3820TG Owner's Lounge - Part Two

[duykhang]

hey folks.

I'm currently using the 3820tg with the i5-480M & ATI 6550M.

not sure if anyone's got the same problem but i just got diablo 3 and was playing it for abt 15 minutes and then my 3820tg suddenly shuts off. i'm guessin its due to overheating. anyone got the same problem? i am already placing it above the surface its on to improve air flow but its still shutting down every 15 minutes of gameplay or so.

I've played crysis 2 and BF2 on this bad boy and everything was fine until today. I got it last January. Could this mean that i need to get a new notebook or is there a way to fix this problem?

thanks for reading!

Played 4hrs cpu 3.2 gpu 780/1000 no problems with bios fan mod

[BryanL]

I had a similar issue where I couldn't even open CCC. I don't think a GPU can die randomly like that...

1- Use driver sweeper and clean out the amd drivers
2- Reboot
3- Install the 4820tg amd drivers (latest from acer which works with the 5650m)

Skip this if you're don't want latest amd drivers (v12.3)
4- Reboot in discrete mode by pressing F2 at bios posting and changing the settings, install the latest amd drivers from amd website
5- Reboot in switchable mode

Hey sorry for the late response. Even though what you suggested worked great, i'm still having a problem with the nvidia catalyst control center. When I click on the program, it doesn't do anything. When I right click the desktop to go to graphic properties, nothing happens. I didn't think much of it before but now after installing D3 and having graphics issues, I want to solve this problem.

Any suggestions?

[Domo_x9]

Hi Guys
I am thinking about cleaning fans in my 3820TG. How do you clean this laptop? Is it enough just to unscrew the bottom and spray the fans and radiators? Is it possible to unscrew this bottom?
Thanks in advance

[Tin2]

Thanks for the advice! it works!

managed to somehow open up my 3820tg after following the pic by pic steps that i found to change the CPU or somthin. I am surprised i didnt break anything internal but i did break my F2 button while try to pry the keyboard out but yeah. managed to go all the way into the fans and blow out the dust.

I also tried looking for somekind of prgram that will allow me to increase the fan speed at a touch of a button but it seems that the only way to do it is going through BIOS etc which seems a bit too much for me to handle. Opening up the notebook itself was hard enough, i dont think i want to risk playing with the BIOS.

Thanks again for the advice! Playing D3 is smooth but sometimes during the cut scenes, it lags a bit.

First of all measure the temps- no need for guessing.
Also make sure you use canned-air (gas-duster) once a month or so to stop dust from accumulating in the radiator.

[Tin2]

Hi Guys
I am thinking about cleaning fans in my 3820TG. How do you clean this laptop? Is it enough just to unscrew the bottom and spray the fans and radiators? Is it possible to unscrew this bottom?
Thanks in advance

I recently did that. I actually googled "acer 3820tg disassembly" and one of the results was in the form of a pdf. Its got a pretty good step by step guide with pictures. You would need to literally unscrew the back, take of the keyboard, and unplug some internal stuff. I am just surprised i didnt break any thing as mentioned in my previous post. But once i can see the fan, i just use the spray cans. I didn't try to open the fan any further though. although the dust may seem minimal but they do seem to affect the performance and temperature. well mine did anyways.

gd luck to u

[Domo_x9]

Thanks Tin2. I have the same PDF i guess, but I'm wondering do I really need to take keyboard out? I plan to take out as few parts as possible because I always have a bad luck when I try to improve something that is already working fine.

[rezendevous]

Thanks Tin2. I have the same PDF i guess, but I'm wondering do I really need to take keyboard out? I plan to take out as few parts as possible because I always have a bad luck when I try to improve something that is already working fine.

You can also take a look at user kindan's PDF guide. The additional explanations and pictures are useful:

Acer TimelineX 3820TG Owners Lounge. Info, benchmarks, tweaks, mods and upgrades

[rengmyr]

Hi, new to the forum. I was wondering if anyone knows if there are new drivers coming to the Radeon 5650 HD soon. Going to start playing Diablo 3 and would be nice with smoking hot drivers …
Or is there a way to simply install the drivers directly from amd?

edit: ignore found the answer here in the thred

[duykhang]

btw the bios mod is just a 1 click and it changes the fan profile to a more aggressive state you will lose wifi until you reboot it works very well -15 to -20C on load compared to the normal

[Bronsky]

I recently did that. I actually googled "acer 3820tg disassembly" and one of the results was in the form of a pdf. Its got a pretty good step by step guide with pictures.

Any of you guys ever think of looking on the first page of this thread? There is a link to the Acer online manual for the 3820TG with a complete disassembly guide. My temps are still quite low considering the age of my 3820TG. The IC Diamond 7 paste has really kept temps down low (38C idle) and if dust has gathered on the radiator, it hasn't affected performance yet. This notebook has been nearly maintenance free.