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Alienware M5500 ATI x700 upgrade


TC Ozman

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hi, im new to this forum and i apologize if this has already been addressed but what is the best upgrade that i can get for my ati mobility radeon x700 (128 mb ram) graphics card? I dont care how much the upgraded card costs ill pay anything at this point, if mild modifications are needed then im ok with that. Just please PLEASE tell me what i can do.

Thank you in advance for any input!

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i hate to repost but could someone give me any answer? ive been searching the forum and i think i found that a Geforce Go 7600 would fit. Could someone please just reply and say yes or no and if yes where to get it?

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Bah. Same here. I made another thread regarding a GPU upgrade and it's been left barren.

It's either they don't give a ###### or they don't know s***. I think it's the latter. Or most possibly, both. What a bunch of douchebags.

BTW, we have similar laptops. Same chassis, different branding. Mine has a Geforce Go 6600.

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TC oznam i think the best card for you will be x1800 i have one for sale.

Ok, well give me some sort of information on what your selling such as price and ill get back to you.

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Ok, well to anyone else who would like to reply....if i reply back to you please give me some information on what your selling. I know this guy (who has yet to reply back has an x1800 for me which is great), but why not an x1900? Someone please reply and let me know what they have and how much they are offering it for.

Edited by TC Ozman
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Hi, I found out a gread site on the web: http://www.mxm-upgrade.com/store.html

There you can order directly video cards and check if your notebook IS REALLY compatible with the video card you'd like to buy. I've seen this guy who owns this page also on this forum and I have the impression that this guy really does understand a lot of video card in notebooks and MXM mobules. Maybe you should contact him before ordering just quickly.

But beware!! You really have to inform yourself if your notebook is compatible with the video card of you choice!! Because I own also an Alienware m5500i-R3 and I burned my 7600Go.... bouth a new MXM-video-card from e-bay, the nVidia 8600M GT and despite it fits in my MXM module the notebook doesnt boot anymore: means INCOMPATIBLE!! (late I found out that my notebook has a MXM-II module and the 8600GT is an MXM-IV (or MXM-III)...) Well that's how you can easily throw away a couple of 100€....

Good luck with your upgrading!

Greez

Edited by leever
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Hi, I found out a gread site on the web: http://www.mxm-upgrade.com/store.html

There you can order directly video cards and check if your notebook IS REALLY compatible with the video card you'd like to buy. I've seen this guy who owns this page also on this forum and I have the impression that this guy really does understand a lot of video card in notebooks and MXM mobules. Maybe you should contact him before ordering just quickly.

But beware!! You really have to inform yourself if your notebook is compatible with the video card of you choice!! Because I own also an Alienware m5500i-R3 and I burned my 7600Go.... bouth a new MXM-video-card from e-bay, the nVidia 8600M GT and despite it fits in my MXM module the notebook doesnt boot anymore: means INCOMPATIBLE!! (late I found out that my notebook has a MXM-II module and the 8600GT is an MXM-IV (or MXM-III)...) Well that's how you can easily throw away a couple of 100?....

Good luck with your upgrading!

Greez

Thanks Leever,

I really appreciate you giving me some sort of insight on what to expect. I already know a few things about upgrading my video card (such as mxm IV, and III arent possible) i just really want the best possible upgrade thats the most reliable, and the consensus is the x1800 or x1900...only id like to go with nvidia because the driver support is about 100,000,000,000 times better (ATI tells me to see the manufacturer for drivers and the most updated driver from alienware is from '06 and it turns out the most available and best driver is from MICROSOFT....yes i said MICROSOFT).

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Guest quipster

Forget about the ATI 1800/1900s. The cooling system of this laptop won't be able to cope with the heat, let alone the fact that this laptop can only house MXM2 models. The best upgrade you can go for is the 8600m GT as proven to work here:

http://tk420.webs.com/

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Forget about the ATI 1800/1900s. The cooling system of this laptop won't be able to cope with the heat, let alone the fact that this laptop can only house MXM2 models. The best upgrade you can go for is the 8600m GT as proven to work here:

http://tk420.webs.com/

AWESOME! thank you for letting me know. This is the first time in a forum that anyone has ever answered with such an accurate and TESTED response. Im talking to a guy about buying one (his name is Ice-Tea) and he said he'll be getting the 8600 model in shortly.

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AWESOME! thank you for letting me know. This is the first time in a forum that anyone has ever answered with such an accurate and TESTED response. Im talking to a guy about buying one (his name is Ice-Tea) and he said he'll be getting the 8600 model in shortly.

This will definitely be my last question (i think) but can i buy an ASUS 8600m GT ??? im clueless on the difference of direct from Nvidia or other names like ASUS which i know is a laptop manufacturer etc.

***I looked in Google images for an Asus 8600m gt and they look nearly identical***

Edited by TC Ozman
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Forget about the ATI 1800/1900s. The cooling system of this laptop won't be able to cope with the heat, let alone the fact that this laptop can only house MXM2 models. The best upgrade you can go for is the 8600m GT as proven to work here:

http://tk420.webs.com/

@Guest_quipster_: nice ;-) (unfortunately your site does not work with the opera browser, so thats why I didnt pay attention to it firstly...) I'm really impressed that you could bring a 8600M to work!!

But allow me this question: how did you manage to boot you system after you changed the video card? Didn't you have any inconvenience? Or did you flash your mainboard with a moded bios? Because my notebook (well, its a newer one, a 5550i-R3, but more or less the same as yours...) it reboots in a constant loop.... the boot screen doesent even appear...

Edited by leever
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@Guest_quipster_: nice ;-) (unfortunately your site does not work with the opera browser, so thats why I didnt pay attention to it firstly...) I'm really impressed that you could bring a 8600M to work!!

But allow me this question: how did you manage to boot you system after you changed the video card? Didn't you have any inconvenience? Or did you flash your mainboard with a moded bios? Because my notebook (well, its a newer one, a 5550i-R3, but more or less the same as yours...) it reboots in a constant loop.... the boot screen doesent even appear...

Ok, so from now on the only people im going to believe are people who have some sort of evidence that the video card theyve selected for me to get is actually working. Im going with the 8600m GT, Why? because Quipster managed to get his to work on his Alienware m5500 which is my model of Alienware and is MXM II Compatible only. Now my Last question still goes as asked, Is the ASUS 8600m GT the same as the Nvidia 8600m GT (ive looked at images of both and they look identical)?

Edited by TC Ozman
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Guest quipster
@Guest_quipster_: nice ;-) (unfortunately your site does not work with the opera browser, so thats why I didnt pay attention to it firstly...) I'm really impressed that you could bring a 8600M to work!!

But allow me this question: how did you manage to boot you system after you changed the video card? Didn't you have any inconvenience? Or did you flash your mainboard with a moded bios? Because my notebook (well, its a newer one, a 5550i-R3, but more or less the same as yours...) it reboots in a constant loop.... the boot screen doesent even appear...

Actually you are giving credit to the wrong guy. The site is not mine, but ledge2edge's. Anyway, I know that after swapping the 8600m GT in the laptop doesn't boot flawlessly, but beeps about 16 times, but then starts to boot up all the same.

I think that this behaviour should be easy to be fixed with a different BIOS than the ASUS-Bios. I know that the card with a different bios also works on a certain quanta barebone, I could give you the link if you want.

Myself, I don't have a 8600m GT in my machine, but i would like to get my hands on one, but I cant't find a site that would ship internationally from US to Germany. I did find one 'bout a month ago, paid for the card but the store scammed me out of my money and never shipped the card. Also, they don't reply to my queries any longer, those fuc***s.

If any one knows a decent source for the 8600m GT let me know.

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Guest quipster

Oh, btw. I think the only diffrence between Nvidia 8600m GT and ASUS 8600m GT is the bios, so you should be fine with an ASUS model if you flash it with another BIOS.

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Oh, btw. I think the only diffrence between Nvidia 8600m GT and ASUS 8600m GT is the bios, so you should be fine with an ASUS model if you flash it with another BIOS.

you are talking about the VBIOS, not the motherboard bios, right? Because I flashed the motherboard bios with a few bios'es but the behavoir is the same.

Where did you find the VBIOS for the 8600M? I searched the whole net and found only motherboard bios'es. And how do you flash a BIOS of a video-card if the notebook doesen't boot up....?

I know that the card with a different bios also works on a certain quanta barebone, I could give you the link if you want.

I'd be very greatful if you could provide me the link :-D

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Guest quipster
you are talking about the VBIOS, not the motherboard bios, right? Because I flashed the motherboard bios with a few bios'es but the behavoir is the same.

Where did you find the VBIOS for the 8600M? I searched the whole net and found only motherboard bios'es. And how do you flash a BIOS of a video-card if the notebook doesen't boot up....?

I'd be very greatful if you could provide me the link :-D

ACTUALLY A MIRACLE HAS JUST HAPPENED I'LL FINALLY BE GETTING MY CARD;, THE GUYS AT THAT OMINOUS STORE GOT IT SORTED OUT: WOOOOOOOT. :) :) :P :P I'm so looking forward to getting it :rofl:

With regards to your problems, as I said, the notebook should boot up eventually after like 30secsand 16 beeps. Does yours even beep trying to boot up?

The BIOS version which is supposed to work on any laptop can be found here:

http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/5673/NV...512.070921.html

Though feel free to give any other a try:http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/index.php?page=1&architecture=&manufacturer=&model=8600M+GT&interface=&memSize=0

Well if it doesn't boot up in your laptop I see now way of flashing the BIOS, but you could try it on a different laptop, and then put it back in your notebook. Anyway keep me posten on any progress you are making, and I'll give you a report on my 8600M GT as soon as it has arrived.

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BIG thanks, mate!!

I'm gonna try it out as soon as possible and see if it does really work :-D

PS: my notebook doesent make any beep-sounds whet it boots... never has... not even after bios-upgrade

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Damn, just tried it again and nothing...

It reboots in a constant loop.... means the 3 blue LEDs and the ON-LED turn on... you hear the HD spinning, and after a couple of seconds it turns off, all of a sudden. and this happens in a constant loop. I let it do that 6-7 minutes, after I just removed the battery so that it stops.....

And unfortunately I don't know someone who the latest MXM-notebook so that I can flash the VBIOS...

@quipster: let me know if you've had more luck with your 8600M than I did!!

I'm getting really frustrated with this card... I really tried quite everything now but I just cannot bring it to work! I'm thinking of sellin it again and buying X1800. At least this one should be 100% compatible with my notebook.

So, anybody interrested in buying a 8600M?

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Hey guys its been a while since ive been back here (i was going to buy an ASUS 8600m GT but i was afraid it wasnt compatible so i cancelled the order on ebay even though i had already purchased it, which was cool cause the company i bought it from took off the sale immediately and refunded me). So anyway im just wondering, is all i have to do is flash the video card bios and i should be good aside from the beeping when i startup? Theres no modificatoins necessary?

And by the way id love it if someone could explain how to flash a video card bios that would be sweet. or more specifically how to do this with the configuration that im running on?

I got nervous when buying the asus video card because it says in specs. ONLY WORKS FOR ASUS C90. so i dont have to worry about that at all as long as im able to flash the video card bios?

Edited by TC Ozman
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OK guys, i just bought a Nvidia 8600m GS on ebay, heres the link http://cgi.ebay.com/MXM-Video-Adapter-nVID...Q2em118Q2el1247 If all goes well ill be running my Alienware m5500 with that installed. My last question is, do i have to flash the bios now since the Nvidia BIOS is already installed? Im assuming not but someone let me know if im wrong.

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OK guys, i just bought a Nvidia 8600m GS on ebay, heres the link http://cgi.ebay.com/MXM-Video-Adapter-nVID...Q2em118Q2el1247 If all goes well ill be running my Alienware m5500 with that installed. My last question is, do i have to flash the bios now since the Nvidia BIOS is already installed? Im assuming not but someone let me know if im wrong.

The information I got is no need to flash the bios.

Good luck.

If you have any further information or result, please let us know.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Hi, I found out a gread site on the web: http://www.mxm-upgrade.com/store.html

There you can order directly video cards and check if your notebook IS REALLY compatible with the video card you'd like to buy. I've seen this guy who owns this page also on this forum and I have the impression that this guy really does understand a lot of video card in notebooks and MXM mobules. Maybe you should contact him before ordering just quickly.

But beware!! You really have to inform yourself if your notebook is compatible with the video card of you choice!! Because I own also an Alienware m5500i-R3 and I burned my 7600Go.... bouth a new MXM-video-card from e-bay, the nVidia 8600M GT and despite it fits in my MXM module the notebook doesnt boot anymore: means INCOMPATIBLE!! (late I found out that my notebook has a MXM-II module and the 8600GT is an MXM-IV (or MXM-III)...) Well that's how you can easily throw away a couple of 100?....

Good luck with your upgrading!

Greez

Hi,

I also burned my 7600 Go on an Alienware m5500i-R3 and I replaced it. Is there any way to make sure that this doesn't happen again? I installed Speed fan and after about an hour I get HDD temp 48 degrees Celsius, Core 0 55 and Core 1 58; is this normal? How can I make sure that the cooling system is working? Is there an alternative/enhancement to the Alienware cooling system?

Thank you,

Dan

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Hi,

I also burned my 7600 Go on an Alienware m5500i-R3 and I replaced it. Is there any way to make sure that this doesn't happen again? I installed Speed fan and after about an hour I get HDD temp 48 degrees Celsius, Core 0 55 and Core 1 58; is this normal? How can I make sure that the cooling system is working? Is there an alternative/enhancement to the Alienware cooling system?

Thank you,

Dan

Thats really not that hot, in fact aside from the hdd, its in fact identical to the temp in my alienware m5500

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Hi all,

I apologize if I am offtopic, but can someone tell me an european site where I can buy an Alienware Area-51 m5500i-R3 cooling system? as mine does not seem to function anymore...

Thank you,

Dan

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