AW18A07 Bios out

[GTVEVO]

Fixes states, please share any testing.

Fixes & Enhancements

1. Modify power down mode for 4dimm and 2channel memory.

2. Modify related overclocking items for setup menu.

3. Implement MXM1 and MXM2 Fan control and thermal status for diagnostic.

4. Modify battery OCP protect function.

Changes I have noticed.

1) Over clock levels changed, only level 1 exists with a max of 4.3 ghz min of 4.0ghz

2) Fans do seem to respond quickly honestly, this is a hard one to test but hopefully others will confirm.

[svl7]

I have no clue what Dell is thinking. Possibly this: "Let's lock down the bios even more, the higher OC levels are useless anyway since we limited the power draw".

[Khenglish]

I thought Dell had premade overclocking levels, and you can still go higher manually?

[svl7]

I thought Dell had premade overclocking levels, and you can still go higher manually?

Good point, they were actually selling the systems "pre-overclocked". Now if that's gone they need to refund some money or simply bring it back. It's odd that they apparently did this intentionally, at least that's what the change log tells us.

[Mathieulh]

Good point, they were actually selling the systems "pre-overclocked". Now if that's gone they need to refund some money or simply bring it back. It's odd that they apparently did this intentionally, at least that's what the change log tells us.

The OC LV1 still exists for my Alienware 18 on A07 on 4900MQ, it's the actual multipliers that were greyed out, which considering the low values even at OC LV1, isn't an option for me so I went back to A05.

That's such a shame since they did unlock the MXM fan controls on this Firmware revision :/

[Guest]

Maybe this will help...

So are you running on A05 or A07 now? The turbo boost power is not locked in A07? How do you circumvent that? I found that it resets back to a rather low value upon reboot.

You're right... it does that until you circumvent it. It is absolutely terrible, but the good news is that it can be circumvented.

Yes, I am running A07. I cannot overclock quite as high as A05, but 4.8GHz wasn't useful on the Alienware 18 anyway because the GPU overclock is severely limited by the power handling constraints of the motherboard. My 4930MX is running absolutely rock solid at 4.5GHz on A07.

The Package Turbo Power Lock is enabled at first, but it is unlockable. The problem that occurs is not obvious. I discovered it by accident. The core multiplier ratios get ignored without help from XTU or ThrottleStop to force a response to your settings. I spent about 14 hours testing and tweaking. Thankfully, I found some great workarounds. XTU is required at first, but once you have disabled the turbo power lock and dial in your new A07 OC settings it will stay unlocked and you can use ThrottleStop going forward. Here is the down-and-dirty quickie version of what I found to work really well.

Circumventing A07 Overclocking Limitations

4930MX (may work the same for 4900MQ)

cTDP Overclocking Functionality

A07 - using BIOS Defaults

Extreme Edition: cTDP (BIOS default)

• System malfunctions by default (CPU runs 2.0GHz with no Turbo Boost functionality)
  
• No configuration of cTDP is possible (the cTDP settings are locked away in hidden menus)
  
• No fix identified except through third party software
  

Note: after manual configuration of power settings using XTU and/or ThrottleStop (explained below) the CPU runs 3.9GHz by default with cTDP mode is set in BIOS and Turbo Boost is enabled. Beyond this, there is zero configuration potential for cTDP overclocking mode. Using this feature would require an unlocked BIOS with cTDP menus exposed to create custom profiles. (This is not new with A07... it was like this before as well.)

Manual Overclocking Functionality

A07 - BIOS Defaults

Extreme Edition: OC LV 1 - only option (no adjustments possible)

• System malfunctions by default (CPU runs 2.0GHz with no Turbo Boost functionality)
  

Corrective Measures:

• Set the Extreme Edition mode to "BIOS"
  
• Set the Extreme Edition Ratio Limits to "Disabled" (not OC LV 1) and leave it set to disabled.
  
• Install Intel Extreme Tuning Utility (XTU) v4.4.0.4 or newer (if you have it installed already, uninstall and reinstall it after flashing A07)
  Warning: using XTU profiles from A05 that worked well may "brick" your system. It did this to me three times using a couple of previously stable profiles. Delete or ignore your old XTU profiles.
  
• Change Package Turbo Power Lock from "Enabled" to "Disabled" in XTU
  
• Change Core Current Limit to 112.000A (can be left at 95.000A for stock 3.9 GHz turbo using cTDP)
  
• Click "Apply" and reboot
  
• After rebooting, if the system is still running at 2.0GHz, change one of the core ratio multipliers with XTU, click apply, set it back to the desired value and click apply. This will "unstick" whatever is getting stuck with the clock ratio settings.
  
• Before using ThrottleStop, figure out what power settings work best for your CPU overclock, then save the settings as XTU profiles. (What worked well for me with A05 was inconsistent with A07.)
  

Note: XTU settings are often lost upon reboot. After following the above steps, use ThrottleStop run as a scheduled Task to automate the application of desired overclock settings during Windows logon, or launch ThrottleStop manually after logon. You will need to configure the core ratios and power settings for three of your four ThrottleStop profiles, but your preferred OC settings from XTU should automatically populate ThrottleStop if you follow the right sequence.

Important: Delete or rename your existing ThrottleStop INI file before launching ThrottleStop. Set your preferred OC profile with XTU first, but do not reboot before you launch ThrottleStop. Your XTU overclock settings should then be automatically inherited by ThrottleStop which can be saved and used as your preferred ThrottleStop profile. Your system may not function with the original INI file. Mine would lock up 100% of the time as soon as ThrottleStop launched, so delete or rename the INI file to avoid potential issues.

These settings in the images below work well for me. You may find slightly different settings work better for your CPU. Do not automatically assume your overclock settings before A07 will be stable. They may not be at certain clock speeds.

[Phoenix]

I went back to A05 as from what I read from Mr. Fox's post all over the web, it is the most stable and the fans do kick in properly.

[Guest]

Making system BIOS mods inaccessible with Secure Flash and write-protection is a passive-aggressive way of saying "Please go spend your money somewhere else." to enthusiasts.