The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
← Previous pageNext page →

    *** Official Clevo P650RG, P650RE3, P650RE6/Sager NP8658 and NP8657 Owner's Lounge ***

    Discussion in 'Sager/Clevo Reviews & Owners' Lounges' started by moviemarketing, Oct 10, 2015.

  1. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Thanks for the suggestion! I'd just dislike having to do it when XoticPC/Sager should've done it last week before they sent my laptop out lol. Or better yet, what if the paste is just fine, and my GPU or particular chassis runs a bit hot? I was definitely planning on maintaining my laptop on my own, but having to do a re-paste right out of the gate would be disappointing.

    http://i.imgur.com/4IeIl39.gif

    This helpful graph from HTWingNut's review is what concerns me. Mine runs 79C on every game I've tried it with (Rocket League, Metro 2033 Redux, CS:GO, and L4D2) in relatively short sessions. Compared to the non-OC P650SG benchmarks which to my understanding should be similar, mine seem particularly high. Any thoughts would be appreciated!
     
  2. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    No problem, I'm happy to help out. I mentioned in my post that it was on 100% brightness when I was sitting on the Youtube page. I went into the gray screen with 100% as well, but then lowered the brightness a bit after I didn't see any ghosting to see if that would make a difference but saw no change.
     
    djsubtronic likes this.
  3. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    causes can include: high ambient temp (whats urs?), type of thermal paste, type of thermal paste application (too little, too much), warped heatsinks (improper contact), propped up vs. flat laptop, hard even surface vs. soft surface potentially harming airflow

    but also the type of game, stress test, graphics settings, resolution and driver (to a lesser extent)

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
     
  4. JadeMonkey

    JadeMonkey Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    6
    On the day I ordered I was originally told that I'd have my new Sager NP8658-S / Clevo P650RG this Friday, October 30th, but my order from Xotic PC is still in Phase 1 (Payment Processed & Inventory Gathering) so I don't see that happening at this point. The person who called to confirm my order mentioned that it should ship by Nov. 3rd at the latest but I'm starting to get anxious for that date as I need to have it by Nov. 5th... Kinda bummed but I don't think there's much I can do at this point.

    I'm also a little concerned that I ordered the Killer Wireless 1535 on Pat's suggestion and I'm hearing about several people having issues with it. Not sure if I should have my order changed to the Intel NIC or not. Anyone have the Killer 1535?
     
  5. Support.1@XOTIC PC

    Support.1@XOTIC PC Company Representative

    Reputations:
    203
    Messages:
    4,355
    Likes Received:
    1,099
    Trophy Points:
    231
    Email or PM me with your order number and I can check in to it. If you do end up wanting to change your wireless card, let me know and I can help get that set up as well. I'll do what I can to see if we can have the system shipped out to you.

    In our system, Sagers are built in phase 1, testing and about ready to ship in phase 2, then phases 3-6 are only set up if it comes to us for additional customizations. Then phase 7 when it is shipped out. But contact me with your order and I'll see what I can find out for you!
     
    jaybee83 likes this.
  6. JadeMonkey

    JadeMonkey Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    6
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Pat, thanks so much! I wasn't expect such super-quick feedback. Just sent you an email; I appreciate you looking into my order for me.

    Any feedback from customers on the Killer 1535 wireless card? I'm not sure if I'm just seeing a normal amount of noise around it or if there really is some kind of an issue. Thanks for any feedback you might have.
     
  7. Support.1@XOTIC PC

    Support.1@XOTIC PC Company Representative

    Reputations:
    203
    Messages:
    4,355
    Likes Received:
    1,099
    Trophy Points:
    231
    Sent you an email back on the update.

    I haven't had any customers contact me directly about issues with a 1535 personally, but that doesn't mean there aren't issues. I would also appreciate any feedback that 1535 owners might have, if they are having issues too.
     
  8. Legion343

    Legion343 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    21
    Messages:
    208
    Likes Received:
    109
    Trophy Points:
    56
    Hi there i'm going to return my Ge72 because drain issue and will buy this one 15 incher. Can someone tell if there are available drivers for windows 7 on this model or i will be forced to crappy and problematic windows 10?
     
  9. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    u can still go 8.1.... :p
     
    HolyJozef likes this.
  10. Legion343

    Legion343 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    21
    Messages:
    208
    Likes Received:
    109
    Trophy Points:
    56
    Can you explain? (better 8.1 + mod than 10).
     
  11. desktopsheavyonlap

    desktopsheavyonlap Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    106
    Messages:
    99
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Like jaybee said, it could be an optical illusion from the staring. But, from what you describe, it sounds like image persistence. I accidentally read about it on Lifehacker a while back which basically said the screen's first 100-hours being susceptible to such occurences.

    I found this support article from Apple that describes an identical situation.
    I don't recommend doing what it says but the physics of the issue is still relevent.
    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201786

    You should consider taking a picture of the screen as the persistent image remains on the grey background. It will probably help determine how serious the problem is for the vendor should you wish it fixed, etc.
     
  12. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Sorry to hear man. For me personally, I ordered my NP8658-S on the morning of 10/12 and it got to me in NYC on 10/21 at 6PM. I also opted for the Killer 1535 myself (the only modification from preset build that I made), but I don't have good or bad things to say about it yet as I haven't moved my laptop around too much since I got it, and I'm sitting right by my router. I did have a 'limited access' disconnect on the 2nd day for a few minutes, but that's not too odd in general.

    Out of curiosity, I just tried a speedtest on my old W530 (Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205), and got the following: http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/4786567761

    Then after waiting a few minutes, I got this on my NP8658-S: http://www.speedtest.net/my-result/4786564700

    Did it a couple more times with fair spaces in between, and achieved similar results. Could be due to a ton of different reasons, but the laptops are sitting side by side, and I even swapped their positions just to see as well. Since I'm migrating from my W530, it's nice to know that I'm getting better slightly better D/L speeds (though I might've been getting these speeds anyways with the default Intel NIC... who knows).
     
  13. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Room temperature is around 70F (21C) sitting on a flat, hard even surface with space behind for airflow. I don't think there's anything odd about the setting since I've also gotten the exact same temps (idle 45-46C, load 78-79C) sitting on a different surface as well.

    I haven't seen anyone else post their temps though so maybe this is normal for the P650RG, and I'm just nitpicking over the difference between my P650RG and the P650SG in HTWingNut's review... Could someone else share their idle and load temps? Thanks!
     
  14. djsubtronic

    djsubtronic Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    109
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    41
    Thanks for the info.

    I hope the 100 hours thing is right. I don't think I've hit that much yet, but I will try to do another burn in today and see if it still shows or has reduced.
     
  15. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    what exactly would u like to know? 8.1 without the metro crap and a good start menu tool is actually not all that bad tbh :)

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
     
  16. djsubtronic

    djsubtronic Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    109
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    41
    Quite magically, the image retention seems to have gone away!
     
  17. Legion343

    Legion343 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    21
    Messages:
    208
    Likes Received:
    109
    Trophy Points:
    56
    I see that resellers offer w10 only so drivers are 10 only only (not for 8.1) I'm wrong?
     
  18. hkblue

    hkblue Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Is there anyway to disable the Sager boot logo ? It seems like it would speed up my boot time dramatically.
     
  19. hkblue

    hkblue Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Once I get home from work this evening I should be able to post some temps for you . I don't recall them being that high though . Possibly 10 degrees lower .
     
  20. Meaker@Sager

    Meaker@Sager Company Representative

    Reputations:
    9,431
    Messages:
    58,189
    Likes Received:
    17,900
    Trophy Points:
    931
    What storage drive do you have? The machine should be loading while displaying the logo.
     
  21. sweeper240

    sweeper240 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    40
    Likes Received:
    3
    Trophy Points:
    16
    What are the dimensions of the psu with a 970m?
     
  22. chauie

    chauie Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    24
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi all, just got my laptop earlier this week. What are some programs that you use to monitor temps and run benchmark/maintenance tests and whatnot?
     
    Last edited: Oct 29, 2015
  23. AAnderson

    AAnderson Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    44
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    I'm new at this too, but from what I've read, Intel XTU and OCCT for starters. And CPU-z.
     
    chauie likes this.
  24. Ezzah

    Ezzah Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    20
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Core Temp. HWMonitor. Real Temp. :)

    To benchmark. Prime95, Intel Burn Test, Futuremark are good for CPU. For GPU, you can run 3DMark, Unigine Benchmarks (there are free ones for this).
     
    chauie likes this.
  25. jedy617

    jedy617 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    13
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hey guys, looking at getting a P650, was gonna go for a gigabyte p35 for better battery and the 980m, but after further research I hear better things about the P650. Probably going to go with either the IPS or 4k from Xotic PC. Can someone let me know if there is a huge real world difference in battery life between the 2 displays? I only found info on older models, not newer ones with skylake, etc. Thanks!
     
  26. Ezzah

    Ezzah Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    20
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    6
    It may be a bit early until we can get accurate real-world figures to test. However, obviously, the 1080p display will have a better battery life. Though, even with a 980m, 4K will be a bit of a stretch to get medium-high on AAA games, but again, it depends on your balance between games and productivity. :)
     
  27. jedy617

    jedy617 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    13
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Yeah I don't care about 4k gaming, I'm going to be getting the 970m, would just love to use 4k for everyday use and then 1080p for gaming
     
  28. djsubtronic

    djsubtronic Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    109
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    41
    I've run 3D Mark Fire Strike and 3DMark 11... and been getting much lower scores than the overall averages posted online (eg 11000 for 3DMark 11 instead of 12000 and 8000 for Fire Strike instead of 9000). It doesn't seem to be a throttling issue, wonder what else could it be? I'm using the latest drivers from Clevo.
     
  29. Ezzah

    Ezzah Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    20
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Not all chips are created equal. It is possible that your chip is just slightly less powerful. However, I wouldn't worry too much about that difference. In real gaming instances, it should be fine.
     
  30. djsubtronic

    djsubtronic Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    109
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    41
    I wouldn't usually worry, especially about synthetic benchmarks, but a 1000+ point difference in Fire Strike is quite a big difference!

    I'd like to try a different driver just to be sure. What's generally the recommended drivers around here?
     
  31. Ezzah

    Ezzah Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    20
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Hmm, yes it is a bit of a difference. Older nvidia drivers are known to be more stable perhaps. You could give it a go, but if the performance is still too low, I'm not sure what can be done, especially if there's throttling :/
     
    djsubtronic likes this.
  32. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    around 8000 for fs should be normal though. close to 9000 at stock in firestrike is already desktop cpu territory, so its doutbful that you can reach that with a BGA cpu and its lower clocks at stock ;)

    as for power throttling on the GPU: thats a known issue and should be fixed once prema has his mods ready for this machine, just be a little bit patient! :)

    wait a bit, vendors are surely gonna update their driver lists for win7 and 8.1 at some point :)
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2015
    djsubtronic likes this.
  33. Ezzah

    Ezzah Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    20
    Likes Received:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Is it confirmed that prema will make one for the 650RG, or is this just assumed? :D
     
  34. AAnderson

    AAnderson Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    44
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    I intend to undervolt my CPU for cooler running temps. Is it possible to undervolt the GPU (980M) as well? What tools are used to control GPU voltage? Is it pretty much the same procedure of reducing voltage and running a load test to see if it's stable and repeating?
     
  35. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    you can safely assume it ;) based on previous experience, hes probably already beta testing with an actual owner of the new P6 series :)

    @AAnderson: i do my cpu undervolting with intel xtu and do stability testing using occt large data set for 5-10 min.

    as for gpu undervolting, theres no on-the-fly tools yet for maxwell. u can always mod your vbios and then flash it onto the card tho overvolting is indeed possible with prema mod (once its out). what u can do is force lower clocks on the gpu and vram during idle / everyday office work, makes for an even quieter and cooler machine and also gives a nice bump in battery life :) although that would be a moot point here anyways, since uve got optimus on your side ;)

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
     
    Ezzah likes this.
  36. AAnderson

    AAnderson Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    44
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    OK, thanks @jaybee83. That's exactly what I was planning for the CPU. It sounds like the GPU situation isn't as easily done so maybe I'll keep my hands off that for now.

    I've of course heard of Prema and his custom BIOSes by now but I am unclear on exactly what their purpose is. I gather that one purpose is to support additional GPUs beyond what Clevo/Sager support, maybe also higher-clocked RAM? What else can we expect to gain from flashing a Prema BIOS, based on historical results?
     
  37. jaybee83

    jaybee83 Biotech-Doc

    Reputations:
    4,125
    Messages:
    11,571
    Likes Received:
    9,149
    Trophy Points:
    931
    support of additional gpus is a moot point here since were talking about a machine with soldered cpu and gpu, thus not upgradeable ;)

    what his mods provide are, among other, the following: support for higher clocked ram, unlock for ram overclock, issue fixing such as power throttling on the gpu (fluctuating clocks leading to lower performance), completely unlocked settings in the bios giving u full control of the machine, updated system firmwares, better hardware compatibility (e.g. with ram or pcie storage), sometimes better os compatibility (e.g. being able to install win7 due to legacy control in the bios) and, of course, in machines with socketed hardware, compatibility with future gpu / cpu models :)

    and then also tons of other stuff "under the hood" which i dont even know about, but still helps in smoothing out any potential kinks that are encountered ;) definitely worth flashing, if u ask me!

    Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
     
  38. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    I've run it 8 times now (mostly to measure my GPU temp), and my scores have ranged from 8417 to 8492 (here's one of them: http://www.3dmark.com/fs/6327491).

    What are you getting exactly? "Much lower" might be a driver issue (I'm on 3.5409). If you also wouldn't mind, could you run HWMonitor before your next test, and post your max GPU temp?
     
  39. djsubtronic

    djsubtronic Notebook Evangelist

    Reputations:
    109
    Messages:
    387
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    41
    I forgot the exact score, but I'll do the temperature check when I get back home tonight.
     
  40. anony1c4

    anony1c4 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    just got my np8657. runs great but I was wondering if other people's keyboard and lap get easily hot around the CPU area? it's weird cause it seems like the CPU gets hotter than the GPU which I find surprising lol. but my problem is even when the temperatures look equal (like if they're both around 50), my CPU seems to be making my laptop feel warmer. the CPU fan also seems to get noisier way faster than my GPU does. any insight? I'm thinking maybe I should try to undervolt the CPU or something. Anything that doesn't void my warranty at least.
     
  41. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Hmm... My CPU and GPU both idle at 45C on my NP8658. The keyboard is generally warm, but never 'hot' to touch. The heat distribution on the keyboard itself is pretty even, and both sound-wise and temp-wise, I can't even tell which sides the GPU and CPU are on. In the Fire Strike demo, my CPU maxes out at 65C; GPU 78C.

    Are you using a custom fan profile or the automatic one? And you're talking about laptop temps when it's sitting on a flat surface right?
     
  42. anony1c4

    anony1c4 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    I use the automatic profile. And I'm usually on the balanced power option. And yes it's on a flat surface.

    I'm not home so I can't test it right now, but I was playing GTA 5 last night and the CPU was easily 70-75 degrees while the GPU was about 60-65. Great temps but I just wish it didn't kick on the fan as loudly or get so hot on the keyboard. I'm gonna try turning the settings way down and see how it does.

    edit: oh and the settings were pretty high by default so maybe that contributed to it
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2015
  43. hkblue

    hkblue Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Same here, CPU 43C and GPU 36C. Around 65C with load.
     
    Allan23 likes this.
  44. Ramzay

    Ramzay Notebook Connoisseur

    Reputations:
    476
    Messages:
    3,185
    Likes Received:
    1,065
    Trophy Points:
    231
    This is normal behaviour for this laptop, and is due to one major factor: The GPU has a much larger heat sink and two fans, resulting in much better cooling than the CPU, while producing less noise usually.

    Also, the location of the CPU means it's more likely to sit right on your lap, so the heat it does generate will be felt more than the GPU.

    Undervolting via XTU is a good idea, and could shave a few degrees off.

    You should also use the performance option in the Clevo Control Centre, rather than the balanced one.
     
  45. hkblue

    hkblue Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    I have an SM951 . The Sager logo stays on for probably a second but was curious if turning it off would speed anything up. I guess not!
     
  46. AAnderson

    AAnderson Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    44
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Wait, wouldn't choosing the performance option make his CPU run even hotter?
     
  47. Ramzay

    Ramzay Notebook Connoisseur

    Reputations:
    476
    Messages:
    3,185
    Likes Received:
    1,065
    Trophy Points:
    231
    I don't see how. The Clevo CC will adjust fan profiles mostly, and even the Windows settings of balanced/performance typically only adjusts minimum/maximum CPU states.

    As far as I know, the Clevo CC doesn't touch any settings that would directly cause the CPU to generate more heat (voltages, clocks, etc.), though I could be wrong.
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2015
  48. Allan23

    Allan23 Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    6
    Is that 65C with load both on the GPU and CPU? If so, it looks like I'm getting almost 15C more on my GPU on load, and 10C more on idle :(.
     
  49. AAnderson

    AAnderson Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    44
    Likes Received:
    5
    Trophy Points:
    16
    Oh, OK. My current Sager from 2009 doesn't have this Clevo CC so I'm not familiar with what it does. :) Thanks!

    I should add, my current Clevo is still going strong. The only reason I'm upgrading really is for reduced weight and increased battery life. This computer has a 1st-gen desktop i7 in it so it weighs 11.5 lbs without the power supply and has a battery life measured in minutes instead of hours. :) Other than that I love it; it's really held up well as my main full-time work system.
     
    Last edited: Oct 30, 2015
  50. Flash Hazardous

    Flash Hazardous Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    1
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi, I have 2 questions that I was hoping you Clevo owners could help me answer!

    I'm torn between the P671RG and the P651RG, I have made the decision to go with the P671RG based on the following
    • I really don't like the heat generation on the 651 model. The 671 seems to have a far better cooling solution (obviously, since it is larger) and is quieter.
    • Extra screen real-estate on the 671 never hurts, plus it isn't much bigger or heavier than the 651 (about 600 grams) so it isn't losing that much in terms of portability.
    • The display on the 651 (LP156WF6) looks like a significantly poorer quality IPS than the previous AU Optronics panel on the P505, despite the G-Sync. The 671 panel seems brighter and has better contrast.
    My question here is: Am I correct with my broad conclusions regarding heating, portability and panel? Have I missed something that seems to make the 651 far more popular than the 671?

    My 2nd question relates to the processor option: i7-6700HQ vs. i7-6820HK. I understand that the HK can be OC'd quite easily and this is the reason for its £98 surcharge over the HQ, my questions are:
    • How does the cooling solution handle the overclocking? I understand that the GPU and overall cooling solution on the 671 is great, but Clevos generally don't cool the CPU particularly well.
    • How is there any other benefit to the 6820HK over the 6700HQ apart from ability to overclock?
    • Ultimately, is there any real reason to overclock the CPU on these laptops (where CPU and GPU are soldered anyway) given that, for gaming purposes, the GPU is far more likely to be the cause of a future bottleneck than the CPU?
    Any advice would be very much appreciated, these forums have been a great help during my search for a gaming notebook!
     
← Previous pageNext page →