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    Thermal Throttle Intermittent

    Discussion in '2015+ Alienware 13 / 15 / 17' started by thunderbirds, Jun 30, 2015.

  1. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    So this happen intermittent
    As soon i boot up the fan spin fast for 1-2 Minutes, Checking in HWINFO it shows that temp reaching 90C and core 1 & 3 Thermal Throttle

    During gaming it happens sometimes but i dont notice any performance drop
    While browsing temp idle around 50-60 then for 1-2 second jumps to 80-90 then back normal

    This happen after last service call a tech came to replace CPU fan, He did repaste on CPU and having this issue

    Possible Systemboard issue or bad pasting job ? I really dont want to replace the Systemboard with a refurbished one
     
    thunderbirds, Jun 30, 2015
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  2. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    That sounds like a bad pasting job to me. It was fine before he touched it? No throttling?
     
    kgh00007, Jun 30, 2015
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  3. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    before he opened up the system it was perfect
     
    thunderbirds, Jun 30, 2015
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  4. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah, I've had a similar thing happen on an old Dell laptop, had the CPU & MOBO changed by a tech in my house. CPU going up to 90°C after 10mins idling and then BSOD!

    I'm considering doing a repaste myself on my AW 15 for my thermal throttling issues, because I know I can do it right!

    The heatsink and CPU should be cleaned properly and the heatsink tinted with the new paste. And the CPU should be coated thinly.

    These guys I think just add another blob in and stick it all back together.

    Would you consider repasting yourself?

    I'm worried about the lottery of maybe getting another unit with more issues!
     
    kgh00007, Jun 30, 2015
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  5. Alienware-L_Porras

    Alienware-L_Porras Company Representative

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    It does seem like it needs new thermal paste.
     
    Alienware-L_Porras, Jul 1, 2015
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  6. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Will replacing the thermal paste yourself void the warranty or is it allowed?
     
    kgh00007, Jul 1, 2015
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  7. Alienware-L_Porras

    Alienware-L_Porras Company Representative

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    It's allowed.
     
    Alienware-L_Porras, Jul 1, 2015
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  8. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Awesome thanks!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 1, 2015
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  9. T2050

    T2050 Notebook Deity

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    Think the tech might of used a screw driver to scrape off the thermal paste like someone else had it done to their machine
     
    T2050, Jul 4, 2015
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  10. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    He did use screw driver to scrap it off then put a new paste

    What is the correct way to remove the paste then
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 6, 2015
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  11. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Isopropyl alcohol should be used to clean off the old thermal paste or a dedicated thermal paste remover.

    I just did a repaste on my 15 and I used Arctic Silver ArtiClean to remove the old paste. This is what my CPU looked like after it was cleaned.
    20150705_135218.jpg

    Using a screw driver on the CPU is quite scary!!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 6, 2015
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  12. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    finally after quiet sometimes its doing the same habbit as my previous unit
    new unit throttle.PNG
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 7, 2015
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  13. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    waiting for tech arrival this week
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 7, 2015
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  14. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Oh no, that's likely because of the bad paste job the last guy did!

    Would you try the repaste yourself? It's covered under warranty and you would probably do a better job yourself!

    If not, make sure you watch the tech and try to make sure he does a good job!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 7, 2015
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  15. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    unfortunately i dont know how to open it, i did watch some guide on this forum but too many screw makes me choked lol
    I have the tech coming today and im gonna explain him what happened to gonna watch him do it
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 7, 2015
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  16. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Yeah, it's a big job alright!

    Well good luck, I hope it goes well!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 7, 2015
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  17. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    replaced new motherboard and heatsink
    its not throttling as per the previous screenshot i post but temp are still reach up to 95C and hwinfo shows that it does thermal throttle on all cores

    what could be possible solution for this
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 7, 2015
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  18. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    and now it start throttling again LOL
    im going kuku
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 7, 2015
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  19. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    Latest throttle
    latest throttle.PNG

    Was with tech support for an hour they did all the testing
    Was told they will call tomorrow to discuss either to replace new laptop or full refund depending
    at this point i gave up and will be happy to take full refund
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 8, 2015
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  20. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Aw man, you're not having any luck! Maybe try another replacement, but don't let any tech's near it if you have any problems. My experience has been that they can cause more problems than they solve!

    I hope you get sorted out, let us know what happens!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 8, 2015
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  21. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    You have nothing to loose by trying a repaste yourself.....
     
    kgh00007, Jul 8, 2015
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  22. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    honest im not good in opening and fixing it back
    this is my 3rd replacement unit and i lost hope on Alienware
    Im going to try the option for refund if that doesn't work then no choice go for exchange and probably i will try to sell it back
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 8, 2015
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  23. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    UPDATE: So they approved for refund and said not possible for exchange
    sending out the unit to dell today, sux it takes a month to process for refund itseems
    RIP Alienware 3 unit exchanged and all of them is a Lemon
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 9, 2015
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  24. kgh00007

    kgh00007 Notebook Evangelist

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    Sorry to hear that, I hope you have better luck with whatever you buy next!
     
    kgh00007, Jul 13, 2015
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  25. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    decided to build a desktop
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 13, 2015
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  26. thunderbirds

    thunderbirds Notebook Consultant

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    Ridiculous, dell refunding amount lower than what i paid for
     
    thunderbirds, Jul 14, 2015
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  27. unclewebb

    unclewebb ThrottleStop Author

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    Let them know that you will be filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. That usually gets their attention.
     
    unclewebb, Jul 15, 2015
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  28. DeeX

    DeeX THz

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    Multiple people need to file a BBB complaint with Dell in Austin.. not Alienware. For ALL issues! If this happens it will get attention. If single people here and there do it, Dell will blow them off. Also contacting tech support at the same time is also ideal.
     
    DeeX, Jul 15, 2015
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