G73JH - After 18 months, blank screen and automatic reboot after few seconds. But...

Hello,

I registered on this forum because there is a problem I can't fix on my G73JH.

The problem started one week ago, the HD5870 appeared as VGA standard on Windows.
So I cleaned and reinstalled the mobility drivers and I had no problem for few days.
Since this weekend, the screen stays blank (without backlight) and the laptop restart by itself after few seconds. I can hear the fans, see the buttons and keyboard backlights.
There are also some boots with a blank screen but I can hear the Windows sounds.

And sometimes(after 25 tentatives), it works fine and I can access to Windows.
So, I think the problem is the GPU. But as it works fine few times, it is not dead (yet).

I thought the VBIOS could be corrupted, so I updated it with Gary Key's tutorial.
The update has been correctly done but nothing changed.
I tried a Hard Reset (I don't know its function) but there are no differences.


The laptop is now out of warranty (bought in March 2010). I can send it to Asus but do you know if there is something I can try before?
As I can access to Windows each +/-25 reboots, I have a little hope that it can be fixed.
Another question, do you know if I can change the GPU by myself?
And do you have an idea of the cost of a reparation without warranty?

Thanks,

Configuration:
G73JH
Intel i7
HD5870 1GB
6 GB RAM
Full HD
HDD 500GB x2

 

First things first does it work on an external screen? If you haven't yet tried that is your first point of call to fix the problem.

Normally if it does show up then its the screen if it does not show up then its the GPU.

My money is on loose connection from GPU to screen if its intermittant, if it boots on the external output this should confirm.

 

Thank you for the answer, unfortunately I have no other screen.
I will try to come with it at work tomorrow...

But I am not moving the screen between tentatives (the G73 reboots by itself). And if the GPU is not the cause, I wonder why the card is recognized by windows as VGA Standard instead of an HD5870.

 

That is driver related and your problem could just be the drivers it does not sound like the GPU to me because if the GPU was fried it would not intermitantly work.

When you flash the Vbios it will reset it to stock drivers and Standard VGA or at least mine did, I then had to update my drivers which BSOD and gave me a similiar problem to you I just linked it to an external screen and cleaned the drivers and reinstalled them, this could be your problem however connecting it to an external output will confirm.

If not my money is still on a loose connection.

 

Ok, I will try asap.
You also had the automatic restart at startup (the screen is blank even before the Asus logo)?
I thought the drivers had no impact on the GPU card before loading Windows.

 

So let me get this straight because im confused you said it was booting into windows and you could hear the sound but no screen, now your saying it just keeps restarting at startup.

It does sound like a loose connection to be honest something is shorting out if it be the GPU or the connection to the screen. Have you dropped or banged the notebook? Confident with a dissassembly? i would tear is apart personally and check all connections before ruling a GPU/screen failure.

Check with an external screen first though. Rule that out.

 

It's all in one, the laptop is often restarting after few seconds but not at each boot.
Sometimes Windows is launched but with a blank screen (so, manual reboot..).
And after a while (from 5 to 25 boots, it's random), the screen is lighting up without any reason. So I can access to Windows.

No, the laptop has not moved from its table since weeks and it has not been beaten.

I already disassembled some laptops, but not a so expensive one.
As I have no other idea, I will try that after the external screen test.

Thank you

 

Try the external screen and then wait for other input from the forum before dissassembling with those symptoms it might well be the screen im sure someone had the same problem a while back but I cannot find the thread and it was their backlight not always turning on.

 

You also may have had a bad install of the Catalyst drivers.

I would certainly test the unit using the HDMI out. That alone may reset some of the internal settings.

Also, can you see if booting to Safe Mode helps?

 

And check the hard drive(s). Seagate I presume? Bad sectors or failing disks will invariable cause failures like you're experiencing. Use seatools either in dos or using another computer with your hard drives plugged in via external to check for errors. If your hard drive is failing it could easily cause such issues.

 

Ok, I tried on an external monitor, no changes.
The laptop reboot itself as usual and the monitor still blank.

The Self mode does not help, I'm often blocked before, just few seconds after the boot.
So, this weekend I will open it and try to boot without some components...

 

If it is consistently booting past BIOS, it's usually a software problem OR a hard drive issue. Sure, you might have some hardware problems that don't activate until specific drivers are installed (GPU), but you should still be able to consistently get into windows if you know your hard drive is good. Try using a liveCD of some distro to test...

 

FYI, I had this exact issue also. Black screen, reboots, sometimes work, but unstable. It would often BSOD before it died, I also reloaded drivers with no luck. I also had mine for 18 months almost as well, I bought mine at Best Buy the hour that they arrived at my local store.

I had the Best Buy extended service that ended up attempting to repair it several times out of state and they had no luck either. They wrote it off and it's being replaced tomorrow.

 

I found this post researching the same problem.

To clarify the issue, the computer crashes occasionally when gaming. When starting the computer, occasionally, it will try to start up, but stops and then a second later it tries again. The computer posts, and boots up Windows all w/o anything on the screen. It makes all the right noises, and all the right lights come on, but no screen. I tried using the external monitor and HDMI connections with different monitors and they were also blank.

Any ideas?

 

gpu deaD .
try pressing reset button;

 

JamesonD, if reset does not work, remove battery and AC - hold power button for 10 seconds. Then retry boot. I have to do this once in a while, hopefully it will not happen when I go to sell it

 

On my system it was determined to actually be the PCI-e buss that was bad, thus the mobo was shot. It was old enough the repair people could not get a new motherboard and thus the extended warranty was cashed out.

 

Yeah, I bought this unit refurbished to save some cash and had it for a few months before this issue cropped up. When it crashes, the windows help center tells me that it was an issue with the PCI-e and wants me to send HP more info. I filled out the survey once, but nothing has come of it. I have tried the whole battery/ac removal, power button for 30 secs, reboot trick, and it doesn't always work. I don't mind opening it up and replacing parts, but I want to get the right one on the first try. My accountant (who sleeps next to me) isn't going to be happy if I start dumping a bunch of cash into it.

So, what can I do to troubleshoot it and narrow it down to the right part? A mobo and a gpu will likely get me to what I payed for it in the first place. So, I'd like to get it down to one or the other.

 

man , if your systems turns on and keyboard lights blink at start up then you dont have to worry about the mobo, then the gpu is dead,
but when powered on the laptop and lights up and doesnt do anything that means you can suspect ram. if your processor is dead laptop turns on and turn off after a second.

 

Ok, pardon my ignorance here, but a few of you guys said to press the reset button.... What do you mean by that? I'm not aware of a reset button. So, if there is one, please enlighten me to it's location lol. Or, is this a reference to a process?

 

what your g73 model?

 

It's the G73jh

 

not that, is it an bst7 , bst9 , rbxx5 , A1, A2 tell ,because in bst7 or bst9 you wont find the reset hole.

 

The reset button is accessible from under the laptop, you'll notice a small round hole on the bottom of the notebook that requires something like a paperclip to push it. That is the reset button. I can't remember if it's to the left or the right.

 

What all does the reset button reset? Are we talking BIOS reflashing? OS reinstallation? I just want to know what to protect before I do it.

 

It just clears the bios setting back to default. It's essentially the same as removing the battery for the bios that is on the motherboard and isn't easily accessible.