How to Fix Your GSOD Blues

This is not me ranting. Im getting the facts straight and i refrained from writing anything like "asus and their g73jh is awful" or anything like it. What bothered you so much about that post?

 

I believe his G73 was company provided and he is selling it to buy the JW since it must look like the JH the company originally provided. As annoying as his posts sometime are (he can be a bit argumentative), he does have a few valid points about the quality or lack thereof as it pertains to the unit(s) he's received and or had repaired.

Perhaps once he completes the sale and receives his new JW he will focus on dissecting his new toy and you will no longer see him here.

Cheers,

 

Thats pretty much it. I do hope i get my new toy as you put it .
If it works out and it doesnt give me too much trouble ill probably spend my time using it to game instead of hanging around here...

 

so guys (and lady)... to sum up the whole situation: the vbios and bios updates fixes the g73jh GSOD problems as long as you don't have a defective GPU from factory? That's the final veredict? case close?

 

I dont think anyone can give you a final verdict yet. The beta vBios is still pretty new and id say some time has to pass to see how effective it really is.
It worked fine for some time for me, but i started to get GSODs again as two more members here. Others are still enjoying a GSOD free laptop. Theres also the stuttering problem, but i cant exactly pinpoint if its really the vBios itself that causes it.

 

Repeatedly posting the same thing until you get a response is not appreciated by most folks here. Try to be considerate in the future.

Cheers,

 

"Asus wont support the new vBios because if you screw up in flashing it is your own fault. You cant blame Asus then and they are not responsible. The latest models has already updated in the factory like the latest bios."

- Why is it that Asus supports BIOS 211 and the rest of their mainboard bioses available for download? There's equal risk in flashing your mainboard bios as well yes? All it really takes is a company disclaimer to rid themselves of liability, and they've done that with their mainboard bioses. In fact it's pretty common practice actually that companies release bios updates periodically, and the onus is on you to perform the update safely and correctly. So again, why not the vBIOS then? When you think about it, it's even less risky than the G73JH mainboard bios... at least if one does screw up the vBIOS, one can resolve the issue by blind-flashing.

"SO i'm trying to say that electric devices does not worn down like mechanical devices example car brakes. They just die."

- I completely disagree. From my experiences, I've seen many solid-state components "wear" to the "point" of failure. What we see as the "consumer" is the "They just die" (point of failure) part as you've stated, but what you don't realize or see is all that happened PRIOR to the point of failure of that device/component.

A good past example is the Nvidia G84/G86 GPU fiasco. Long story short, Nvidia used the incorrect solder material to connect the I/O termination of the silicon chip to the pad on the substrate. Now over time as this GPU is exposed to more heat cycles (heating up and cooling down), that solder bump would experience fatigue cracking. Now it was reported that laptop users were more prone to fatigue cracking which makes sense as cooling is just not as efficient in the confines of a laptop. Add to that a gaming environment, and you'll experience fatigue cracking even sooner. Now this is not to say that desktop users of this GPU were problem-free; they too carried these defective GPUs, but their failures were simply delayed due to the more spacious and cooler environments of desktop cases.

In fact, at the time, Nvidia stated that failure would only occur at "extreme temperatures" which wasn't the case because many reported that failure would occur a little above 70 degrees celsius.

Now if you've been following up to this point, then we should be agreeable of the fact that this was a Nvidia engineering fault correct? And going by what the Nvidia engineers have stated or hinted at, it's obvious they are also aware of the thermal threshold of their faulty GPU, and exactly the point in which the faulty solder material melts and cools again resulting in fatigue cracking/cold solder.

Ok, now let's go back to what you said regarding engineers and software...

"I asked two electronics engineers about this issue: "That does software update extend the life span of computer." Answer: no they do not. "If example graphic card is faulty or damaged does updating it fix it". Answer: No it wont."

- So we've recognized Nvidia's engineering fault, and we know that the faulty solder material is prone to fatigue cracking at a specific temperature correct? Now instead of mass RMA'ing, couldn't their engineers have also engineered software to perhaps allow the GPU to run cooler, and hopefully prevent the solder bump from reaching its thermal point of failure?

Your engineering friends stated that a software update won't extend the life span of the GPU? Clearly in Nvidia's case, it would have. As I've mentioned above, it has been reported that Desktop users were less likely to experience this problem as a result of their more efficiently cooled and spacious environments.

Your engineering friend also stated that a software update cannot fix a faulty piece of hardware. I COMPLETELY agree. I don't think they have as evident from recent posts here.

And that is why I commend Nvidia for their actions. They UNDERSTOOD that any type of software release would not solve the ROOT of the problem but only delay hardware failure. They owned up and acknowledged the fact (even though it took some time) that their hardware was faulty and required replacement or re-soldering with the proper materials.

Now again going back to your point of "electric" devices just dying... I hope you realize now there is always a cause for a failure. There are a lot of traces, solder points, and solid-state components in that XBOX360 of yours ... without knowing the ins & outs of that system (which I don't), and the pathways in which electricity flows through the unit, we can't assume that solid-state components "just die".

There's always a cause. Yes, I am agreeable that mechanical devices are more susceptible to failure because of the abundance of moving parts, but that's not to say that "electric devices" just die without cause. Heck, I could wear/burn out something as simple as a wire by pushing more amperage through it than it's spec'ed for (higher resistance=heat).

So no, things don't just die. Humans don't just die, and we're pretty complex beings. I don't just die. It'd take 5 big macs, 3 bags of cheesies, 5 milkshakes, and 20 strips of bacon in one sitting before I die.

Lastly, I'm just here to report the experiences I've had with my G73JH. Now if I remember correctly, your original post asked if you should upgrade to the most recent vBIOS. Myself and many others (including Chastity) have stated that it would be beneficial that you do perform the upgrade. We've answered your question, and we should just leave it at that.

There's no need to justify your actions or beliefs. I was simply reporting what I've experienced with my particular G73JH, and that was the most logical conclusion I've arrived at. Your G73JH experiences may be different, and hence you will conclude differently. Whatever conclusion floats your boat is ok by me man. I was just saying it as it is like I always do.

 

I just got a gsod playing WOW. The sound was stuttering and it was a fuzzy grey screen. Is that the GSOD because I never experienced on stock on 10.1 and bios.

 

What BIOS, vBIOS and drivers are you running now?

Cheers,

 

I don't consider it ranting.

Those are his experiences with HIS G73JH, and they've been crappy experiences so far. He's just reporting his progression of events. Nothing wrong with that.

Put yourself in his shoes. All those that are GSOD-free now should be grateful. It's funny how I didn't see any "ranting complaints" before this recent vBIOS release People seem to forget so quickly what it WAS like a couple of months ago for G73JH owners. How one quickly forgets when things are running smoothly and singles out the user having problems.

 

2.11 and latest vbios. Using 10.8 drivers.

 

sounds like one. unfortunately driver crashes can cause one too. let us know if you get more.

 

I've had no problems and over 200+ hrs(until now) of using the laptop, mainly gaming, raiding long hours since the day the vbios came out.

 

Dear gents!

I fellow that thread and previous ones, about gsod and vbios problems since the beginning as I’m also a G73jh owner, experiencing those problems.
I did all upgrades and so far so good until now no more problem, but I didn’t yet check it carefully as I didn’t have time to do intensive gaming since upgrades.
Anyway I would like to thanks Gary and other peoples from this forum who did (and are still doing) a grate job to fix our problems.

Regarding the Vbios, it seems to be official now even if it’s not on Asus website: On a French forum I’ve read that one guy e-mailed Asus support about gsod and they send him back the package atiflash plus the new vbios named “G730810.hyn”. I post here the link that he gave to us, as some of you are experts they should check if it is the same as Gary’s one.

Cheers and thanks again every one.

2shared - download TSD Notebook G73JH VBIOS.zip

 

shoe3k,

Perhaps you've reached that "magic point" as Chastity stated back on Pg. 72.

Pg. 72
http://forum.notebookreview.com/asus-gaming-notebook-forum/515309-how-fix-your-gsod-blues-72.html

 

Repeat after me. "there is no magic point" "There is no magic point" "There is no....

Pollyanna LIVES!!

 

LOL , it is the magic point of the asus conspiracy to conquer the world!!!

Someday the 58700 come out of their computers and murder us while we sleep

 

LOL. whatever helps you sleep at night man

 

Did anyone check this already ? is it newer vBios than Gary's ?

 

I got my G73JH from BestBuy around a month ago and kept everything in stock configuration (BIOS 209) aside from the removal of various bloatware. No issues whatsoever, although SC2 at high is the only game I'm playing at the moment.

I read through dozens and dozens of pages in this forum about the G73, and while at first I was in the 'dont mess with it if it ain't broke' camp, I'll be following Chastity's advice do the upgrade.

I live in a hot, humid country so the better cooling BIOS 211 provides makes sense (I don't mind if it makes it a bit noisier). Also, the geek in me just can't stand the fact I'm using stock 9.x drivers when there's a 10.8 driver with performance improvements and better compatibility with more current games. I'm also hoping the performance improvements will also equate to better lifespan since *in theory*, it means the hardware is being utilized more efficiently. I'm a software developer by trade. I started out 10+ years ago programming device drivers for printers and other serial devices, and i know for a fact it's very possible for badly written software to degrade hardware

In any case, I'll take the plunge tonight. Unless there are BestBuy model owners out there with consistently negative experiences with the GSOD solution. I'd also just like to say that this community of G73JH owners is just awesome. That you'd extend so much time to help each other with various solutions and guides is very much appreciated.

Wish me luck I guess. If I screw it up, then at the very least I can give a report on how well/badly Asus Philippines supports this product, which should be of some interest at least to some countrymen/women in this forum or any expatriates living here.

 

Hi, I bought this laptop as one of my first major computer investments, and like many others, i have the GSOD issue.

At first it was once a week, then once a day, now every 20 minutes.

I play simple games like League of Legends, and puzzlequest... i dont see why it would crash on me so often.

At any rate, im not as computer savy as the rest of you. But i am able to follow instructions. The computer was bought on july 4th of this year, so im assuming i need to update my bios to the 211 before i do the vbios update.

I currently have 10.8 on my laptop because i thought it was originally my drivers were just old. Since updating it has been crashing on me more often.

I've read up to page 20ish or so, and googled around but cannot figure what to do first or where to start into fixing this problem.

Do i vbios flash first or the 211 bios update, or downgrade my ati drivers then start from there.

Im not sure how to update my bios and im very scared that i will break my computer. It also did not come with any cds.

All i have now is a flash drive and the download of the vbios flash.

If any one could offer some help for someone new to computers that would be great.

 

I thought you already had a second income as a Diamond Engineer?

 

First update to 211 using the Bios,
Then use the vBios to update.
Then update 10.8 Ati mobility drivers.

Do not be afraid, being afraid is the 2nd cause of destruction, know what to do and the process will work.

 

i updated the bios211, my drivers already at 10.8

i used hp tool to make a bootable disk drive.
put the three extracted files on it.
Then i went into bios
option one had no options to flash to usb so i made a new boot option named it flash
made option one my flash drive and rebooted
once it started it loaded a black screen and then it went to a grey background and said AI recovery restore i just pressed okay.

then when rereading the thread it said i had to type vflash... but nothing ever came up for that.

now it says AI recovery restore, this dvd will help youre covery hidden partitions check the ac adapter connection and do not interrupt the process

its doing it right now and at 9%.

now im absolutely freaking out because i have no idea what i have done and am afraid to turn my laptop off.

any 1 tell me if i royally screwd up or if im on the right track or if i can still try again with the vbios install.

im just super scared that i did somthing wrong now.

 

Hmm, I think you just kicked in the recovery process instead of reflashing... which I think will restore your Windows instalation to factory default.

Previous posters in this thread suggested pressing esc repteadly during start up instead of manipulating the boot order in BIOS in order to boot from your flash drive.

 

i had my original restore disc in my laptop at the time... F i dont even think it booted to my flash drive first it just went straight to my cd drive.

 

okay so heres a update of my stupidness. 19% of the way through it gave me a error, now it says reboot and select proper boot device or insert boot media inselected boo device and press a key, i cant even load windows.

 

screen says starting windows millennium emergency boot, i have no clue what to do. all i had was games on the computer so its not a big deal. i just want to be able to boot up to windows 7.

 

I think you probably corrupted the OS. Maybe restore the OS from the recovery discs?

 

i only have the disks i made when i first got the computer.

it didnt come with any thing else.

could i just load up a windows 7 cd on it? technically i have the serial for it under the laptop

how do i load any thing up

all i have is a black screen with C:\>

 

Maybe you can try removing the extra boot option you made. Hopefully your original OS partition is still alive. If that's not the case, then a reinstall is your only other option.

I've never actually done a recovery from the discs, but the disc should be bootable. Just stick the first one in the drive and restart. The laptop should boot from it and start the recovery process. Make sure your BIOS is set to boot from the optical drive first before the hard disk or any other device.

Aside from that if you have a Windows7 installer disc, you can pop that in as well to do a fresh install.

 

if any one can sit with me life and walk me through any way of just starting up my computer into windows ill paypal you some cash cuz im so frustrated with this now. all i have is this laptop and this crappy one im typing on right now which can be used for any thing other then emails and webpages

 

i removed the boot option, it just goes to the same screen,

I can get it to boot from a cd, unfortunately asus never gives any cds with the laptop.

Im downloading windows 7 home premium 86x * i hope thats the right one* so i can burn a bootable copy and boot it from the cd.

thats my only option right now.

like i said i dont mind wiping the computer.

im just not good with this stuff at all. so i dunno what to do about all the drivers. the computer never came with any cds.

the only 2 disks i have are from when i first started it and it prompted me to make recovery disks.

and turns out the recovery disks im using right now give me a error on disc 2.

i just wana take this thing back to best buy and let geeksquad figure it out.

its 5am and i cant sleep tryin to figure this out.

figure you dump 1400 into a laptop least it can do is play a game with out gsod within first 20 mins of play. just very frustrated .

 

Relax -- If you're seeing a dos prompt C:> then at least your BIOS is still alive and kicking and your laptop isn't bricked, you're just not booting to Windows. Here's what you can try:

1) You mentioned you created a new boot option --dunno if its possible, but try removing it.
2) Restore the boot order to what it was before you added that flash option. I think it defaults to your optical drive first, then primary hard disk second.
3) Remove any CDs and flash drives connected and restart the machine. See if this boots up your original Windows installation
4) If it does not, then probably your OS partition got messed up. If this is the case, just insert your recovery disc or a Windows7 installer in the drive and restart. Since the BIOS boot option looks at your optical drive first when looking for an OS to load, it will detect your recovery disc or Windows installer and will begin the setup process.

I haven't actually done a restore from recovery discs so maybe someone else can give you info on what to expect. But if you're booting from a Windows installer, just follow the onscreen prompts to set it up. It's pretty painless.

PS: No need for cash man, glad to help .

EDIT: Just saw your post. Make sure you're downloading Windows7 64Bit, otherwise, your system won't be able to detect your full 6GB of RAM. I also have the BestBuy version btw. You can probably just bring it to GeekSquad if you don't want to bother with downloading the installer and going through the installation process.

 

after putting the boot stuff back to what it originally was it says to reboot and select proper boot device, or insert boot media in selected boot device and press a key.

Basically if i have a windows 7 (when its done downloading the 64bit now) it'll just reinstall every thing.

What about the drivers for the audio and the asus stuff that came with the computer.

dont i need it for the computer to work?

 

Its not the same.

The Garys is AtomBIOS version: ATOMBIOSBK-ATI VER012.020.000.032.038352
The one you linked is AtomBIOS version: ATOMBIOSBK-ATI VER012.020.000.032.037764
And the one you linked is dated 30th October, while Garys is dated 9th October...

They have the exact same clock profiles though, but since its a different date and AtomBIOS version there must be some other difference.

 

Yeah you probably lost your boot partition. So now the laptop has no OS to boot.

I'm not sure how you're creating your windows 7 installer -- do they provide a utility to make a bootable Windows 7 installer? The DVD has to be bootable in order to start the installation process:

Microsoft Store: Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool Help

As for drivers, just to go asus.com for the G73 audio/video drivers (and everything else. On the upside, if you use the stock drivers, you won't enconter the GSODs that started this thing in the first place.

Lastly -- were kinda hijacking this thread. If you need further help, maybe you can PM me, I'll be glad to assist as much as I can

 

If you don't have any programs running, I'm not sure why it would do this. One way to stop it is open catalyst control center, go to powerplay, and uncheck enable powerplay.

 

So isn't AtomBios is older cause its 37764 and Garys is 38352 ? 38 is newer than 37 no ?

Is it worth updating or what do we need to know about it.

 

Some foolhardy, er I mean adventurous human would have to test it I suppose.

Cheers,

 

This looks like what happens when you start steam under some of the vbios I've tested. Steam makes it go back and forth between 2D and 3D and the computer is uncontrollable.

I went back to Gary's vBios and it went away. Check which one you are using.

 

I think we need to overlook on this powerplay to see if it can cause any and i mean any problem with battery and with power supply both alone.

So we can have a direct answer if that's a cause of a problem or anything close to it. cause the last time i play was without battery and with powerplay turned off and i was able to play company of heroes for more than 1:30 hr with 4v4 all computer Expert which means there is big map, lots of units, and lots of graphics, the gpu reached 94c Top max.

 

Does the GPU always downclock when back to the desktop and not gaming?

 

thanks for all the help every one.

b4 the bios and vbios update my FFXIV benchmark would crash at the same spot every time.

this was the very first thing that trigger Gsod for me.
Now i can run the benchmark on high res with out crashing.

as for my problem i had to download windows 7 again and just do a system repair and it fixed every thing and instead of changing boot order i just pressed escape and had it boot from the flash drive that way.

thanks again!

 

those gsod's were in furmark or gaming??

 

Gaming. I havent run furmark for a while now.

 

got my G73JH back from service center today, played MW2, went 3 campaigns and 2 special ops + few rounds of CSS with my friend, all free of GSOD

just little bit lags on MW2, but apparently that's because i set my catalyst too high. After reducing AA & AAA, it ran smoothly

thanks gary for the vBIOS update, thanks chastity & lord_neno for answering my question

 

Successful update! Good feeling to know that I can take advantage of future drivers.

 

The HYN vBIOS is a precursor to SAM, which was the first public beta. Don't use it.

Stick to the 93 vBIOS in the OP or mine.

 

Makes sense since the ATOM version is older... im just confused why they are still meddling with older versions after a new one has been released (since the date on that vBios shows it being released later)...