M1330 A10 BIOS - Serious Problems

The A10 revision of BIOS firmware for Dell XPS M1330 results in overheating the system to an extent that the GPU and in some cases the system board is damaged.

The symptoms of overheating initially result in memory parity errors and windows recovering from various video errors. As the overheating continues, windows crashes with BSOD/black screen. The serious errors include green/pink display artifacts followed by colored/black and white vertical lines followed by a completely white/black screen. If you are sensitive, you might even catch an extremely short burning smell somewhere in the above process. Finally the system cannot even boot.

If you are not able to boot at all, allow the system to cool for a day and then start with the Function + Power keys combination. When the system beeps, press the N key. After a while the LCD test begins and colors flash on your screen followed by a corrupted display or nothing and the system beeps again. This time press the Y Key. After a while turn off the system either by pressing the Power button or cutting of the power. Now when you turn on the
system, it should be able to boot properly. If it still displays the black and white vertical lines, do not worry they will disappear when the login screen appears. Repeat the process a few more times and you might just get lucky.

Once your notebook is booted properly, immediately flash it to the A12 revision of BIOS firmware. With this you will get some time to backup your data and do other important work.

Even though it might now work with the A12 revision of the BIOS, it is temporary and you never know when the sytem will slip to its prior state. Once the damage is done due to the thermal stress, the only solution is to replace the system board with the GPU.

Here is a direct link to the A12 Revision of BIOS firmware for Dell XPS M1330 Notebooks:

Description: Dell System BIOS
Release: 07/09//2008, XPS M1330, A12
Size: 1.01 MB
Download: M1330A12.EXE
Source: Dell

 

WTF...I got THAT and I had to have a motherboard change...

 

I would have found the A10 bios problem valid if I didn't go through what you are going through, but with the A07 jumping to the A09 bios and then back to the A07 because I believed the A09 had fried my motherboard. I blamed it on the bios then, but my temperatures, after a motherboard replacement from A01 revision to A04, aren't any different then than what they are now with the same 167.45 drivers. I think any bios version can cause you to come across the overheating problem and with the new A11 bios acknowledging thermal changes, it shows that Dell is covertly trying to acknowledge the issue without actually acknowledging the issue. The A10 might have taken a step backwards in some ways with regards to cooling ( I didn't see any difference in operation), but Dell's frantic tweaking of the bios tells me they are having trouble getting a handle on the thermal issues and they're scratching their heads wondering why they are having to replace so many motherboards so frequently. My answer.... bad design.

 

Reading all this, you do begin to realise why, when we've read so many advanced leaks regarding 'Minspirons', Latitudes and Studios we haven't heard a thing about a Centrino 2 powered XPS M1330.

Perhaps the delayed 14.1" Studio is the next M1330? If this smaller XPS chassis is causing as many problems as it seems then I'm now starting to believe that that's a line of thought with merit.

 

I keep wondering how Dell released this laptop. I'm thinking they didn't even tested it thoroughly before releasing it, maybe they even think "we are Dell, we don't need testing!".

 

Personally I don't think you can justify M1330 if you don't have one. Except the thing that my SSD is only the SATA one but not SATA II, I am basically happy with the M1330.

 

I never noticed it since my last update (to A11) was from A6. I upgraded because the description said something about enhancing thermal control. I thought it was a new enhancement, not a fix to something they screwedup in the previous version.

Anyways I also noticed that my GPU is running slightly hotter than before, despite the fan running most of the time, even when idling.

Here are my idle temps (room temperature at 22C). Only firefox and few IMs are running with Vista power profile set to Power saver. Isnt 63 for idling a bit too much with room temp at 22C (if room is at 30C that would be like 70C or more)?

 

My previous idle CPU temp was 55 and now is 45!!

 

After what? Updating BIOS?!

P.S. I DO have a M1330 also, so I know what I'm talking about.

 

Wow--I think I should try this.

It's unusual for two BIOS updates pretty much back to back. There must have been serious issues with A10 so the OP may have a point there. Thanks for the pointer. I will update it today.

 

I had A06 Bios and my MB fried exactely with 6 months old.

Now I have A08 (don;t know why almost nobody has it).

Regards,

 

Im using A10 and have been fine, but I'll update also

 

I've used A02, A03, A04, A05, A06, A07, A08, A09 & A10.

They all resulted in burnt GPUs.

The only thing I did after the last replacement, I did a copper mod. No more frying. I've flashed with the A11 now.

 

I've also used A01, A02, A04 motherboards. All burnt before. I'm on the A02 board now.

 

Looks like a hardware/design error than a BIOS problem...
Did you play a lot of games or run GPU intensive applications on those burnt notebooks ? I had mine for almost 7 months now, still everything seems to be working fine. BTW I'm using this as my primary computer, so it is ON most of the time (sometimes even overnight). Hardly play any games though...

BTW What kind of a mod did you do to the last one ? any links/ guides ?

 

got the laptop with the AO9 bios... the temp are quite high. gpu idle 63c and cpu 44c...
what do u say, should i update the bios to A11?
or just let it be and do not touch it?

 

What do the words "class action lawsuit" mean to everyone? It's not really that I want to see dell screwed by the court but really...what is happening with the m1330 is ridiculous. Especially because they are sending out new motherboards that have the same issue. I think it's time someone just took them to court and they either stop production of the 1330 or find a way to make all of the new ones, and all of the current ones, work the way that they should. As far as I'm concerned, the second your computer literally bakes itself until it can't work anymore is probably around the time you realize dell sold you a "lemon". Whether it happens in a month or 3 years, overheating shouldn't be the cause for a laptop's death, especially if it's just a casual user who has never OC'd anything or played a game. This is ridiculous. I don't even have a 1330 and it's pissing me off to see how many people are getting screwed.

 

you right! someone should maybe write a letter and all of the xps m1330 owner will sign it, and then send it to Mr. DELL him self.
it’s really ridiculous what’s happening, I barely use the laptop and the temp jumps to 60 deg its unbelievable, I’m not even playing with the computer, and the laptop is band new 1 month old... i think their super smart engineers should think about a design solution, that will fix this issue.
I don’t get it, don’t they think it's a waste of money giving a new MB to each client after a few months of use?

 

Any chance that the northbridge/southbridge may be the problem? Since the northbridge is between the GPU and CPU, all the heat generated from the sides really isn't helping it. The northbridge communicates with the GPU, and if it can't communicate with it, the GPU won't know what to do and start doing things on its own, assuming that the GPU still works.

 

It's not the northbridge/southbridge. The GPU isn't just going to process nothing. It's the GPU overheating.

 

Some people might have damaged their M1330's GPU/Motherboard with other revisions of BIOS firmware but that is a different problem as the overheating is not due to the BIOS firmware's thermal management.

The small form factor with less ventilators, inefficient multi-use heat-sink-fan, thermal pads instead of direct contact with thermal paste and accumulation of dust due to the design/form factor, all add to overheating and eventual damage to the GPU/Motherboard.

Add inefficient or lack of BIOS firmware thermal management i.e., fans not spinning or processors/gpu not underclocking at the right time and you can understand the thermal stress the system has to put up with and why it gives up faster.

The A10 revision of BIOS firmware definitely damages your GPU/Motherboard as it probably lacks the required code or is faulty for efficient thermal management. It has made an already bad (requiring GPU/Motherboard replacement in about 6 months) situation worse (requiring GPU/Motherboard replacement in less than a week).

Dell has been quick to correct the problem with the A11 revision of BIOS firmware but meanwhile so many M1330's GPU/Motherboard got damaged and are awaiting replacements.

 

I had the same problem. I had been using the A10 since it was out and last week got those vertical lines (GPU damaged). Had to boot using FN + power key and flashed to A11 bios. So far it has been working okay, but I'm still sending it back to dell.

 

well so what do u say should i update to the A11 bios?

 

You should do it as soon as possible. Remember, once the damage has begun, there is no going back.

Definitely!

 

Dell XPS M1330 notebooks with Intel Integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 video card overheat with the A10 revision of BIOS firmware, although it is, so far, non-fatal. Nevertheless, it is safe to upgrade to the A11 revision of BIOS firmware.

Dell XPS M1330 notebooks with 128MB nVidia GeForce 8400M GS video card succumb to thermal mismanagement with the A10 revision of BIOS firmware.

Dell seems to be replacing your Motherboard with GPU with the following part:
Part No.: CX062
Description: SERVICE KIT..., ASSEMBLY..., PRINTED WIRING ASSY..., PLANAR (MOTHERBOARD)..., DISCRETE..., M1330

 

Agreed. Same experience as yourself. 4 motherboards with varying revisions and tested with A02 to A10 all resulted in GPU overheat.

 

I use it for work. And some gaming/movies over the weekends. Details on mod below link. A few before and a few after myself have done it with very positive results.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=250129&page=9

 

Guys, whats the difference in fan turn/off timing between A09 and A11?

 

Hi All,

Question on the thermal management and consequential damage to the motherboard of XPS M1330.

1. What are the temps that you are experiencing prior to motherboard damage? (CPU and GPU)

2. Will an idle temp of 50C for CPU and 65C for GPU cause the motherboard to get damaged?

i ran orthos for more than 10mins ang got a max of 75C from the CPU and between 65 to 75C on the GPU at the same time (probably due to the fact that they share the same heatsink and fan, the temp from the GPU increased also) in any case, do you think this will cause problems in the long run?

3. has this been a proven fact and acknowledged by dell that this really is due to overheats?

4. Does anyone have any insider info regarding A11 bios? It says thermal management. but no details. When the CPU/GPU overheats, will the bios shutdown the computer to prevent damage?

** addition ** In addition, to other people who's having overheating issues, i think it is worthwhile to lower your max CPU state in vista to lower the temps until the issue is resolved. I tried 50% and it resulted in around 6-7C lower temp that if set to 100%. (idling at 46-48C @ 50% max cpu state as against 55C @100%)

Thanks to all...

 

I updated the BIOS and temps definitely feel better now. Even the fan seems to come on less often, the laptop is definitely less noisy. My XPS pretty much stays on 24/7 although I don't do any major gaming on it at the moment.

 

interesting stuff...

 

The CPU is not the problem. It's the GPU overheating. No the notebook will not shutdown. it simply burns the GPU.

It is not BIOS or motherboard revision issue. It's the heatsink design that is the problem.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=204772

 

Regardless of which is which that overheats...

Does anyone know at which temperature does the GPU starts to cause Motherboard damage?

Are the people experiencing the motherboard issue having overheated GPUs at idle? Do you consider 65C as overheated GPU?

Did the people who experienced fried Motherboards been using the 3D power of the GPU? Or has anyone that uses only the laptop for word processing and internet experienced the burnt out motherboard?

Has anyone experienced a burnt motherboard at less than 70C gpu temp?

 

I'll tell you what I think happened to mine.

1. GPU starts damaging at around 90-100+ degrees C. (estimate, comparing to CPU chips)

2. I THINK what happened to mine was that I left it at a friend's house. It was on his bed. The laptop was idle but power management won't put it to sleep as I have Utorrent always on. The intake and exhaust vents got blocked and the whole laptop heated up while it was idle.

3. No, a GPU at 65 deg C is alright.

4. I don't think so..

 

When you said 'feel better', what change in temps did you see?

Fan comes on less often, thats what I suspected. So my inference is:

A09 BIOS was had good temperature control but noisy, so peepz complained about it.
A10 is a less-noisy version with a compromised temperature control but it didn't work out well.
A11 is a more aggressive version of A10.

For me, i'd rather have the fan come on more often.

Does anyone have A09 ? I wanna test this bullcrap.

 

Well, what I meant that the laptop is not as warm as it used to be when used in the 'lap'

Frankly, the temps have dropped quite a bit. I can now easily idle at under 40 degrees (Celsius). The GPU doesn't go above 68. Previously, idle temps for the CPU were 50-55 and the GPU was always over 70.

It's amazing to me that a BIOS update can make temps vary so much. I thought a heatsink is a heatsink is a heatsink! Anyway, I think I'm one of the lucky ones as you can see from the GPU overheating thread (vertical lines issue).

 

Normal usage (by which I mean Firefox, Outlook 2007 + VPN and Word 2007 always open) temperatures for me on A11 BIOS (all temps in degrees Celsius - read with ik8fangui):

CPU: 39
GPU: 45
Memory: 45
Chipset: 56

My M1330 came preinstalled with A10, and the temperatures on that with the same usage patterns were slightly higher (CPU: 43 / GPU: 49). The fan hardly seems to come on at all with A11, so I'm not entirely sure how it is managing the lower temps.

 

nice temperatures you got there. lowest ive seen so far

 

He probably lives in Antartica or something

 

Close - England! Having said that, it's a fairly warm day today (which you'll be able to verify by watching the Wimbledon coverage.)

To be fair, I was wondering why my temperatures seem to be lower than most. Could they be helped by the SSD? I should note that I don't do any gaming. The laptop is on all day, with Word, Outlook, Firefox, Powerpoint, Live Writer and a few others running simultaneously.

My max temps in ik8fangui (and I have not reset them since installing last week) are:

CPU: 55
GPU: 47
Memory: 46
Chipset: 61

The only one that seems a little high (at least in comparison) is the chipset - is that within tolerable levels, or should I be concerned? The one reading I was most worried about, obviously, was the GPU, but a max of 47 seems to be about as good as I can expect.

 

Thats unusually great temps!good for you

 

There no way that these are correct temp's
You need to configure the ik8fangui correctly because it doesn't
measure the gpu temp well.

 

I agree. Many programs do not poll/scan the temp sensors properly. As I am typing on my M1330, my GPU temp is 59 and my CPU core temp is 44. This is (currently) in the Kingdom of Bahrain in an air-conditioned hotel room. Plus you have a Penryn and that is supposed to have a lower temp than the Merom (it does). It is highly unlikely that the GPU temp is ever LESS than the CPU temp. It's usually the other way around.

I find that Everest Ultimate does the best job of all-round temperature monitoring but obviously you have to pay for it but IMO it's worth every penny,

 

I'm certainly not going to pay for a temperature monitoring programme.

As to "configuring" ik8fangui correctly, how does one do that, aside from checking the options you want it to read?

It seems to me that a significant proportion of M1330 users on this forum are using ik8fangui to monitor their temps. Regardless of whether it is the most accurate software to do it, surely there is enough comparative data for any given reading to have some value (unless you are suggesting that it is my machine only that is not playing well with ik8fangui, which seems highly unlikely.)

As for CPU and GPU, my GPU is hotter than my CPU - the second set of readings are simply the max temps ik8fangui has recorded. My current readings, whilst typing this, are:

CPU: 36
GPU: 43

I would also add that the laptop is cool to the touch (i.e. the underside) - would that be the case if my temps were significantly higher?

 

where do u guys check the temp

 

download CPU-z's hardware monitor.
Just google it. Its free.

Same results as everest.

i added +10 offset to GPU of k8fangui to get equal results with everest and hwmonitor

 

i downloaded it, where do i see the temperature

 

Go to options > Status reading > select "read CPU temp" & "GPU temp"

Under the advanced tab, input 10 for the GPU temp offset.

 

?? ders no options ?its just all tabs like motherboard, cpu etc..maybe i dled the wrong one
CPU-Z V1.46

 

chiew download Hardware Monitor
Maybe you thought I was referring to the actual cpu-z...
Its the same maker google "hwmonitor"
Sorry my mistake