How much you letting go of the ATI 6970? Do let me know as I may need 1 for my M15x. Currently coming out with a budget for an upgrade from my ATI 5870. Which means I have an extra ATI 5870 and 1 NVidia GTX 260M. Do you think I can get buyers for these?

Yes bro. You guys have been so active Im happy to see lotsa feedback here nowadays. I told the good Doc. these days I will be busy with exams and work.

Yeah of course if I sell will see cheaper. But i wanna know the price our good bro from Canada is thinking of letting go. Price for the ATI 6970 is pretty steep if bought from EU or US still at the moment. Prices are all above USD$ 800. But you get a 2GB card.

From the test conducted and used by our crazy daring ALIENWARE Brothers from the States, yes the ATI 6970 2GB DDR5 card is compatible with the Alienware M15x. So those with this discontinued model like me still have a hope of updating our systems albeit by taking a bit of a risk by operating our precious monsters and spending a lil. The rationale is that the 75-100 Watt ATI 6970 is still within power consuming limits of the 150 watt put on the M15x model. Pair that with a non XM Proc will be best but some in the US are using it with the 920XM and the 940XM even. Their benchmarks for VANTAGE are like 14k or even more last I heard but temps got to be controlled. Yes we will have to use speedfan or other software to either MAX the fans while using or lower it. Also I think the mouting will have to be modified somewhat so will be a bit trickier compared to when I Mod the 260M to the 5870. At the moment I still haven't the time to go thru the whole steps laid out but prolly end of this month I will have more time. TIll then will drop by to see you guys here.

p;S Thanks Doc for tirelessly making and udpating the threads!

Like what dark_axl21 says. For the M17x its better left to the owners to clarify but yes, you do need to get the right GPU/GC and proper tools and thermal pads for replacement. Also do take note that this might void your warranty. But thats depending on the situation actually and how long your warranty is. As for the basic steps to replace your GPU, You can PM Mr. Docter or check out his links on cleaning his fan valves etc. The steps in taking out a M17x GPU should be like how he did his. As for M15x, Doc always puts the link for the post I posted many threads ago regarding how to change a M15x GPU on the first page of each new thread. Do check there..

Hey I miss you guys too but priority nowadays is left to books more. I actually haven't touched my Alienware till a week plus ago for 3 months which is sad. Haven't come online to this thread for 1 whole Thread version #7. Then coming on I see that theres new GPUs incorporated and new Models M14x and M18x which is exciting. But the major drawback here would be Pricing. With such a huge investment in 1 card, kinda makes you think its better to get a new notebook really....

What kinda of external speakerS? You want basic or mid range or highend? Basic you can never go wrong with Sonic Gear and Altec Lansing. You get what you pay for so normal 2.1 set with wooden subwoofer. Midrange I'd recommend the newer Harman Kardon Soundsticks 3 going fro RM699 which is a work of art (Permanent fixture at the New York Museum of modern art) and excellent clarity or highend Bose Companion 3 or 5 going for RM1.5-1.9k .... External soundcard do PM the good Mr.Docter

I've always been an NVidia fan, but like Rowan23 said if you want raw power you have to go for ATI for the moment. I like NVidia for the ability to game on 3D even though I've not done it yet. But its an option I would like to have coupled with Physx .... Im looking at the 6970 for the moment unless its possible to get hold of a GTX 470 or 485 for the M15x.


Yeah I don't know how they do it, but I wont' have that issue as I am running on the 820QM proc .... Even if stressed at the max, the 6970 should only use 100W. I want to wait and see how things develope actually cos a friend of mine from the forums mentioned experiments with the 485 GTX. See how that goes.....

Hey Doc. Yeah , felt I've been away for a bit too long actually. Thankfully I still keep in touch with you on FB. BTW, Getting the SHURE's SE 535 or Ultimate Ears 10s? Good investement I tell ya
Yeah commitments commitments, settle that first we understand. Hows handling your monster over there? Ever thought of upgrading it anytime soon bro? BTW, Drivers can be a real b****. My drivers are pretty old so will need to update mine soon. I'm still running catalyst 10.## lols.. Im sure the GPU Performance will better with new more stable drivers. But I'd go Nvidia anyday over ATI. Also sad to hear the M17x-R3 is a Single GPU....BAH. I wonder if dual GTX 460M Works? hMMmmm.... Whats he power limit on the M17x again?

Yup so I ain't worried

And I thought we'd have to make our own version of the M15x-R3 with GPU mods to a new card etc. Well I hope a better GPU like say a 2GB card from either NVidia or ATI besides the obvious upgrade to the 2nd gen i7 proc. A bigger power supply too. Wonder if it will inherit the soft touch surface of the M17x-R3? Hmmm..... Looks like I will have to wait longer before making a move on the ATI Swap for my M15x. M18x to Malaysia would be great too

Well Obviously I bought SHURE I.E.M for Music. You don't hear Gaming enthusiats talking about SHURE cos SHURE = MUSIC SPECIALIST. Its a running topic between me and the good Doc over at FB. Seems like we both don't wanna compromise on our music right doc?

Actually the UE10 is also OVER EAR right? DO explain to me in PM Regarding the gold cable upgrade thou. My SHUREs took me a while to get used to since its OVER EAR. Then kinda like take care of it like its something so precious cos

I haven't updated my drivers actually. I think I can better performance for it. Wanan upgrade to 2GB GPU but I already have 2 gpus with me. Thinking I really need to let go of the 5870 and the 260m if I decide to get a new one. How often you do your cleaning in EGYPT? http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopi...&#entry33187181
I haven't opened my unit since Last June! Im guessing time for an operation to check see. BTW, I washed my notebook sleeve yesterday and forgot to check if it was fully dry. Put my monster in and took out today to see some water condesated on the surface. Worried now. Stressing my notebook to heat it up to rid of any excess moisture inside.
Didn't know ur system is a present from someone. Lucky you!

The recabling I will have to wait for later on only. Trying to limit my spending on everything as I am travelling overseas a lot this year. The upgrade to the ATI HD 6970 looks the likeliest at the moment compared to getting an M18x which is tempting but I think I wanna control my spending la. Selling off an ATI 5870 M15x + GTX 260M is tricky with 1 year warranty left. ALready treated myself to the SHURE SE 535 as a bthday gift lols. YOur upgrade to the Momentux XT is a good idea. 180 SSD is awesome but an investment really.

The water vapour I think didn't do any damage la, but no time to open and check but I ran the notebook warm so I guess if theres any inside it would evaporate. first thing I will do after exams is open the monster up and re-apply the thermal paste. Then maybe just do some physical checks here and there, clean the fans like you do.

Or you can do what I do which is purchase the Cooler Master U3 and add an extra single fan(So its a CM U4 lols 3+1 fans). The single fan actually can be purchased from computer shops and is powered via USB, and it actually spins much faster than the stock fans which comes with the U3 cos of no shared power. It draws its own directly from a USB, I position it right underneath my GPU fan vent and I noticed temp reductions of about 3-5 degrees at times. The cost will be a fraction of the Zalman but if you wanna get that u can carry on with it.


You know la bro. We here will always get it later than you guys.... Hey remember physical pics and your thoughts kay?

Nice system u have there. Hows the temps on the ATI 6970 While gaming?

Depends lo. If you start gaming high temps/stressing your system and don't wanna ON the air conditioning the Cooler is the most practical addition.

Well even though the M17x probably has better cooling than the M15x, do let me know the MAX temps you reached during gaming. I hope you have some high GPU Demanding games

I think you should be able to run on ULTRA settings and still get 30 fps. Clock the max temps cos those are games I would play

Ok bro. Waiting to see the temps



or CPUID Hardware Monitor

Haha.. good what. At least you have the most powerfull unit around.

ALIENWARE Represent!

Hopefully there will be a mod for this to the higher NVidia GTX 400 or 500 cards....

But for now 6970 Will suffice!!!

Bro try again. I think thats his old score you broke. Try topping 7.8k man.... ur on the XM Proc

Congrats Bro! Keep it up. MALAYSIA Represent!


BTW, Is zero on a 2820qm Proc or 2720Proc or 2920XM?

M15x with a 2GB 6970 estimated at 6.5K? Damn prices have dropped since. If this is the case, my plan to get a standalone 6970 2GB card and upgrade myself isn't too feesible though it beats spending another RM6.5K.... Card itself is around USD$800+.

Well I wanted to ask you for running temps but you're on a SAGER system with different cooling. Your system is made to accomodate the 6970. I think I will post this question up for the forumers at Notebook review... Wanna know if its ok to run it for long lngths at a time for gaming.

Actually my M15x came with the GTX 260M which I upgraded to the 5870 Myself. To my delight temps are low with the newer DDR5 card and since the GPU is better through my research than the 1.5GB GTX460M i didn't need a change then. Forumers murmured about the possibility to upgrade to the GTX 470M instead which turned out to be a great card. Then I was busy with work and exams so didn't do anything ALIENWARE related for 4 months then suddenly BOOM! ATI 6970 and GTX 485M! Haha... now that I'm done with work etc, its time to play and get active here again so was thinking of the possiblity for another self upgrade to the 6970 since power usage is still within limits of the M15x PSU. But thorough research and discussions with the NBR peeps is crucial before deciding. Might as well save and see how much the M18x will be priced when it arrives.

Can you believe it, my 5870 is running on 10.6 driver. Was told that the newer drivers have better performance output and FPS for games but damn lazy to do it so far lols.

Looks Good la bro! Good one. Time to stop being lazy for me!

Well I hope you DO get to break that 8K Mark bro. Seems like you're one of the few running the M18x on the 920XM procs as well. All the best bro and do update us here. Also do report if any issues with the notebook. I hope they have a dual GTX 485M upgrade for this baby!