Jump to content
NotebookTalk

M18x R2 Dual PSU mod and Throttle fix


Jerryzago

Recommended Posts

So for someone who might me interested, back when 980m SLI was a thing for the M18x R2, power was not enough. So I went ahead and made my own dual power supply mod with a coulomb meter that shows wattage, Voltage, amperage and power consumption in real time.

 

Recipe was simple. Two power bricks, a bridge rectifier to direct voltage and amperage in one direction, and a screen to show me what is happening.

 

So I picked up:

- An coulomb meter and a shunt to withstand at least 50amps

 Because 330w / 19,5V = 17 amps x 2 (psus) = 34 amps

- 4 Diodes with the lowest voltage drop

- Two Dell specific Cable Extensions (that was the name on Ebay)

- Cable fasteners with adhesive tape

- Insulating tape

- Soldering Iron

- My trusted dremel

- Patience and 'Vision'

 

So the idea was to have it modular, so both psus can be connected at the same time, or just one, or none.

 

Also to prevent throttling

- Flash swicks unlocked A11 Bios to be able to use 980m obviously

- Power up the system

- Enter BIOS setting

- Go to Advanced Settings and Video Configutation

- Select IGFX (intergrated GPU)

- Save and Reboot

- Enter BIOS again, no need to wait to enter windows

- Switch your GPU to Dedicated one (PEG).

 

This is effective as long as you keep your laptop to the wall charger and even when putting it to sleep. If you power it down, and plug it back in, repeat the process.

 

 

Actual footage of both GPUs running at 97%

rsz_1-1842333148-1513733337000.thumb.jpg.eafba2451a1cc4eca2ed162021c67c14.jpg

 

Here is the screen

1410359890-1529949502000.thumb.jpg.f9067656d6eff1d07edb454241ffa80f.jpg

 

The 'finished' product!

rsz_647734211-1530299144000.jpg.3937d36a80c2dc5315d31caee36bc6d5.jpg

 

The cable fasteners

rsz_1647907454-1530299097000.jpg.018cdf42b215f15fa815198c238f9743.jpg

 

Wiring instructions

rsz_1614660698-1530299080000.jpg.3df87a2d1a96b106056b73a238260b04.jpg

 

Diodes

rsz_258404774-1530299119000.thumb.jpg.1f2bf51990e7398d6ad2a26199499019.jpg

 

My second 980m has long gone, so I am only running single, and with the family and kids, I bearly use my laptop. I am at a search for a 980m just for the 'fun' of it. 

 

It is always 'cool' to have a dual GPU laptop 😅😅😅😅

 

  • Thumb Up 2
  • Like 1
Spoiler

Alienware M18x R2

i7 3720qm -> i7 3940XM

Dual 7970m -> 980m SLI -> HP Quadro RTX 3000

 

Alienware 17 R1

4710MQ

880M GTX -> PNY Quadro RTX 3000

 

HP 8570w

i7 3820qm

Quadro K2000M

 

HP DV6000

T72000 -> T9500

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 minutes ago, Jerryzago said:

So for someone who might me interested, back when 980m SLI was a thing for the M18x R2, power was not enough. So I went ahead and made my own dual power supply mod with a coulomb meter that shows wattage, Voltage, amperage and power consumption in real time.

 

Recipe was simple. Two power bricks, a bridge rectifier to direct voltage and amperage in one direction, and a screen to show me what is happening.

 

So I picked up:

- An coulomb meter and a shunt to withstand at least 50amps

 Because 330w / 19,5V = 17 amps x 2 (psus) = 34 amps

- 4 Diodes with the lowest voltage drop

- Two Dell specific Cable Extensions (that was the name on Ebay)

- Cable fasteners with adhesive tape

- Insulating tape

- Soldering Iron

- My trusted dremel

- Patience and 'Vision'

 

So the idea was to have it modular, so both psus can be connected at the same time, or just one, or none.

 

Also to prevent throttling

- Flash swicks unlocked A11 Bios to be able to use 980m obviously

- Power up the system

- Enter BIOS setting

- Go to Advanced Settings and Video Configutation

- Select IGFX (intergrated GPU)

- Save and Reboot

- Enter BIOS again, no need to wait to enter windows

- Switch your GPU to Dedicated one (PEG).

 

This is effective as long as you keep your laptop to the wall charger and even when putting it to sleep. If you power it down, and plug it back in, repeat the process.

 

 

Actual footage of both GPUs running at 97%

rsz_1-1842333148-1513733337000.thumb.jpg.eafba2451a1cc4eca2ed162021c67c14.jpg

 

Here is the screen

1410359890-1529949502000.thumb.jpg.f9067656d6eff1d07edb454241ffa80f.jpg

 

The 'finished' product!

rsz_647734211-1530299144000.jpg.3937d36a80c2dc5315d31caee36bc6d5.jpg

 

The cable fasteners

rsz_1647907454-1530299097000.jpg.018cdf42b215f15fa815198c238f9743.jpg

 

Wiring instructions

rsz_1614660698-1530299080000.jpg.3df87a2d1a96b106056b73a238260b04.jpg

 

 

Diodes

rsz_258404774-1530299119000.thumb.jpg.1f2bf51990e7398d6ad2a26199499019.jpg

 

My second 980m has long gone, so I am only running single, and with the family and kids, I bearly use my laptop. I am at a search for a 980m just for the 'fun' of it. 

 

It is always 'cool' to have a dual GPU laptop 😅😅😅😅

 

dude, this is flippin awesome! very impressive, kudos to the seldmade dual psu 😁 i might be selling off my 980m when i switch to desktop in several months, but thats still a bit off.

Mine: Hyperion "Titan God of Heat, Heavenly Light, Power" (2022-24)
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (TG High Perf. IHS) / Asus ROG Crosshair X670E Extreme / MSI Geforce RTX 4090 Suprim X / Teamgroup T-Force Delta RGB DDR5-8200 2x24 GB / Seagate Firecuda 530 4 TB / 5x Samsung 860 Evo 4 TB / Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 (Push/Pull 6x Noctua NF-A14 IndustrialPPC-3000 intake) / Seasonic TX-1600 W Titanium / Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2 TG (3x Arctic P12 A-RGB intake / 4x Arctic P14 A-RGB exhaust / 1x Arctic P14 A-RGB RAM cooling) / Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 32" 4K 240 Hz / Ducky One 3 Daybreak Fullsize Cherry MX Brown / Corsair M65 Ultra RGB / PDP Afterglow Wave Black

 

My Lady's: Clevo NH55JNNQ "Alfred" (2022-24)
Sharp LQ156M1JW03 FHD matte 15.6" IGZO 8 bit @248 Hz / Intel Core i5 12600 / Nvidia Geforce RTX 3070 Ti / Mushkin Redline DDR4-3200 2x32 GB / Samsung 970 Pro 1 TB / Samsung 870 QVO 8 TB / Intel AX201 WIFI 6+BT 5.2 / Win 11 Pro Phoenix Lite OS / 230 W PSU powered by Prema Mod!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, jaybee83 said:

dude, this is flippin awesome! very impressive, kudos to the seldmade dual psu 😁 i might be selling off my 980m when i switch to desktop in several months, but thats still a bit off.

Please send me an message, if you are inside the EU. I might be interested.

Spoiler

Alienware M18x R2

i7 3720qm -> i7 3940XM

Dual 7970m -> 980m SLI -> HP Quadro RTX 3000

 

Alienware 17 R1

4710MQ

880M GTX -> PNY Quadro RTX 3000

 

HP 8570w

i7 3820qm

Quadro K2000M

 

HP DV6000

T72000 -> T9500

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Has anyone tested the Eurocom 780w adapter with the single aw wire? I am curious if it can output over 330w 

  • Bump 1

Alienware m18             : Intel Core i9 13900HX @ 5.0Ghz | nVidia GeForce RTX 4090    | K1675 | 2x1TB SSDs 

Alienware Area-51M : Intel Core i9-9900K @ 5.3Ghz    | nVidia GeForce RTX 2080    | AX210 | Samsung 970 Evo+ 
Alienware M18x R2 :    Intel Core i7 3920XM @ 4.7Ghz | nVidia Quadro RTX 3000     | AX210 | Samsung 980 PRO   
Alienware 18 :              Intel Core i7 4930MX @ 4.5Ghz  | nVidia Quadro RTX 5000  | AX210 | Samsung 980 NVMe  

More Laps: M14x (555m) | M14xR2 (650m) | M15x (980m) | M17xR3 (880m) | M18xR1 (RTX 5000) 

DT: Aurora R4 (i9 10980XE/RTX 4070) | Area-51 R2 (22-Core Xeon/Titan V) | SR-2 [2x6-Core/3x980Ti] | 


CS Studios YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CSStudiosYT 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 hours ago, ssj92 said:

Has anyone tested the Eurocom 780w adapter with the single aw wire? I am curious if it can output over 330w 

i did test it with alienware 18 and it didn't go beyond 330w . i'm not sure if the m18x r2 any different !

Alienware M18X R1, i7 2960XM @ 4.4Ghz, Nvidia GTX 880M SLI , 32GB RAM , samsung 840pro + samsung 860evo ( THE BEST I EVER HAVE)

Alienware Area-51M R1, i9 9900K @ 5.1Ghz, Nvidia RTX 2080, 64GB RAM, samsung 980 Pro( LOVELY MACHINE WITH BAD BIOS )

Alienware 18 , I7 4930MX @ 4.2Ghz , GTX 980M SLI, 32GB RAM ( MAY REST IN PEACE)   (CAME BACK TO LIFE) 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, i.bakar said:

i did test it with alienware 18 and it didn't go beyond 330w . i'm not sure if the m18x r2 any different !

AW 18 is limited to 330w. 

 

I have a 780w psu and cable coming so I'll be able to test this =D if I get an SLI system...lol 

  • Thumb Up 2

Alienware m18             : Intel Core i9 13900HX @ 5.0Ghz | nVidia GeForce RTX 4090    | K1675 | 2x1TB SSDs 

Alienware Area-51M : Intel Core i9-9900K @ 5.3Ghz    | nVidia GeForce RTX 2080    | AX210 | Samsung 970 Evo+ 
Alienware M18x R2 :    Intel Core i7 3920XM @ 4.7Ghz | nVidia Quadro RTX 3000     | AX210 | Samsung 980 PRO   
Alienware 18 :              Intel Core i7 4930MX @ 4.5Ghz  | nVidia Quadro RTX 5000  | AX210 | Samsung 980 NVMe  

More Laps: M14x (555m) | M14xR2 (650m) | M15x (980m) | M17xR3 (880m) | M18xR1 (RTX 5000) 

DT: Aurora R4 (i9 10980XE/RTX 4070) | Area-51 R2 (22-Core Xeon/Titan V) | SR-2 [2x6-Core/3x980Ti] | 


CS Studios YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CSStudiosYT 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 6/9/2022 at 6:07 AM, ssj92 said:

Has anyone tested the Eurocom 780w adapter with the single aw wire? I am curious if it can output over 330w 

What about the middle cable, M18x needs it to tell the bios a 330w adapter is plugged.

 

It was my consern, so I bought dell specific cable Extensions that had it present. So when I wire my dual psu mod, I retain connection so the laptop knows a 330w brick is connected so it will work at full speed.

 

When I had SLI, with my 3720qm, I saw maximum draw of 650watts!!!

  • Thumb Up 1
  • Bump 1
Spoiler

Alienware M18x R2

i7 3720qm -> i7 3940XM

Dual 7970m -> 980m SLI -> HP Quadro RTX 3000

 

Alienware 17 R1

4710MQ

880M GTX -> PNY Quadro RTX 3000

 

HP 8570w

i7 3820qm

Quadro K2000M

 

HP DV6000

T72000 -> T9500

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, Jerryzago said:

What about the middle cable, M18x needs it to tell the bios a 330w adapter is plugged.

 

It was my consern, so I bought dell specific cable Extensions that had it present. So when I wire my dual psu mod, I retain connection so the laptop knows a 330w brick is connected so it will work at full speed.

 

When I had SLI, with my 3720qm, I saw maximum draw of 650watts!!!

The wire has middle pin to let laptop know it's 330w. When I had my previous 780w with dual outputs for area-51m r1, bios showed 2x 330x psus. 

  • Like 1

Alienware m18             : Intel Core i9 13900HX @ 5.0Ghz | nVidia GeForce RTX 4090    | K1675 | 2x1TB SSDs 

Alienware Area-51M : Intel Core i9-9900K @ 5.3Ghz    | nVidia GeForce RTX 2080    | AX210 | Samsung 970 Evo+ 
Alienware M18x R2 :    Intel Core i7 3920XM @ 4.7Ghz | nVidia Quadro RTX 3000     | AX210 | Samsung 980 PRO   
Alienware 18 :              Intel Core i7 4930MX @ 4.5Ghz  | nVidia Quadro RTX 5000  | AX210 | Samsung 980 NVMe  

More Laps: M14x (555m) | M14xR2 (650m) | M15x (980m) | M17xR3 (880m) | M18xR1 (RTX 5000) 

DT: Aurora R4 (i9 10980XE/RTX 4070) | Area-51 R2 (22-Core Xeon/Titan V) | SR-2 [2x6-Core/3x980Ti] | 


CS Studios YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CSStudiosYT 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 hours ago, ssj92 said:

The wire has middle pin to let laptop know it's 330w. When I had my previous 780w with dual outputs for area-51m r1, bios showed 2x 330x psus. 

Then I believe you are ready to go. Please post results here. I would like to see how it will perform!

  • Thumb Up 1
Spoiler

Alienware M18x R2

i7 3720qm -> i7 3940XM

Dual 7970m -> 980m SLI -> HP Quadro RTX 3000

 

Alienware 17 R1

4710MQ

880M GTX -> PNY Quadro RTX 3000

 

HP 8570w

i7 3820qm

Quadro K2000M

 

HP DV6000

T72000 -> T9500

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Jerryzago said:

Then I believe you are ready to go. Please post results here. I would like to see how it will perform!

same same! lurker mode activated! 😛 

  • Thumb Up 1

Mine: Hyperion "Titan God of Heat, Heavenly Light, Power" (2022-24)
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (TG High Perf. IHS) / Asus ROG Crosshair X670E Extreme / MSI Geforce RTX 4090 Suprim X / Teamgroup T-Force Delta RGB DDR5-8200 2x24 GB / Seagate Firecuda 530 4 TB / 5x Samsung 860 Evo 4 TB / Arctic Liquid Freezer II 420 (Push/Pull 6x Noctua NF-A14 IndustrialPPC-3000 intake) / Seasonic TX-1600 W Titanium / Phanteks Enthoo Pro 2 TG (3x Arctic P12 A-RGB intake / 4x Arctic P14 A-RGB exhaust / 1x Arctic P14 A-RGB RAM cooling) / Samsung Odyssey Neo G8 32" 4K 240 Hz / Ducky One 3 Daybreak Fullsize Cherry MX Brown / Corsair M65 Ultra RGB / PDP Afterglow Wave Black

 

My Lady's: Clevo NH55JNNQ "Alfred" (2022-24)
Sharp LQ156M1JW03 FHD matte 15.6" IGZO 8 bit @248 Hz / Intel Core i5 12600 / Nvidia Geforce RTX 3070 Ti / Mushkin Redline DDR4-3200 2x32 GB / Samsung 970 Pro 1 TB / Samsung 870 QVO 8 TB / Intel AX201 WIFI 6+BT 5.2 / Win 11 Pro Phoenix Lite OS / 230 W PSU powered by Prema Mod!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Terms of Use