AW M9750 Problems :( - Page 2

**TriggerFinger** · 11-23-2008, 07:52 AM

Whew...

On RAM... I have tried on different toys that I have lying around (HP, IBM, Gateway... sorry no AW... at least not yet... hmmm

)... I mean I removed the RAM and observed what happens when I reboot. Results were almost the same... lights ON, beeps, shuts OFF or no boot. I also tried with a defective RAM... same thing. So how will we know if RAM is good? Test it on another computer or use a good/working RAM (tested by Memtest86+).

parasomia · 11-23-2008, 01:09 PM

Thats the only problem though. I don't have an extra one or know someone with a laptop to test the ram on. Which is whats killing me here hehe. Annndddd, I did get memtest like you said, and burnt it to a disc.

I put it in and boot up, of course theres nothing on the screen so i couldn't tell anyway. CD drive does spin up faster like its reading it though for a bit. Another note, remember how I said if I take primary graphic card out, the lcd screen turns on? Still does, however I tried connecting an external monitor WHILE keeping primary video slot empty.. lcd turns on.. but not external monitor.

This is such a crazy situation lol. It is very hard to pinpoint it! I did borrow an OHM reader off of a friend.. thinking I could test different things to see if they aren't fried. Now I just gotta figure out HOW to test and what to touch with it lol. Figured its worth a shot. Just so Lost!

**TriggerFinger** · 11-23-2008, 01:29 PM

I hope you know what you are doing... doing checks on-board might be harmful to you and your system if you make a mistake. That is also the reason why I stay away from on-board repairs.

Going back on the RAM... if you know a friend who has a laptop that accepts the same type of RAM, you can test your RAM sticks there. With that out of the way, you can focus on other things make it a bit LESS complicated.

About the video card. I really doubt if there is an on-board video controller aside from the 2 video cards that you have. My guess is, the reason why it is powering ON with video cards removed is because the mobo provides power to the screen but that is all there is to it.

It is rather complicated because we do not have the parts to use in our isolation. If only you have another laptop similar in model that you can use to test the components of the other then things would be a little clearer.

parasomia · 11-23-2008, 06:58 PM

EHhhh, maybe I won't touch that then lol.

I got some good news FINALLY. with some crappy news.

So I got in the tearing apart mood again and this time I unhooked nearly everything. I even completely took the lcd screen off of it and away. I only left keyboard, (not at first) one stick of ram, one video card, and the power button bar with the led icons.

Guess what?

The SOB actually booted! I have it hooked up via external monitor at the moment. Now since there are no hard drives, it only boots up a little bit lol. but it turns on!! and it doesn't even turn itself on now. After that, I plugged the cd drive back in which also works. Now I started testing ram sticks.. which. btw memtest loads up fine..

here is the... horrible horrible.. when it rains it pours scenario. Let us look back at this picture of the cards and ventilation system.

http://4help.alienware.com/cgi-bin/a...i=&p_topview=1

Well, you see the copper color pipe going from primary card to north bridge to fan? Well that got snapped $#%@#$%% stupid accident. This is why the primary card is heating up so horribly. Which is why it shuts off after a few minutes right now. I need to fix this. I know these can be bought, but they are also expensive for what it is. (think I saw some sites selling that for 130$ bah)

Now I just need to figure that out

update- I am now able to boot into windows! this is still running minimum stuff thought. Soon i'll put things back together one by one to see what could be causing it.. before that.. i gotta figure this heat pipe out

**TriggerFinger** · 11-24-2008, 09:37 AM

So basically you stripped the laptop down to bare essentials and it was able to boot? Hmmm. Have you tried swapping the RAM modules out? I am still curious if one of the sticks is causing it.

As per the broken copper heatspreader, I suggest you refrain from using the machine until you find a replacement. If it keeps turning off because it is overheating, it will eventually kill your video card. The fan assembly that you pointed out is available on several online stores for like $130.

http://www.google.com/search?q=B1805...ient=firefox-a

parasomia · 11-24-2008, 02:07 PM

Trigger,

Yea complete bare essentials. I know it was suggested before, and I kind of did. But this time I just did EVERYTHING.

I have the ram in there right now that I have been using for the past year. I will run memtest on all ram modules once I can run it. Not in the clear yet though because I have to fix the ventilation. After that I can put piece by piece in to see what works. I've had it off and on making sure it wasn't a fluke.

I don't run it too much when on till i fix the vent. I was searching around for prices on a replacement and I just think that is an awful lot of money for a small piece! I will try the DIY method first lol.

If the copper pipe/tubing is just there as a normal pipeline structure to allow the fan to pull the heat through.. then I can probably rig it up. I have a theory that they used thermal pads/tape on the chips and that the arctic silver isn't enough to cover the gap between heatsink and chip. I'm going to test that out as well.

parasomia · 11-25-2008, 01:30 PM

For anyone that reads this... What options do I have with the heatsink/vent system? I think its a rip off that it cost 130 per heatsink... but thats probably cause they are hard to find? So, I looked around. google searched... Oh I found places.. diffferent websites that all seemed to be the same company... didn't like that BUT it didn't matter.. they were all out of stock on one of the heatsink parts. Yes I'm in a rush to get this back together. This temp computer isn't holding well haha.

What are my options? What Can I do? I tried ebay.. nothing.. Called Alienware,.. they didn't have the parts... SERIOUSLY. Is it possible I can get the heat sinks for m9700 and kind of shape them to fit in here??? They are cheaper.. and with a bit of work.. is it possible?!

I know there are tons of experts here that know what they are talking about and.. I swear.. any any any any advice right now.. is good advice. Thanks all. Yes I'm freaking amongst other things going on right now

parasomia · 11-27-2008, 12:59 PM

actually... all i need is the copper piping. Does anyone know if that type is sold anywhere or something similar? I know that there is something in the tubing that heats up and moves the heat..

I can get this all done real fast if I could find some of this.

**TriggerFinger** · 11-28-2008, 02:26 PM

Since you are trying it DIY and $130 is not an option... may be you can have it repaired by airconditioning/refrigeration technician. I think they can weld copper tubes with their tools of trade.

I am not so sure how effective the heatsink will be, I am not even sure if it will work but it sure sounds like an option.

parasomia · 11-28-2008, 05:35 PM

Trigger,

My problem basically is that even if I put out the money for it.. I have to find someone who carries them. I need both parts now.. ugh. 130 each. Ok, but these places I see only have the one part. (I think they are all the same place with different names). I can't really find them. Alienware doesn't have them either.

So.. in case I can't find these parts (cuz i've about given up) I was thinking of just getting some copper coils and using them.. Now I just need to know what material is inside the copper that transfers the heat to the fan. This is where I'm stuck at right now... although I bet it won't be easy either way.

**TriggerFinger** · 11-29-2008, 07:59 AM

Oh ok. Try eBay again or hammerheadtech.com

parasomia · 11-29-2008, 08:31 PM

Hey trigger,

Ya I've looked around most places I could think of. Even sent in a request to a place for parts, and no one could find the other part. What a horrible predicament.

I'm trying to come up with ideas on how to do this. I wonder how possible it would be to get the heatsinks from the older model (m9700) which are available and cheaper and have the pipes look roughly the same size. However it would require bending/shaping to make them fit in mine. I don't know how well that would work.... I'm thinking a pipe bender might work.. but then again.. I don't know if it would still kink them. UGH!

m4v3rick · 08-29-2009, 11:41 PM

Hello, I know this is an old post but I have an m9750 with the same issue. I have replaced the MOBO (bought from EBAY from a seller that claimed it was tested) but it is still the same.....

I'm thinking right now on replacing the video cards or the CPU... did you found a solution?? since I don't want to spend more money on video cards and discover that was not the problem...

Anyone has ideas of what could be going on?!

11-23-2008, 07:52 AM	#21 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,784 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Whew... On RAM... I have tried on different toys that I have lying around (HP, IBM, Gateway... sorry no AW... at least not yet... hmmm )... I mean I removed the RAM and observed what happens when I reboot. Results were almost the same... lights ON, beeps, shuts OFF or no boot. I also tried with a defective RAM... same thing. So how will we know if RAM is good? Test it on another computer or use a good/working RAM (tested by Memtest86+). __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

11-23-2008, 01:09 PM	#22 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Thats the only problem though. I don't have an extra one or know someone with a laptop to test the ram on. Which is whats killing me here hehe. Annndddd, I did get memtest like you said, and burnt it to a disc. I put it in and boot up, of course theres nothing on the screen so i couldn't tell anyway. CD drive does spin up faster like its reading it though for a bit. Another note, remember how I said if I take primary graphic card out, the lcd screen turns on? Still does, however I tried connecting an external monitor WHILE keeping primary video slot empty.. lcd turns on.. but not external monitor. This is such a crazy situation lol. It is very hard to pinpoint it! I did borrow an OHM reader off of a friend.. thinking I could test different things to see if they aren't fried. Now I just gotta figure out HOW to test and what to touch with it lol. Figured its worth a shot. Just so Lost!

11-23-2008, 01:29 PM	#23 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,784 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( I hope you know what you are doing... doing checks on-board might be harmful to you and your system if you make a mistake. That is also the reason why I stay away from on-board repairs. Going back on the RAM... if you know a friend who has a laptop that accepts the same type of RAM, you can test your RAM sticks there. With that out of the way, you can focus on other things make it a bit LESS complicated. About the video card. I really doubt if there is an on-board video controller aside from the 2 video cards that you have. My guess is, the reason why it is powering ON with video cards removed is because the mobo provides power to the screen but that is all there is to it. It is rather complicated because we do not have the parts to use in our isolation. If only you have another laptop similar in model that you can use to test the components of the other then things would be a little clearer. __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

11-23-2008, 06:58 PM	#24 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( EHhhh, maybe I won't touch that then lol. I got some good news FINALLY. with some crappy news. So I got in the tearing apart mood again and this time I unhooked nearly everything. I even completely took the lcd screen off of it and away. I only left keyboard, (not at first) one stick of ram, one video card, and the power button bar with the led icons. Guess what? The SOB actually booted! I have it hooked up via external monitor at the moment. Now since there are no hard drives, it only boots up a little bit lol. but it turns on!! and it doesn't even turn itself on now. After that, I plugged the cd drive back in which also works. Now I started testing ram sticks.. which. btw memtest loads up fine.. here is the... horrible horrible.. when it rains it pours scenario. Let us look back at this picture of the cards and ventilation system. http://4help.alienware.com/cgi-bin/a...i=&p_topview=1 Well, you see the copper color pipe going from primary card to north bridge to fan? Well that got snapped $#%@#$%% stupid accident. This is why the primary card is heating up so horribly. Which is why it shuts off after a few minutes right now. I need to fix this. I know these can be bought, but they are also expensive for what it is. (think I saw some sites selling that for 130$ bah) Now I just need to figure that out update- I am now able to boot into windows! this is still running minimum stuff thought. Soon i'll put things back together one by one to see what could be causing it.. before that.. i gotta figure this heat pipe out

11-24-2008, 09:37 AM	#25 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,784 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( So basically you stripped the laptop down to bare essentials and it was able to boot? Hmmm. Have you tried swapping the RAM modules out? I am still curious if one of the sticks is causing it. As per the broken copper heatspreader, I suggest you refrain from using the machine until you find a replacement. If it keeps turning off because it is overheating, it will eventually kill your video card. The fan assembly that you pointed out is available on several online stores for like $130. http://www.google.com/search?q=B1805...ient=firefox-a __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

11-24-2008, 02:07 PM	#26 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Trigger, Yea complete bare essentials. I know it was suggested before, and I kind of did. But this time I just did EVERYTHING. I have the ram in there right now that I have been using for the past year. I will run memtest on all ram modules once I can run it. Not in the clear yet though because I have to fix the ventilation. After that I can put piece by piece in to see what works. I've had it off and on making sure it wasn't a fluke. I don't run it too much when on till i fix the vent. I was searching around for prices on a replacement and I just think that is an awful lot of money for a small piece! I will try the DIY method first lol. If the copper pipe/tubing is just there as a normal pipeline structure to allow the fan to pull the heat through.. then I can probably rig it up. I have a theory that they used thermal pads/tape on the chips and that the arctic silver isn't enough to cover the gap between heatsink and chip. I'm going to test that out as well.

11-25-2008, 01:30 PM	#27 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( For anyone that reads this... What options do I have with the heatsink/vent system? I think its a rip off that it cost 130 per heatsink... but thats probably cause they are hard to find? So, I looked around. google searched... Oh I found places.. diffferent websites that all seemed to be the same company... didn't like that BUT it didn't matter.. they were all out of stock on one of the heatsink parts. Yes I'm in a rush to get this back together. This temp computer isn't holding well haha. What are my options? What Can I do? I tried ebay.. nothing.. Called Alienware,.. they didn't have the parts... SERIOUSLY. Is it possible I can get the heat sinks for m9700 and kind of shape them to fit in here??? They are cheaper.. and with a bit of work.. is it possible?! I know there are tons of experts here that know what they are talking about and.. I swear.. any any any any advice right now.. is good advice. Thanks all. Yes I'm freaking amongst other things going on right now

11-27-2008, 12:59 PM	#28 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( actually... all i need is the copper piping. Does anyone know if that type is sold anywhere or something similar? I know that there is something in the tubing that heats up and moves the heat.. I can get this all done real fast if I could find some of this.

11-28-2008, 02:26 PM	#29 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,784 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Since you are trying it DIY and $130 is not an option... may be you can have it repaired by airconditioning/refrigeration technician. I think they can weld copper tubes with their tools of trade. I am not so sure how effective the heatsink will be, I am not even sure if it will work but it sure sounds like an option. __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

11-28-2008, 05:35 PM	#30 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Trigger, My problem basically is that even if I put out the money for it.. I have to find someone who carries them. I need both parts now.. ugh. 130 each. Ok, but these places I see only have the one part. (I think they are all the same place with different names). I can't really find them. Alienware doesn't have them either. So.. in case I can't find these parts (cuz i've about given up) I was thinking of just getting some copper coils and using them.. Now I just need to know what material is inside the copper that transfers the heat to the fan. This is where I'm stuck at right now... although I bet it won't be easy either way.

11-29-2008, 07:59 AM	#31 (permalink)
TriggerFinger Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: USA Posts: 11,784 OS: Vista SP1, XP SP3, PCLinuxOS2007	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Oh ok. Try eBay again or hammerheadtech.com __________________ DBAN - Memtest86+ - BartPE - Linux LiveCD - ImgBurn - HDD Diags - Disk Copy HOW TO BURN AN ISO FILE

11-29-2008, 08:31 PM	#32 (permalink)
parasomia Registered User Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 18 OS: Windows XP	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Hey trigger, Ya I've looked around most places I could think of. Even sent in a request to a place for parts, and no one could find the other part. What a horrible predicament. I'm trying to come up with ideas on how to do this. I wonder how possible it would be to get the heatsinks from the older model (m9700) which are available and cheaper and have the pipes look roughly the same size. However it would require bending/shaping to make them fit in mine. I don't know how well that would work.... I'm thinking a pipe bender might work.. but then again.. I don't know if it would still kink them. UGH!

08-29-2009, 11:41 PM	#33 (permalink)
m4v3rick Registered User Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 1 OS: Vista 64	Re: AW M9750 Problems :( Hello, I know this is an old post but I have an m9750 with the same issue. I have replaced the MOBO (bought from EBAY from a seller that claimed it was tested) but it is still the same..... I'm thinking right now on replacing the video cards or the CPU... did you found a solution?? since I don't want to spend more money on video cards and discover that was not the problem... Anyone has ideas of what could be going on?!