dead voodoo envy...or is it?

xpete · 07-05-2007, 12:01 PM

Ok, so a month ago i put my voodoo into standby as i have done in the past. 5 days later, i went to turn it on...nothing! no posting, no beeping...the light would come on for 2-3 seconds then off again. frustrated me. after going through the motions with tech support (use diff. memory, switch sticks, reseat the cpu, remove the battery and just use ac, remove ac and use battery, unplug/reset cmos, reseat hd, etc...) voodoo said it was my motherboard and would cost $1000 for a new one since the laptop is out of warranty (yeah, by 6 months - it's only 1.5 years old) not to mention well over a month without my computer and shipping to/from Canada. I wrote an email to their customer service department regarding my $4000 piece of doodoo voodoo and got no reply whatsoever. They suck. don't buy a voodoo. save your money and buy two of another decent machine.

Anyway, I decided to take it to a friend of mine that works for a large company in their IT department. The good folks there tried all the things voodoo suggested again, to no avail. Then one of the guys in his office suggested a different processor (since that's the first thing to get power). We tried a different processor and viola! success. Made me a happy and sad person at the same time. Happy my 'puter was up and running and, sad that voodoo offered zero support for their products (i expect a premier rig to last longer than 1.5 years). Like i said, that was a month ago. The computer has been fine until this week.

i put the thing in standby, put it back in my backpack. Three days later (today) i push the power button and again, same thing as before. lights come on for 2-3 seconds then off. I just purchased a new processor, should get it after my biz trip. this is ridiculous! what could cause something like this. it always worked fine resuming from standby. i am thinking it has something to do with software, but i am lost! anybody ever get this type of problem? what could cause a processor to fry whilst in standby?
TIA,
x

Chevy · 07-05-2007, 12:56 PM

I would cut bait now.

Take the hard drive out, get your data off of it, and wipe it (Dban, BCWipe).

Sell the entire kit on Ebay as a "fixer-upper or parts donor" - include all the software, etc. You could get $700 or so (I got $200 for a 3 year old basic Dell in 2005). The case, drives, RAM, new CPU all have value (not to mention the screen itself - high $$$ item).

As to the issue, it could be faulty power controls on the motherboard or heat (if it is heat - and you would know - it MAY be worth buying a new heatsink/fan assembly for it).

07-05-2007, 12:01 PM	#1 (permalink)
xpete Registered User Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 1 OS: xp pro	dead voodoo envy...or is it? Ok, so a month ago i put my voodoo into standby as i have done in the past. 5 days later, i went to turn it on...nothing! no posting, no beeping...the light would come on for 2-3 seconds then off again. frustrated me. after going through the motions with tech support (use diff. memory, switch sticks, reseat the cpu, remove the battery and just use ac, remove ac and use battery, unplug/reset cmos, reseat hd, etc...) voodoo said it was my motherboard and would cost $1000 for a new one since the laptop is out of warranty (yeah, by 6 months - it's only 1.5 years old) not to mention well over a month without my computer and shipping to/from Canada. I wrote an email to their customer service department regarding my $4000 piece of doodoo voodoo and got no reply whatsoever. They suck. don't buy a voodoo. save your money and buy two of another decent machine. Anyway, I decided to take it to a friend of mine that works for a large company in their IT department. The good folks there tried all the things voodoo suggested again, to no avail. Then one of the guys in his office suggested a different processor (since that's the first thing to get power). We tried a different processor and viola! success. Made me a happy and sad person at the same time. Happy my 'puter was up and running and, sad that voodoo offered zero support for their products (i expect a premier rig to last longer than 1.5 years). Like i said, that was a month ago. The computer has been fine until this week. i put the thing in standby, put it back in my backpack. Three days later (today) i push the power button and again, same thing as before. lights come on for 2-3 seconds then off. I just purchased a new processor, should get it after my biz trip. this is ridiculous! what could cause something like this. it always worked fine resuming from standby. i am thinking it has something to do with software, but i am lost! anybody ever get this type of problem? what could cause a processor to fry whilst in standby? TIA, x

07-05-2007, 12:56 PM	#2 (permalink)
Chevy Retired Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Notlob Posts: 5,452 OS: Vista Ultimate My System	Re: dead voodoo envy...or is it? I would cut bait now. Take the hard drive out, get your data off of it, and wipe it (Dban, BCWipe). Sell the entire kit on Ebay as a "fixer-upper or parts donor" - include all the software, etc. You could get $700 or so (I got $200 for a 3 year old basic Dell in 2005). The case, drives, RAM, new CPU all have value (not to mention the screen itself - high $$$ item). As to the issue, it could be faulty power controls on the motherboard or heat (if it is heat - and you would know - it MAY be worth buying a new heatsink/fan assembly for it).