Dell Alienware Notorious for Vcore short circuit and CPU issues. Can we save this one.

[@robandsharonseddon-smith5216]

Thanks!

[@modstek]

I like the no fix videos just as well as the fixed videos. Could of easily just scrapped the video but educates us all! Thanks Alex

[@HazeAnderson]

Oh man I was really convinced this was going to work. As for those wipes, they are wonderful and I am glad that you carry them now.

[@youssefhany6555]

Just measure the resistance at the current scene resistor ... if the reading is less than one ohm ... proceed with voltage ejection because it's most likely a shorted capacitor ... if it's more than one ohm like 4 or five ohms ... you most likely have a short through the cpu and the board is dead

[@dbcooper7326]

I bought Dell XPS stuff for over 25 years. But no more. Quality is gone. RIP Dell.

[@deathtrap1976]

It's quite tricky to see how CPU dies on overvoltage if a Mosfet fails and pushes you to buy a new one because it's far beyond easy fix. Fuck DELL, certainly.

[@christophersteen1873]

10% failure rate on the laptops we received at corporate, near 1000 laptops, 100 of them DOA, we had many users get 2 doa before they got one that worked, insanity!

[@tafadzwamusekiwa659]

I also have 0% success rate on these, nice job Alex

[@Durzel]

Is there anything that can be done electronically in the board design to prevent the CPU getting fried?

[@jerrybomcool]

@@Durzeladd a fuse 😂

[@tafadzwamusekiwa659]

​@@jerrybomcoolhahaha probably this would work, probably just before those mosfets if too much current is drawn it blows

[@sedrickgates1]

​@@Durzelprobably a design fault... Cooling os not good enough on those. Being around the CPU does not help. They fry because they cannot handle the current as they get too hot for that. Same principle as GFX cards. A clogged fan/heatsink, blocking vent holes,.... Can contribute to this too. But first and foremost, Dell is responsible for a bad design that leaves opportunity forr this to happen. Cool looking machines design with cost reduction in mind internally:-(

[@generatorjoe9933]

Really enjoy your videos, got a good chuckle " mark up on some items only penny on the dollar"

[@deplinenoise]

Love that you are taking the time to share these jobs too.

[@falloutpictures]

I remember when Alienware used to mean something and they were a small company out of Miami. Most PC's back then rarely used cable management, but alienware did and would even show you how to do it. Then dell bought them and they turned to crap.

[@aliyuabba4575]

Would be interesting if you start doing a CPU/GPU replacement and reballing on this channel. Something new for more audience and a change for viewers. Nice videos

[@PCEYTube]

Its not really cost effective. Plus getting a working replacement is 50/50. It can be an expensive nightmare for both parties.

[@devanshudwivedi5875]

You can't buy spare CPU's and GPU's off the shelf. They are shipped directly to the factory to be soldered on the motherboard so replacing the whole board is the only option. He also mentioned that reballling is a complete waste of of time as he can fix more devices in that time and earn more cash.

[@awaitingthetrumpetcall4529]

@@devanshudwivedi5875 Quote: _"You can't buy spare CPU's and GPU's off the shelf. They are shipped directly to the factory to be soldered on the motherboard so replacing the whole board is the only option. He also mentioned that reballling is a complete waste of of time as he can fix more devices in that time and earn more cash."_ Thanks for this informative comment. I quoted it so that it will show up in my 'comments' history. That way I can refer back to it.

[@tafadzwamusekiwa659]

Also getting replacement CPUs from say China you are never guaranteed they're literally refurbished

[@hectortd4]

@@devanshudwivedi5875 Not really about spares because he carries a lot of donor boards in general. You can replace them technically but more like time consuming than anything IMO

[@botchjob308]

What I was always wondering: When resoldering the mosfets. At the end you heat them up and push them on the board and the solder oozes out at the side of the chip. In the next step you scoop away the excess solder with the tip of your iron. I would be afraid that it would ooze out internally and create a short. Please dont get me wrong. You do this for a living and you know what you are doing and I/we learned a lot watching your videos. Could you comment on this "risk" on one of your next videos. Just want to learn more.

[@cpu.cooling.optimization6128]

To the layman, it really looks like it causes a short circuit, but NO! Alex has already told to us in a previous video why not, and he is right, the good quality large amount of flux does not allow the formation of a short circuit. The best proof of this is that at the end of the process he measured the current limiting resistor (which is wired together with the Mosfets) and after the repair, he didn't measure to any short circuit sign. Just think logically! If the soldering of the Mosfet was short-circuited, then a short-circuit would be measured again on the current-limiting resistor. I hope I could help you. ;)

[@MrChrisRP]

There is always that risk, which is why he measures after replacing. It is obvious his technique is well-suited since when something is "fixable" it gets fixed.

[@ianmock2]

The flux stops the solder from going where it's not supposed to.

[@KyleSand]

Usually after the push there is another reflow step with flux to take care of this possibility

[@lolsypussy]

With enough flux, there's no space for the solder to form a bridge underneath

[@VincentVonDudler]

Out of curiosity - if the customer had brought in a donor board would you have re-balled and replaced the CPU?

[@cutterbacon]

No he would not.

[@ronaldhofman1726]

Isn't it bad design that a cpu can be blown up no protection what so ever , don't buy Dell ?

[@blackrifle6736]

*Yes and laptops yes. Like h/p, Dell enterprise-grade W/Ss are rock-solid and run forever.*

[@ML-jk3sz]

Apple does the same thing with their boards, its a bad design for any of these companies to not have OP on their boards for the CPUs. They want you to buy another one. Planned obsolescence.

[@sharkieislive]

Atleast better than Asus

[@CraShRO]

No dead cpu on Asus, mostly dead mosfet or cap that cand be replaced easily.

[@GoatzombieBubba]

Gamers Nexus has a quality rating of better then Dell for the better stuff.

[@eleventy-seven]

Good to hear your voice. Its distinctness punctuates your excellent work

[@antoniogoncalves1152]

A question, when a board has components on both sides and you heat one side with a heat gun, do the components on the opposite side not desolder? I had a case where when repairing a board with components on both sides of the board, the components on the opposite side unsoldered due to the heat I applied, and it was a problem to solve it. Could you help me as you do so that this does not happen. good job 👍

[@PCEYTube]

No they don't. Use correct size nozzle to narrow the heat flow. High heat for fast removal will never affect the opposite side unless its a thin PBC like lets say a phone.

[@cpu.cooling.optimization6128]

The air temperature was too hot and the airflow was too strong, and you may have heated the PCB for too long. Usually 300 degrees C (max up to 340 C) and maxi,um 30-40% air flow! Use a large amount of high-quality flux for soldering as well, because it helps with even heat distribution.

[@antoniogoncalves1152]

@@PCEYTube Thanks for answering

[@antoniogoncalves1152]

@@cpu.cooling.optimization6128 Thanks for answering

[@Stefan_73]

How about a laptop repair statistics? - Number of devices sent in, fix/nofix, reason for fail. Maybe this could be even automated out of your CRM system.

[@SolderBrothers]

Up very early enjoying your skills!

[@AlexanderWeurding]

Had the same problem. Thanks for sharing!

[@freelander1794]

No fix but very educational. Loved Alienware for a long time but gave up on them after Dell bought them. I knew the quality would decline. Thanks again

[@markmurphy9280]

Awesome, as usual .

[@hectortd4]

Don't worry about not making much money on those wipes. Someone who might need them could cop a pack and other stuff along the way so I don't think it's a bad decision to carry them in the long run and most important, if they're approved by you then people will feel more comfortable buying from you.

[@tbag-2224]

yes, loss leader

[@MrMfboo]

Not sure if I missed something but why when the injection voltage was used it heat did not showed up on the bad mosfet.

[@devshibhodia1738]

Hello Sir, I've been watching all your videos, I am amazed at the speed and skills you have, only if we had someone like you in London. Thank you for all the information and advice you give freely in your videos. Random question would it be worth replacing all the moss chips every 2 years to stop this happening? I know stupid question I see a lot of faulty xps and dallalienware laptops

[@CrazyLegsFE]

Based off of heavy use I would say its a safe bet when you know they are subjected to very high temps

[@mork0194]

Shrink hardware more and more, so that I will get even more intolerant to heat, as there are nearly no thermal reserves. Nice job from wold Industrie.

[@kahayawicliff9156]

I love your work.

[@luqmanhaqim97]

Usually the mosfet that's on the left side will short. The ones on the left are used during CPU boost which draws a lot of power. This plagued most gaming laptops since the vendor will disable undervolt after 1 or 2 years and lock the laptop to factory settings. This is dangerous since laptop CPU or GPU wear out faster than their PC counterpart due to heat. The only way to stop this is to unlock the bios and undervolt which is a pain in the ass since they changed the lock type with each different CPU or GPU and laptop generations.

[@RSTVlog87]

if you see heat spot on sillicon die shouldn't bother replacing those mosfets.

[@alikharmandar1727]

Alex you have worked on many of those laptops. Did you experience a single fix on them? I mean did you face an alien laptop with the same problem which its cpu did not die? For me its like 100% of them with that problem will kill their cpu. Sorry for bad english.

[@rossmate81]

Would it work if the manufacturer put a fuse in circuit between the moss and the cpu incase/when this happens?

[@christianeck97]

Next time, start with the last MOSFET 😁 Have a nice sunday 🌻🌴

[@wwaldes]

prawo marfiego

[@aztharz5637]

When I game with my laptop, I got my temps application open (HWMonitor) I had bought an acer and temps when gaming was 90°c+ on average. I returned that laptop and got a lenovo legion 7 with a Amd 6850m xt gpu. I average 70°c and never go over 80. Some laptops run waaaaay too hot, and cook the cpu/gpu most likely like this alienware.

[@barryjohnson2756]

I am not an expert in soldering but if you find a cpu with a same model and working could you replace it ?

[@DigVision]

Wow! How can I protect my board against these kind of failures???????????????????? Would putting a Zener diode on the CPU powerVcore power pin help out?

[@wwaldes]

dioda zener 100A?

[@Btk780]

Is it possible to replace the cou on this laptop?

[@adebayooladipo8148]

why don't you remove cmos batt. and press the power button for few minute to discharge those caps and return the cmos batt and that may fix the issue.

[@briansharp8003]

i have owned 4 alienware laptops. I have never had any issues with them...why? I do not overclock them. my first one I gifted to my oldest son, and my second one bought in 2017 I gifted to my second oldest son. I still have a 17 inch 17-r5 with 32gb ram, 8TB of ssd's and a 1060Ti Nvidia... only upgraded the wifi card. I still use it a lot for gaming and "other" stuff. My daily is a now two year old 14 inch x14 with 16gb ram, a 3050 nvidia 6GB graphics and a 2TB ssd...still going strong. Each play the games the same on them. where the issues come in, and is JMHO.....is gamers incessant need to push the limits of the gpu and cpu. Laptops will never last doing that. Buy a desktop as Alex says.

[@briansharp8003]

@@Look_What_You_Did agreed. That is why I do not tweak on the settings to force higher settings.

[@KyleSand]

If a shorted VCORE mosfet is removed will the laptop boot with just the parallel ones? I have one that took a surge and died but wondering if the CPU is safe before spending more money on it. (Replacement mosfet is only available from overseas)

[@ziadsleiman9369]

السلام عليكم كيف التواصل معك أستاذ حسين ؟؟

[@Abhishek-C92]

Do you ship to India??

[@cQc-e2v]

Very good job 👏 👍 👌

[@fredrickrari9338]

Why not replace the cpu?

[@shamsalfaisal]

Came in for repair.

[@kensaejao5216]

Crap I have the same laptop. Sent it back to Dell to get the mobo replaced after 2 mo of moderate use. Problem with the 3080ti gpu. Spent days troubleshooting with techs on the phone. Probably over 20hrs in total and 4-5 reinstalls of Win11😵 One year warranty is expiring and I still have a lean on it. Looks like the $300 extended warranty is the way to go.😢 Thanks for the educational video. Hope I dont have to send in the laptop to NorthridgeFix for another year. 😅

[@DunamisStan]

I own an Alienware M17 R3, about a month ago I was using it and it shut off on me, and it not powering on, I sent it to a local repairer and I still haven’t gotten feedback yet, looks like the CPU is dead based on your video, after just 2 yrs of use ( I’ve repasted it once and have cleaned it like 3 times, I live in 🇬🇭, so it’s a bit dusty 😅), I planned on using it for atleast 5 yrs before replacing it 🥲. I had to save for 2 and half years just to buy that laptop 😢, now I’m back to ground zero, if this is a QC issue with Dell they should just recall all their M series R1 to R3 and compensate the owners cos it’s frustrating. Any recommendations on which brand to get instead of Dell Alienware? I’m gonna start saving again 😔

[@iam555tothe666777]

Had a pc that was doing that and it would only boot up if I used a hairdryer on the mobo close to the cpu. Tech said it was due to the heat kinda reballing the chipset and then making it work properly.

[@MrChrisRP]

Sounds like failing/bad voltage regulating caps, with respect to ripple being delivered to the CPU.

[@mercdod]

Can you replace the cpu with a new one and replace all DR mos's with new, quality ones?

[@MasterJediSean]

I bothers me to no end that they make most laptops with BGA CPU's, What is the reason why they can't install a Socket, so if CPU gets shorted you can simply swap it out. Saving the USER hundreds of dollars getting a new BGA CPU installed.

[@dark666king]

You named the problem yourself - "Saving the USER hundreds of dollars". That's a big no-no for large corporations like Dell, HP, etc. The user will be milked of every penny and he will like it!

[@MasterJediSean]

@Look_What_You_Did I do have manufacturing experience. Maybe not making laptops in a factory, but I do have Experience as a PC Network Technician building computer since the days of monochrome monitors. So I do know why they do what they do and it is always about the money. It is cheaper to have these boards made robotically and faster, and may I say that without knowing whom you are speaking to, it is wrong for you to assume such a thing.

[@DavidPennable]

I would be interested to see a video of a Laptop CPU replacement, just for jollies, could it be done?

[@l33tninja1]

If the chip keeps shorting from the solder melting would something like a heat sink or other heat management device help prevent this from happening.

[@MrChrisRP]

There are cooling pads the laptop can sit on or in, but at the end of the day, you are pushing a desktop kind of power necessary for gaming into a small laptop. It is obvious why things can go wrong. Maybe the fan got a little clogged and now you don't have factory spec cooling any longer. Something like that is all it takes, unfortunately. "Regular" laptops that don't heat so much do not fail nearly as often.

[@l33tninja1]

@@MrChrisRP thanks.

[@metallicamadsam]

Is it possible to solder on a new cpu? Or too expensive?

[@BertoldVdb]

Not with simple hand soldering tools. A standard SMD oven is also not enough: the whole board is no longer reflowable as plastic connectors etc have been mounted. There are special rework stations for replacing such big bga chips.

[@VivekKumar-tk5tt]

you worked on many alienwares before on the same issue resulting in a no fix, but you still hoped it to be a fix this time and this hope is very important to run any business. Please correct me if i am wrong ?? Enjoy your vids

[@williamwong5627]

It doesn't matter if it is a fix or not. Still collect $$$. Do not blame me if you still insist of getting it fixed. No fix = $$ Fix = $$$$

[@bartek_6600]

@@williamwong5627 but how to charge customer if something is not fixed? Customer will ask "why you charge me it it's not fixed"

[@mornax]

​@@bartek_6600 Every customer signs a form agreeing to pay for Alex's time, to attempt to repair your device. It's a chance you take. If your device is not repairable, that's not Alex's fault. Alex has explained this numerous times.

[@zodiacfml]

is it possible to fix a desktop CPU that is likely fried/killed by a PSU like this one? I have multiple desktop CPUs with this symptom

[@MrChrisRP]

First thing is first - temporarily install a known well-working power supply and see if that fixes it or them.

[@SK-xi3ph]

Sometimes those alienwares wake up once you disconnect their CMOS battery and hold down the power button for 30 seconds or so without the main battery or external power plugged in. However if it is giving 3 blinks on the power button (2 red, 1 blue), then it is definitely a no fix.

[@sparkspark-tn6sc]

Can i get PCH South bridge for gigabyte b85md3h

[@abyabraham1845]

just for fun. Could you solder a new CPU to the motherboard with the same issue!.

[@kkgt6591]

Not an expert, but I don't think laptop cpus are available for retail purchase, they are usually sold in bulk to OEM

[@MrChrisRP]

@@kkgt6591 The power of the donor board. Since this is the same issue as Alex states so often, you know they have donor boards with compatible CPUs. I remember when they first started to solder CPUs and was thinking what a horrible idea that was. If you think about it, it helps the planned obsolescence nicely for those that would want it helped (manufacturers of the hardware and OEMs.)

[@BasicComputerRepair]

Exactly and even if you got your hands on a CPU, chances are it's faulty, too expensive etc. The computer must be worth a lot of money to replace the CPU. Not worth it.

[@abyabraham1845]

oh! my bad.😁@@kkgt6591

[@rizkhan3368]

when this fault arrives ,based on experience of yours ,to change a no fix to fix , u need a new CPU

[@vahidabbasi4818]

I wonder if you have ever tried changing the CPU at this point?

[@maklogetrich2378]

it's required more tools and consumes a lot of time

[@mornax]

He doesn't swap CPUs. It's not cost effective for him, from a time or tool investment perspective. He's mentioned this numerous times.

[@FightClub002]

We are past the playstation 2 era we have the playstation 3 xbox 360 playstation portable. Yet we dont have a great gaming laptop and those consoles and those boards are old are outdated but last till today and out perform modern day "gaming laptops". We can make the motherboard with cpu compact why not make a compact GPU for the laptop that the same quality as desktop or console limit it on battery power yes but we will accept a big power supply to be used to fully utilize the gpu it's way better than not having a device to use when on the go

[@MMA_BEASTHUB]

Brother I have a very serious question only you can answer...I will receive my repaired Gigabyte RTX 3070 (from Gigabyte RMA) Should I keep using the card or will it fail again? I have only a month warranty left...Can we trust repaired cards? Will it last like new?

[@Joe_1776]

It should be good as new after repair. But if the card has a high rate of failure for multiple reasons, then there is a chance it will fail again for something else.

[@FordPickUPRed]

Remember the Saga of BTX mobo's that Dell released?

[@MikeGervasi]

We use Kimwipes at work. $4 a box if you buy a case.

[@veermanrob]

Is there a laptop brand that you never see?🤔

[@alshams-wn9xv]

Is it possible to replace the laptop CPU?

[@Bfg-yi2id]

Technically yes you can replace the cpu, but I think he has mentioned a few times that it simply isn’t economical

[@marcinkwapisz7752]

yes, you can also replace gpu but you need something more than a heating gun. You have to control heating and cooling curves.

[@cpu.cooling.optimization6128]

Unfortunately, you can't buy a NEW laptop CPU in a retail store, OEMs can only buy it, but in large quantities... So, if you see a laptop CPU for sale in a package of 1, it is 100% used and desoldered from the some motherboard. With used laptop CPUs, there is a pretty high chance that it is faulty or that the CPU's PCB was bent during desoldering.

[@CATech1138]

i finally got gutsy and wiki'd drmos....dc regulating metel oxide semiconductor is a reasonable definition....i thought they just low profile power fets

[@madmatt2024]

The sad part is that I remember when laptop CPUs had sockets and you could simply replace or upgrade them.

[@ThisIS_Insane]

When you change the cpu, you are violating the engineered thermal profile of that case. A faster Processor will (more than likely) generate more heat than the previous Occupant. This will cause a whole range of issues with your heatsink (which hasn't the surface area to handle the increased heat load) and cooling fan, and will cause early laptop failure. They design them from the get-go, to handle the heat generated by the cpu installed. Upgrades are not always a good idea. Period. 🥵👍👍👍

[@ThisIS_Insane]

@@Xcepter This comment was for those who are newer to this than you or I. I know what's up with processor architecture.

[@ebrahimalizadeh342]

how about Bios flash maybe ? :D

[@Skipperc3po]

NIce Job

[@ZaneofAustin]

This is the kinda stuff that should be warranty no matter how old the pc is. there is no reason this failure should have happened. and it happened im sure because of a corporate decision to cheap out on a single chip. knowing it would have this effect X percent of the time.

[@ZaneofAustin]

okay i say no matter how old, but reasonably at least 5 years there just no reason this piece of silicon should be wasted like this this was never the customers fault* it was just a problem waiting to happen

[@TYRASSA]

Do you sell the blue silicon mat that's on your workbench? I always love your videos. 🤗 Also I know It's not profitable to take the time to put in a new cpu or graphics chips in broken products but is it hard to do? 🙂

[@AeiKei]

The chip itself is more expensive than what it's worth it plus it needs a full reballing and way more equipment to do it right (if it's not done right it might not work or work for a short time)

[@RectifiedMetals]

About time you start carrying the wipes. 😅

[@RectifiedMetals]

More Trolls

[@NBMSCH]

when I hear a V-Core i'd feel sorry for the customer because it's mostly a CPU and rarely a DRMOSFET

[@pick_pick_pick]

Super man, its a CPU but the short was gone

[@milescarter7803]

Dell is borderline on cooling for 30 years, every Dell I have ever had was poor cooling. Those Mosfets probably BAKE. IF you set fans to 100% you may avoid, but that is poor fix when it should have had better Mosfet heatsink and the fan control should monitor that part of the board, not just run the CPU right below TjMax like all laptops do nowadays.

[@kevin14806]

Thats a bios error give it some time after totally removing cmos and battery and power press power button for 1 minute atleast then it should poweron well

[@wwaldes]

😁

[@amrenssrachid2841]

Normal resault,good job

[@PatriceHOBBAH]

Hello. 👋

[@nigelwright7557]

If your seeing many with same cpu fault i would start refusing to look at them.

[@Terry-zr6ys]

Can the cpu be replaced on those laptops?

[@koford]

I find it strange that alienware does not make a protection to prevent the CPU from dying

[@koford]

@@Look_What_You_Did okey then.

[@ahmeds7345]

Bought an Alienware and it failed after few months, was overseas so I couldn't ship it back for repair, never again

[@bilalsoltan8688]

May be not ther CPU try to change the other mosfests good luck

[@K600K300]

What is your name

[@agoogleuser7899]

The R5 has a high tolerance at 32%.

[@kkgt6591]

Alien ware is generally considered as a premium brand.

[@GoatzombieBubba]

20 years ago before Dell bought them.

[@KC-nd7nt]

Dude, you got a Dell 😂 Remember to tell everyone now I love uneducated consumers . Keeps me busy . Thanks Alex again

[@ejeckk]

Darn. I had my fingers crossed the entire time for the customer. Nice try.

[@bblod4896]

It's always the last MOSFET removed that eliminates the short. If you had started with the last MOSFET, this would have been a shorter video 😂. Have a great Sunday.

[@nopochoclos]

People continue buying notebooks that come with increasingly worse quality, the truth is that I would not buy a notebook even as a gift, the number of Alienwares that I saw failing horribly with the money they cost is enough to sue DELL

[@CooLDEaFY4204Me]

Thank for remind me I won’t buy Alienware laptop I notice all alway have issue problem for Alienware. Wow

[@wheeman999]

I hate it when you spend so much time trying to remove the shorts and you don't get there in the end. Left feeling so frustrated you could blow at the slightest touch 😏

[@shabbirahammed4596]

please try debug card...

[@user-qi9be4lv7l]

Why not install a new cpu chip. It isn't that hard to do...

[@lelouchabrilvelda1794]

Am Not gonna buy any Alienware laptop. Worse, expensive, useless and unrepairable.

[@shadowarez1337]

Here wr have a Dell... Thats enough to know its a 💩 show of a issue already. Keep up great work honestly think fornthe amount of work you out into these labtops repairing horrid QC issues these brands should come to to to consult on how not to suck and be anti consumer when designing labtops.

[@adegboye39]

I’ll like to buy used tools from you can’t afford new tools do you sell?

[@bryngerard4334]

You can't win em all ;) Some things just reach the end of the line.

[@neddy1287]

What do you expect that a €1500 alienware laptop committed suicide due to the CPU blew up internally due to someone at Dell thinks it fun forcing someone to spend more money to replace the board for the same thing to happen down the road

[@RafalScrapper]

👍

[@ksenchy]

Of course it had to be the last one

[@PainX187]

if they are anything like the pre-built's then alienware will be some of the worst garbage out there and overpriced to boot