Dell Studio 1737 potentially dead - need help deciding on options

Spec of my Dell Studio 1737
CPU : T3200
Chipset : GM45
RAM : 2x1GB (DDR2-PC6400, 800Mhz)


History
The AC Adapter had been making a buzzing / hissing sound for a little while (a few months) which you could hear through the stereo, and would also produce faint flickering lines on the display in tandom with the buzzing noise you would hear.


Symptoms
To cut a long story short, I had a power cut and after the power cut my 1737 has stopped working correctly.

When I plug the AC Adapter into the wall socket the blue LED on the AC Power Jack lights up, as soon as I plug the power jack into the laptop the blue LED goes out.

When I take the jack out of the laptop, and turn the power off, then back on at the mains socket, the blue LED will light up again.


Summary
The laptop will not power up with AC Mains power.


Additional Info
The laptop will power on from battery, but the battery is so low on power now that it will get past the POST screen then display a Battery Critically Low warning, then as soon as I press F1 it turns itself off.


Possible Faults
This has lead me to the conclusion that it could be one of the following potential problems :

1) AC Adapter is faulty
2) The DC Power board IO is faulty
3) The motherboard is faulty


Actions required to fix fault
I personally think (but hope not) that the motherboard has a fault. I have ordered a new AC Adapter to try and eliminate that as the problem, if that does not fix it then I will try the DC Power board, and if that doesnt fix it then I will have to bite the bullet and get a new motherboard.

While im at it, im figuring I may as well upgrade the CPU and the memory, as it will still turn out cheaper than buying a new laptop - this leads me to the following questions:

(I am not interested in using this for Gaming, it will mainly be used for Video Editing, Photoshop and Audio Production (Ableton, Studio One etc))


1) What is the cause of my problem ?
From what I have stated above, do you think I have made a reasonable conclusion as to what might be the problem? Do you have any additional input/advice to offer on potential problem areas ?


2) Differences between GM45 and PM45 chipset ?
I believe the GM45 is the Intel Graphics version and the PM45 is the ATI Radeon version (256MB ram?), can anyone confirm this, and are there any other differences which could affect my choice of CPU upgrade ?


3) What processor to upgrade to ?
I have been reading this thread http://forum.notebookreview.com/dell-inspiron-dell-studio/407743-upgrade-my-dell-studio-1737-a.html

There are several potential CPU's I could upgrade to, and I have shortlisted them here :

a) Q9100
b) QX9300
c) X9100
d) T9900
e) T9600
f) P9700

I used this site to gather the details : Compare Intel® Products

This is where the main confusion arises - ie are Quad Core's with thier 45w TDP and higher running temps really viable ? and does the BIOS even support them?

My personal opinion on CPU choice is leaning towards the T9600, as from what I can tell this will be a Plug'n'Play affair and is a LOT cheaper than the T9900 and doesnt have the added worry of the Quad Core heat/BIOS problems. In an Ideal world a T9900 or QX9300 would be my choice, but heat / price is my concern, and besides, going from a T3200 to a T9600 should be like going from a ford (a slow one) to a Ferrari.

So, I suppose my question boils down to "Do the Quad Core processors even work and if so are they really worth the extra £££'s over the T9600?"


4) Memory upgrade options
I believe I am quite limited here, all I can really do is upgrade to 2x2GB PC2-6400. I would really like to be able to use DDR3-1066 to keep in line with the FSB of the upgraded processor, but alas, although the chipset does support DDR3, dell only provides you with the option of installing DDR2 memory. Am I right in this assumption? Does anyone have any other advice for upgrading the memory? (I am also aware that the full 4GB is not fully usable in 32bit OS)


5) Possible to use a different mobo for upgrade ?
Is there any chance of say fitting a Dell Studio 1747 (or other new mobo) to my 1737 case? as I believe the 1747 allows for DDR3 memory and possibly a newer Core-i ? type processor.

Any help/advice much appreciated.

 

1) As you have deduced, your motherboard is probably shot. Definitely not surprising if you had mains issues, etc.

2) GM45 has an onboard iGPU, PM45 is always paired with a dGPU. Won't affect CPU compatibility.

3) T9600 or P9700 are probably the best value. I'm not sure if quads will work, but if they do, the Q9000 is generally pretty cheap now too.

4) Technically the 45 Series chipsets support more than 4GB of RAM, even if that is Dell's official spec (is it?). You can probably use more, though it's debatable how much more.

5) You can use 1735, 1736, and 1737 boards, but I do believe the 1745 has a different case.

 

Thank you for the reply and answering my questions, everything is clearer now.

I will keep this thread updated with my progress as it could potentially help others in the future with similar problems.

 

Would anyone be able to help put my mind at ease and confirm that my Studio 1737 with GM45 chipset and T3200 cpu would accept a T9600. The thing thats just put some doubt in my mind is that on the intel site, the T3200 is a "Merom" and a T9600 is a "Penryn".

Compare Intel® Products

The T9600 is listed to support "BGA479, PGA478" socket, but the T3200 does not specify a socket in the list, but says "Socket P" in the title.

On cpu upgrade site it says that the GM45 uses "BGA479 / Socket P" and can accept the T9600 cpu, but it doesnt list my T3200 on there - only goes to T3300.

CPU-Upgrade: Intel GM45 Express chipset processor support

Anyone able to just help me confirm that the T9600 would just drop in to replace my T3200 ? (I REALLLLY hope so!)

 

If you have a 45 Series chipset, the T9600 will work fine.

 

_45 Express Chipset will accept any 1066 FSB Core 2 Duo, Quad Cores will depend if the BIOS whitelists quads (most do).

 

Well... FINALLY received my power supply after ordering it on the 10th (now the 29th) - had a lot of problems with the people I chose to buy from, and they sent me a power supply that is different to the one that was in the picture (the picture matched my power supply - slimline, with blue light on end of power lead - I got sent a brick!) BUT... plugged it in, and my laptop now works!! so am assuming that was the problem all along.

Will keep an eye on the situation and report back if anything develops.