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Thread: problem with laptop - any ideas?

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    Unhappy problem with laptop - any ideas?

    laptop (Zepto 6225WD) has suddenly died, after 3 year warranty lapsed last month

    have boot sequence on video - any ideas?

    sometimes will go straight to grey screen, without displaying anything else. Can't hear anything normal for boot-up, ie beeps etc, or sound of windows booting

    thinking mobo is shot?

    http://yfrog.com/02zepto6225wdz
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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    that is your gpu malfunctioning my friend

    do you know what gpu you have?

    i bet it's an nvidia

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    8600 GT 512mb

    I know it looks like gpu, but I think it's more than that, since no normal boot-up sounds, doesn't accept password etc and log into windows, usually doesn't even show the visuals you saw but goes straight to a hanging state, etc
    Last edited by fuddam; 09-11-2010 at 12:28 AM.
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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    turns out it's a common problem with that nvidia card

    the solder dries out / cracks pretty much dead on the expiry of a 3 warranty (funny, that) and the only solution is (seriously) to stick the GPU into an oven at 385F for 8 mins, which melts the solder, thereby reconnecting the circuitry in the chip. Freaky.

    http://www.overclockers.com/the-oven...-with-an-oven/

    This has a high success rate, but unbeknownst to many, it also poisons your oven with highly toxic fumes!!! http://www.sentryair.com/solder%20fume.htm Then one has to chuck out the oven, lol.

    the alternative is to use a heat gun, though that has the problem of controlling the temperature. My heat gun churns out 40C, 400C or 600C, so not sure what to do now.... lol (crying inside)
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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    Yup - as above, it's defo the nVidia card mate, have seen this endless times on laptops

    Heatgun trick can work nicely, but make sure you heat the board slowly and evenly. If you don't, the PCB will start to bend to a point which could cause further damage.
    Do it in a circular motion. Cover the capacitors with tin foil to shield them from direct heat.

    It's worth checking, but most manufactures had a recall due to this. HP did (and still do!) accept laptops back because of this.
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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    Quote Originally Posted by fuddam View Post
    turns out it's a common problem with that nvidia card

    the solder dries out / cracks pretty much dead on the expiry of a 3 warranty (funny, that) and the only solution is (seriously) to stick the GPU into an oven at 385F for 8 mins, which melts the solder, thereby reconnecting the circuitry in the chip. Freaky.

    http://www.overclockers.com/the-oven...-with-an-oven/

    This has a high success rate, but unbeknownst to many, it also poisons your oven with highly toxic fumes!!! http://www.sentryair.com/solder%20fume.htm Then one has to chuck out the oven, lol.

    the alternative is to use a heat gun, though that has the problem of controlling the temperature. My heat gun churns out 40C, 400C or 600C, so not sure what to do now.... lol (crying inside)

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    will try the heat gun as first resort. Unfortunately, the manufacturer went bust last year in the economic crisis thing, so no option trying to get hold of them

    am wondering whether I can find a replacement gpu, pref a better model - been googling, but not a simple thing for a notebook........
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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    Quote Originally Posted by fuddam View Post
    will try the heat gun as first resort. Unfortunately, the manufacturer went bust last year in the economic crisis thing, so no option trying to get hold of them

    am wondering whether I can find a replacement gpu, pref a better model - been googling, but not a simple thing for a notebook........
    Maybe that's why their gpu is so crap because they rushed to get it out trying to make some money

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    Quote Originally Posted by fuddam View Post
    am wondering whether I can find a replacement gpu, pref a better model - been googling, but not a simple thing for a notebook........
    Short version: Forget it.

    The GPU is integrated into the motherboard directly for almost all laptops (unless you have a MXM based slot - very unlikely). Even if you were to desolder this (and you can, but the correct equipment to do so is $$$) you would need to replace it with the exact same type and have access to the equipment to resolder a BGA correctly ($$$).

    The pinout on the motherboard depends on this. Even the smallest change across a GPU model will give a different BGA pinout. That's without even getting into voltage differences / the HSF / and the BIOS tables that will have no other provision for any different card.

    TL;DR - If you have a simple MXM slot, change it. If it's on your mobo, it ain't going anywhere.
    Quote Originally Posted by Saracen View Post
    And by trying to force me to like small pants, they've alienated me.

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    If you're determined like me, just keep messing with different things until you figure it out...

    I've had so many problems with my PC but I've discovered the majority of them and fixed them with some research and trial-n-error.

    Best of luck to you, I know laptops can be harder to diagnose than PC's due to limited access to hardware troubleshooting..

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    best thing is to just repair it (heatgun or oven trick)

    then rather than apply some thermal grease, get a copper shim and wedge it between the heatsink and the gpu, and also use some thermal grease, more than likely it will have a heat pad, which shrinks over time.

    But before you do any of that, try to find out if you can get the manufacturer to get a free repair done, the bigger brands, like sony, hp have honoured some sort of extended warranty on the laptops which contain the nvidia gpu, try contacting your manufacturer, worth a try i suppose

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    Re: problem with laptop - any ideas?

    Hmm - I'd treat that second link with a degree of scepticism! Firstly it is a company selling fume extractors. Secondly most solder is lead free now, thirdly if you are getting the board so hot that it is giving off large amounts of lead oxide - it is too hot, fourthly, you are doing a one off for eight minutes so it isn't going to cause instant lead poisoning to anyone who uses the oven afterwards.

    (I still have reels of lead based solder which I use quite happily - and I'm sure the exposure is higher than anything you would get heating up the board - in fact the flux probably poses a higher risk))

    It is probably the safest choice for your board - make sure you wipe down or thoroughly clean the oven afterwards (if you are really concerned) bearing in mind that the oven cleaners you buy are probably considerably more toxic than the tiny amount of lead that might be deposited.

    That is not to be blasé about lead (or any other heavy metal) poisoning, but I think it needs to be put in perspective!

    (I still have reels of lead based solder which I use quite happily - and I'm sure the exposure is higher than anything you would get heating up the board - in fact the flux probably poses a higher risk)
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