of 45 fps on ultra. GTA 4 stayed steady at 60 FPS except in high traffic frames, where the framerate dropped to 45. Other games like Football Manager and FIFA get chewed up and spit out.

6. Running virtual machines on this is awesome! I ran a Windows 8 VM with 2 cores and 7 GB of RAM allotted, and it was as good as running the OS natively on my PC.

7. Temperatures are the best trait of this laptop. Despite gaming for an hour or two in a non AC room, the laptop remained steady at around 75 degrees, which is pretty awesome. Also, the Fn-1 trick to make the fans clock into full speed works on this particular model.

Overall, other than minor issues like the sound and the rare keyboard ghosting (almost unnoticeable), the laptop is pretty awesome. I've been recommending it to all my gamer friends who are looking to buy new notebooks.

 

Great review, mine is currently on phase 3 so can't wait to push it to it's limits. really hope the sound is not as bad as people say, I mainly use $60 ear buds. Would you say it is at least as good quality sound as an old Ipod nano or just overall Ipod quality?

I have read some things about people buying USB headphones or adapters which completely works around its audio jacks so the sound will be much better.

 

Or you can always make a Bootable USB key for Windows. That's what I did since I didn't have any spare DVDs lying around (who does anymore? )

If you're comparing it to an ipod, i'd say you're fine as ipods aren't really known for their awesome output... now if you had a Sony Walkman Z series (or was it W) that could be a different story.

 

The 5.5 gen and below had fantastic DACs, so it would depend on what generation he's comparing it to.

 

You should definitely pick one up! 8gb sticks go for less than $10 these days.

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

Dang, really? I may have to then. Do you or anyone else know how large of a flash drive one needs in order to add an entire 64 bit windows 7 iso to it?

 

At least 8gb. I have windows enterprise on a USB and it takes 4.4 gb.

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

Unfortunately the bass output is actually zero, so I would say it's not even as good as an iPod.

 

Haha LOL, well people surely hate the sound on these machines

 

Yeah, you can really tell when playing a bass test and plugging in a headset with any bass. The sound on the laptop isn't great by any means but I also don't think its a terrible as people are saying.

 

So I'm trying to boot Windows 7 from an external hdd, but I keep getting this error once i've set my Sager to boot from the external drive. The external hdd has nothing on it except for the extracted Windows 7 64 bit home premium files. Anyone know what the problem may be?

Here is a photo of the error that I get: ImageShack® - Online Photo and Video Hosting

 

That means that it is not booting from the HDD or external drive at all. What methid did you get the Windows on the external drive?

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

I used this tutorial word for word Install Windows 7 From an External Hard Drive | PCWorld

I downloaded the windows 7 home premium, then used the trial version of program that pcworld recommended to extract the files that I downloaded to the external drive. I then switched my hdd out and installed my SSD, connected the external drive via usb, then changed the boot sequence. And this is the error that I received

 

My bet is that the boot flags weren't set correctly. Your BIOS is looking for the external drive first I'm sure, but the drive doesn't have proper boot flags in the boot sector in the mbr. Get a flash drive tomorrow and I'll show you a real easy way to do it

Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2

 

haha I might as well just wait until Monday, which is when I'll receive my external optical drive. My original plan was to boot from the external optical drive. I just figured that since my friend had an empty external hdd, that I'd take advantage of it and try to install windows 7 through it.

 

woops, double post

 

That's certainly possible to do, even if it's not empty. Don't use the official tool. Grab an official ISO of Windows 7 (links here, choose the version that matches your license), extract the contents to the root of the hard drive, then write the proper MBR and boot sector to it. If you're stumped on how to do that, see step five here. It's not difficult.

If there's a way to install Windows from a storage device... I've done it.

EDIT: Off-topic, is there a way to determine which posts got rep+ clicks?

 

So I have been playing a lot of Guild Wars 2 today and I am pleased to say it runs really well on the P151EM. I have everything maxed except shadows (I have them set at high) and am running FXAA for anti-aliasing. In more crowded areas I have been averaging right around 30-35fps and in less populated areas I have been seeing 50+fps (a lot of times 60fps). I have my card clocked at 750/1650 and am using the 301.42 drivers.

 

how are your temps with a 25% OC? Glad to know Nvidia chips are still as OCable as ever (used to push my 475MHz 330m to 615MHz a ~30% OC)

 

Shadows and AA is kinda useless on a 15" screen, especially when it comes to a 1080p screen, just waste of FPS
but nice to hear it works like a charm!

 

My temp maxes out at 78C on Skyrim and 79-80C on GW2 after a couple of hours of playing. For such a high overclock I think those are fairly reasonable temperatures.

 

The FXAA hardly impacts the performance of the game (around 2-3fps for GW2) and as long as shadows aren't set to ultimate they don't appear to have that large of an impact either. As long as I am over 30fps and there is no stuttering I am fine with that. Also, GW2 looks amazing.

 

Yes, I agree that's really acceptable for the OC. Then again, most overclocks I've seen on laptops increase temps by like 5C at most.

 

So I finally received my external optical drive and installed my SSD in SATA 3. I'm about to install my HDD in the optical drive slot, but I'm confused about something. Do I need my hdd to be running Windows 7 too or will my SSD just treat the 2nd drive like an external hdd? Basically what I'm asking is, should I wipe my 2nd hard drive or must I keep windows 7 on both drives? Not quite sure how this works.