Alienware M14x Overheat shutdown

Hi,

My M14x shuts down while gaming, and i do not mean gaming for straight 8 hours. 30-40 minutes is the maximum life i can get before the screen goes off with a "click" sound.

I know it is a heat issue, i also know the source of heat is probably the GPU. typical temp range while gaming (75-90) I do not overclock it. I used A05 firmware but have now reverted to A03 to tackle the heating problem, to no particular avail.

I tried other low-cost measures such as elevating the laptop by placing some books below it, (without obstructing the fan area) chilling the room to such an extent that i have taught myself how to handle a gamepad with mittens..

Any solutions? i don't know if i should open it up since it is still in warranty.

 

I dont think the GPU is overheat though but I do think it's the CPU, because the CPU is known for its running hot (You can ask most people here, most of them are all experiencing high temp on the i7 CPU), I used to get to the point of near overheat once where the CPU peak temp was 99C while the GPU is max at 73C (See This if you dont believe me).

If it is a GPU fault, then I guess the laptop will lose the detection with the GT555M, if it does, then the way to fix it is to re-install the NVIDIA Driver. But this is temporary only, if it persist, I think you should call Dell because dont wait until it broke because it would be too late. For the CPU, you can try disable the Turbo Boost because I tried it and it seem to help reduce several degree, and if possible you can also try repaste the CPU as well.

But I must ask you one thing, did you get a BSOD before the laptop is shutdown? Because it can help you know a little of what is going on.

 

CGSDR, my computer used to shut down randomly and had the BSOD then suddenly a black screen asking me to insert a boot disc for PICE ethernet cable, what is the problem with my m14x ?

 

I did not get BSOD, my system just went off with a typical "click" sound. Also, we know that Sandy Bridge is supposed to work on higher temps than other processors, but i was not anticipating a shut down because of that.

This shutdown problem is a new development in what i think to be a bigger and worsening problem with heat management. Earlier i used to get audio stuttering and low fps while gaming, I disabled turbo boost, now i do not have audio stuttering but i have overheat shutdown on atleast 7 occasions in 2 days.

I don't have the sufficient skill to open up the system confidently and do thermal paste.

Also, i do not overclock, but i keep Afterburner on to monitor the GPU temp. it does reach 90 and stays there throughout gameplay..

 

I would call dell and make them send a tech to your house to replace the thermal paste on both the gpu and cpu just to be safe.

 

Reapply thermal paste of a good quality.
Ensure turbo boost is off (either in BIOS, or in power management set the max processor state to 99% rather than 100%.
Ensure that PhysX calculations are being handled by the GPU and not CPU. You can set this in nvidia control panel.
Use a cooling fan.

 

dont turn off anything or use any cooling pads. call dell support.

the machine is supposed to work as is.


i mean sure, all that helps keepin the temps in the right place and therefor good for the lifetime of the hardware, but i wouldnt take that while in warranty.

 

dell thermal paste has always been pretty crappy. I don't know how hard it is to get to the CPU, but if you can re-paste, i would definitely recommend it

 

and loose your warranty by accessing non CRUs.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alienware/375100-what-will-not-void-your-warranty.html

 

Like i have stated before, i do not have the required skill to attempt that kind of operation. I mean, sure there are vids and guides out there i have read and seen, but this is my first Alienware and i do not want to end up spending money for something that Dell could have replaced for free, if they do, by voiding the warranty. I am just a noob. :-(

Thanks for your help, anyways. Alroar +1.

 

Oh, I see, so maybe the thermal paste on the GPU are gone or something, you can also use temp monitoring program like RealTemp3691, with this program you can both have it monitor (or even log the data) and able to set an alarm or a beeping sound when it reach the set temp point )you have to do this manually, default is 100C). You can also have it launch program once it reach that temp, it's a good temp monitoring program though, so give it a try.

However I think it is best to contact Dell and ask them if you can replace the laptop because this seem to be very serious problem you have here..

Sorry mate I'm not sure what is your problem though but you might want to run this WhoCrashed program, it analyse the minidump of your recent BSOD and display the possible problem back in plain English, and you can then use the result on Google to find answer, or you can also hop into this Windows Seven Forums - Crashes & Debugging Read the sticky on how to post the BSOD info before you create a new thread this would help speed up the process a little.

However I can tell you that i used to see that kind of BSOD several time during the time I found out that my last HDD is going to fail, before my HDD fail, I randomly receive like 5-10 BSOD per day, but at first it started with one or two and speed up the count, the more I use the laptop, and one of the most frequent error are that one you have and the kernel error (KERNEL_DATA_INPAGE_ERROR to be exact) thing.

 

And u called dell to replace the HDD ?

 

I'd Just follow what CGSDR said if I were you and see if you could get a replacement. If that's not an option, you could bring it to a local computer store and have them put some real thermal paste on and not the dell stuff. I'm just trying to say that the dell paste is horrible and even if it does get replaced, I doubt it will help temps out much

 

That's why I started the heat issue thread,depending on who you talk to at support you'll hear different stories about the m14x and heat issues.Dell engineer's are checking into it right now.That doesn't mean we'll have icy cold machines at full bore,but a fix will come faster, if everyone with an issue speaks up.I spoke with 3 different people from Dell,Bill who helps with issues on forums, and terry with social media relations, and a dell engineer,The people in charge need to see that there's a definite heat design issue,then we'll get a fix.Maybe a bios rev,or a new design,We will find out.Hopefully sooner than later.But call support and also reply to bill@dell on here,he's helping,the furthest Ive gotten yet,was through Bill.

 

Yes, the last time they come, it took that technician like 2hours to complete because I have 3 hardware to replace and plus an hour for the Windows Installation, I told him that he can leave if he like (During the installation) because I do know what driver to install first, but he insist because he said it is his duty to help the customer until everything is done. So I just let him be since it is free because I got a 2 year warranty.

 

I called Dell and made fun of the Indian guy who put on a fake American accent (i'm Indian myself, so the fake accent was kinda funny..)

Anyways, they sent me some parts today- a replacement fan, Thermal paste and something called ASSY on the shipping manifest, and have told me to wait till they send in a technician who can replace them.

Will report if something changes. Thanks a lot to all of you for your help.

 

just curious, but what thermal paste did they send you?

 

i am not sure how to describe it as there are no identifying parameters anywhere on the product or on the manifest. It has a green sticky tape around it though.. I can post a pic if you want.. <sorry for being so noob about it, >

 

its all good, Sounds like its the stock paste. If they apply it right, you should see some lower temps. Let us know how it goes

 

Your GPU temperatures are 10 degrees higher than mine. It is obviously not normal to shutdown like that. I have never had this issue, but I have played Skyrim long enough for my battery charger (power brick) to get so hot that it stops supplying power to the laptop.

 

whats the wattage on the power brick? Just wondering cause it shouldn't get that hot

 

It's 150W. 10 char

 

Hello again,

The dell guy replaced the heat sink, the fan and re-did the thermal paste on both GPU and CPU. The idling temperatures have gone from above 60 to below 50 on all cores. I'l do some gaming and report further if my M14x is almighty again. And, as always, thanks a lot for all your input, specially Bigtonyman and CGSDR

 

so, after gaming for 3 straight hours, no core has registered more than 80 and i have not experienced any audio stuttering or fps drop either. So, we are good!!

Anymore tests i should run before breaking the red bull?

 

sounds like you are good to go. If you really wanna stress test, you can run prime95 and furmark at the same time but with the overheating issues of the m14x i wouldn't recommend it.