XPS 730x General Hardware Discussion thread

mine were read as Asus as well

as far as bios if yours are working fine, dont mess with it

bios can only cause issues

I wish Dell would update this Bios on the 730X because it is a slow as anything I have encountered.  Almost makes you not want to reboot. 

Does anyone have any pictures of the inside of the case they can send me?

thx

You can see quite a few at http://hothardware.com/Articles/Dell-XPS-730x-H2C-Intel-Core-i7-Gaming-System/?page=3

I'm thinking about buying the XPS 730X. So, some questions:

1) Somebody said to me that Dell will solder the CPU onto the motherboard, meaning that you can't simply replace the CPU. True of False? If false, would it be extremely easy to replace the i7-920 with a faster, newer i7, say, 18 months from now? (I can replace a video card easily enough - so would I be able to replace a CPU?)

2) I'm in Vancouver, Canada. From the time that Dell actually ships the PC, how long would it take for it to arrive at my home? 

3) Also, how long is the present waitlist for the XPS 730X?

How did this forum go from 18 pages to 83 pages in a day?

How did this forum go from 18 pages to 83 pages in a day?

Because the RE-newed (again) AND RE-improved (again) Dell Community (DC) has now moved (back to - again) to having 3 posts (replies) per page (again) ............... Wait for the next Re-Re-improvement !!!

Sorry Chris, I could not help myself.

Peace

I'm thinking about buying the XPS 730X. So, some questions:   1) Somebody said to me that Dell will solder the CPU onto the motherboard, meaning that you can't simply replace the CPU. True of False? If false, would it be extremely easy to replace the i7-920 with a faster, newer i7, say, 18 months from now? (I can replace a video card easily enough - so would I be able to replace a CPU?)   2) I'm in Vancouver, Canada. From the time that Dell actually ships the PC, how long would it take for it to arrive at my home?    3) Also, how long is the present waitlist for the XPS 730X?

1) Whoever told you that is clueless. Period. It would be relatively simple to replace the CPU unless you are a complete novice (i.e. you have never replaced a CPU before). Even if you are, there are plenty of guides, including one that comes with the unit to illustrate the procedure.

2) I would imagine that shipping would not take more than a few (3-5) days. The majority of the wait is not shipping - its the assembly/build.

3) Not sure. mine was maybe 2-3 weeks from order to delivered.

Okay, thanks.

I thought that was a lot of nonsense about the CPU being soldered onto the motherboard. People always say that Dell power supplies are under-powered as well - but when I installed a new graphics card on my Dimension I discovered it was the exact opposite.

It's difficult to understand why some people are so dead set against Dell. It doesn't give them the excuse to make stuff up though, which is something I see happening all the time, even at hardware forums, where people should know better (some of the worst offenders are the hardware forum people!)  

Anyhow, I'm in Canada, and I'm just waiting now for the 23'rd of January to arrive, since Dell will be offering a new set of options for the XPS 730X. I'm hoping to see a GTX 295 option, or a 285 option. I'm also hoping that there might be some kind of a sale on the remaining GTX 280 cards. From what I've read of the i7 platform, it just begs for a GTX 280 SLI setup.

Costly though.

Okay, thanks.   I thought that was a lot of nonsense about the CPU being soldered onto the motherboard. People always say that Dell power supplies are under-powered as well - but when I installed a new graphics card on my Dimension I discovered it was the exact opposite.   It's difficult to understand why some people are so dead set against Dell. It doesn't give them the excuse to make stuff up though, which is something I see happening all the time, even at hardware forums, where people should know better (some of the worst offenders are the hardware forum people!)     Anyhow, I'm in Canada, and I'm just waiting now for the 23'rd of January to arrive, since Dell will be offering a new set of options for the XPS 730X. I'm hoping to see a GTX 295 option, or a 285 option. I'm also hoping that there might be some kind of a sale on the remaining GTX 280 cards. From what I've read of the i7 platform, it just begs for a GTX 280 SLI setup.   Costly though.

 I do think there where some older computers that had the cpu soldered in. 

 Dell has gone out of there way to make there computers preparatory. Most of Dell computers are made so you can not replace or upgrade the motherboard other than the original one. They have even used non standard connections on the motherboard so you can't put it in another case. Some even have a preparatory power supply.

I think Dell is starting to make computers more standard.

  I think the XPS 730x would use a standard power supply and motherboard that you can replace because it is a high end computer. I am not 100% sure.

btw I'm not sure but changing the cpu might void the warranty.  And I'm also not sure but I thought it was that dell rates their power supplies lower than what they can do rather than being under powered but go by what they list it as.  People also may have meant that the power supplies dell puts in need to be higher which is the case with some models but not the 730x.  Basically what they mean is some of the computers have low power supplies like 425 watt on the xps 420 limits its future upgradability.

I do think there where some older computers that had the cpu soldered in.  Dell has gone out of there way to make there computers preparatory. Most of Dell computers are made so you can not replace or upgrade the motherboard other than the original one. They have even used non standard connections on the motherboard so you can't put it in another case. Some even have a preparatory power supply. I think Dell is starting to make computers more standard. I think the XPS 730x would use a standard power supply and motherboard that you can replace because it is a high end computer. I am not 100% sure.

I currently teach computer technology and am an IT admin at a charter school. I was an Engineer at Intel prior to that and have been building and repairing computers for over 22 years and cannot recall ever seeing in person a computer with a permanently affixed processor - at least not in the last 15 years or so. At the very least, the processors many not have been mounted in a ZIF, though they were at least mounted in a permanently affixed pin grid socket. (i.e. it took special tools to extract the processor).

As for the the "non-standard" computers - the term you are looking for is "proprietary" (no offense intended at all!). And yes - many manufactures did, at one time, use proprietary components - however it has been a LONG time since Dell has used proprietary components on anything other than maybe their cases. We have repaired un-modified Dells brought to our classroom that were over 10 years old that still had standard (albeit old) connections on power supplies, RAM, CPU's, etc...

Yes - the 730X can utilize a standard power supply, though the one it comes with (1000 watt) is more than adequate and uses all NON-proprietary connections.

btw I'm not sure but changing the cpu might void the warranty.  And I'm also not sure but I thought it was that dell rates their power supplies lower than what they can do rather than being under powered but go by what they list it as.  People also may have meant that the power supplies dell puts in need to be higher which is the case with some models but not the 730x.  Basically what they mean is some of the computers have low power supplies like 425 watt on the xps 420 limits its future upgradability.

The CPU, RAM, Peripheral cards, etc.. are ALL user serviceable. Dell sells replacements and upgrades to all of these. There is NO way Dell could (legally) void your warranty simply by replacing one. I have ordered and replaced power supplies from Dell on a previous computer and was actually told to go ahead and replace it myself by a Dell rep (kept that email just in case). We have 350+ computers at our school (most are another brand, but a few are Dell) and regularly have to replace components (some CPU's, mostly - motherboards and Power supplies) under warranty. The parts are sent to us, we replace them and the warranty is unaffected. This also included some upgrades - not just repairs.

Now - if you are not sure how to do it and end up damaging the pins on the motherboard from lack of knowledge, then chances are you will not be able to recover anything under warranty - nor should you.

As for rating - the power supplies are rated as they should be. Current output at particular voltages is listed (as required) on the label of the power supply.

Anyone know if Dell will be offering the XPS 730 with the new GTX 295 card?