n56vz

Hello...
 
I was wondering if an Asus FX505DT's monitor (1920 x 1080, 60 Hz) can be upgraded with either Asus FX505DU's monitor (1920 x 1080, 120 Hz). They have same chassis and all... And also, can someone help me with finding the spare part number of both the laptop's monitor? I have trouble finding them...
 
Thank you for your attention...
 

[UPDATE: Thermal performance follow-up]
 
Welcome to my 13th review in LTT forum. I will be reviewing the Illegear Raven SE laptop. Main specs of the laptop are as below:
This is a quick review; thus, not everything will be covered in here. Also, this review will mainly focus on thermals instead of performance. Note that this model is different compared to Prodigy.
 
Product page: https://store.illegear.com/game-ready-performance/195-illegear-raven-se.html
Side note: There will be RTX 2060 and 144Hz options coming soon (Check out Raven SE-R)
 
Part 1: Build quality, input devices
Build quality is good overall. The plastic lid has little flex when applying pressure on the middle of the lid cover. Twisting the lid is possible but the flex will be locked out at certain point, therefore not a concern. The hinges feel a bit loose, causing a bit of screen wobbling. You can open the lid with single hand.
 
The body uses plastic build. Despite that, there is little to flex on the entire keyboard+palm rest – areas with little flex are at the middle of keyboard, above the touchpad, below arrow keys and bottom bezel.
 
The membrane keyboard is clicky; however, some square sized keys have a bit of mushiness (doesn’t affect typing feel much). Key travel is ~2mm, actuation force is 50-55g (~60g for keys with a bit of mushiness). You can set the effect, brightness and speed of the keyboard lighting via Illegear Command Center.
 
The Precision clickpad has plastic surface but wet fingers don’t result in rough surface. Movements are a bit sensitive and jumpy, still precision is still OK. However, the L/R clicks has loud noise when pressed which feels a little cheap. Only small amount of force is needed to click. You can disable the clickpad by double tapping the left top corner of the clickpad. The clickpad is aligned slightly to the right of the keyboard space bar to make it more centered.
 
Part 2: Display, Audio, Battery
The display is a 60Hz IPS panel from LG (LGD05E5). Since it's a low sRGB panel, colours are less vibrant. Surprisingly, it has quite high max brightness (above average for low sRGB panel I would say). Contrast is good. It has thin bezels. As expected, there is some ghosting due to 60Hz and IPS panel (maybe I'm too used to 144Hz?).
 
The 2 down firing speakers has good enough audio only if you tune the audio via Sound Blaster software:
 
Example of a tuned audio profile: Bass 0, treble 9, surround 80, crystalizer 70, bass 20, smart vol loud 90, dialog+ 50. 100% volume doesn't result in distortion which is good.
 
I don’t have time to test the battery life, however don’t expect much from the 46.74Wh battery (there is optional 63Wh upgrade which sacrifices 2.5 inch bay).
 
Part 3: Cooling performance
The cooling design consists of 2 heatpipes - both shared on CPU+GPU. The heatsink doesn’t stretch to left and right - no exhaust vents there. Sounds not that great on paper but we'll see how's the thermal performance later.
Notes on all thermal testing: 
Undervolt profile: CPU core+cache -100mv. You can undervolt GPU if you want, but it takes time. Blue highlighted part is the undervolted result.
 
CPU temp - Cinebench R15 multi core - temperature taken from first run
Max 70C, 3.07-3.09GHz, 50W, ~970cb
Max 70C, 3.2-3.22GHz, 50W, ~1020cb
~36dBA
 
CPU temp - Aida64 FPU 45W
Max 68C, ~2.5GHz
Max 69C, ~2.65GHz
~33dBA
 
GPU temp - Unigine Valley (extreme HD profile)
Clock speed fluctuates: 1650+MHz
Max 61C, ~50W
~36dBA
 
FPU + Valley (extreme HD) with max fans
CPU: Max 72C, 2.37-2.4GHz (2.53-2.56GHz), 35W (PL1 will drop to 35W)
GPU: Max 63C, 1635+MHz, ~50W
 
CSGO - 1080p all max, Mirage, no bots
CPU: 70-73C, 2.6-3.6GHz, 30W*
GPU: Max 67C, 1710-1845MHz, ~50W
~41dBA
*PL1 will drop to 30W regardless of office/game mode and video settings
 
Apex Legends - 1080p all max, 4GB budget, 90 FOV, training map
CPU: 68-73C, 3-4GHz, 20-25W
GPU: Max 65C, 1575-1665MHz, ~50W
~41dBA
 
Time Spy (1 run):
Score: 3479, Graphics: 3303
 
Fire Strike (1 run):
Score: 7707, Graphics: 8622
 
There is only minor uneven core temp. The fan speed takes a while to change while under load. You can lower power limits via Throttlestop / XTU, but increasing PL doesn’t work. There is undervolt applied out of the box: -50mv.
 
In Illegear Command Center, there are 2 modes to choose from: Game or Office mode. Office mode gives you access to control fan speed but has a 35W CPU power limit. There are 4 power profiles: High performance (same with Windows), Game, Equilibrium, Power saving. Basically, just keep it to game mode and equilibrium.
 
The included power adapter is an 120W unit from FSP. Take note that temps might be a little higher when running dual channel memory.
 
Part 4: Miscellaneous
The laptop is thin and light – 1.9kg and 20mm thickness. The footprint is also relatively small.
 
Ports:
L: RJ45, USB 2.0, mic, headphone
R: x2 USB 3.0 (might block mouse movements), full SD card slot
Rear: x2 mDP, HDMI, USB C, power
 
Illegear Command Center (basically the same, but without turbo mode):
 
Conclusion
Yes, CPU power limit issue had existed since the original Raven (8th gen) I tested. This is due to BIOS/firmware implemented by Tongfang (ODM) out of the box which is entirely not necessary IMO – power adapter has sufficient power output and there is thermal headroom for higher clock speeds. Moreover, Tongfang already has their own SPC technology which reduces clock speed when not needed in milliseconds of time while not affecting performance. i5-9300H model should be able to achieve higher clock speeds but this needs confirmation. If you ask, does this affect performance? I would say it depends on the games you play – if the game is CPU dependent like CSGO then yes, you’ll see some loss in FPS, but not significant IMO.
[To solve power limit issue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhXIiBPJseI - will do an update soon]
 
Anyway, back to topic, is this a good buy? Well, it’s impossible to find a thin and light gaming laptop at this price range. If you need a <2kg and <2cm gaming laptop but have limited budget, this is a good option – good build quality and cooling for the price.
 
Pros:
Cons:
Thanks for reading!

REVISITED: https://genexisx.blogspot.com/2020/01/revisited-level51-forge-15-series-with.html
 
Welcome to my 10th review in LTT forum. I will be reviewing the Level51 Forge 15 laptop. Main specs of the laptop are as below:
This is a quick review; thus, not everything will be covered in here.
 
Product page: https://www.level51pc.co/welcome/Productinner/forge-15
 
Read my review of Forge 15 Pro here: https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/1062770-review-level51-forge-15-pro-laptop-i7-9750h-rtx-2060/
 
Part 1: Build quality, input devices
Build quality is quite good. The whole laptop is made of plastic - not surprising considering that it's priced quite low while the old model - N850 is also a full plastic build laptop.
 
The lid has brush finish on top of it. There is flex when the lid is twisted - rigidity could be better. Applying force on the middle of the lid results in some flex, but nothing worrying. The lid has minimal wobbling; however, you can't open the lid with 1 hand (the first 45 degrees tilt is tight). The hinge is a bit loose when opened over ~100 degree and when closed below ~40 degree. There are 2 dim blue LED strips on the lid.
 
The area surrounding the keyboard has brush finish. There is minimal flex when twisting the body - still it feels solid. The keyboard area has little flex when pressed down hard. The bottom chassis also has little flex - the closer to middle the more flex. In fact the flex is noticeably more compared to Forge 15 Pro. I suspect that it's a QC issue since it has similar chassis with Forge 15 Pro and I can feel the flex stopped at a certain point of depth. Anyway, I will check this issue with second test unit in future.
 
The keyboard is a new, upgraded Clevo membrane keyboard. Typing is very pleasing - it has good actuation force (~55g?) and key travel (~2mm?). Keys are very clicky. Probably one of the best keyboard I've ever used in gaming laptops. You can set keyboard lighting via included software: Control Center. Note that it has only 1 zone lighting. The keyboard is easy to be replaced.
 
The touchpad is good enough from my perspective. It uses Precision driver and it's quite big - precision is OK-good but not top level. Due to plastic surface, the surface will become rough to be used if you have wet fingers. In normal usage, the surface is smooth. The touchpad layer feels thin when tapped hard on it. The dedicated L/R clicks have very shallow travel - feels a bit weird but the clicking feel is OK. The touchpad is slightly aligned to the right of spacebar to make it more centered.
 
Part 2: Display, Audio, Battery
The 15.6 inch display is a 60Hz IPS panel from LG – LGD05E5. Since it's a low sRGB panel, colours are less vibrant and display brightness is about 250 nits max. Contrast is good. It has thin bezels. I haven't tested any games yet, therefore I can't tell whether it has noticeable ghosting or not.
 
The 2 down firing speakers has good enough audio if tuned via Sound Blaster software.
 
Audio profile I used: Bass 0, Treble 13; Surround 80, Crystalizer 100, Bass 20, Smart vol 70, Dialog+ 40
 
There is a bit of bass and the volume can be quite loud. Overall, sound quality is quite balanced (mids could be better though)
 
I don’t have time to test the battery life, however you can expect 3-4 hrs of battery life from the 41Wh battery. Note that the battery is removable from outside.
 
Part 3: Cooling performance
The cooling design is slightly different from the one in Forge 15 Pro. Notice that the heatpipes are slightly thinner, the GPU heatsink is less beefy and the CPU heatpipes at the fan exhaust aren't placed at the top and bottom respectively. It consists of 3+2 heatpipes with 1 shared on CPU+GPU (1 is only partially connected to GPU so it doesn't count). There is only 1 exhaust vent for CPU and 2 exhaust vents for GPU. The fans are very powerful - I can feel the heat being push out even from ~50cm distance, especially for the CPU fan. There are intake vents for both fans (N850 has none) - the vents are quite small but sufficient.
Notes on all thermal testing:
Undervolt profile: CPU core+cache -100mv. GPU 1772MHz@0.95V (you can try less/more clock speed and less voltage). Blue highlighted part is the undervolted result
 
CPU temp - Cinebench R15 multi core
Starting 71-72W, then drop to 45W (PL1). Max 84C, then drop to max 73C. 4GHz, then drop to 3.3GHz. 1150+cb
Starting 64-65W, then drop to 45W (PL1). Max 81C, then drop to max 70C. 4GHz (can sustain longer), then drop to 3.4-3.5GHz. 1200+cb
Starting ~41dBA, then drop to ~38dBA. Same fan speed after undervolted
 
CPU temp - Aida64 FPU 45W
~2.9GHz, 71C
3-3.1GHz, 71C
~39dBA for both
 
GPU temp - Unigine Valley (DX11, medium quality, AA x2, 1080p)
1747+MHz, max 68C
1772MHz, max 64C
~35dBA
Benchmark result: 67.9 FPS, 2839 score
 
FPU+Valley with max fans
CPU stock: Max 85C, 3GHz, 45W
GPU stock: Max 74C, max 1747MHz
CPU undervolt: Max 82C, 3.1-3.2GHz, 45W
GPU undervolt: Max 67C, 1772MHz
No throttling under extreme load (CPU power throttling due to PL1)
 
Uneven core temp recorded is 3-4C. Yes tripod heatsink is gone - it really helps in uneven core temp issue. CPU silicon quality in this machine is slightly better than the one in Forge 15 Pro.
 
Surface temp while under extreme load is excellent - no area is noticeably warm.
 
Update: Cooling pushed to max with performance profile (PL1 60W, PL2 90W)
There are 4 power profiles to choose from:
Quiet, Performance, Power saving, Entertainment
In short - just stick with entertainment (balanced) profile
 
The included power adapter is a 120W unit from Chicony. Take note that temps will be a little higher when running dual channel memory.
 
Part 4: Miscellaneous
This laptop weights at 2.2kg and has 25mm thickness. Quite light I would say, partly due to the plastic build.
  
Ports (from back to front):
L: USB A 3, USB A 2, mic, headphone
R: Full sized SD card reader, mDP, USB A 3
Rear (L to R viewing from back): USB C, HDMI, LAN, power
 
Other settings in Control Center software besides power modes and led keyboard setting:
- Flexikey for Macros
- Fan speed control (2 points only, can drag anywhere to adjust fan speed and target temperature)
 
Default fan speed:
CPU: 50C 38%, 60C 50%, 80C 80%, 100C 100%
GPU: 50C 29%, 60C 50%, 80C 80%, 100C 100%
Fans will stop running if CPU/GPU is <50C. Still very quiet even they run while idling/in light loads.
 
Conclusion
Being one of the cheapest gaming laptop you can buy, you have to made some sacrifices like all plastic build and single zone keyboard back-lighting. However, the build quality is alright and the cooling is superb. Definitely worth considering.
 
Pros:
Cons:
Thanks for reading!