~F3sv Owner's Lounge~

i cant see why not, i dont think enough heat comes off a laptop to damage the lcd, but im not really sure... never done it

 

I hope somebody has already tried this with their F3sv's... I'm afraid to try it also, might as well stick to the open lid setup.. Thinking also of putting it on a separate table.

 

I've had this laptop since December 2007 and it does its job. I use it for gaming/internet. Simple. I put xp on it with ease. Running 3dmark05(the free one) on Vista i got 3k or something...With xp and having OC with ntune.. i think it was 650/520 i got 5816 with 169.09 drivers. I thought this was good. Anyone else got scores they can post? Thnx

 

i havent tried on XP yet, but that vista score sounds like what i was getting when i tried on vista.

 

This has been discussed before - the keyboard is not a significant source of heat dissipation in most notebooks (exc Macbook and some Sony's) since it's essentially a closed system, but the temps that the upper plastic surface reaches (even after extensive benchmark runs) don't approach anywhere near the level that would be needed to affect plastic or the coating on notebook LCDs. Check the keyboard temps on any review that the NBR office staff write and post on the main page.... you almost never see anything above 105; that is only mildly warm at best and nowhere near the level that would be required to physically alter the coating on the LCD. Simple reason, really - the public would scream if you had a notebook that you couldn't use because the keyboard was hot enough to melt plastic since if it did then you would get at least 1st degree burns from touching it.

 

Please help me

Here is the run down.

ASUS F3SV
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0ghz
Nvidia 8600m gs 256mb
120gb hd space
32 Bit Xp Pro or 32 bit Vista Home Premium
2 GB kingston ram

Background:
I have tried both operating systems- Vista 32bit Home Premium, Windows XP Professional 32bit.The forms of these operating systems are as follows- Vista 32 bit is an upgrade CD, XP is an installation cd that I made myself from another install disk. It has sp2 on the disk and the correct Hard drive drivers to install correctly with no errors.
I have 2 brand new gigs of ram installed in my system- Kingston Ram.
The system is CURRENTLY running XP Pro 32 bit.
32 bit vista came pre installed on the computer OEM
I am running across two very very critical issues with my system- No matter what drivers I am using.
I love Aero from Vista-its a GREAT gui!
therefore, I perfer to use Vista over Xp
I believe that the system is much more stable with Vista installed.

Now, onto the errors.. In Vista, I run across Bsods involving NVLDDMKM.SYS along with the very rare TDR.
In XP I still have BSODS involving something that I cannot see- The screen artifacts and the system has to be rebooted- But I can only assume that the BSOD involved NV4_DISP.DLL. Both of the errors only occur when I am gaming- mostly newer games that run on higher graphics.
Have these two errors been resolved? I have spent my whole spring break trying to fix this with no avail- switching back and forth between XP and vista hoping to solve it. Does anyone have any REAL suggestions that I can try? I am really up for doing anything with XP or Vista.
I would much rather like to use vista though, Is there a certain way I should install vista and Drivers that will work with my system? such as installing or not installing certain updates? My last resort is turning in this laptop to ASUS and getting a new one- possibly with getting an ATI card in it. I dont believe that the issue involves hardware or heating- I believe ASUS built this laptop ROCK SOLID, my heating runs relatively cool ~60 degrees C*

Does anyone else suffer from similar issues? I would think that this forum would be chock full of people with similar errors and bsods. But I search on google and through the forums and I dont see that many people complaining about the issues- in either XP or Vista.
Yes I have tried flashing BIOS and just about every other solution that you could dig up on google and other forums. Please help! its strange, i really dont see any one on these forums complaing about NVLDDMKM.SYS Bsods or TDRs-two things that i Really really want to avoid and stop!

The final real question: Is there some way that you can install Vista in a certain order (from and upgrade disk), installing updates (if any), and finally installing a good graphics driver in order to avoid these errors?

I will probably end up posting this on other forums aswell.
I really hope this wasnt a waste of time! Please, just anything to help, especially from you big guys that are abit more tech savvy!!
Aubrey

I figured I would post this on a forum that Actually has a discussion about my exact same (or almost the same) laptop. Contact my AIM or email or post here- thanks!

*update* JenBell's fix @ OC forums worked perfectly for my problem. NO MORE BSODS!!! YAAAY! I cant thank her enough.

AIM: AEngland80
(posted on laptopvideo2go.com aswell)

 

im curious as to how you fixed that without sending it in. To me, that sounded like a hardware issue.

 

Nope... not a hardware issue here, I'll give you some links that should help.


http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=518749

^ this thread helped me solve the issue. Talk to JenBell about your problem. Read this post


http://rapidshare.com/files/67066628/Knigh...Summon.pdf.html

^ this PDF file are instructions and pictures for solving this problem.

Old nvlddmkm.sys files on your system may be interfereing with new nvlddmkm.sys files.

Follow these Directions as accurately as you can.
Since we do have laptops with modded INF files, the fix needs to be done a little differently. You dont have to expand your new nvlddmkm.sys file- instead of [nvlddmkm.sy_] you already have [nvlddmkm.sys] in your new graphics driver file.

I played games (guildwars, source games, and others) for about 12 hours, err as long as I could yesterday without the horrific BSODS and the retarded TDRs. My most recent BSOD was with a hibernation issue- but I think that is a driver problem- but I think i can live with that .

Please post results if the fix works for you, ill read it.
Mine was partially a hardware issue.. rams were changed.. Having the same brand of ram (kingston $75) helps. (2gig)

I reallly really really really hope this helps you!

 

im not havin a problem, i just thought if someone reading this does have the problem it would be nice if the links to the solutions were posted

 

Hey Guys. Its been almost a year since I bought my laptop, and I have decided to provide a quick overview of my experience. I will not inlcude pictures unless asked to by alot of people.

So I think it has went well so far. I bought my Asus F3SV-X1 in July 2007. The specs are as follows:

Intel Core 2 Duo (Merom) T7300
2 x 1GB DDR2 667 RAM (Corsair)
Nvidia Geforce 8600M GS with 256 DDR2 VRAM
8X DVD-RW +/- and DVD RAM Drive (Standard)
Intel PRO/Wireless 3945 ABG with Bluetooth 2.0
160 GB 5400RPM Seagate Hardrive
1280 * 800 Phillips/LG LCD

I think that covers anything that might have been different.

Now I am a university student in engineering. I travel from Mississauga to Toronto daily, and for most of the first Semester (September to December) I had carried my laptop. This semester (January to May) I do carry it but not as much because of the heaviness, and me getting distracted, as I am right now.

That laptop still performs well, with me running the original Windows Vista 32bit Home Premium that came installed with it. Performance is top notch and better than some Penryn laptops I have used (surprisingly, but using the T8100 nothing higher).

Gaming is great with the stock drivers, 101.39. I was even able to crack Crysis after OC'ing to 650/550 Mhz Core/Memory. I played Crysis at 1024X768 and got roughly 17-20 FPS, but thats the best. I killed Bioshock after the proper tweaks, with settings at medium high, and AA on at X2.

I have also played COD4, Unreal Tournament 3, Timeshift all with great performance at medium high. Having the 1280X800 screen turned out to be a blessing in disguise since games still look good with out raping my video card.

Battery life was mediocre throught out. I would usually get around 2:30 hours. At about the 6 month the battery would become very unstable, and could either give me 3 hours (WOW) or 20 minutes.

I sent in the laptop for servicing in Januray. I had them replace the Screen ( a bunch of dead pixels on the right), the keyboard (some loose keys, and I didn't like it being so worn down) and the battery (mentioned above).

So far its good. I have alot of wear on the body, but thats because I beat it up. I have scratches on the right side of the lide (because I carried it without the right protection to school), and I have some scratches inside (because I sleep on my bed and use the laptop).

All in all its fine. I am having issues with the hinge covers coming off, but I am one to manhandle/ severly abuse my laptop. No cracks or breaks. The only other body issues is some creeking here and there, and the latch struggling to close for the LCD.

This having been my first laptop has really put my faith in Asus. They do make great products (with bad battery life mind you).

So I would recommend a newer model Asus for your next laptop. Great service, great products.

Thanks!

 

im curious about the COD4 performance, you said you were running on med/high with 1280x800 (i think that was implied). What fps were you getting? Im thinking about getting that game but i dont want any lower than about 40fps. I could deal with lower settings than you used however.

 

I had COD4 demo installed and was getting poor fps on low settings i believe. Way below 40fps if i remember correctly. I will try agian with XP pro installed.

 

What kind of moniter is that? Its nice

 

OC'd both the shader clocks and core and mem clocks, using Riva tuner, and got stellar performance 35-45 FPS. It was ridiculous, but make sure to take the shader clocks down after so it does not get damaged.

 

ugh, guess counterstrike is as far as this comp is guna take me i guess... Thats not that bad though, i dont see my self getting bored of it anytime soon.

 

Could anyone give me a list of graphics drivers to use? I am a victim (from time to time) of that nvlddmkm.sys bsod and tdr. and no, 158.45 does NOT work on my machine. I get a STOP BSOD at boot up and sometimes it doesnt work period.

Asus f3sv
2.0ghz intel core 2 duo
2gb ram
8600m gs
Vista 32bit home premium

Thanks..

 

try to install the driver that ar on asus support notebook f3sv website
http://dlsvr01.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/Drivers/VGA/nVidia/Vista/V7.15.11.0134/VGA_Nvidia_VISTA.zip

 

That driver doesnt work any better than the others. I have no freakin clue what to do! even XP gives me problems such as bluescreens!!! I havent tried XP in quite awhile because I like vista. Agghh i cant take it anymore!

 

Use the stock drivers. They are based off the old low power 101 series of drivers. They are fine. I told you once I OC'd the card it gives me great performance in BioShock, COD4, Assissn's Creed, which I just installed today.

Use Riva Tuner. Its great. Or nTune.

The only stable drivers I have used (and I have used plenty) are the latest stock drivers.

 

Hmmm.. well there are drivers on the ASUS cd that came with the machine. I am going to assume that they are the stock drivers, I'll try those. ive got Riva Tuner, but i still cant exactly identify the use of it besides Overclocking. I also installed a hotfix: kb940105. Hopefully that will help my programs from hitting the "ram" ceiling. I dunno if that is the real issue- But thanks alot, I will report back with results. I really just want to play my games, I could care less for image quality. Performance is what I am all about- good fps in good games.

 

corrupt memory is a common problem with computers... try memtest 86+ and report back to us with your results

 

Fitters,

I have had ram problems before... or so i think i have.. I tried to put a stick of pny in the machine with the stock ram and it did not like that . So now I have 2 gigs of Kingston ram.

Right now I have regular premium 32 bit vista installed, a fresh installation- Do you guys have sp1? should i Update my computer as much as I can before I install new graphics drivers? or should I run the f3sv disk and install all the drivers and then update?? Does anyone do anything to avoid the nvlddmkm errors? Do you all just live with it? I probably wont do anything until I get a reply, I am sick of screwin stuff up

 

updated everything first, then last install sp1

 

For some reason, when I install the VGA driver from the f3sv disk, the system doesnt even come up to the vista logo- the screen is on but it just stays black which is really strange, I have never had this happen with a driver no matter how bad the system is. I tried the driver from Asus's site that was mentioned before, but i recieved a bsod on the second boot. Maybe I should get the same driver but get it from laptopvideo2go? Does anyone do anything with their nvlddmkm files besides me? maybe actually messing with them is giving me problems (ie Deleting them)

 

this problem actually sounds alot like one someone just had. Until now i have been assuming you read the owners lounge (but that is pretty unrealistic since there are over 100 pages lol), try reading back about 5-10 pages. Someone just had a problem and they supplied a link to the fix, see if that helps.

 

Haha, that was me fitterman. I was the one with the fix for it. Knowing myself, I try my hardest to get the machine running perfectly- that fix did not work completely, I would recieve bsods after restarting the machine. So, here is what I am doing. I have a fresh install of vista now. I was trying to install a graphics driver before i updated my system completely. I was getting a code 43, device manager would stop my graphics driver because it was causing problems- no matter what driver i install. Now, I have a new installation of vista, I am going to update completely with SP1 and all.

I will perform the fix,Then, I am going to install the latest driver (174.74) and try em. any one tried this driver? Hopefully it will work out..

 

Hey Aengland,

My system has the latest VGA drivers from the Asus Support Download website. Also install the latest BIOS version. They fixed that BSOD issues you were having with Version 203, but version 208 is what they are on right now.

I have the 101.34 driver version. The reason I use it is because the other drivers( the ones from laptopvideo2go.com) generally gave me little to no difference in performance, bad battery life to the already appaling battery life on the laptop, and I could not overclock.

I overclock with RivaTuner and nTune. I use RivaTuner when I need to over clock for more intense games like COD4, and BioShock and Crysis. It can let you overclock your shaders.

I use nTune when I need to overclock only for modern but not intense games, like Age of Conan, NBA Live 2008 etc. nTune is better at managing the overclocking and once the card reaches a dangerous temperature it automattically throttles down.

NOTE: before I get harrassed about Crysis, I play it on 1024x768 with medium settings, and I only get about 20-25 FPS maximum. I have Vsync off, AA off, all the good stuff off. So no its not stellar but playable.

 

Hey guys, I seem to see success for my method of install- Updates from Windows and SP1, Delete my nvlddmkm.sys folders and the files in them and then install graphics driver 174.74. The boot screen shows no dots on it at all and no more code 43 in device manager. I dont think I will be over clocking any time soon- too much heat for me, Although it would be nice. Now, I hear a fan on my computer... one that I dont think i have ever ever ever heard before.. I do have a cooling mat underneath the laptop, but the vent in the back of the computer now makes noise.. its not bad noise, it just sounds like its running.. Could that fan not working have been my problem?

I did however receive a rundll32 (i think) error on my 3rd or fourth boot. heres the advanced description of it:

Problem signature:
Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
Application Name: rundll32.exe
Application Version: 6.0.6000.16386
Application Timestamp: 4549b0e1
Fault Module Name: NVCPL.DLL
Fault Module Version: 7.15.11.7474
Fault Module Timestamp: 47e88137
Exception Code: c0000005
Exception Offset: 001ac198
OS Version: 6.0.6001.2.1.0.768.3
Locale ID: 1033

I really dont know much about it, my friend says its pretty generic.. Thanks rafiki, ill make sure i get those and see if i can OC with this driver, although I doubt i can..

 

Hey, no problamo. You cannot OC with any drivers other than the 101. Your friend although well intentioned sort of misled you. The crash is generic, as in it is a DLL crash. But you have to look at the specifics. The crash happened in the NVCPL.DLL which is one of the modules for your graphics driver. In specific its the module that extends the graphics card information to the nVidia control panel. Looking at the version, it says 7.15.11.7474 which is the driver version.

 

Thanks rafiki, I am not really sure what to do about the crash, seems like lots of people have it- and hasn't effected anything so far. BUT i have Not tested any games or anything yet... and I am kinda scared... things seem to be working a little too well... Ill post some results. Vista WEI didnt crash on aero performance- which i have had happen. 4.5 as my score- Aero was the lowest- but gaming graphics was 5.3, the highest out of all of them. The rest were around ~4.9. Pretty decent if you ask me- I used to have scores of around 3.5 or so for aero. Ill post results of gaming here in a bit. Ill investigate that crash a little more too..

 

im able to overclock with 169.39 (or is it 169.38? i dont remember off the top of my head) from laptopvideo2go

 

Well, 174.74 did not give me much sucess. It was running fine then I got an error in CSS and a big crash with artifacts and other stuff. Next I uninstalled em and cleaned it out. I installed the stock drivers that came on the CD. I was typing this message and my mouse froze, my keyboard froze too. I couldnt do anything. My processes light was a really hard green color- and my screen turned black. I had no other option but to shut it down. Was it that Powermizer feature that did that or something else that is stupid (lol)? I really hope so... I am thinking about going back and trying it again. Other than that I think I will be installing new drivers throughout the day today to figure out what I can use. if anyone wants to give me a list of what drivers they have used that work well, that would be great

I just dont understand why I have to suffer with this and it seems like you guys are having pretty good success with this machine. I think my very last options are 1. trying to get xp working well and 2. Sending the machine back to asus and asking for a new one. - But i havent given up on vista yet.

 

You could try to identify what process is taking a lot of CPU, maybe it's not related to GPU (although it's unlikely given the artifacts). Maybe you have spyware?

If it is the video driver and it does it with several different versions including stock, I suggest a complete OS reinstall (unless you already did so), and if that doesn't do the trick, it's likely something is wrong in the hardware; so you would need to send it back to ASUS.

 

I used the asus recovery dvd to do a full reformat of the system, back to stock settings. I havent gotten the chance to test it yet... hopefully that will do the trick- if not, ill try xp then if that doesnt work ill just send it in as having hardware problems-but i honestly dont think that is the problem. ill post results this evening hopefully. Has anyone else on this forum experienced the same issues?


* the recovery disc didnt help anything, eventhough i told it to recover to the first partition. I got fed up with vista and I am on XP now. Hopefully I can get things working here. It has SP2 and everything installed great.. We shall see, I let Windows install a graphics driver for me... I am not sure how good of an idea that was.. but ill find out soon enough*

 

XP didnt work out. It wouldnt install any monitors even though the graphics driver was working properly. So now I am back on Vista. I am going to try updating everything and trying the same driver, with SP1 and without it. to see how much of a difference there is.

Sigh, I am sending it back to ASUS. They said they would fix it for me. I think I can take a week without it.

 

well, if you think about it, it was doing you more harm than good seeing as how all you were doing is trying to fix it over and over..

 

Yeah, exactly. I came to the conclusion that it was a heat problem. That vent turning on magically and then turning off one day made me think that it was broken from the start... I think someone else said they had weird heat from the right side too. Hardware RMA ftl. Oh well, I had a really nice old guy help me at fedex with it- made sure all the directions were followed correctly. Ill try to post again when I have it back, next week maybe? no clue. I hear that it can be 1-3 weeks, lame. Ill have it back by the time school is out.

 

it all depends on how far you live from a service location. Some people get it back same day (they have to pick it up and drop it off though), i doubt it will take that long.

 

Jeffersonville, IN isn't too far, ~320 miles, 5 hour drive from Peoria IL, I might get it by next week. who knows, I am not too eager to get it back.. I need a good break from it considering i would spend up to 12 hours a day on it trying to find some kind of fix.. back to my 7 year old desktop that actually is more stable now, since i installed XP pro on it and cleaned it out- than my laptop was. kinda sad

 

hello all
i have a question about battery.when i full charge my laptop,for example after one day when i turn it on,the charge of battery has been reduced almost 3 or 4 percent (bought my laptop one month ago).i want to know is this normal?
thanks

 

after having bought the f3sv w/o an OS preinstalled, installing XP on it and going through the pain of finding the drivers for it, i succeeded in making almost all the devices work under XP - except the tv tuner (i have the non-us model). anyone know where i could get the driver, or what chip the tuner actually uses? i wasn't able to find the specs on asus site, nor in the user manual.

thank you!

 

to be seen!

 

As long as it doesn't go past 3-4 percent, don't worry about it. If it's like 10% in a day, then you can start worrying

Are you using hibernation to turn off your computer? If so, you may be suffering from this problem:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=183193

Battery drain in Vista hibernation

lukasb: I don't know about the tuner...

 

thanks for your answer.
and no i completely turn it off.

 

Then it's probably just normal battery drain and possibly some measurement noise. If it stays in the region of percents (say less than 5), as I said, you should be fine.

 

My F3sv is finished repairing- now its packing I believe. I should get it some time this week. I am really scared that things didn't turn out right- it seemed to only take a week to fix.. Ill try to report sometime soon..

 

Why should it take more than a week? The whole notebook can be exchanged piece by piece in a week. US service is especially fast, so the fact that it took little time is no reason to worry.

 

Okay, so the laptop is here- The loud magic fan that was in the back of the notebook still doesnt seem to be on... I am not sure if it should be or not, the notice says that it is "fixed". Bios update maybe? It says they also replaced the top case and MB- which i can only assume is the motherboard. Idle temperatures seem to be the same. They basically restored the system to its original state- graphics drivers and all. I will NOT mess with any of those lol. probably uninstall bloat ware tho. WEI is the highest I have ever seen it- 4.7 Any suggestions on the right hand side of the keyboard,the heat that comes from it, and the fan in the back? I've got the laptop on a "cooling" pad but it doesnt seem to do a whole lot. Just scared that that my whole issue is heat.

BTW, is there anyway to see the BIOS settings for these machines? when I press f1 at start up I dont see any settings for fans, etc..


Thanks

 

I think your suppose to press "f2" not "f1" to see your bios settings

 

F2 for BIOS.

Could you remind us your idle temperatures? CPU, HDD, GPU if available?