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    M17x R1 Card Overheating

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by Roah27, Mar 31, 2011.

  1. Roah27

    Roah27 Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hey guys, I'm so glad I've found these forums a while ago! So far, 100% of all the help I needed with this computer has came from here. Alas, I have one more problem to add to the list of issues (small or not) I've come across as a first time laptop owner.

    One of my Geforce 280m cards overheating seems to be all the new *rave* right now. The first thing that caught my attention was when I was playing a few games after about 10 minutes it felt as though my cards were throttling and my fps was taking random nosedives (even when nothing was going on). Up untill this time I had been using an ATI tool (lol) to see how hot my cards were getting, to which the highest this tool says is about 69 celsius- and I didn't think that was bad.

    Then I got cpu-z. Apparently that ATI tool was only checking one card, because when I ran a report using cpu-z while in game it showed one card going up to 69 or 70, yet the other was at 96! That's four degrees from boiling point! I reached my hands around the laptop to feel how hot it was (towards the back, underneath). My left hand was warm, but my right hand got BURNED.

    It *feels* like the fans are working on both sides, but I can't be sure. Could there be any other reason to this? Should I try to take this thing apart and clean the fans and whatnot out? I've never cleaned out a laptop before, but I suppose this needed to be done eventually. I just don't get why one card's fine, yet the other could cook my eggs- and both of the fans appear to be working. Does this make sense?


    Thanks a ton for any help ;)
     
    Roah27, Mar 31, 2011
    #1
  2. -l-Z3K3-l-

    -l-Z3K3-l- Notebook Consultant

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    I would get the teardown guide for the laptop and talk a look to see if the fans are being blocked, and to indeed make sure the fans are working.
    Alienware : Documentation en ligne
     
    -l-Z3K3-l-, Mar 31, 2011
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  3. alex.galie

    alex.galie Notebook Enthusiast

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    When did you clean it last time ?

    Check this out.
     
    alex.galie, Apr 1, 2011
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