Black screen of death? Aspire V Nitro - VN7-592G-54D0

Acer Aspire V Nitro - VN7-592G-54D0.

Purchased from eBay back in September and all worked okay and ran games fine.

Today while my daughter was playing TS4, it did a loud single beep and shut off. Overheating came to mind. Disconnected AC and the battery (pinhole) and cooled it down with a fan and left for an hour.
It turns on with and with AC no problem, just the screen stays black. Tried plugging it into an external screen but still nothing appears. When it boots up, the backlights turn on and I can hear the fan spin fast but then turns slow/quiet. If the AC is plugged in and then unplugged, it remains on but lets out a loud but single beep.

After reading and watching a few videos, it's turning more towards a motherboard issue which could mean sending off for repair but is there any alternative options?

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JackE

Do you see an ACER logo splash screen when first turned? If not, try pressing the FN+F5 and FN+F6 toggle key combinations to turn the external and lcd screen on. Jack E/NJ

LittleBec

There is absolutely nothing on the screen. When I plugged the external screen in, it shown nothing either whilst pressing FN commands. I took it apart and the only thing which was out of place was that a cable from the wireless adapter had become detached but that obviously has no link. All other ribbons and cables were intact - gave them a little wiggle and push in case but still no avail.

JackE

Not being able to HDMI to a TV or monitor suggest either a RAM, graphics adapter or thermal module hardware failure. All of which are a pain to access on this particular model. I can only suggest that you try a complete power off ALT+F10 cold boot reset to see if you can get to a recovery screen to rule in or rule out a hardware issue. Press and hold the power button till all is quiet and completely off. Then turn it back on and immediately press and hold the ALT key while taping the F10 key till a recovery screen appears as in the video below --- or it doesn't appear after a minute or so of holding the ALT key while mashing the F10 key. If the reset fails or can't be done then go here to arrange for warranty repair https://www.acer.com/ac/en/GB/content/support Jack E/NJ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpzLJRAZldA

LittleBec

It no longer powers on now but still shows charging light when plugged in, it could be that I've mislodged the keyboard ribbon as the power key is a part of the board.

Unfortunately, the laptop is no longer under warranty. It was bought refurbished from eBay in September but MFG in 2015. I asked the seller if it had any warranty left and they said it hadn't.

I tried speaking to Acer via online chat earlier and they suggested to send it off but it's the case on waiting for an overall cost with repair. I've been looking online for a mainboard and they're coming up at £300+, and I can't imagine Acer being any cheaper.

JackE

Aye! Unfortunately a rule of thumb for a repair like this is in fact about the price of a refurb with a 90-day guarantee. Accordingly, it might be worth your while to google vn7-592G disassembly for videos on at least re-seating the RAM modules and making sure the thermal modules with fans are firmly in place. Jack E/NJ

LittleBec

I took the ram out earlier as it was the first thing to be taken out after the keyboard removal and placed it back in, it seemed pretty secure as it's held in with a head of a screw too. We'll have a look tomorrow with the fans. If not, then it'll be going to Curry's for a free check and go from there.

Thank you for the speedy advice

JackE

As long as you gone that far, first test each RAM module in each slot one at a time. Jack E/NJ

LittleBec

Diagnostics are back and it's the GPU. The guy was honest and said it's probably worth buying a new laptop instead of repairing due to the procedure of replacing the chipset nor does he doesn't have the equipment to do so. But after a full motherboard and labour, it would come close to similar pricing.

I'm in 2 minds as to whether or not go through Acer.

JackE

Sorry. Shown below are all the mainboards that were used in this model. Even Aliexpress is a bit pricey. If it were mine, I'd probably have the Curry guy try a mainboard solder re-flow. Bake it on aluminum foil in a toaster oven pre-heated to 425*F for 15mins. Nothing to lose at this point except for his hourly rate. Jack E/NJ

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