Problem with Amilo M3438G (cuts out)?

Hi there,

I recently upgraded my Amilo M3438G laptop with a new graphics card (MXM slot III) from a Geforce Go 6800 to a ATi X1800. I reused some of the thermal pads and I got some thermal tape however the problem with the thermal tape was that it wasnt as thick as the thermal pads so I made a couple of layers of the thermal tape over the CPU and GPU so it would cover the gap between the CPU/GPU and Heatsink.

When I got the faulty laptop the screen was coming up blank and nothing on it (no boot screen or bios screen) so it had to be the GPU.

So I replaced it and it seems to have done the charm the screen is coming up and windows is loading ( lol but I didnt expect the windows to be in a different language).

However the only problem now is that after 4-5 minutes the laptop suddenly shuts down ? (Thermal Shutdown? Short Circuit?)

I noticed that the fan isnt moving. but I dont understand if it was a heat problem because I felt the heatsink and its only lukewarm at most, not even hot. So why would it shutdown.

The problem also is 5mins does not give me enough time to get this Software called Notebook Hardware Control (NHC) in to allow me to get the fan working or something.

I cant even install the drivers lol as it cuts out.

Any ideas what this could be?

Thanks

 

Sounds like the CPU is overheats and the system shuts itself down. Check that the CPU is in good contact with the heatsink and the fan is plugged in. Did you cut some space to the heatsink for the small coil on the GPU? The heatsink shouldn't fit if you haven't done this. When you get it working, re-install your Windows with correct language.

The NHC isn't the best solution to setup your system for gaming. The better ones are done through hardware, but they also require a bit more work. See them at around halfway through this page: http://www.mxm-upgrade.com/3438.html

 

I have an 3438 aswell and also thought about securing me a upgrade card because it seems the 6800GOs start dying and even though I have warranty Fujitsu Siemens can't replace the broken cards because there are nearly no cards left ... and with 100$ or something I can't get a new notebook.


So I started reading into replacing GPUs and what I thought is that in the 3438 the fan control is done by GPU and CPU. So a new graphics card can mess things up.

But even without a FAN your computer should not shut down so fast - mine runs idle at 48C which is nowhere near a dangerous limit. I fear that your new GPU does not transmit its temperature correctly - because the GPU gets hotter a lot more and faster. Maybe you messed up something during installation ... I sometimes put to much thermal gel between the die and heatsink.

 

If you still have warranty, your laptop isn't working as it should and Fujitsu-Siemens doesn't have parts for the laptop to fix it, then you should get a new laptop with equal configuration from them for free. Atleast that's the consumer policy here. Many have gotten Xi 2528 or Xi 2550 as a replacement when their Xi 3438 or Xi 1546/54 have died.