Wife's HP laptop dead. Life won't be worth living.

[Milo Minderbinder]

Rivets
"they did say this serial number was not one listed with an Nvidia issue! "

HP never admitted that ALL machines fitted with nVidia graphics at are risk, just some. But experience shows that just about all nVidia chips DO have this problem. Its just that HP and nVidia are cagey about admitting it due to exposing themselves to another court action (Dell or instance got hammered in a group action in the USA).

the simple fact is, go and have a look around whichever in the USA is the closest to PCWord and see what graphcs chip the laptops on display have. You'll find Intel and AMD/ATi Radions, you'll find few - if any - nVidia chips.


Their desktop cards have the same problem though thats not really hit public knowledge yet as people tend to just replace the dead card and not make the link - and also the failure rate is lower due to better cooling. However the fact is, any and all nVidia graphiics chips from roughly the last five years are at risk

[Loose rivets]

That's astonishing . . . and a name I thought would be safe to go for.

avoid dedicated graphics and go for integrated.

It's funny, but I've spent ages trying to get laptops with dedicated graphics. Now I know of what you speak. It came from the days my company, the first Prompt Computing Ltd., in the world, leaped into the CAD market in part because of using a card with V-Ram. One megabyte of it.

I knew just when AutoCAD would need to regenerate, and by not letting it, my 386 machines outperformed the $300,000 HP minis. Plus folk had never seen 21" colour monitors before.

I'm rambling again, but it is my coffee break.

Most modern(ish) machines will exhibit the failure modes you describe, if some major subsystem doesn't check out, the machine's power control cct will shut the machine down.

That's a very significant point, especially as I was hoping to remove the graphics chip and use a monitor if all else failed. One guy above doing the re-balling, said the Nvidia bit is not used for the VGA output. But, if some internal monitoring won't accept this part missing, I'm SOL with that one. We'll see.

[TWT]

I had an old company supplied HP laptop and the motherboard failed.I removed the HDD and bought another laptop secondhand,the same model which had been barely used and was in excellent condition.I then formatted the HDD in the 'new' unit before copying the data from the old one onto the new one using a 3rd laptop.I then just plugged the HDD in,and it booted up fine,Windows only had to go searching for 1 driver for the different soundcard and that was it,job done.

[Loose rivets]

It might well end up being the only option apart from a new one. The darn daughterboard has numerous surface mount devices right where I was going to put the heat. Also, there are a lot of components very near the board. I can just see a few balls. What were they thinking!!!!!!!!!??????????????

Best laid plans and all that.


Very strange, that student made the comment about the plastic stuff between the heatsink and the chip. It's very thick. 3mm at least. I assume they must know what they're doing . . . they do, don't they?

I know it must be heat conducting, but I rather think his suggested penny might be better. He said his worked.

I've got next to no chance of powering this up temporarily without a lot of work. So, not a case of trying this and that between reboots.

I'll post a pic or two. I wish Pprune hosted pics.

[Loose rivets]

Those two heavy current devices on the right are also under heat sinks. R45X. They read about an ohm in both directions. Anyone know what they are?

[Milo Minderbinder]

I'd guess they are cache memory, but without a closeup I'd never swear to it.

As DIY reballing is out, it could be worth just sticking the motherboard in an oven and baking it for a while and hope the solder reflows (as someone said they;d done earlier)
Reflowing isn;t ideal as a long term fix, but it could be worth a try. Take the CPU out first though - I see you've still got that fitted. Its held in by that screwlock on the socket

[Loose rivets]

Just been looking at another site with a helpful techie. He says a last resort kind of thing is worth trying. Prepare to be disappointed. But several posters claim it's worked for them. 220c for c 7 mins.

Still wondering how to make a localized source of intense IR. I could shield the little components on top.

I'm going to give this some thought tonight, but the notion of pressing the daughterboard down during heating is seeming sensible. However, it has some very hard - not quite rigid - red sealant around the edges. Just another obstacle to my plans.

I have to put this in the category of messing about for fun. It's already waaaaaay past cost effective.


Thinks: wonder if my grandson will help me put it together again.

[Bushfiva]

If it hadn't been disassembled, the street price for the video repair is around $80 with warranty.

[Loose rivets]

Aaaaaagggh! Tell me now!

But surely, they'd be pleased not to have to take it apart? Mind you, they'd not want someone else messing with something that would affect the warranty.

So many warnings about duff workmanship, but any links, just in case?

[Bushfiva]

zcarlo on ebay seems to have some stuff, including 2 remaining motherboards out of 9 originally at $80 each. Also, there's a company in livonia, NY offering $50 repair if you ship them the bare board. If they can't fix it, they'll sell you a working motherboards for $150.

Laptop Parts, GPS items in ZKARLO store on eBay!
NEW HP Pavilion dv6000 Laptop AMD MOTHERBOARD 443774-001 computer 433280 repair | eBay but I've not checked if it's your board
dv6000 motherboard | eBay
items in VIVO Technology USA store on eBay!

I don't know anything about any of these companies, and I've not necessarily linked to your exact motherboard, and whatever you do next is not my fault!

Quick edit 'cos I just read the rest of the thread. The R45X are voltage regulators.

[MacBoero]

Originally Posted by Bushfiva

If it hadn't been disassembled, the street price for the video repair is around $80 with warranty.

My wife bought an HP TX1000 series laptop in New York many moons ago, and brought it back the UK. It too was one of the models affected by the graphics chip overheat problem, but sadly was not one of the models for which HP admitted to there being a design fault, despite it being the same basic design and the same chips used.

I couldn't get any warranty joy in the UK, it broke down more than two years after purchase anyway. When I enquired with HP UK about a repair the price was £90 and came with a 90 days warranty on the repair work. I elected not to go ahead as I wasn't convinced that it wouldn't simply do the same thing again, and bought her a different machine.

[mixture]

Loose rivets,

Slightly concerned about your choice of work surface....

[Loose rivets]

Quick edit 'cos I just read the rest of the thread. The R45X are voltage regulators.

Thanks. That makes sense.


Need to do some writing today, and perhaps play later. The six hour difference found me chatting to folk in the UK until 03:30 this morning. Not unusual.

Thanks for the links. I'll look at the sites later. Already 11:30

[Loose rivets]

Slightly concerned about your choice of work surface....

Oh, it's not all that bad. $20 from a house up the road. However, the substantial oak desk had been in the rain for a while, and by the time I got it home it needed re-gluing. Quick scrape an Ronseal, and I was away. The big HP laser goes in the old printer bay just right. It fitted perfectly into the old wardrobe alcove. Static? Well, high humidity here, and so much is to do with handling the boards. I freak out when I see someone with their paws all over the back of the print. I imagine the huge waveforms I see when I touch the probes of me scope, and make sure they don't get fed into the board.

[obgraham]

Clamp. Scissor. Knife. Pickup.
With that set of tools and a pan of boiling water, Rivvy, I could perform most any surgery.
Can you get that scope to produce a spark? -- for control of bleeders!

[mixture]

LR,

Was that a before or after photo ?

[Loose rivets]

Sadly, before. One has been writing today.


The forceps - if indeed that's the correct name for them - are the real thing. A batch of about 20 from a London Hospital I obtained, perhaps from Proops. RIP

Some of the replicas from China are very real looking. $4.

I make sure each of my kids have a few in the medicine cupboard on a 'just in case' basis. M-I-L had to poke a pen top down my daughter when she was about 3. Could see it, but couldn't get it out and the child couldn't breath.

So glad it was all over before I heard about it. Yes, it reappeared a couple of days later.


I brought a wooden cased cure-all thingie back from the UK. My son has it to show his students. It's one of those things that cause different shaped tubes to glow and one gives a vicious spark to sap spots. There is even a pair of flattened spheres that go over eyeballs. I haven't tried that one.

Think it needs a new Tessler coil. Job for next week.

[Bushfiva]

Look out chaps, he's got a Tesla coil. Tell us when you're about to turn on the repaired violet wand so we can all step back a bit. Also, tell us where you are so we're sure we're stepping away from you, not towards you.

[Mechta]

I've got an HP DV6152, on which the video failed when it got left on a carpet when I was called to come for a meal. I've looked at getting another motherboard, but they all seem to be £50 + carriage from China for a used one, with no guarnatee of success.

Regarding Proops, have they really gone? There is still a website: Home

Mechta Senior used to work at MOD (PE) in St Giles Court, and Proops in Tottenham Court Road was his regular lunchtime haunt. I lost count of the number of times we had this conversation, when he arrived home with some bit of surplus kit from Proops:

Mechta: 'What is it Dad?'

Mechta Senior: 'I don't know, but it was cheap!

[jimtherev]

Originally Posted by Mechta

...with some bit of surplus kit from Proops:

Mechta: 'What is it Dad?'

Mechta Senior: 'I don't know, but it was cheap!

I recognise that exchange.
But I'm not your Dad.
Honest.