XPS 730x - Memory questions

In that case, DELL has indeed taken measures to restrict your CPU multiplier to 24 because the multiplier on the 965XE comes directly from Intel with the multiplier being unlocked.

The best part of a retail BIOS (IMHO) is that the multiplier will be unlocked, where Dell has locked the multiplier at a max of 24X to hamper overclocking.

The CPU multiplier isn't controlled by the BIOS.  It's controlled by the CPU.  Intel limited the Core i7 920 with a multiplier of 20 and the Core i7 940 with a multiplier of 22.

[quote user="Darrell WV"]The best part of a retail BIOS (IMHO) is that the multiplier will be unlocked, where Dell has locked the multiplier at a max of 24X to hamper overclocking.

The CPU multiplier isn't controlled by the BIOS.  It's controlled by the CPU.  Intel limited the Core i7 920 with a multiplier of 20 and the Core i7 940 with a multiplier of 22.

Oh, well I have the 965XE and I sort of remember that the Dell video blog says something like that the CPU could be OC's as high as 28X-30X and mine is locked at 24X, and I remember back around page 40 - 44 of this long thread the discussion about Dell having a limit of 24X. That was the basis of my comment, I was even considering going back to the original BIOS to see what it had, as I am running 1.0.5 right now.

Thanks you for your insight.

Darrell

Thank you Darrell...I am going to buy me a retail MOBO ASAP.I was thinking of going with the EVGA X58 SLI LE.What do you think>The only problem is that I might have to take water cooling off of the South bridge because this MOBO already has a heat sink built into it and I do not know if I could remove it and install water cooling into it.Have you changed your motherboard.If yes,What did you use?

Thank you Darrell...I am going to buy me a retail MOBO ASAP.I was thinking of going with the EVGA X58 SLI LE.What do you think>The only problem is that I might have to take water cooling off of the South bridge because this MOBO already has a heat sink built into it and I do not know if I could remove it and install water cooling into it.Have you changed your motherboard.If yes,What did you use?

naiju84,  IMHO the EVGA MOBO is the best out there, my partner had a Cyberpower built with the Gigabit AMD PhemonII X4965, stock 3.4GHz that he has gotten up to 4.1 GHz OC, water cooled and he loves it.

I am seriously considering modifying my old XPS 730 H2C into a EVGA X58, so I have been lurking over at the EVGA customer forums (which remain easier to use than the DCF).  The nice thing about the EVGA MOBO is that the owners manual is online, with clear instructions of how to install and the features of each application.  I would heartily recommend spending some time there before you order.  In my current XPS 730X system I am running one EVGA GTX 295 CO-OP edition which takes up only one PCIe slot but has dual cores so it is SLI with only one card.  I am considering another 295 card so that it would be Quad SLI, so you could do that with only two PCIe slots.

Best,

Darrell

OK guys...I really need something to be done over here.I have a Dell XPS 730X with a 4 year warranty plan.I got the system in june of this year and about 2 months ago the motherboard died.I called Dell and they sent me technicians who knew nothing so I ended up replacing the motherboard twice, the power supply twice and the processor once myself with the products dell sent me through their technicians.It did not work so the tech said that they were going to send me a new system as a replacement.I was like cool but it would have been better if they did a little earlier.So I waited for 2 weeks and I had FEDEX come with an envelope that had the return slip for my old computer.So I chat with a dell Rep online and I asked them about my system and he was like OH I see that the system was delivered to you yesterday.I was like what???Guess what guys dell sent me the envelope thinking it was the system.Then the rep was like We are really sorry about that and blah blah blah.He issued another replacement system and I waited for another 2 weeks and When I looked back at my order sheet it said I was getting a Dell XPS 9000.I was like OMG.I called dell and talked to the supervisor and she was like yes I am getting a dell XPS 9000 instead of my dell XPS 730X.This was because the XPS 730X is out of production and they figured this was the best replacement for my system.I asked her are you telling me to settle with $2000 computer when I originally paid $5000 for my dell XPS 730X.So guys I am telling you there is no point in having the warranty because if they have to replace the system they will do what they did to me.So I went ahead and did a little research about it and figured it was my motherboard.I went ahead and bought a EVGA SLI motherboard and WAS WONDERING IF THERE WAS ANY WAY WE CAN FLASH THE BIOS OF THE EVGA WITH THE DELL BIOS so I could use the dell software.

WAS WONDERING IF THERE WAS ANY WAY WE CAN FLASH THE BIOS OF THE EVGA WITH THE DELL BIOS so I could use the dell software.

There's not any DELL software that's worth the risk of rendering your new motherboard completely useless.  What could DELL possibly have that you just have to have?  If you purchase a different motherboard, make sure it's NOT an extended ATX because it won't fit.

Hey naiju84,

The BIOS is tied to the MOBO, and the OS is tied to the BIOS, so NO you will not be able to use the Dell OS with the EVGA.  You will need a new copy of Windows/Linux to run on your new system, when you replace the MOBO you will lose the Dell BIOS key which allows you to re-install the OS an unlimited number of times.  I know that this is a Royal Pain, but that is the nature of the system.

Best,

Darrell WV

Hey there Darrell,I installed the new MOBO but the speed of the fans cannot be controlled.I did not have to use a new OS coz I just swapped the hard drives and everything works perfectly fine except for the H2C fan and the other fan.I cannot control them.How do I get to the performance control panel.I could not find such a thing on there.I installed all the drivers for the board and also the Vdroop OC program from Evga and I see that it did not recognize the 2 fans that are connected on the Master I/O board.It says none for the CPU fan and it is running at high RPMs.

Hey naiju84,

Sounds like you have had a great success!  Hurray and congratulations.  The fan control (Performance) is part of the nVidia ESA program, you can find it on nVidia drivers and downloads.  I am not sure if EVGA has a fan controller specifically, I know that I am using the EVGA Graphics control program Precision (i think) which I downloaded from EVGA drivers and downloads.  It allows me to control the GPU fans.  On the 730 H2C the nVidia Performance does it all, but on the 730X you may have to use Dell Thermal Monitor to control the fans, but you may just have to play around and see which works best for you.

If you can, post pictures either on Flickr or RampantSpeculation so that we can see what you have done.  You can post picts here, and when I have posted picts I had to first upload to flickr and paste them to the forum, but I would love to see what you have done.

Best,

Darrell WV

Oh great......I cannot use any third party cpu fan controllers out there.It wont let me do it.It shuts down the whole computer.It did it when I was using the Nvidia control panel.The I tried Speed fan and it also does not recognize the fans connected to the Main I/O board.I cannot use XPS thermal app coz I think its tied to the BIOS too.I am not sure but the app wont even open.....

Well, the next step is to simply replace the fans with standard fans and plug them into your new MOBO's fan power pins or use the molex power supply.  The best fans IMHO are the Noctua fans, retail 120 mm 135 cfm silent fans.  You can pick them up at FronzenPC or Amazon or just google them.  They should fit into the Dell plastic fan housing with a little mod as well as bolt to the rear air grill.  The run about $20.00 each are are almost totally silent, will plug into your new MOBO and then can be controlled with third part like SpeedFan.

Most MOBO are not really designed to take advantage of a secondary control board like the Dell Master I/O board.  This was a Dell inovation to reduce the load on the primary main board.

Best,

Darrell

Hey there

I have a H2C unit for sale.It is for the XPS 730X.Let me know if you are willing to buy and also offer me a price.I had to take it off mine coz I changed the whole motherboard and stay with fan cooling.The new MOBO won't let me install the XPS thermal software and so the pump or the fan was not controlled according to temperature.

Hey there I have a H2C unit for sale.It is for the XPS 730X.Let me know if you are willing to buy and also offer me a price.I had to take it off mine coz I changed the whole motherboard and stay with fan cooling.The new MOBO won't let me install the XPS thermal software and so the pump or the fan was not controlled according to temperature.

Is there no way to have the H2C system controlled by a new motherboard? I too am thinking of swapping boards and am concerned with the liquid cooling compatibility.