Tried a G.Skill 4GB module in the M1330 this evening.
It is not recognized in slot A or B. This was tested with BIOS A08 and A12. This unit was purchased in March 2008.
It's a no go for this model it seems.
buying second hand, 2yr warranty left
however person said he had graphics problems and his computer was serviced (motherboard replaced).
I dont want to have it die on me later on, price is good compared to other systems where I live (same price as a new vostro 1310).
bottom line, whats the probability this would happen again ? any chance of a perm fix ?
Dell XPS M1330 - nVidia GeForce 8400M GS - Copper Mod - Step by Step Guide
Dell XPS M1330 Notebook with nVidia GeForce 8400M GS GPU has an inadequate Thermal Cooling Assembly. It uses a Thermal Cooling Pad between the GPU and the GPU Thermal Cooling Assembly instead of a direct contact between the two with a Thermal Compound. This leads to overheating the GPU and damaging it along with other components. The solution is to replace the existing Thermal Cooling Pad with a Copper Sheet and a Thermal Compound.
Note: This Copper Mod does not solve problems arising from a weak die/packaging material set in certain versions of GPU. Their failure appears related to the combination of the interaction between the chip material set and the system design. The combination of limited thermal management and frequent power cycling is particularly challenging for the GPU. Dell is offering a 12 Month Limited Warranty Enhancement specific to this issue. However, this Copper Mod might help delay the failure by improving the thermal management.
Materials:
01. Copper Sheet. Recommended: Gauge 16 & Grade C106 - 14x14x1.5mm.
02. Thermal Compound. Recommended: Arctic Silver 5.
03. Thermal Compound Cleaner (Isopropyl Alcohol or Acetone).
04. Cotton Swabs.
05. Paper Napkins.
Tools:
01. Phillips Screwdriver - #0.
02. Utility Knife.
03. Thermal Compound Spreader.
Drivers & Utilities: (for Microsoft Windows Vista 32 Bit)
01. Dell XPS M1330 A13 - 1.02MB. (BIOS Firmware). Recommended.
02. Dell nVidia GeForce 8400M GS 176.44 A10 - 52.70MB. (Video Driver). Recommended.
03. HWMonitor 1.11 - 397.00KB. (Monitor GPU, CPU, Chipset and HDD Temperatures).
04. GPU-Z 0.2.8 - 410.00KB. (Monitor GPU Clocks).
05. I8kfanGUI 3.1 - 1.61MB. (Monitor Fan Status and Speed).
06. RivaTuner 2.11 - 2.30MB. (Monitor GPU Status on OSD).
07. 3DMark06 Basic Edition 1.1.0 - 413.00MB. (Benchmark GPU).
08. Intel Thermal Analysis Tool 2.05 - 3.31MB. (Benchmark CPU).
Procedures:
Before You Begin!
01. Disassemble the Module Cover by loosening the four Screws.
| 1 - M2.5x5mm Screw (1) | 2 - Captive Screws (3) | 3 - Module Cover (1) | Image: Dell Service Manual |......................
Just got it and installed it - still playing around.
Steps to installation - existing HD WD 320GB 7200 (a truely good and silent drive)
New SSD - G.Skill 256GB SSD
1.Sell one small offspring to come up with the cash.
2.I cleaned up my HD - took all the stuff I did not use out
3.CCleaned it
4.Did the last defrag I should ever do
5.Installed the SSD in my Roswill USB case and connected to my M1330
6.Initialized the drive
7.Formated the drive
8.Downloaded the latest build of Acronis 2009
9.Cloned the HD to the SSD
10.Booted up quickly with no issues.
Works great. Boots fast.Everything "pops".
I will miss little Bobby but he kept touching my stuff.
By the way 8 months and no Nvidia issues.
I recently bought a laptop and before it ships I have been looking around at how the 8400m GS performs. The video card is labeled at 128 mb but many people have been posting on forums about how they're cards are telling them they have 256mb instead of 128.
More commonly, Youtube videos are all titled 8400m GS *256*. Is the 128mb version just really uncommon? Or is it really 256 mb. I also stumbled upon something called Turbo Cache (not sure if that's the right name for it) that has the GPU use some of my systems RAM...Isn't that what integrated chipsets do?
Anyway here's my system:
XPS M1530 Laptop: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T8100 (2.1GHz/800Mhz FSB, 3MB Cache)
3 GB DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz (2 DIMMs)
320 GB SATA Hard Drive (5400 RPM)
128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
If anyone knows anything about Turbo Cache or how this card performs with World of Warcraft.
How crappy is the NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS really? I am using a 7800gtx in my inspron 9300. Just ordered a 1330--- is the 8400 superior to the 7800gtx?
on a related note, is there anyway to upgrade the NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS to a different video card? Is any other nvidia card compatible?
Looking to get my sister a m1330 for a graduation gift and right now if you spend $1300 plus on a M1330 u get 25 percent off.
So i'm looking for ways to get the laptop to add up to $1300 and i can either upgrade the processor to
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T9300 (2.5GHz/800Mhz FSB/6MB cache)
from
I had assumed, but I want to make sure that my SZ6's problem is due to the Nvidia temp defect thing everyone's talking about.
Basically my computer is always very hot. Just downloaded SpeedFan and the GPU and both Cores are 78C and i've just been surfing the web for a few hours.
The problem happens when I play games (like Civ4 or Half-life 2) for a few hours or sometimes less if its a hot day. The laptop will abruptly power off as if I pulled the battery and power cord out.
When I reboot, I get that error message that says Windows did not shut down properly, do you want to reboot normally or in safe mode
I only get 16bit color in xp but in vista there is no problem I have 32 bit. When I change
resolution to 32 in xp on next boot it rechanges itself to 16 again.! I have all fn keys working and power management and this is only issue I have with xp
my graphic card drivers.
I have a Sony VGN-FZ38M (originnaly bought with vista) and I have installed windows 7 64bits
My graphics card is a NVIDIA 8400M GT, and I've tested a lot of drivers for this model but no one works. tried both drivers on sony [url] webiste but always same issue : "your system is not supported..."
i have HP DV 2700 with nvidia 8400m gs. the laptop has 2 graphics chips intel gm965 chipset with gma3100 and 8400m gs. is it possible to switch between the two. i am having problems with drivers. i am not able to install latest drivers from nvidia site. it doesnt show on rivatuner saying nvidia driver not detected. the driver from hp works but its very old 176.xx. so is there a way out to install new driver and switch between graphics. i searched intel site but did nt find any thing related to this problem.The bios doesnt have any option like the desktop pc s have. Does bios tweaking...
View 3 Replies View RelatedI contacted the Dell support team to see whether my m1330 is affected by the bad batch of Nvidia Graphic card and I got this respond
-----------------------------
On your concern about the Nvidia Graphics, I should say that your system is not affected by it, however I am a Hardware expert with the XPS Team and would recommend to diagnose the Hardware to identify any problems.
To extensively diagnose the 'Hardware', your active participation is requested. Please follow all these steps mentioned below as they are inter related:
1. Disconnect all the devices which are connected to the system, like:internet cable,usb key,etc.
2. Power off the laptop. Disconnect the power cable from the laptop.
3. Close the system, turn it upside down, slide the battery latch and remove the battery.
4. Keep the battery out and put the system back in front of you..................
I have a Sony Vaio VGN-SZ780 that passed its 1 year warranty a few months ago.
My laptop was experiencing overheating and would either reboot suddenly after the blue screen of death or would just shut down in the middle when using the nvidia 8400 GPU.
From Sony's explanation, I read that the shutdown of the system is a normal behavior under high temperature and I assumed it was not a problem and just an inconvenience.
Just 30 minutes ago, my laptop screen turn white completely and froze so I shut down the system immediately and since then, my SZ780 DOES NOT BOOT when using the Nvidia GPU!
Sony's recent replacement annoucement of defective Nvidia GPUs EXCLUDE the SZ models so for me, I have no additional warranty that can cover this.
This has been getting on my nerves lately. In the past, they never bothered releasing drivers for laptops but now that they do, I can't get it to work with my laptop, which is HP Pavilion 6670ee with NVidia 8400M GS...
I know that 3rd party driver will work with it but I am not able to get the PhysX support with those drivers for some reason and if I download Notebook driver from NVidia website, the latest which they released few days ago for example.
I get this error during installation:
The NVIDIA setup program could not locate any drivers that are compatible with your current hardware. Setup will now exit.
It's NVidia's own 8400M GS - wth is it not detecting it?
I Have a vostro 1510 Laptop. when I wanted to clear the BIOS password, at the "new password" part, I dont enter enything and save it.after restart the computer not accept the old password nor accept the new password (blanks).
View 3 Replies View RelatedCan anyone be kind enough to share a flash ROM copy of Nvidia Geforce 8400M GT notebook graphics display for
Sony Vaio VGN-AR61M? A backup copy done with Nvflash, NiBiTor or any similar flash app perhaps will do.
I need to flash my video graphics display which is no longer recognized. For some unknown reasons,
after installing and playing some high resolution games, my pc crashed and suddenly Windows 7 display won't accept any video driver except the standard VGA adapter
I just bought a used XPS M1330 w/ Nvidia 8400 for a really good price. It has 2 more years of complete care warranty. I game very rarely. Should I be worry about the GPU failure?
View 10 Replies View RelatedI am thinking about buying a new XPS M1330 with Nvidia card(can't be intel, must be Nvidia for me). But I have read so many reports on the GPU going out and the motherboard being replaced over and over(per a user). My question is, if I bought a new one would mine have this potential flaw or did they fix this iwith a re-design? Or is this issue not as big as it seems?
View 13 Replies View Relatedwondering if people have still run into issues with the M1330 with just the Intel X3100 card (overheating, motherboard, etc)? I really liked the XPS due to its looks and portability and wanted to hear people's opinions on purchasing this product with some features (such as 4 GB RAM, 250/320 GB HD, X3100 card, standard display, Core 2 Duo T8100) as I pretty much just use it for Internet, word processing, music, and watching occasional movies...I'm really in it for the portability factor as I occasionally lug my laptop around and use it in class (being a graduate student), but not every single day.
View 9 Replies View RelatedSince in theory you only hear from people with broken laptops and not the ones that haven't broke, I thought I would start a XPS M1330 with the Nvidia GPU success story thread.
If you have a M1330 laptop WITH the Nvidia gpu and the gpu hasn't gone out on you, please post in this thread. Let us know how long you've owned and and how often you use it!
I've just installed 178.13 (vista x64) drivers for my m1330 and it's got FAR FAR slower in any games I run on it.....
Got the drivers from laptopvideo2go as the Dell one's are really old- how comes these newer one's do not work with the M1330?
32-bit Driver
nVidia GeForce 8400M, GeForce 8600M, GeForce 8400M GS
[url]
Version: 176.44 V32, A10
Product & OS Compatibility: XPS M1330; Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit
64-bit Driver
nVidia GeForce 8400M, GeForce 8600M, GeForce 8400M GS
[url]
Version: 176.44 V64, A02
Product & OS Compatibility: XPS M1330; Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit
My warranty on my computer expired in December and now my motherboard has fried for the second time. Every time I call dell they take my service tag and say how sorry they are but my warranty has expired. I try to explain to them that dell extended the warranty for all computers with the defective card for one more year and they reply by saying that it is not in the computer. They keep sending me to the out of warranty department.
View 10 Replies View RelatedI got a little e-shopping happy tonight, and purchased a refurbished M1330 on Dell Outlet. I previously had a M1210 and that thing was a tank, so I went ahead and went for the "newer line".
Anyhow, so I've been spending the past hours after my purchase (I know, stupid idea) on reading how the 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS and the GPU would be causes for failure and heat issues. I usually run heavy web-cam chatting programs, AutoCAD, and wanted to get back into some light computer gaming (hence the decision to purchase the NVIDIA graphics), but now grow concerned.
First, is it worth it to go ahead with my order? With the Dell Outlet coupon, the price I paid was pretty decent (around $700~), but with all the issues and the multi-page thread about GPU/NVIDIA problems, has me iffy. Yes I know there is a 1-year warranty, and yes I know there are some fix-attempts, but I just feel uncertain. The XPS line is suppose to be the best, and it should carry the comfurt of its class.
Second, since I placed my order with Dell Outlet after 5PM (PST and about 2 hours ago), and it has not yet been "shipped", is it possible even though my order has been "acknowledged and confirmed" to cancel it? And what would I be looking at in regards to getting my money back (since its already a "pending charge" on my account).
Any input is great appreciated. If I cancel the order on the M1330, I probably would be looking at a Vaio FW series I've been lurking on.
Hey guys, ive been banging my head against the wall for two days on this one and I need some help.
I installed xp on my M1330 over two years ago when I first got it, only ran Vista for about a month.
And ever since I switched to XP I noticed that there was no longer an option to switch to the HDMI output for audio, but I didnt have an HDMI cable so I didnt care
I just got my 1640 and stuck in my G.Skill (who puts a "." in their name?) booted up and the BIOS says no HDD installed. I removed and reinstalled the drive, no love. Then I just removed all the screws, letting it hang, and it recognizes the drive. Reinstalled with screws, no love. Let it hang again, it recognizes it. At this point I suspect the housing is warping it causing problems, but even with a single screw very loose, it doesn't recognize the drive as being installed.
So I either suspect warping or some kind of electrical short, and based on the "loose screw" test mentioned above, probably electrical short. The original drive, a Seagate Momentus 320GB 7200RPM worked fine. Also, the G.Skill worked fine, all fastened in, in my Macbook.
Soooo...any ideas? I'm planning on trying some kind of insulated mount, but I'm not sure what I need to do that. Nylon screws? Maybe Fry's has some.
Disclaimer: I know the 1640 has an option for a sweet Samsung 256GB SSD now for cheaper than the G.Skill, but it wasn't an option when I ordered.
Has anyone bought the following G.Skill RAM, PC2-6400 DDR2 800MHz, 5-5-5-15? [url]
I want to know if the RAM would be recognized as 5-5-5-15 with my FW190 CTO. I bought OCZ RAM which is supposed to have 5-5-5-15 but CPU-Z reports 5-5-5-18. So, OCZ will need to be shipped back.
I'm trying to get x2 RAM modules in an Inspiron 1545 but I don't see how. Any clues?
View 10 Replies View RelatedI read a while ago on here some posts about some copper mod because the chip had some flaws about cooling or something
If I play a game such as Left 4 Dead, will I run any risks of damaging the video card or motherboard?
I purchased the laptop mid october from Dell.
I want to have my system as much sleek and slim as possible, which are the DCP modules I have to install and which ones I can delete
View 6 Replies View Related