Nvidia's GTX 970/980 does not work on Dell's XPS 8700

[Anas_sg]

I am trying to publicize this in hopes to get a soultion for that. XPS 8700 users have not recieved any proper response to this problem from either Dell or nVidia other than saying they are investigating the problem.

link on dell forums:
http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/desktop/f/3515/t/19601491?pi21953=1#20687065

 

[ahnilated]

a 460 watt power supply is too small for that video card.

 

[dextermat]

+1 ahnilated ==. you need at least a 500-550 watt PSU

Also, you might need to do a BIOS update...

after reading the dell forum.... wow what a mess.
Glad I don't buy branded computers

 

[Anas_sg]

I upgraded the PSU long ago to 600, the problem is not as simple as that. I think a bios update is needed to resolve this.

 

[ahnilated]

Well bios updates are easy. Just nab the latest one from your MB manufacturer and install it. That shouldn't take you more than 5mn.

 

[Anas_sg]

I agree, but there should be an update to download it.

 

[smackers_12]

Dell dont have to help you upgrade your prebuilt. It worked as they gave it to you its not their problem. The whole thing is something clearly doesn't like the new cards, what is the motherboard manufacturer?

 

[junkeymonkey]

some models of store bought computers [dell.hp,acer,ect..] may come with a ''locked or fixed'' bios and may not allow you to change certain hardware as a video card.. this is done to protect them from undue warranty claims and refunds .this is not done to hurt you but to protect them. you really need to see if that upgrade has been proven to work in your model first before you invest money in it .. there are a lot of these threads here at toms to look at some models will allow upgrades and some dont.. and a lot of guys here say ya ya ya when is really no no no...it would be sad you spent $200 on a card that wount post after you installed it as most find out. then get told its your psu and you spend more and end up right back where you are now, but its up to you good luck..


you got to know the the boards in these computers are not like the ones we use to do custom builds witch are open to upgrading with in the boards compatibly . the bios is custom made for there design and just for the parts they authorize to be used on there computers there only guaranteed to work as is out of the box as you bought it ,..

 

[Xivan]

How about upgrading your motherboard.

Just tell me your computer specs so i can recommend some good motherboards. Also what is your budget?

 

[junkeymonkey]

with that dell it may be a btx board set up so that may not be so easy and I think dell likes them [kinda goes with what I stated above with them]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BTX_(form_factor)

 

[Xivan]

Then how about this. Sell your current rig and make your own rig. It may be hard but its worthy. I sold my previous rig and built a custom rig.

Corsair
Coolermaster
Intel
Asus
Msi

These are the brands that i trust only. Especially Corsair...

Or you could go to the dell service center and tell them to upgrade your motherboard to a board that can support latest specs. Or u could just tell them to upgrade your BIOS.

 

[junkeymonkey]

if prebuilts were easy to upgrade we would not need all these custom parts to build our own if it was a matter of going to walmart and getting a 300$dell and slaping a card in it I sure would not bother with all this custom stuff .. them cats like dell got it all figured out and they want to seel you there new computer not have you upgrade the old one cause they got that higher end compleat computer sitting at walmart for you to buy .. that's how they make there money

 

[junkeymonkey]

heres something I dug up from a thread on this and what I used for an example of what could be one issue with prebuilts

ya -- the thing is there boards dont have to meet atx standard and they will cut back the pci-e slot power from the 75w most high end card require so if they set the pci-e slot power to lets say 45w and the card you upgrade to needs the full 75w to run it will black screen as most find out on this issue

unless you can find solid proof that the card you want works 100% I don't advise it

also it may power the card to where it will display but when the card gets under load it will fail cause its not getting the correct power from the slot as it needs it

also I see where they can put a total system memory lock so if they have it say 4 gig and the board has 3 and there stock oem card is 1 gb and then you put in a 2 gb card its now over the set limit and wount post but if you pull one stick of the boards memory out and get it back below the set linit the card can work [ gateway or acer cant recall witch one off hand on that deal]

 

[Xivan]

So sell the dell and built a custom rig. So if there is a problem u can find out the problem from this site and other site and fix it ur self. And if u buy a custom rig like i said mate buy these brands
Intel
Msi
Asus
Corsair
Coolermaster
WD

Pre built sucks. I used to own a previous pre built comp. Acer i think. But come up with many problems and when we give it to the center, their only solution was to buy a new one. I live in a third world country. Maldives. They have shitty comp places here. So me and my brother came up a good solution that benifit both of us. Went to singapore and bought custom parts for the comp. We been using the same rig since 2009. Upgrading and cleaning is th only thing we do. Not even a single problem came up to our rig.

 

[Anas_sg]

if prebuilts were easy to upgrade we would not need all these custom parts to build our own if it was a matter of going to walmart and getting a 300$dell and slaping a card in it I sure would not bother with all this custom stuff .. them cats like dell got it all figured out and they want to seel you there new computer not have you upgrade the old one cause they got that higher end compleat computer sitting at walmart for you to buy .. that's how they make there money

I don't think Dell locks Bios to make harder for owners to upgrade, and people buy pre-built because its cheaper than buying separate parts and those who don't enjoy building a rig.

 

[RobCrezz]

Disable "Secure boot" if you bios has that option.

Seems hit and miss with Dells/HPs. Ive upgraded graphics cards on numerous Dells and never had a problem, but I have heard that some people do.

 

[Xivan]

So how about buying an alienware. I mean u can custom build it through their site and they will built and sent it to ya.

Alienwarr has lots of hardware options. Go to their website and have a look. It might be expensive tho.

 

[Gary McCray]

The solution is to return your GTX 970 board and not buy Dell computers.
I have exactly the same problem.
Dell XPS 8700 (true for other models too) Black screen on boot up no matter how many video drivers you remove or disable.
Has absolutely nothing to do with the Power supply, the 12 volts on the 8700 is actually well above spec for the 980 let alone the 970 and when you are running anything normal with these thaey ony take 10 or 20 watts.
The games are the ones that take the juice.
As a matter of fact, the board powers up fine and turns the fans completely off after 30 seconds or so, so PSU is NOT the problem.
The Big Problem is that Nvidia, Dell, EVGA and every 970/980 manufacturer know that the Dell won't work with this card, they just don't bother to mention it.
It has been an ongoing problem since day one with this board and from everything I can tell, while they are both claiming to be working on it, the reality is their engineers are playing the finger pointing game each telling the other it's their responsibility and in fact nothing has been getting done.
It does not take a month to solve this problem if you have some one other than the bathroom clean out guy working on it.
The Dells actually come with Nvidia multi GPU boards these days and to release this board without even a note of warning that it absolutely positively won't work with a Dell XPS is irresponsible in the extreme on the part of both Nvidia and Dell.
Dell should have at the very least sent an Email to all it's XPS customers telling them this board currently doesn't work in your computer.
There is also no guarantee at all that brand X motherboard in your home made computer is going to work with it either.
I have done this sort of upgrade to my previous dozen or so Dells with other Nvidia video cards and had no issue at all.
Suddenly having it not compatible with the premier manufacturers premier video card and not bothering to mention it is Completely unacceptable.
And leaving it to the purchasers to "guess" what might be compatible (at their expense) is beyond contemptible.
Not working together is one thing, knowing about it and not telling you about it is entirely another and is completely unacceptable.
My solution: tell everybody you can about this, maybe loss of sales will force a more responsible approach in the future.
Best Regards.

 

[smackers_12]

if prebuilts were easy to upgrade we would not need all these custom parts to build our own if it was a matter of going to walmart and getting a 300$dell and slaping a card in it I sure would not bother with all this custom stuff .. them cats like dell got it all figured out and they want to seel you there new computer not have you upgrade the old one cause they got that higher end compleat computer sitting at walmart for you to buy .. that's how they make there money

I don't think Dell locks Bios to make harder for owners to upgrade, and people buy pre-built because its cheaper than buying separate parts and those who don't enjoy building a rig.

Its not cheaper.

 

[junkeymonkey]

well its like this -- buy the card stick it in it will work or it will not then you know where your at with it ..

or just do like the guys I told this with and took theres to a computer shop and tried out cards there to find they don't work and saved them money by not ordering one and get stuck with a card they cant use

just that easy

 

[junkeymonkey]

one more thing

''I don't think Dell locks Bios to make harder for owners to upgrade''

wonder why you go to dell or whoever the prebuilt came from to get these from and not msi asus or what ever ?? it a dell bios for dell not like what we get for our boards from the manufacture these are closed written by dell for there products as they see fit for there use as they want under there guide lines for that computer as they configured it to be used .

 

[Gary McCray]

Hi Junkeymonkey,
Great idea take your computer to a computer shop and try it with different cards.
I don't know where you live, but there are no computer shops within 300 miles of where I live that have even seen a 970 or 980 GTX card.
And fewer still that want to let you try their cards.
Best Regards,
Gary

 

[Anas_sg]

if prebuilts were easy to upgrade we would not need all these custom parts to build our own if it was a matter of going to walmart and getting a 300$dell and slaping a card in it I sure would not bother with all this custom stuff .. them cats like dell got it all figured out and they want to seel you there new computer not have you upgrade the old one cause they got that higher end compleat computer sitting at walmart for you to buy .. that's how they make there money

I don't think Dell locks Bios to make harder for owners to upgrade, and people buy pre-built because its cheaper than buying separate parts and those who don't enjoy building a rig.

Its not cheaper.

Get me an i7 with the same specs for $550 and I will believe you.

 

[maxalge]

if prebuilts were easy to upgrade we would not need all these custom parts to build our own if it was a matter of going to walmart and getting a 300$dell and slaping a card in it I sure would not bother with all this custom stuff .. them cats like dell got it all figured out and they want to seel you there new computer not have you upgrade the old one cause they got that higher end compleat computer sitting at walmart for you to buy .. that's how they make there money

I don't think Dell locks Bios to make harder for owners to upgrade, and people buy pre-built because its cheaper than buying separate parts and those who don't enjoy building a rig.

Its not cheaper.

Get me an i7 with the same specs for $550 and I will believe you.

I can get you an i7, with a shit mobo, shit psu, shit ram, and a shit case for less.

Dell/HP etc etc have mostly crap components.

Don't be fooled.

 

[sam80jr]

first of all the dell xps 8700 is 829.99 so i dunno where youre getting 550 from. I could def build a great PC for 830 bucks.