Author Topic: Removing my hair over this -_- (Read 6123 times)

Adonis · « **on:** September 10, 2011, 09:11:23 pm »

Alright, for reference purposes, my laptop is an HP DV6-2144r the warranty expired back in january.

Im having to post this on a backup computer that's roughly 5 and a half years old atm because the computer above seems to have failed.

Since about february, I began noticing that my laptop would slow drastically. Eventually, it got to the point where certain programs would lock my computer up at 100% cpu usage. Then in the past month or so, it got to the point where firefox would cause the screen to flicker, then freeze completely. Or, it would simply chug along, then go black from overheating.

At one point, I was having an issue to where the thing wouldn't turn on at all, but a hard reset seemed to fix it after a bit.

As of this morning at nine or so, it worked fine. Picked it up at about 4 in the afternoon, and the damn thing just about laughed at me. It powered up to where I could hear the fans and whatnot spinning up, the two keyboard lights came on, and then the whole thing just shuts down. This process hasn't changed almost five hours later.

I took the thing apart, cleaned everything, and re-seated it all. Plugged it back in after it was re-assembled, then got the following blink code.

"ON-pause-On- long pause, repeat"

After looking this up, I found that this is a bios corruption issue, and that the hard reset should fix it. Did a hard reset, and I'm right back where I started with it powering up for a moment, both lights coming on (not a blink code), and then it just shuts back down again.

HALP.

Nessy · « **Reply #1 on:** September 10, 2011, 11:43:53 pm »

Is your battery plugged in while you turn it on, your power adapter... both?

Adonis · « **Reply #2 on:** September 11, 2011, 12:04:44 am »

I've tried it both ways, and I'm assuming that you're trying to see if it's a bad battery. 98% of the time, I'm on pure AC power with the battery out to remove an un-needed heat source (yes, it got that bad).

I took the time to switch out my hard drive into another computer, and I can confirm that that isn't the problem either.

Nessy · « **Reply #3 on:** September 11, 2011, 12:12:57 am »

Well it sounds like it is turning on but not booting, even making it to BIOS yes? Which makes me think its a power issue. The problem is, power issues can be a number of problems, the two easiest to find being the battery and/or adapter. After that, you could be looking at an issue with the mainboard (not something you should fix at home). The other possibilities could be something like a CPU issue. For instance if the CPU is overheating the sensories are set to shut the machine down rather than fry it. You haven't dropped it lately have you?

Adonis · « **Reply #4 on:** September 11, 2011, 12:43:35 am »

I haven't dropped it lately, no. It's not even hitting past the POST. I hear the fans kick on for 1-3 seconds, then it dumps. While it might be a power issue, I don't think both the battery *and* the adapter have gone bad. We have a second computer of the same model, and I just popped upstairs to give it a shot with her adapter/battery with the same result.

Im honestly starting to think it's an issue with the CPU. If the CPU was starting to junk out, it would explain the shitty performance, hanging, and overheating. Would also point to the fact that the computer isn't powering on because the processor is unavailable, so it powers up to the point where processing begins, and just shuts back off again.

I may end up simply sayin fuck it and buying a new machine altogether. Just use the thing for parts or something. Just really agitating to deal with like this, and I'm trying to run through every option to get it back up and running.

Nessy · « **Reply #5 on:** September 11, 2011, 12:52:33 am »

Well there are the power sources but on the mainboard there are things that control voltage for example... if those go it wouldn't power on either which is still a power issue but not an issue you can fix. I am sorry I am not much help. The thing I hate about notebooks is you can't just sort of test issues out one by one as easy as you can a desktop. One thought is maybe its the fan. You did say it kicked on but then kicked off... no fan would overheat pretty much everything which would auto shut it down.

Adonis · « **Reply #6 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:02:18 am »

The fan turned off with everything else, not as a separate entity :p Im thinking I'll just have to get my E on on the dinosaur laptop until I can save enough for an alienwear piece. Those things last for forever, and you can run friggin NASA off of some of them

Nessy · « **Reply #7 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:04:53 am »

Heh, you're right. I know an IBM Thinkpad that is still kicking. They built those like tanks. Hey if your harddrive is all right, and it very well could be, you might be able to pull data off of it and put it onto a new one. I am sure a shop would probably charge you at least 100 dollars just to have a look which is unfortunate.

Adonis · « **Reply #8 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:24:13 am »

The hard drive is just fine. I was able to switch it into my little sisters computer earlier this evening and it booted right up.

Nessy · « **Reply #9 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:28:20 am »

Quote from: Adonis on September 11, 2011, 01:24:13 am

The hard drive is just fine. I was able to switch it into my little sisters computer earlier this evening and it booted right up.

Well that's good. My most valuable stuff is on the HDD. The rest can be replaced though can be... spendy. Hey though holidays coming notebook/desktop deals will be aplenty.

Adonis · « **Reply #10 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:47:31 am »

Totally. http://www.dell.com/us/p/alienware-M17x-r3/pd.aspx <-- That's what I have my eye on. Could do without the 3d, but meh, ya never know.

Nessy · « **Reply #11 on:** September 11, 2011, 02:01:37 am »

I was going to say there are tons of deals out there all the time for builds right now but you're looking for a rig that will do a lot more than a little E writing. heh

Adonis · « **Reply #12 on:** September 11, 2011, 02:12:22 am »

Very much so. I'm a big gamer guy when I'm not working or taking care of my girls here on E.

Nessy · « **Reply #13 on:** September 11, 2011, 02:15:25 am »

Heh, i remember when gaming and notebooks were like oil and water. I suppose they have come a long way now. I wouldn't toss your old machine just yet though. You never know. It could be something really simple that someone down the road can figure out cheaply.

Adonis · « **Reply #14 on:** September 11, 2011, 02:44:08 am »

Mm. I intend on keeping it for parts at the very least. Thing has 8 gigs of memory and a rather large HDD that I can use for storage purposes with an HDD USB adapter.

Ashe · « **Reply #15 on:** September 11, 2011, 09:41:52 am »

This is actually a problem with a lot of HP laptops. I've had 4 amongst my family. I don't know why I didn't learn the first time, but I'm bloody stubborn... Their desktops are still good, but never again will I buy a laptop from them. Batteries need replaced after a year, adapters after 3. Mine is about 3 years old, and it did this same exact thing back in May.

I'm not a tech genius, but I finagle with things where I can. Hard reset didn't work. I tried a registry clean, drained the battery of what little it would hold, and I just turned it off, unplugged it, and didn't use the computer for 3 days after that. The lights stopped blinking. I honestly think the system didn't know what it wanted to do, and it threw a tantrum because it needed to "sleep."

You might kill me for saying this, but if you can find a Macbook Pro for cheaper than that Alienware, you're actually doing a lot better. Mac OS's utilize their processors differently than Windows, so games run smoother and faster. (World of Warcraft, for example...Mmm.) And if you have legal windows discs, you can install them onto a Mac with BootCamp, so you can switch to it when games aren't made for the Mac.

Acer is also a surprisingly good laptop brand. They're generally low in price since they're not as "big" as HP and Dell, but I've seen clunkers older than my HP gaming laptop that run better.

Just throwing some options out there. Alienware's good, but you're ultimately paying 50% too much because it's a brand name. I would go back to your computer in a week and see if the system just didn't hush its own problems, and if it didn't, my condolences.

Autumn Sativus · « **Reply #16 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:23:08 pm »

And since Alienware has been bought out by Dell, you're getting less quality than they used to have for a more expensive pricetag.

Ashe · « **Reply #17 on:** September 11, 2011, 01:42:07 pm »

I wouldn't exactly say less quality in the parts. Since Alienware is allowed to keep its name rather than being assimilated, that makes them a sub-company rather than a part of Dell. So I think they're still making their own machinery. Could be wrong, though.

But you will be given Dell's service for any problems. God help you, then.

HockeyGod · « **Reply #18 on:** September 11, 2011, 04:05:49 pm »

This problem could have to do with the hardware or the software. Computers are damn fussy. My Dell was having difficulty booting - it wouldn't engage Windows. I called Microsoft and they said it was a hardware issue. I called Dell and they said software.

In the end I found a great tech via Dell and he diagnosed the problem. It was the screen of all things. Basically the screen wouldn't engage and as such the computer stopped the boot sequence.

Unfortunately your laptop may have to be taken in for diagnosis.

Adonis · « **Reply #19 on:** September 11, 2011, 05:11:19 pm »

I was able to pull a fairly old trick (removing the cmos battery for a minute or so to reset it, then set it back in). Im not entirely sure *why* it worked yet, but the computer turned on immediately right after a reboot, and now it seems to be running fine again. W.T.F.

Valentinian · « **Reply #20 on:** September 11, 2011, 05:46:22 pm »

I can recommend the Alienware you're considering; I use that exact one as the workhorse.

The issues you've been experiencing sounds like something I had with a Sony Vaio; it was a high-performance laptop that had all the necessary hardware but wasn't built to accommodate the heat heavy gaming or multimedia use generated, so the inside of the case began to imperceptibly warp and tighten around the boards. It started with glitches and slowdowns and escalated into BIOS problems similar to what you're describing. By the time we diagnosed the problem, the damage was already too severe and the thing had to be replaced.

Not sure if that helps, but throwing it out there.

Adonis · « **Reply #21 on:** September 11, 2011, 08:25:16 pm »

Yeah. Im most likely going to dump a fair amount of cash into the thing. The newer laptop I have lasted for about a year, and was bought at just above specifications for most of the games that came out (Was actually able to play chrysis 2 near max graphics), but now, I'm actually hitting the point where the specifications for the minimum to play the newer rpg's and such are just above what my system can do.

I figure if anyone can keep me on top of the gaming stuff for a few years at max settings, it's alienware.

Nessy · « **Reply #22 on:** September 11, 2011, 10:01:21 pm »

Quote from: Adonis on September 11, 2011, 08:25:16 pm

Yeah. Im most likely going to dump a fair amount of cash into the thing. The newer laptop I have lasted for about a year, and was bought at just above specifications for most of the games that came out (Was actually able to play chrysis 2 near max graphics), but now, I'm actually hitting the point where the specifications for the minimum to play the newer rpg's and such are just above what my system can do.

I figure if anyone can keep me on top of the gaming stuff for a few years at max settings, it's alienware.

Yeah nothing Mac is going to keep you happy in terms of gaming. Good show on the CMOS... that's the ultimate reset button, so to speak.

Adonis · « **Reply #23 on:** September 11, 2011, 10:42:10 pm »

I can't stand them anyway.

Legion · « **Reply #24 on:** September 13, 2011, 10:46:06 pm »

Just a helpful hint for you in future,

I am a tech and gamer myself so I'm quite knowledgeable in this kind of thing, I don't recommend Alienware at all since Dell bought them out they aren't worth the price tag. If you simply must go for a gaming laptop take a look at the Asus ROG (Republic of Gamers) Range they are brilliant computers with smaller price tags and just as good as an Alienware.

Although personally I don't like gaming laptops the weight of them reduces their portability and removing the only benefit of having a laptop. Building your own desktop can be quite simple and definitely worth the money. I designed a built one last night for 2.5 grand AUD + extra for my time spent on it.

Despite and earlier comment about Dell's tech support I have nothing but good things to say about them, I am an IT professional so as you can imagine I have had to deal with them and other companies quite a lot and never had any problems with Dell.