If you have the i7-620M then yours should be the M17x R2. The original M17x came out with the Core 2 Duo/Quad processors. This is a good thing as you can upgrade to the i7-920XM or 940XM which will give you a performance boost over the 620M
The best GPU you can put in is the AMD 8970M as AMD still have driver support for older cards andno need to mod drivers (you can even put in dual cards in crossfire if you want to). If you want Nvidia then the 780M would be the way to go but you'll need to mod the display driver for anything past the Nvidia 200 series and driver support ended a few years ago, I think the latest for the 700 series is 425.xx.
If you only have an old mechanical HDD then installing an SSD will be a huge improvement, but you won't really notice a difference during gaming.
You're at the max for RAM and any CPU you can use will be at best incrementally faster -- and 10+ years old.
While you probably can replace the GPU and can upgrade the storage (the latter to a 2.5" SATA SSD), you may want to carefully evaluate the economics of upgrading a system as old as this one is.
You'd have to have a good look at the system requirements for each game you want to play. I think the 8970M will struggle to get decent FPS on Doom.
Swapping these parts are a little more difficult than replacing memory but it isn't too hard. Below is a teardown video. You'll need to remove the heatsinks before removing the CPU and GPU. You'll need new thermal compound when installing the new parts.
If you have an AMD card(s) in the laptop then you'll need to carefully remove one of the x-brackets to use in the upgraded card. The heatsink screw mounts tend to be shorter on the old M17x and M15x compared the later models so you need to reuse the old bracket or the heatsink may not make contact with the GPU die. If you have an Nvidia card(s) then the x-bracket is slightly different and won't fit an AMD card properly so you'll have to find an AMD x-bracket for the M17x R1/R2 or M15x. I just found this out last night when swapping GPU's in one of my old M15x's.
Upgrading these machines from 2009/2010 specs to the parts we've talked about is going to give you the performance of a 2013/2014 laptop so don't expect too much. The M17x R4, M18x R2 and 17 R1 can be upgraded with GTX 10 series and RTX graphics cards so you can push the performance a fair bit more. While these older machines are a lot of fun to tinker with, they are more for the collector or old school Alienware fan (a bit like me).
If you really want the performance to play newer AAA titles then I'd suggest looking at the Dell Outlet online store and grabbing a refurbished machine for a good deal. It will be money better spent. If you really love your old girl and want to keep her going, then do the upgrades but don't be surprised if you're only getting 30FPS with big dips on low settings.
I can't justify getting a gaming rig. I'm too far gone to spend upwards of £500 for a gaming pc as they tend to be more solitary where consoles are more inclusive and sit better as entertainment centres in the near future.
But for around £200 with the upgrades suggested, this is a great solution. Luckily I play games for the escape and story so a drop in graphic quality isnt the problem - not being able to simply run games however is why I'm here
I will have a look at the teardown of which i have done partially in the past when I had to fix my GPU fan.
I have the R2 - you're correct - and the AMD GPU so unless theres any better or the NVIDIA is substantially better, I think I'll go for the following:
AMD 8970M GPU with a 940XM CPU.
I already have a SSD from previous laptop that died but will need to get an adaptor to fit it in as primary. Form your previous post this will not be better for games but all loading times around the laptop will be better
I think ill keep a hold of the Alienware as it was my 1st ever console brought from when i was on minimum wage back in the day until I replace it with a PS5
mattyb3
5 Practitioner
•
1.7K Posts
1
December 7th, 2021 12:00
If you have the i7-620M then yours should be the M17x R2. The original M17x came out with the Core 2 Duo/Quad processors. This is a good thing as you can upgrade to the i7-920XM or 940XM which will give you a performance boost over the 620M
The best GPU you can put in is the AMD 8970M as AMD still have driver support for older cards andno need to mod drivers (you can even put in dual cards in crossfire if you want to). If you want Nvidia then the 780M would be the way to go but you'll need to mod the display driver for anything past the Nvidia 200 series and driver support ended a few years ago, I think the latest for the 700 series is 425.xx.
If you only have an old mechanical HDD then installing an SSD will be a huge improvement, but you won't really notice a difference during gaming.
ejn63
10 Elder
•
30.7K Posts
0
December 7th, 2021 09:00
You're at the max for RAM and any CPU you can use will be at best incrementally faster -- and 10+ years old.
While you probably can replace the GPU and can upgrade the storage (the latter to a 2.5" SATA SSD), you may want to carefully evaluate the economics of upgrading a system as old as this one is.
rsbh585
1 Rookie
•
20 Posts
0
December 7th, 2021 15:00
This sounds amazing!
I've had a look online and getting an 8970M with a 940XM won't break the bank. I'd probably get an ssd as well as this surely will increase the speed.
My only issue us my lack of knowledge with making it all work. Installing a CPU and GPU is not as simple as simply swapping or the RAM modules.
Realistically speaking, what capabilities are we talking here? Would I be able to play games such as Doom Eternal?
mattyb3
5 Practitioner
•
1.7K Posts
1
December 7th, 2021 19:00
You'd have to have a good look at the system requirements for each game you want to play. I think the 8970M will struggle to get decent FPS on Doom.
Swapping these parts are a little more difficult than replacing memory but it isn't too hard. Below is a teardown video. You'll need to remove the heatsinks before removing the CPU and GPU. You'll need new thermal compound when installing the new parts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPOXBTm_v5I
If you have an AMD card(s) in the laptop then you'll need to carefully remove one of the x-brackets to use in the upgraded card. The heatsink screw mounts tend to be shorter on the old M17x and M15x compared the later models so you need to reuse the old bracket or the heatsink may not make contact with the GPU die. If you have an Nvidia card(s) then the x-bracket is slightly different and won't fit an AMD card properly so you'll have to find an AMD x-bracket for the M17x R1/R2 or M15x. I just found this out last night when swapping GPU's in one of my old M15x's.
Upgrading these machines from 2009/2010 specs to the parts we've talked about is going to give you the performance of a 2013/2014 laptop so don't expect too much. The M17x R4, M18x R2 and 17 R1 can be upgraded with GTX 10 series and RTX graphics cards so you can push the performance a fair bit more. While these older machines are a lot of fun to tinker with, they are more for the collector or old school Alienware fan (a bit like me).
If you really want the performance to play newer AAA titles then I'd suggest looking at the Dell Outlet online store and grabbing a refurbished machine for a good deal. It will be money better spent. If you really love your old girl and want to keep her going, then do the upgrades but don't be surprised if you're only getting 30FPS with big dips on low settings.
rsbh585
1 Rookie
•
20 Posts
0
December 8th, 2021 02:00
Thanks @mattyb3 and @ejn63
I can't justify getting a gaming rig. I'm too far gone to spend upwards of £500 for a gaming pc as they tend to be more solitary where consoles are more inclusive and sit better as entertainment centres in the near future.
But for around £200 with the upgrades suggested, this is a great solution. Luckily I play games for the escape and story so a drop in graphic quality isnt the problem - not being able to simply run games however is why I'm here
I will have a look at the teardown of which i have done partially in the past when I had to fix my GPU fan.
I have the R2 - you're correct - and the AMD GPU so unless theres any better or the NVIDIA is substantially better, I think I'll go for the following:
AMD 8970M GPU with a 940XM CPU.
I already have a SSD from previous laptop that died but will need to get an adaptor to fit it in as primary. Form your previous post this will not be better for games but all loading times around the laptop will be better
I think ill keep a hold of the Alienware as it was my 1st ever console brought from when i was on minimum wage back in the day until I replace it with a PS5