[M17x R3] - BIOS A12 'unlocked' & 'SATA tweak'

[svl7]

As the title says, A12 unlocked and with tweak SATA settings.

 

Alienware_M17x_R3_BIOS_A12_[unlocked]_&_'SATA_fix'.zip

 

 

Have fun!

[YodaGoneMad]

As the title says, A12 unlocked and with tweak SATA settings.

Alienware M17x R3 - BIOS A12 - unlocked - SATA tweak

Have fun!

Awesome, thanks!

Always great to be able to have the newest bios with full speed SATA and it is even unlocked. Everything we could ever want in a bios.

[J95]

Works fine, ssd benchmarks same as previous one BCLK option is not there anymore but settings/readings still 100MHz.

Thanks, great work!

Edit: Crucial M4 randomly not detected at boot.

[bigtonyman]

Thanks dude!!

[J95]

Thanks dude!!

Could you give feedback, we have the same Crucial SSD mine was fine did all tests and now randomly not getting detected firmware 010G(I get an ethernet firmware update screen). I'm upgrading to Nvidia 680M so A10/A12 are the working ones.

Thanks.

[YodaGoneMad]

Could you give feedback, we have the same Crucial SSD mine was fine did all tests and now randomly not getting detected firmware 010G(I get an ethernet firmware update screen). I'm upgrading to Nvidia 680M so A10/A12 are the working ones.

Thanks.

I think drives not being detected was why they killed the higher speed SATA transfer. Technically, our MOBO is only supposed to allow full speed on 1 port, Dell tried to make it work on 2 ports and ended up making it unstable for some drives. Thus, they issued a new bios lowering the speed and scrubbed any mention of the higher speed from all their documents relating to the R3. You might try a version of the bios without the A08 SATA behavior, I suspect that will solve your problem. It is mentioned in one of the bios notes that what they fixed was some drives not being detected and that was when they cut the speeds.

Alternatively, make sure you have your drive in the center hard drive bay, as it seems to be the stable one at full speed.

[J95]

I know that but that's not the case with Crucial M4 drives, with A08 Both ports were Sata III. That is for Sandforce controller, Crucial M4 Marvell Controller Based.

[J95]

It seems that a Blind flash from Unlocked A08 fixes the drive not being detected, will report back.

[mw86]

It seems that a Blind flash from Unlocked A08 fixes the drive not being detected, will report back.

Great I hope this continues to be the case.

Paranoid Galaxy S3 on Tapatalk 2

[bigtonyman]

It seems that a Blind flash from Unlocked A08 fixes the drive not being detected, will report back.

I've had the same issue with my drive as well. According to the crucial site, and it fixed my drive, you just need to leave the computer in the bios for like 20 mins and it should be detected again. So far A12 has been working great for me.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S2 running Resurrection Remix

[J95]

Thanks @bigtonyman, blind-flashing from A08 fixed the issue.

[bigtonyman]

Thanks @bigtonyman, blind-flashing from A08 fixed the issue.

Glad you fixed it.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S2 running Resurrection Remix

[James Hall]

Hello all,

First off, thank you svl7, Your worked has contributed a lot to the owners of this machine, in particular me, and I feel I should at least give you that.

I just got my SSD, and replaced the internal drive. I know (by reading up !) that A08 had better sata performance than later revisions. I went from svl7's A10, to this A12. I had installed my SSD while on A10, but not too long before I got my grubby paws on his A12.

My question is, because im a performance junkie, What should I look for to make sure I dont need to do this "blind flash" procedure in order to get optimal performance ? I have an OCZ Vertex 2. Also , on top of just running the bios, Was there any options to tick within the bios to enable this feature ?

Im running a 560m as well, and had a question about it as well, if you guys dont mind.

How do I know if im getting hit by the throttle nerf bat ? For instance, I have the latest vBios released for my card, and have installed it, but on WoW (I know, I know, I play other stuff too !) It seems I should be able to max it out on ultra, but i still find myself dialing back shadows, turning of AA and using FXAA (Which is better anyway) and having to reduce view distance of additional objects . I thought this thing would tear through. If it is simply that the card is weak, What are my upgrade options ? Im not scared to tear this thing apart by any means. Ive been building systems since about 94 (Tore my old Packard Bell apart to pencil trick the 486sx into using its non attached math coprocessor.) and ive considered myself an enthusiast ever since.

With all the uproar of the 680m, and after seeing the benchmarks it seems a very significant upgrade, but yet very pricey, especially for a single father with 3 kids. I was wondering if you think the card will become more economical in a year or so, and if not, is there one that will provide a significant increase opposed to the one i have right now that wont blow the bank ? Maybe those 580ms everyone is replacing might become rather cheap

I also want to get a bit more performance out of my machine if possible, but i dont want to threaten the stability and life exponentially. Is there a recommended setting for someone who wants a decent bump without the threat of thermonuclear meltdown and having to replace a processor in a year ?

[bigtonyman]

sorry for the late reply, been rather busy these last few days.

1. What "blind flash" technique are you referring to?

2. If your having throttle issues your FPS, (or Frames Per Second) will drop and the game will visually stutter on the screen and basically become unplayable till the card cools down (usually takes a few seconds). This isn't a common occurance with the 560m though as it run's a lot cooler than the 580m. As to your FPS issues with wow, have you tried upgrading your drivers? that might help. You could also try Overclocking a bit and seeing if that helps out at all.

3. Well the 680m would more than double your GPU speed, but like you said the card is very expensive. This 6990m I got rather cheep has been running great other than the usual crappy AMD drivers. More than double the FPS of my old 460m. Hope some of this helps.

[skywalka]

How do I know if im getting hit by the throttle nerf bat ?

What is the throttle nerf bat?

If your having throttle issues your FPS, (or Frames Per Second) will drop and the game will visually stutter on the screen and basically become unplayable till the card cools down (usually takes a few seconds).

What are throttle issues? This sounds like my problem: http://forum.techinferno.com/alienware-m17x/2259-m17xr3-gtx560m-poor-performance.html

[bigtonyman]

Are you still having your poor performance issues? I would update your drivers and make sure your fans and heatsinks are all cleaned out. If dust accumulates in there your temps will rise drastically and cause your GPU to throttle as I described in my previous post.

[pp_ph]

The unlocked bios keeps the official way of turning off integrated graphics introduced in A12?

[svl7]

Yes, everything just as in the stock A12 bios, except for the mentioned tweaks and the additional menus.

[pp_ph]

Thanks , flashed A12 unlocked. Installed Crucial M4 256GB SSD in the middle. Sata 3 on SSD / Sata 2 on HDD.

[skywalka]

Are you still having your poor performance issues? I would update your drivers and make sure your fans and heatsinks are all cleaned out. If dust accumulates in there your temps will rise drastically and cause your GPU to throttle as I described in my previous post.

Was overseas. Opened the machine and found dust galore. All good now. Thanx for the advice.

Still like to know:

What is the throttle nerf bat?

[AaaAa]

Hi all would just like to say thankyou for the hard work was a a08 user but now enjoying the unlocked a12 also using a crucial ssd and so far no issues.

On a side note it would be nice to see a guide for all the extra menus even it it was look but dont touch these.

[widezu69]

@J95 which bios before this one has the 100MHz SCC tweak? You mentioned that this one doesn't.

- - - Updated - - -

@J95 which bios before this one has the 100MHz SCC tweak? You mentioned that this one doesn't.

[J95]

A08 M17xR3 UNLOCKED A08 BIOS.rar

[jeanfabio]

Please'm heating problem with the unlocked a12 bios, I have how to modify the bios setup the speed of the fans?

[Shadic]

Are there going to be any releases of an unlocked m17x r4 bios in the near future?