P770DM-G Dead 980M

So my 980M has finally given up on life leaving me without a laptop. My question is, if I don't currently have the money for a replacement 980M, could I look into getting a cheaper 970M instead? I'm just looking for a plug and play replacement, prefer not to have to fiddle around with hardware mods or even BIOS stuff.

 

Yes if it's a Clevo 970m then that should plug and play.

 

Ok thanks, figured it would since it has basically the same dimensions and layout as a 980M, just wanted to be sure. But after searching around on eBay the 980M is only about $100 or so more expensive so I may just suck it up and stick with that.

 

Might be worth checking out the members market too.

 

Yep I checked here but didn't come across anything. Found an eBay seller that stocks the 980M that should be compatible with Clevo models for $300. All in all not too bad, just have to wait for shipment from China.

 

Let us know how you get on

 

So just to update, I received the replacement gpu today, however, it doesn't seem to work. Laptop powers on, but there is no display, and after about a minute or so fans go to maximum with flashing power button and shuts down. Same thing that happens when no gpu is installed at all. Any ideas what the issue could be?

Update: Tried again after removing CMOS battery and it still does the same, only this time it started beeping before turning off.

Update 2: Put the heatsink back on (left it off the first time around since I was just trying to test if the card actually worked or not, didn't think any overheating situation could occur that quickly), and now it seems to stay powered on and may even be getting to Windows, but I still have no display so of course have no clue what is actually happening. I wonder if this has anything to do with my laptop originally being a g-sync model (according to the seller the replacement card is non g-sync).

Update 3: Now back to spinning fans and beeping before shutting down, even with heatsink in place. I'm stumped and have no clue what is going on anymore.

 

So I was able to seemingly get into Windows and decided to try blind flashing a stock Clevo 980M vBIOS using the instructions from https://www.techinferno.com/index.p...oot-blind-flash-a-non-booting-gpu-in-windows/. However, after Step 8, I get 2 quick beeps. I tried following the same instructions using an old Windows 7 laptop that I have lying around, and I get the same 2 beeps, then an error that says "Unable to setup NVFLASH driver <0x00000002>". I'm assuming the same error is what is occurring when I attempt to blind flash the 980M. Other than that it has been running for about 20 mins with no shutdown, so I think I can get this working if I can just figure out the vBIOS situation.

Update: Now after Step 9 I'm getting 2 quick beeps. According to the instructions a successful flash should result in just 1 beep. Enabled logging and it appears the flash isn't working due to 'no nvidia display adapters found' error. Maybe because you're supposed to disable or uninstall the driver before attempting to flash a vBIOS, but that would be near impossible to do blind. Very frustrating but I feel there has to be someway to get this working.

 

You can manually program the chip with something like a skypro but I would speak to the seller of the card as they advertised it as compatible.

 

Wow, that was a big no no right there.

But you can manually flash it as meaker said. SPI programmers are fairly cheap and good to keep around for problems like this.

I prefer blind flashes in dos vs windows. Create a batch file that will update or write a txt file to signify success so you can check it on a working machine to see if the flash took.

Do you know anybody with an SLI machine? They can check and flash in the secondary slot and see everything that is going on.

 

I've run cards without heatsinks very quickly to check post on my machines.

 

Thanks for the replies but I've tried everything short of using a programmer to flash, which I don't have access to. Even tried the USB/batch file method, but having to work blind makes everything very difficult. Unfortunately I don't know anyone with an SLI machine. Been communicating with the seller and according to them the card came preloaded with a Dell vBIOS. Still confused as why I can't get nvflash to even recognize the card and load a Clevo BIOS. I'll keep at it but it's looking like I'll have to just send it back.

 

Does anyone know what the default boot order is set to in the BIOS for Clevo/Sager machines? I made a bootable DOS usb with nvflash and an autoexec file to run it automatically, but it seems to be ignoring the usb (tried both 2.0 and 3.0 ports) and going straight to Windows.

 

You shouldn't have to flash the card. It sounds like you received a dud card to me, or you have an issue with your motherboard.

What issues did you have with your original 980m?

 

It will be defaulting to windows boot manager in uefi mode. F11 iirc is the boot select screen.

 

Original card failed due to bad MOSFETS, which these cards are known for. First one blew, so I removed it, leaving two left. This allowed me to continue using the machine I just had to run it using gimped clocks when gaming to avoid getting black screens. Was planning to get the additional MOSFETS soldered on but the card failed completely before getting a chance.

 

It appears my problem is it's not possible to boot to a DOS environment on a UEFI system. And I can't change the BIOS options reliably to legacy settings without a display. Seems there are road blocks at every turn. If anyone knows how to accomplish a vBIOS flash blindly on UEFI feel free to let me know. Otherwise I think I'm out of options.

 

I would send the card back and ask for the correct file on it.

 

Was trying to avoid that due to the shipping timeframes involved but it looks like I have no choice but to try again and hope it works next time. I wish laptop components were true plug and play like desktops or this model had the option for switchable integrated graphics.

For all my trouble this very well could be the problem.

 

Better to get it within the return window than have a paper weight.

 

So I'll be returning the card on the basis that it's not compatible (or straight up defective) and will try ordering again from a different source. I do have a suspicion the problem could have possibly been related to some kind of incompatibility between the board/LCD and video card. To potentially avoid this issue again, can anyone confirm for certain whether a non-GSYNC 980M can function in a model that originally came with a GSYNC card?

 

AFAIK it should be fine, just no G-sync.

 

Alright it's been awhile but I'm back up and running. Managed to get a good replacement card, swapped it in and was good to go. It doesn't appear to be G-Sync (no option in Nvidia control panel, 13D7 hardware ID), but can confirm it does otherwise works fine. Slightly disappointing, but I can live without it.

 

There are minor hardware differences sadly so no flashing possible to get g-sync back.

 

Gotta say the thought did cross my mind, but came across a thread pointing out the transistor differences. Even if I could probably wouldn't though (atleast not soon), just glad to be back up and wouldn't want to risk the headache of bricking anything, lol.

 

Annoying I know, but yeah it's a fair amount of work.