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Non-gaming video distortion??

post #1 of 11
10/19/05 at 4:59pm
Thread Starter 
First off, I have not done any gaming on my 8790 for about a year and before then it was very sparse. (I have had my 8790 appox. 1 1/2 years) The majority of the time I am either doing homework or surfing the net.
Just recently minor distortion starting happening in Windows. I referred to a comp. savvy friend of mine and he suggested new vid drivers and suspected an overheating issue dealing with the vid card. I then installed new drivers and discovered the fans clogged with massive amounts of dust which I cleaned thoroughly. This did nothing to solve any issues with the distortion and then there would be instances where the distorted video would uniformly cover the whole screen in like a shade of bright orange/yellow and force me to restart. After this bout of trouble-shooting I took it over to my friend and we came to the conclusion that for some reason my vid card was being pushed too much by the drivers. The problem has ceased, but I am forced to use the original default Sager drivers. Whenever I install any other drivers (official or unofficial) the distortion starts immediately.
Where exactly is the video card located?? I took off the CPU/RAM cover last night and it wasn't nearly as dusty as I expected and did see some heat sinks, but was unsure where the vid card was exactly. I am definitely a layman with laptops and some/any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
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post #2 of 11
10/19/05 at 5:49pm
Clean under he keyboard is suggested. The 8790 had a BIOS upgrade that was necessary for installation of the newest video drivers. It should be available at Sager, and if not, let me know your bios number (you can capture it upon booting the system) and Ill let you know if it is current. I have the newest bios and can provide it to you can't get it from the Sager site/Sager.

I was thinking that the video card was located somewhere under the qwe key area or slightly above there - however, I could be wrong. Try using Fn+F10 for about 30 minutes to insure that you system is blown out and as cool as possible.
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post #3 of 11
10/20/05 at 7:17pm
I'm wondering that, with the fans clogged with massive amounts of dust, the heat damage has already been done and the video card has gone South.

Try G's options first. Then Sager if that doesn't work. Hopefully more cleaning will solve the problem.
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post #4 of 11
10/21/05 at 1:02pm
I would have to side with FT on this the damage would already be done if heat was the problem however try this plug a external monitor to your laptop if you get a clear picture without distortion then your looking at a bad screen on the the laptop but if you get the same on the external monitor then unfortunatly your graphics chip could be damaged.
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post #5 of 11
10/21/05 at 9:42pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the input, guys.
I believe the BIOS ver. I have is current 2.01.0 (build 39) and I tried cleaning the keyboard, which I assume is using canned air on it and using the fn+F10, but unfortunately to no avail. I appreciate the offer for the BIOS G-Omaha and I definitely will try the alternate monitor method, Spike. If nothing then I am wondering if there are computer shops in the area that work on laptops or if I must send it to Sager. If I didn't need it for school I wouldn't mind sending it to Sager. Has anyone sent anything to Sager for repair?
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post #6 of 11
10/21/05 at 10:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dr00g
Thanks for the input, guys.
I believe the BIOS ver. I have is current 2.01.0 (build 39) and I tried cleaning the keyboard, which I assume is using canned air on it and using the fn+F10, but unfortunately to no avail. I appreciate the offer for the BIOS G-Omaha and I definitely will try the alternate monitor method, Spike. If nothing then I am wondering if there are computer shops in the area that work on laptops or if I must send it to Sager. If I didn't need it for school I wouldn't mind sending it to Sager. Has anyone sent anything to Sager for repair?
UNDER the keyboard. There are "latches" at four points above the function keys. ESC F7/F8, PrtSc, and the Asterick on the Num Pad. Gently puch these tabs towards the LCD until they "click" and release a portion of the keyboard. You wouldn't believe at what kind of stuff makes it below the keyboard. Also the metal serface under the keyboard radiates heat as part of the cooling system. Dust bunnies prevent the radiation of heat.

BIOS should be 01.00.10 for the latest that I know of. Not sure of what that 2.01.0 (Build 39) comes from.

Sager is most likely the best place to repair the unit. Very few electonics repair facilities are familiar with the Clevos machines.
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post #7 of 11
10/24/05 at 6:01pm
Thread Starter 
Ughh, it looks like I will have to send it in to Sager.
Nothing seems to have had any affect. Everytime I install drivers the distortion starts immediately. what is the best way of getting an RMA and avoiding any hassles?
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post #8 of 11
10/24/05 at 6:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by dr00g
Ughh, it looks like I will have to send it in to Sager.
Nothing seems to have had any affect. Everytime I install drivers the distortion starts immediately. what is the best way of getting an RMA and avoiding any hassles?
Contact Sager - User the online RMA section. Have the serial number of the unit available. Then back this up with a phone call and/or email. Again include theserial number with the correspondence.
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post #9 of 11
10/26/05 at 7:27pm
In part of my thread you'll see the best way of contact them http://www.notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=108637 and they do have a quick turn around time, I am having 0 problems and all games and apps scream, I did however build myself a cooling platform for home use hey and it works great too
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post #10 of 11
11/25/05 at 2:31am
Thread Starter 
Well, here are some pics of the video distortion-

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/dr00g/distort1.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y50/dr00g/distort2.jpg

I just recently contacted Sager and the tech stated that the cause could be that the video ram is bad and worst case senario a motherboard issue *crosses fingers it is not the MB*

Is the video card integrated onto the motherboard by any chance? Since the tech stated possibly a MB replacement it makes me wonder.
If it is the video ram can't the vid card be easily taken out and replaced?
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post #11 of 11
11/25/05 at 9:34am
Ah, the wonderful sight of artifacting

Would imagine that you're due for a mb replacement, but new RAM might be the solution. Cross my fingers for you, but not sure if you want my luck on your side.
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