Having some MAJOR issues with my Sager NP8170 notebook, possible thermal paste issue with my gtx 485m

Sager NP8170
i7 2630qm
gtx 485m
4 gb ram
500 gb 7200 rpm hdd
windows 7 home premium 64 bit

So last night, I booted up Grand Theft Auto IV on steam in anticipation for GTAV coming out. A few minutes into gameplay the game goes choppy, and locks up. I try to CTRL ALT DLT out of the game and the whole thing goes black. After awhile I try CTRL ALT DLT again and the sager resets. But after the windows 7 logo, it just goes to a black screen.

I reset again, try windows repair, it says "cannot automatically repair windows", then i try safe mode then running scandisc. That finishes not finding much of anything, and the same issue persists. Black screen after the windows 7 logo.

So i get desperate after attempting a bunch more of the above steps. And decide to do a complete hdd format and windows 7 reinstall. The reinstall goes fine...but when i get into windows and start installing drivers from my sager drivers cd, once I get to the nvidia driver install and restart, it gives me a blue screen of death after the windows 7 logo. It goes away fast and restarts but the BSoD says something about the display driver failing.

So again i format the hdd, reinstall windows, try installing the newest nvidia drivers from their site, restart, and after the windows 7 logo, it just goes to an endless black scree again.

So right now I am on the sager, with every driver installed except nvidia, using the generic display driver. And right now I am still getting weird rectangle artifacts on dark black backgrounds.

Here is a picture of the artifacts...



So basically, i can sorta use the sager, but not for anything complex. My friend who is also a Sager owner had a similar issue with triangle artifacts and a blue screen of death also. He said repasting fixed his issue. So I am hoping it will for me as well. I really would prefer not to send it in to XoticPC if I don't have to.

So do you guys think a thermal repasting is a good option? Could I have some links to a good paste to buy and a tutorial on how to do it? Thanks a bunch.

 

Thermal issues should appear over time, and worsen over time. Do they?

I would try reseating the GPU, making sure the pins look good. Of course you will have to repaste to do this.

 

Yea I was slowly having more and more issues with my games in the past month or so, I was making sure to clean out the fans and vents every 2-3 months, so I don't think it was dust build up.

 

What are your temps at? HWMonitor is a free utility which will tell you. If you got the stock thermal compound on there it may be time to replace it with new.

 

This is what it shows right now

 

Hey DM,

When I had to do a repasting, I found some tutorials that were useful. I'm trying to find all of them, but here are the first couple of links. Guide - How TIM Works & How To Apply It Correctly | bit-tech.net This one was really useful.

I used the same TIIM cleaning kit mentioned in the above link, that is, the arcticlean Arctic Silver Incorporated - ArctiClean

This next link is a tutorial for replacing the GPU on an alienware laptop. Some of the steps for this including the pasting, so it might be useful to read it GUIDE: Installing Clevo GTX 680M in Alienware M18x

As for the thermal paste, when I was building my desktop PC, I found that the Noctua NT-H1 was best for me. Noctua.at - sound-optimised premium components "Designed in Austria"!
I did the pasting for my desktop CPU several times with four different pastes (cooler master's paste, Arctic silver MX-1, Noctua NT-H1 and IC Diamond). And, as a beginner, I found Noctua's to be best because of the lack of a curing time and because it is a smooth paste which spreads easily when compared to the extremely viscous IC diamond. Also, because it is silicone based, even if you get some on the connections/pins, it won't be a problem.

Finally, here's a tutorial from Arctic Silver on how to apply the thermal paste Arctic Silver, Inc. - Intel® Application Methods I simply used the dot method on the sager as it was the most advocated/commonly used method.

I monitored the temps using HWMonitor HWMonitor CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting

 

I am assuming because I am still getting video through this Sager that the GPU isn't totally dead? The thing is I'm running generic video drivers right now, as soon as I install Nvidia drivers I get BSoD or a black screen upon restarting windows. Is this because now the GPU is fully engaged and due to the old thermal paste it cant handle the load?

 

Slowly more and more issues... yes a repasteing sounds like a good idea. I would do this ASAP, before heat does damage it.

GPU temps would give us a better idea of what is going on.

 

Unfortunately I can't get the GPU temps as they dont show up in the hardware monitor since I can't install nvidia drivers without it blue screen of deathing.

 

See if it shows up in aida 64.

 

Does HWmonitor not find the GPU?

Maybe try evga precision software. Or speedfan, or many others. Try a google search.

 

I got the Aida 64 extreme trial, how to I check temperature? I found my gpu on the left side panel, but i can't find the way to check temps, unless that's not in the trail version. This is what it shows...

 

This is all that shows up in HWmonitor



Is there some reason why my laptop BSoD's after installing nvidia drivers?

 

This sounds more like a hardware fault not software one.
The 3d game GTA IV caused something to go on your GPU and a repaste is highly unlikely to do anything either* (* it may but chances are unlikely to do with paste)

Your best bet is to take out the 485M and try baking it in the oven to reflow the solder on the GPU. Only this will help return it back to where it was prior to the 3d application running.
If you find the baking did nothing then throw the video card out and buy a new one. The 7970m is an awesome/highly recommended card and bang for buck!

 

I suppose I could just try the repaste first and if that doesn't help I can think about buying a GPU off ebay or something.

 

Yes sounds like a good idea.
All the best

 

Try the original drivers that came with the computer on a disc. If they work fine then we know its software related and not the actual GPU.

 

I tried the nvidia drivers on the CD that came with the Sager, after restarting and getting past the windows 7 logo, the thing blue screen of death's. Says something about display driver failure. Right now im running it with a generic display driver and theres faint rectangles all over the screen on dark backgrounds.

I called up xotic pc and they quoted between $400-600 if it does turn out to be the gpu.

 

If you go under the computer tab, there should be a sensor option, it will be in there.

 

GPU temps seem semi normal for being on idle, so does this mean the gpu is simply busted? If its not overheating that means the paste is fine?

 

I'd take the gpu out and check the pins, repaste and go from there. If there's still an issue, put it in the oven as tron suggested. At that point, you'll know if you need a new card or not. I'd also like to recommend the 7970m, if it comes down to it.

 

Only problem is i've never done either of those things in my life and would need some sort of tutorial.

 

The Oven Trick (repairing your broken video card with an oven) | Overclockers

 

Be aware if that goes wrong your card could die entirely, back up everything you need before doing so as your machine needs a graphics card to operate.