M18X-R2 Shuts itself off when moving/opening the display

I've got a problem with my M18x-R2. It's only recently started. Sometimes when I move my display (change the angle, or close the lid and open it back up), the laptop will shut off. It's as if it's loosing power.

It isn't a software issue as I don't have the lid close action assigned to anything. I've also disabled the free fall sensor just in case that would have been the culprit.

Does anybody have any ideas what could cause this? Are there any power cables that run through the display hinges?

I'm at a loss here and don't really want to call in an uneducated tech yet to mess with my brand new system.

 

Might be the LVDS (motherboard to monitor) cable causing a problem, since it happens when moving the display panel. The cable could have a short, and they are somewhat prone to failure.

 

A tech came and changed teh LVDS cable today. Unfortunately, it didn't solve the problem (it looked like it did at first, but it still happens, just not as often as it used to). Now they want to change the mainboard. Could that really be the culprit?

 

Sorry to hear that Gizmo. It very well could be the mainboard. Replacing the mainboard is a very involved task but not impossible. I've done two or three mainboard replacements on my beast. Make sure the tech takes their time with your baby and notes every screw and cable. Don't be afraid to ask questions and if it looks like they are obviously "struggling" ask them politely to stop and call Dell before things spiral out of control. Let us know how it goes.

 

It could be that, I'm thinking also that there could be a short somewhere in there so hopefully the tech will be able to fix that for you.

 

Thank you very much for your response. I've been thinking a short as well. What's the best way to check for shorts? Are there any usual suspects for such culprits that I could alert the tech to double-check?

I've now noticed it doesn't only happen when moving the display but also when there are small concussions or when moving the laptop altogether. In addition, the laptop sometimes just shuts off the same way in the middle of just having it sit at the desktop without touching it or watching TV through HDMI-in now. The tech was supposed to come last week, but since there was a strike at some airlines apparently, the new mainboard didn't arrive so he'll hopefully come and fix it tomorrow.

 

Wow, the laptop just shut itself off out of the blue after hitting reply now (but not on my touchpad, on my external Logitech G700 mouse that I had placed on my bed, so there were no tremors). Apparently the above reply still went through, however. These shutdowns out of the blue are now getting more and more frequent.

The Windows Reliability History only says under Critical Events "Windows was not properly shut down". When I click "view technical details" it only says "The previous system shutdown at xx:xx:xx on xx.‎xx.‎2013 was unexpected." So nothing conclusive here. Since the system just shuts off, there also isn't any memory dump to analyze.

 

So, this happened without influence by moving the display panel?

After your fans working correctly? What are the CPU and GPU temps looking like? Maybe it is shutting down from overheating. Were you using the laptop on a hard surface in bed, or where the vents on the bottom blocked off by your bedding?

 

Lately, yes, it's been shutting down even while just sitting idle on the desk and untouched at times, sometimes while gaming.
Moving the display, however, allows me to reproduce it almost every time still and if I put some slight tremor on it (if a cat jumps on the desk, for example, or if I'm using it in bed and simply shift my weight), it often shuts down, too (not nearly as often as when moving the display, though).

I don't know. Is there a way to check if those work except looking at the laptop from below (any software that can show their RPM, perhaps)? All three do seem to blow air, especially under load. It's alot less than my old M17x-R2 this was the replacement for, however, thus I'm unsure if they're working properly. I suspect they do.

Core temperatures vary between 74°C to 82°C under load (Prime95 64 bit), GPUs on FurMark reach around 68-72°C. Idle the CPU's cores are around 36-42°C while the GPUs sit at approximately 44°C-50°C. There is no throttling on the video cards at full load, but the CPU's turbo boost throttles back a bit.
Are these temperatures high? I was thinking to ask the tech to repaste the CPU and GPUs with Arctic Silver 5 (which I have at home) just in case while he changes the mainboard. Is that a good idea (the CPU will have to be repasted anyway, but how about the GPUs?)?
Something else that I couldn't figure out how to monitor may be overheating, of course. chipset or whatnot. Any way to monitor those?
Also, when the system does shut off from overheating from what I've seen from videos, the shutdown takes a second or so, while for me it shuts down immediately, almost as if you were to pull the power supply out without the battery connected (I do have the battery connected).

The laptop sits on a CoolerMaster NotePal U3 stand (without fans). When I use it in bed or on the couch, it the U3 with laptop stands on an ordinary wooden "breakfast in bed" tray with legs, when used on the desk they are on the desk.
The shutdowns also happen when the laptop stands flat on the desk without U3 however (I tested just in case it didn't like to work at an angle for whatever reason).

I've run the startup diagnostics and Alien Autopsy, none found any errors. I ran an overnight Memtest86 (a version that tests up to 64GB RAM), and had no errors. Running Prime95 64 bit for 6 hours also didn't yield any shutdowns. What's weird, however, is that the system shut down just a minute or so after stopping and exiting Prime95. I'm not sure if I'm imagining things, but it seems that the shutdowns happen during cooldown periods of the system. For example, when I opened the window next to the desk where the laptop sits to let cool air in, the lapop shut down immediately a couple of times. I attributed it to a very slight tremor from opening/closing the window and change in air pressure, but could the actual drop in temperature (~22°C room temperature vs. ~5°C air from outside) be a possible symptom for something?

 

I feel your pain, hope it gets fixed quick, it sounds like a MB issue.

 

The tech came this noon and exchanged the mainboard. He also applied some Arctic Silver 5 to the CPU and GPUs. No shutdowns so far for the whole day and my CPU and GPU temperatures under load went down by around 10°C. I hope it stays that way and the problem is truly solved.

 

Great news Gizmo! Game on:thumbsup:

 

Yeah, that's great news! - way to go, Field Tech's!!

 

Glad to hear everything went well Gizmo! I agree with steviejones133; it sounds like you had an awesome field tech.
Now go forth and conquer!

 

Great, I just noticed that Bluetooth 4.0 functionality is now missing with the new mainboard. There is nothing in the device manager anymore and if I use the wireless switch to turn it on/off it only toggles wireless, only Bluetooth. Bluetooth is enabled in the BIOS and the switch toggles all.

Is the Bluetooth 4.0 module part of the mainboard or is there an expansion card somewhere? I don't remember the tech removing and replacing a separate expansion card for it, just the Killer Wireless card.

 

I own a R1 and it is a separate board.. really slim. I took a peek at the R2 manual (Chap 49 and 50) and saw that it is also a card.

From the manual:

"Your computer has one half Mini-Card slot which supports a Wireless Local Area Network
(WLAN) + Bluetooth combo card."

 

Apparently, the tech that replaced the motherboard accidentally forgot to transfer the Bluetooth module. It is located on the opposite side of the motherboard, connected to an internal USB port. Killer Wireless 1103 and Intel Ultimate-N 6300 are 3x3 MIMO cards that do not have integrated Bluetooth. M18x R2 owners that purchased a system with a lesser WiFi option do not have a discrete Bluetooth module, since it is integrated with the WiFi card. Alienware Support will need to send one if you cannot reach the tech to have him grab it before sending the old part back to Dell. Maybe if you are lucky he has not shipped it back yet.

In this photo it is visible in the lower left corner	Here is an image from the service manual

 

Yeah, it looks like the tech forgot to transfer that one over to the new mainboard. Unfortunately, even though he still had the old board and module, he wasn't allowed to just bring the module and install it, so I had to call Support again and they are sending me a tech with another Bluetooth module.

 

So the tech came today with a new WPAN Bluetooth card and cable. Unfortunately, the cable Dell supplied with it doesn't fit the connector on the mainboard. Here is a picture of the dark mainboard connector and the considerably broader connector on the supplied cable hovering above it:


The cable is also a thin, round one, not the broad, flat one that is on the pictures Mr. Fox supplied:



The tech called Dell but they have no clue what part number the proper cable has and think the one that they supplied should be the proper one. Does anybody know the correct part number for that cable, by any chance?


In any case the tech won't be able to come again until Tuesday, as there are Easter holidays here until then.

 

Dell sent the tech a bunch of cables to try out and one worked. The part number of the proper WPAN Bluetooth 4.0 cable is 0436V8 for reference. The tech also replaced the keyboard rim with the power button and media keys as well as the palmrest that had the plastic clips broken by the techs in their previous repair attempts. They are sending me a new bottom cover, too, as the screwholes were broken during repairs as well when a tech tightened the screws too much.

 

That's great news! - thanks for posting your update. It's good that they are taking care of your machine and making sure it's in 100% condition too. Way to go Dell!!

 

Hello to all, well I just got my m18x R2 and noticed I have the same problem as the others. When I move my lid a few times the system just shuts down. I have noticed that this only happens when I am in Windows, and I cannot reproduce the issue in BIOS or during system diagnostics. I am toying with the idea that it may be the LDVS cable and/or motherboard but saw those parts are floating around $450 together. I do not have Dell warranty yet, and the company that I bought it from only gave me a 30 day warranty. Will this issue reappear over time if the cables go bad? If so should I go ahead get the warranty or return it for another? Sorry if this post goes in another thread.

 

Return it while you can.. You never know when these issues can happen again..

 

Well this is interesting, after being on/off the phone for 3 hours to get the laptop registered in my name, Dell informs me I have existing warranty on the laptop. I spent another 30 minutes with tech support and was told the motherboard and LCD assembly will need to be replaced. I opted to have it sent to the depot in case anything else arises (I like getting computers in the mail ).