ATI FireGL 5200 high temperatures [update]

[Marin85]

Hi,

I have recently observed my gpu temperatures going up to 111°C while gaming or other similarly high cpu+gpu stressing. Also, I am able to easily reproduce it using Passmark BurnIn software. I can´t remember noticing so high gpu temperatures anytime before, so I wanted to ask whether it looks like the gpu might be overheating. System is as given in my signature. Under Maximum Performance profile and normal load (browsing, skype, e-mail, word, audio, video) the cpu temperatures are ~55°C and gpu temperatures are ~64-68°C, which looks pretty normal to me given the fact that the FireGl V5200 card is well known to be a "hottie". Yet 111°C seems to me a little bit too hot even for my taste.

No artifacts or any other signs of gpu failure either. The fan was replaced a few months ago due to failure that had tooked in the cpu subsequently overheating, and the base was replaced a few weeks ago due to some problem with the ejecting mechanism in the ultrabay. So, now I have this strange feeling that the cause for these gpu temperatures might be related to improper reassembling or something. Another thing is that the laptop has just about 2 months of warranty left...

So, guys, what do you think? Anything to be worried about? (In the mean time I keep playing with the power settings.)

Marin

EDIT: topic name changed.

[Harryc]

When the fan was replaced, was a thermal pad used on the GPU heatsink? It should be visible if you remove the keyboard. If there is no thermal pad, get one. If the pad is there, make sure it contacts the GPU. Also check for bends in the heatpipe.

[Marin85]

When the fan was replaced, was a thermal pad used on the GPU heatsink? It should be visible if you remove the keyboard. If there is no thermal pad, get one. If the pad is there, make sure it contacts the GPU. Also check for bends in the heatpipe.

Thanks for your quick reply! From what I saw (warranty is on-site), the new heatsink had already thermal grease applied. I will look into it tomorrow in daylight when I am able to find my fine screwdrivers...

EDIT: Where I am now, I don´t have proper screwdriver to open up my ThinkPad :doh

[Marin85]

Update:

In the mean time I got a suitable screwdriver and opened up the laptop. The thermal pad on the gpu heatsink was well visible, and I am almost sure that it contacted the gpu surface. Given the situation, I removed the fan to take some pics, so you can see by yourself:

cpu and gpu

and

fan and heatsink with thermal pad applied at the corresponding places

(mirrored positions).

Sorry for the bad quality of the pics, but at the time I didn´t have anything better to take the pics with than the 2.0 megapixel camera of my smartphone. The first chip on the left is the cpu, the second chip on the right is the ATI gpu, but I have no idea what is the third chip below the ATI gpu... Judging by the second picture, it really looks like the gpu was well covered from above by the thermal pad.

Anyways, this week I gave the laptop for warranty service, they replaced the fan, but the problem still exists. Stressing the laptop (cpu+gpu only) with Passmark BurnIn for about 20 minutes make the gpu reach 109-110°C, while no issues with the cpu whatsoever. I am using Everest Ultimate v5.50 to follow the temperatures (by now it has always reported same temperatures as TPFancontrol). BTW, the warranty ends on 19. April.

Marin

[Crunch]

Yikes...111C? Those guys at AMD/ATI sure know how to build an indestructible product, huh?

Clean off the smudges of the thermal paste that is visible and apply a fresh layer on both the CPU and GPU! Also, take the heatsink out and clean it as best you can. I did this recently, and I pulled out lots of nasty looking dust balls that had accumulated over time. Check every last blade of the fan. You'll be surprised at what you will likely find if you do a thorough job. Be careful with the little power cable all the way to the left of the heatsink, and remember to reconnect it.

The ideal way to solve this would be a brand new heatsink of course. As for the thermal paste, get Arctic Silver 5. A small tube will last you a lifetime.

Good luck!

[RealBlackStuff]

I would extend the warranty without any delay!
You have only 3 days left. After that it's no longer possible to extend!

[Marin85]

I would extend the warranty without any delay!
You have only 3 days left. After that it's no longer possible to extend!

I thought one can extend the warranty only within few weeks after the purchase of the ThinkPad If not, what are my options for warranty extension?

Yikes...111C? Those guys at AMD/ATI sure know how to build an indestructible product, huh?

Clean off the smudges of the thermal paste that is visible and apply a fresh layer on both the CPU and GPU! Also, take the heatsink out and clean it as best you can. I did this recently, and I pulled out lots of nasty looking dust balls that had accumulated over time. Check every last blade of the fan. You'll be surprised at what you will likely find if you do a thorough job. Be careful with the little power cable all the way to the left of the heatsink, and remember to reconnect it.

The ideal way to solve this would be a brand new heatsink of course. As for the thermal paste, get Arctic Silver 5. A small tube will last you a lifetime.

Thanks for the advice! And yes, lol, it is pretty amazing that the gpu can survive such temperatures... But I won´t try to push it so hard anymore, at least not until I have found a solution. BTW, the system was serviced just 2 days ago, they blew out all the dust (there wasn´t much of it anyways as the ThinkPad was serviced again a month ago) and replaced the fan with a new one (I assume the thermal pads are as they are supposed to be). Unfortunately, it hasn´t solved the problem nor it has made it worse, which makes me think the fan was O.K. and the problem is somewhere else. Regardless, it is a good idea to refresh the thermal pads some day.

I already have some ideas as to what may be causing the problem. I will post about it later.

[RealBlackStuff]

Calling up IBM/Lenovo on Monday is already too late!
Find a warranty extension online.