HOW TO: repair your dead graphics card in your alienware!

Rob41 · 05-31-2009, 04:24 PM

*****WARNING*****

Before attempting the following procedure, make certain that you have exhausted ALL available methods of determining that you graphics card is truly bad. Performing the following procedure on a good graphics card could render it useless. I accept no responsibility for any damages this technique may cause so use at your discretion.

I have been seeing stories about people putting their defective (non functioning) graphics cards in the oven, cooking them and getting back a fully functioning graphics card.

I know, I was shaking my head too. Since I have an Alienware M9750 with a non functioning 7950m GTX primary graphics card, I figured I had nothing to loose.

I've got to tell you, I was more than a little surprised when I finished the procedure to find that my once dead GPU was now perfectly functioning!!

O.K., here is my how-to guide. I hope this will help!

*THE PROCEDURE*
Preheat your oven to 385F. Place four "balls" of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet. Now place your defective GPU on the cookie sheet with one of each of the four balls of aluminum foil holding up a corner of the card. Make sure if you have any plastic washers, that you set them aside.

Once the oven is fully at 385F, place the cookie sheet with the Graphics card on the middle rack of the oven and set the timer for 8 to 10 minutes.

When the 8 to 10 minutes are up, shut off the oven and crack the oven door open for about ten minutes. Then allow the card to further cool (at a slow rate) for another 20 minutes removed from the oven.

That's it. Now install your card in your rig as you normally would and enjoy your newly repaired graphics card.
Foil.JPG TEMP.JPG

*THE WHY*
I'm an engineer by trade so I was more than a little shocked when I first heard the suggestion. Then I realized exactly what was happening. Many printed circuit boards are soldered just like the procedure outlined above. Of course in a more controlled environment. Needless to say, it's not always the best method and can lead to tiny cracks in the soldering that can't be seen by the naked eye. When we perform this method at home, we're every so slightly melting the solder enough to repair the fine cracks.

*MY M9750*
My M9750 just shut down one day while surfing the web. I won't go into all of the diagnosis and trouble shooting as that's an entirely seperate and long topic. With that said, I did exhaust all avenues to diagnose and repair my rig and in the end I was able to determine the problem was a faulty primary graphics card.

I am happy to say it all worked like a charm and I'm writing this post on my M9750! I really didn't know if I would ever be able to use it again.

I'm sure there are some third party resellers of graphics cards that may not want people to know this can be done.

I don't know how many time I've read a post where someone had a card fry and couldn't find a replacement or couldn't afford one. I hope this technique will at least halp some of them.

I am compelled to remind all those that will consider doing this that you must ensure you have done everything possible to determine that the card in question is in fact bad.

Good luck!

EDIT: I'd like to thank Engadget for providing the link to OC Forums about this procedure. And Beatsiz linked them too.

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=606658

whizzo · 05-31-2009, 04:28 PM

so you read engadget too?

MrButterBiscuits · 05-31-2009, 04:30 PM

Wow, that's really cool and I'm glad to hear it worked! What a crazy and simple soultion lol

Rob41 · 05-31-2009, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by whizzo

so you read engadget too?

Yeah, it just sounded so, "no way" till you think about it.

I am soooooo happy my M9750 is working again.

Well the wife is too now that it's her's since I got the M17. I got it because My M9750 was dead. lol