G73 GPU Overheating

Hi,

3-4 minutes into a graphically demanding game like GTA IV and DiRT 2, my MemIO temperature goes over 105C, and shortly after the overheat protection kicks in and shuts down the computer. My ambient temp is rather warm at 88F, but compared to temperatures in other posts here, the GPU temp (75C idle, 105+ load) is still abnormally high. Are there effective ways to cool it down short of RMAing it or voiding the warranty by reapplying the thermal paste?

Thanks.

 

First off, the MemIO temps will get quite a bit warmer than anything else due to the use of GDDR5 memory. Regardless, 105* is up there and the fact that your unit is shutting down is bad. Your Ambient temperature definitely has a lot to do with it. You simply cannot keep your machine cool feeding it that kind of hot air.

Your temps do seem a little on the warm side, so you might wanna try an RMA in case a thermal pad isn't seated correctly, but I don't see your ambients giving any machine a fighting chance.

 

MemIO doesn't always get warmer than anything else; it depends how the GPU is installed. My first G73 did the same as yours, and I returned it and got one that keeps its cool ...

 

Also, it's 28C-29C here on a regular basis, so having ambients at 31 doesn't seem like a problem to me...

 

Are you saying your MemIO always ran cooler than other parts of your GPU?

 

I moved the G73 to a different room with 82F ambient temp, and now DiRT 2 tops out at 100C instead of 105. It's still not good, but at least I can avoid sending it back to Asus for an unknown amount of time and the possibility of getting it back with the same or even more problems.

How much would a cooling pad help if the room temperature is high (above 85F)? Where are the air intakes anyway? I only see some slits on the bottom for the RAM.

 

A cooling pad is more a compliment to an already functioning cooling system, not a solution to a problem like yours. The chances are that your GPU is incorrectly seated, or their is a problem with the contact of the heatsink to the GPU die, thermal paste hasn't been applied correctly or there is an issue with the thermal pads or all of the above.

Even in ambient temps like yours, a correctly functioning cooling system will not over heat. My ambient temp is 27C here and I have been playing games, emulation and have been running a defrag in the background and have had no problems at all with any temperatures.

 

Does anyone know if there is a yellow warranty sticker over the GPU heatsink, or is it just for the CPU? Or are they connected? To put more simply, does reapplying the GPU thermal compound myself void the warranty?

 

I suppose if only you tell them However, I am sure you can get in touch with an Asus ASP service place and they can do it for you.

 

Hey Yuxi I am in the same boat as you. Same deal and it's even gotten worse I think as now idle temps are in the 70s. I was considering a cooler as well but as LaptopNut stated, there is a serious problem happening and can't be ignored or fixed with a cooler.

I'm not sure where you are located but I've read someone getting a turn around time of about 10 days and they were located in the US. No clue on times overseas.

I personally hate to send it in as I use it a lot (had to stop my gaming though) and other than the heating issue everything works great. But I can't stand not being able to fire up a game on this thing! It's why I bought it.

Sorry for the rant lol but I felt I could help maybe save you the waiting like I did and just go for it (RMA). I'm about to send mine in next week sometime (unless I don't have time) so I can let you know what happens with my turn around time.

 

I pulled the trigger and got my RMA number just now and will drop it off with Fedex tomorrow. Fingers crossed! The next couple of weeks without my G73 will be long, but as of now it can't get through the first cutscene in GTA without shutting down. It's rediculous.

Good luck with yours!

 

I got a question for you then, how long does it give you to send in notebook with the RMA number? I ask because I would like to get the process started then send it in sometime within the week but I remember some places give you a limited time window with the RMA number given.

 

30 days

10char

 

sticker's only over cpu..
i had similar temps (96-98C on load), opened er up and replaced the stock compound with OCZ freeze, now runs 87-88C load..

 

This happened to me today for the first time, because it's pretty hot outside (35 degrees Celsius ) try lowering the graphics quality

 

Well, I got mine back from RMA. MemIO now hovers at around 107C at full load (an improvement over 110C and shutdown, but come on). TSS0 and TSS2 don't go above 82C. Is it worth going in there myself and redoing the thermal paste again?

Oh and for some erason they decided to replace the keyboard with a darker black one and now the backlight doesn't work.

 

that would mean they also switched your motherboard or it doesn't have backlit keys. I'd be killing someone right about now.

 

On the repair sheet it said they replaced the "vga, kb", then had a problem with the keyboard, then replaced "KEYBOARD 348mm BACKLIGHT(US)".

 

well, whatever they did, they fuxxed up. Unless you need to enable them via Fn+F5?

 

Fn+F4 triggers the on-screen icon like normal, but the lights don't come on. I'm gonna see if they will cross-ship me a new keyboard so I don't have to send it back for another two weeks for them to screw something else up.

 

may not be the keyboard but the mobo

 

Yuxi, i think i have the same issues as you do.

I bought my laptop through my dad's friend, who makes business by buying stuff from Amazon, then shipping them here in Colombia. Called him and he takes completely no responsibility or whatsoever. He told me i need to send it to repair by my own means (as i thought). I think it will be a lot easier for me to RMA-it being in Germany.

 

My low idle is in the 70s too, it used to be in the low 60s. Of course, it's 33 or so ambient right now, and it was 26-28 when I purchased it. I figure with the 2 year warranty, it'll either go back down when the temperature goes back down, or I'll have to get it repaired.

 

Nope, turns out the backlight cable under the keyboard was installed upside down. It's working now

 

ZOMGWTHBBQLOL!!! That's awesome

 

So Yuxi, you did open the laptop, installed thermal stuff to lower the temps, checked the keyboard lights cable, and you got everything working now?

Maaan congrats...im happy cuz at least one of us is getting some results.

Question: Do you guys recommend using a Hair air blower thing or whatever to blow into the air intakes and try cleaning them that way? Im asking about static charges or stuff that could ruin my laptop.

 

Dont you think that blowing air into the vents will push the dust and whatever is clogging'(if there is any) it more inwards and clog it more??Just a food for thought.

And what the hell is a "hair air blower thing"??? Its called a hair dryer.

 

yeah, jaja, you know, that sort of thing happens when you're not a native english speaker =D

Well, i took the risk and put the hair dryer in the GPU vent while watching the GPU temps. Went as low as 66C with that thing on, and as soon as i turn it off it just goes back again to 77C. This are idle-ish temps. Just browsing the net and doing some skype.

I guess i will just play warcraft III until i'm in Germany and i have some other options.

 

my idle temps are about 60C with current weather

 

Hi my Idle temp is 66c and 92c max DAO for 2 hours.

 

i'm getting 92c even on old, no demanding games like torchlight.
this is just really sad
Any ideas?

 

89-91c playing warcraft III, can you guys believe that?

 

Seems pretty clear you have a cooling system problem.

Fix it yourself or get it fixed! What are you waiting for?

Continuously posting about it here isn't going to fix it I reckon

 

Lak666, the most straightforward fix is to take it apart and apply thermal paste yourself (replacing the OEM thermal pads). Take a look at BTOtech's G73 disassembly guide and see if that's something you can/are willing to do:

YouTube - Asus G73Jh Disassembly Take Apart G73 Replace Video Card G73 service manual

I followed that video step by step this morning. It took me about 2 hours total (including diassembly, applying paste to the GPU, VRAM, and voltage regulator modules, and reassembly). It's tedious but doesn't take much skill other than using a screwdriver and handling a few ribbon cables.

 

i am willing to do it, but i want to RMA it as well for the keyboard lights as well, so im gonna wait.

Anyway, this month will be two months since i have this laptop. Am i still able to use my warranty for those issues?

 

When you RMA it for the keyboard lights why not ask them to fix the overheating problem too? Then if you get it back with little/no improvement on the overheating (like me), go in and do it yourself.

 

of course im going to ask them to fix any and all of my issues. Else there just would be no point on doing it!
i just did the form because i am seriously thinking about sending it on Monday. I'm tired of trying stuff and i really want my keyboard lights back.
If i send it, you guys think there would be any trouble with the laptop running cracked non-legal software? i.e. the Windows 7 Ultimate version is just a download from torrents, like the games as well.
What about the custom vBios posted by Ziddy?. You think there would be any trouble if i send it back with it installed? Should i flash it back to its original?
I wanted to try the old version anyway, to see if this flashing process is causing my problems.
BTW Yuxi, how long it took your laptop to start with the overheating issues? I don't even have 2 months with mine.

 

That's very nice video. Used it to replace my speakers. Have tested it after thermal paste replacement? What improvement have you noticed?

 

how much thermal paste did you need for that?
also when applying it to the VRAM isn't there a problem with the cover?

 

Once you've put load on the GPU, it'll get hot if powerplay is off. A tiny bit of load is nothing (aero, or DXVA), but if the GPU is using shaders and memory, then it'll get hot.

Kinda like the pentium 4/prescott chips that always ran hot even when not under much load, just having some current led to heat.

 

Yes, but there's a difference between getting "normal" hot under load (around 90C) and skyrocketing to 110C and triggering thermal protection and shutting down the computer within minutes. Reapplying thermal paste generally fixes the latter problem.

 

Hey,
My G73 also started over heating when playing any game. I sent it to be RMA'ed. Has anyone gotten their G73 RMA'ed and got it back working like new?

To the guy with the cracked software... Take out your hard drives before sending you lapy off.

I live in Canada so its never very hot here and if it does get hot I have AC. My home is normally around 22c. I vacuum the vents weekly (3 cats and a dog).

My GPU hits 110c after about 2-5mins of game play and powers down the laptop. My biggest concern at this point is Asus's ability to repair the over heating problem.

Please let me know if anyone didn't have to re-thermalpaste their G73 to get it running right again after an RMA from ASUS.

 

It's hit or miss, depending if the tech is competent, or a bugbear.

 

I didn't have to redo my thermal paste after getting mine back from....I chose to just to be sure that was as low as it would get temp wise. It had been idling around 59-60 upon return.

 

I had the same overheating issue few months ago and was very disappointed. After 10-15 minutes of NFS Shift the GPU MemIO temperature was going above 110C and system was shutting down. At first I was thinking about RMAing the laptop to Asus or repasting it by myself. However, then I decided to push some air into the vents on the back of the laptop with my mouth. Somehow this worked. Temps dropped to high 80s when playing NFS Shift. It seems that in my case radiators have clogged with the dust and air cannot freely pass throw, causing the overheat at high stress. When I breath into it it pushes some of the dust from radiators. This does not completely solve the problem, since I have to do this procedure about once per month, but for now it seems to be better than opening, cleaning and repasting the laptop. Also the temps continue to stay pretty warm, at low 90s for NFS Shift. Last time before I made this idle temp for GPU MemIO was 68C, after doing it dropped to 62C, while for NFS Shift it was reaching low 100s, after it is staying at low 90s with 30% GPU fan speed ( it ussually goes to 100% when temps go above 100C). If somebody knows the way of accessing the radiators and fans without opening the whole laptop, I would be glad to know.

 

My idle temps are around 72deg and playing DA2 it goes max till 104deg. I am able to play now since i blew air in the vents and temp dropped 6-7deg, before i just used to get a black screen. I would like to know as well if there is an easier way to clean without opening the whole laptop.

 

I don't think there is another way to clean the heat sink and fans without opening it. If blowing pressured air into the vents can't solve the problem, you have to open it up to clean and/or repaste, either by yourself or by warranty or paid services.

 

What software are you guys using to check your temps? I'm have overheating problems and need to check what temp my GPU is running at.

 

Use HWinfo32

Here: HWiNFO32 Download

 

Does BIOS upgrade ease these heating issues?

I haven't touched BIOS, but I have upgraded vBIOS to v93. Then I got rid of GSOD, but I still had shutdowns and occasional crashes when playing Crysis 2.

I dusted off my G73Jh, and then I was able play Crysis 2 without crashes or shutdowns! but GPU is still occasionally reaching 100C and throttling, especially on cut-scenes.

Don't know my BIOS version. I bought my G73Jh about a half a year ago, and I haven't touched BIOS. I am at work now, so I can't check...

So, is there any benefit from upgrading BIOS, or is re-paste only option to go forward?

I would not want to brick my laptop in vain...
Thanks!