Z1: Overheating on Speed/nVidia only after drop

First, Happy New Year to all! May it be a great year.

To business...

After a drop straight to the (wood) floor from about knee level:

The Good news:

No physical damage. Landed like a cat on all fours.

The Better news:

No functional damage of any kind, except....

The BAD news (it's really bad):

On Speed/nVidia GPU setting, the GPU only zooms to 100C (per two reliable sensor apps) and shuts off in about 30 seconds or less

Help with any thoughts appreciated. Not entirely sure if the GPU is really getting that hot that fast or if, from the drop, the thermostatic circuitry got messed up.

What do I look for if I open it up? Any software tests to check?

Again, it works PERFECTLY in all other respects. Help, please.

 

Sounds like a heat sensor has been displaced and giving false readings, Then the laptop is shutting down for thermal protection issues.

Dunno where the sensor on the 330 is though, time to dig out the build manuals. They are on here somewhere.

C.

 

Thanks Carlos. I'm not sure I would know how to interpret those, once I find them.

Any ideas, anyone?

 

I've been looking for the links, but can't find any. Any help out there?

 

Thanks for the moral/actual support.

 

wouldn't the sensor be on the die itself? lovelaptops: it sounds more to me like the heatsink lifted off the gpu when you dropped it or the fan is stuck. If you can confirm the fan is running properly, I'd rip it apart, remove the heatsink, clean and replace the thermal compound on both the CPU and GPU.

 

Thanks Beaups. Are you asking, or asserting, that the sensor is on the die? I can definitely confirm that the fan is working - it revs up like a jet about to take off within 10 secs of going into "speed" mode, then spins out to a shut down, all within less than 30 seconds from start to finish. Does that sound like the heat sink on the GPU?

You guys are wonderful.

 

I'm asserting, I do not know for sure. I've never seen a sensor fail by giving a reading that's too high, either, but anything is possible I suppose. I would take 10:1 odds that you are dealing with an unseated or broken heatsink. GPU's and CPU's will overheat within seconds when not coupled to a heatsink.

 

Sounds exactly right then - that's just what it does. Nothing loose when I shake it, though. I'll open and give it a go and report back. Thanks.

 

It may not even look lose when you disassemble. Remember it could just have lifted 1/2MM and that would break the bond.

 

I'd second beaups' tips. Sounds all like a lifted (bent) heatsink. The 330M heatsink part (copper sheet) is connected to the CPU heatsink. There is no screw pushing the heatsink to the GPU but only to the CPU (that's why the CPU/Intel HD part works). Disassemble the laptop and check the heatsink's fit. Take off heatsink and carefully bend back if there is a gap. Also check all the white thermal pads that sit on the VGA RAM chips at the top and bottom side of the motherboard. The thermal sensor sits on the 330M's chip.

 

You mean besides suggesting that this is the perfect time to upgrade?

 

Yeah i'd say its a disconnected heatsink as well. In that case, reseating (and putting new thermal paste or pads) should do the trick.

Purely for informative purposes, if it was a broken thermal sensor, is there any way to fix it? I think temp regulation goes half and half, software (OS) and BIOS. So in theory one could mod the BIOS to read a normal (high would be recommended) temperature constantly, no?

 

Found them, knew they were on here somewhere.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/114814-sony-models-specs-support-dissassembly-links.html

Enjoy

 

Thank you, one and all. Sounds like I have my work cut out for me.

@pyr0: just a little more clarification if you would. If the heatsink for the GPU is connected to the CPU only, how does it absorb heat from the GPU. Also, per Beaup's comments, might the GPU sensor have become shaken loose from the GPU? If so, would bending the heat sink remedy the problem?

@Carlos: thank you so much! I would be "flying blind" without these!

Many thanks.

 

^you'll understand better but the heatsink is connected to the cpu and gpu but only SCREWED down around the cpu. Once you look at it, you'll get it.

The odds of the gpu sensor being shaken loose from the gpu are zilch.

 

@beaups.

That sounds like the root cause to me.

Its similar to the problem HP had with some of their notebook range. The heat from the heatsink on the CPU caused the thermal paste between the GPU and its heatsink fail. The result was notebook boots fine, but no display. The fix is to increase the width of the copper shim between the GPU and heatsink.

In this case, I think the heatsink may be dislodged / warped when dropped. Either replace the heatsink or try to bend back into shape.

@lovelaptops. Good luck and keep us updated on the fix.

 

I will. And many thanks.

Does anyone know of a set of photos or a video showing these parts? The links from Carlos did not show a Z1. Thanks.

 

I would bet that the thermal paste cracked actually. After a while, paste always gets brittle.

 

Sony actually uses pads, no paste.

 

So, don't put any thermal paste between the pads and the heatsink, just bend it so it makes contact?

 

sorry lovelaptops, didn't see your thread earlier, but here's a disassembly vid:

Vaio Z11 Dismantle on Vimeo

i'd screw back in the heatsink and see if there's any space between the GPU/pad and heatsink, if there is, yeah, the best option is to bend back the heatsink, although part of me doubts the heatsink actually got bent... since nothing else seems to have broken (and your heatsink is probably the hardest thing to bend/break on the Z1). You can also think about purchasing newer/better thermal pads too.

edit:

credit for vid here:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sony/594314-vpc-z-change-thermal-paste-6.html#post7858484

 

You have to scrape all remaining paste or pad off both the heatsink and the cpu and gpu. Then replace with new paste. Once the bond is broken, it's gone. You MUST do this.

 

I can't thank you guys enough for all the help and support. At a different time I'd jump at the challenge to go deeper into the hardware than I have before, and you've made it clear you'd help me through it. That's pretty awesome, and I hope I have a chance to return the kindness.

But as it turns out, I'm facing major surgery on my back next week at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota (I live in Virginia) and I don't have the stamina to sit at the desk with my Z apart doing all the necessary examination and repairs and putting it all back together without messing something else up in the process. It's my good fortune that I bought a Square Trade extended warranty when I bought this Z12 so I've decided to send it in and let them fix it - or return my original purchase price if they find it more trouble than it's worth - wishful thinking

I would really rather do the job myself and am up to the challenge - especially given your great support. It just turned out to be bad timing. I love the Z1 and own two and will soon get a Z2. This Forum has been a real kick for me and I look forward to going on every day, learning a lot and helping where I can as my knowledge grows. I now consider myself as graduated from Z noob to "intermediate," lol.

Didn't mean to make this all mushy. Just wanted to express my sincere appreciation and to let you know I look forward to remaining an active participant going forward. I'll have my trusty Z11 with me in Minnesota and will get back on as soon as I can.

You rock!