P-7811 FX (Gateway)

**Kenyth** · 03-15-2010, 08:21 AM

Well, I finally dug into this thing and started reading up on it in depth. There are two main problems it seems.

The cable connector that leads to the monitor is a weak point. It loses a good connection due to minor flexing of the case and cable. Reseating the connector helps, but many have found the cable simply goes bad after doing this a number of times. A new cable does fix the issue, and is a cheap enough part.

The other problem is GPU overheating. This problem doesn't appear to be Gateway's fault, but rather Nvidia's. Some driver hackers have tweaked the flash image and moved the GPU voltage down from it's default of 1.12 Volts down to 0.9-1.0 volts. The improvements have been remarkable on most systems. A 30% reduction in temperature and 20% increase in performance at stock fequencies is not uncommon. The process is a bit difficult and advanced, not to mention risking the BIOS of both the PC and the GPU. I'm trying to think if I should do this or not.

**Mizicke5273** · 03-15-2010, 02:21 PM

Before you flash the BIOS, I'd check out Rivatuner or other tweaking software as you should be able to change the GPU fan speed. This should probably help with the heat issue, as most laptops are set to keep the fan at the lowest minimum speeds, longer than it should, to reduce noise. By uping the speed of the fan, you could alleviate some of the heat build up. Worth a shot first, I'd say.

**Kenyth** · 03-15-2010, 03:22 PM

Originally Posted by Mizicke5273

Before you flash the BIOS, I'd check out Rivatuner or other tweaking software as you should be able to change the GPU fan speed. This should probably help with the heat issue, as most laptops are set to keep the fan at the lowest minimum speeds, longer than it should, to reduce noise. By uping the speed of the fan, you could alleviate some of the heat build up. Worth a shot first, I'd say.

I have the Nvidia tuning program. It's called Ntune. I'll double check, but as soon as you start playing a 3D game the fan starts running high and stays there. On another note, they (Nvidia) say that 80C is a perfectly acceptable operating temp for this card. It sounds high to me. The tweak brings the card temps down to the 50-60C range.

**Mizicke5273** · 03-16-2010, 07:03 AM

80C is average for today's GPUs, I have an 8800 that hovers around ~70C in a heavily cooled case.

As for the fan setting, it's probably already set for to the highest speed then and that is good that it starts right away.

Really the only other thing to try, other than an external cooler, is to apply some Arctic Silver to the CPU and GPU as MarineOne mentioned.

**Mangyrat** · 03-16-2010, 01:46 PM

Originally Posted by Mizicke5273

80C is average for today's GPUs, I have an 8800 that hovers around ~70C in a heavily cooled case.

As for the fan setting, it's probably already set for to the highest speed then and that is good that it starts right away.

Really the only other thing to try, other than an external cooler, is to apply some Arctic Silver to the CPU and GPU as MarineOne mentioned.

Thats kind of hot for a a 8800 I'm sitting at 52c and under heavy load "gaming" i hit 72c on my overclocked 8800gt.
Rip that head sink off it and redo the thermal compound with artic silver or something like that. They come stock with a sticky thermal pad thats not wort crap.

Getting a case set up the right way with proper air flow is tricky you just cant add more fans you need to plan out your set up.