Predator Helios 300 PH315-51 Black screen and auto power off

Matps
Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
Laptop is showing black screen (no logo, BIOS, anything). Fans spin up, keyboard backlight comes on. After 20-30 seconds, the laptop turns off, if on charger or on battery. I first tried the reset button. After this, I have tested and found voltages at charger stay steady at 19.xV and seem steady at battery. RAM has been removed and pins cleaned. Heatsink feels cold on shutdown.
Any further ideas?

Thanks for taking the time to read :)

Answers

  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    >>>After 20-30 seconds, the laptop turns off, >>> RAM has been removed>>>

    Remove RAM again. Then fully reassemble without the RAM installed. Then see if logo screen appears and laptop stays on. If that doesn't work, replace the RAM and remove the boot drive. Try it again without the boot drive.
     


    Jack E/NJ

  • Matps
    Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
    Thanks for the reply JackE!

    Removing the RAM and running the laptop - Fans spin up, keyboard backlight comes on, but complete black screen. It turns itself off after approx. 1 min.
    Replacing the RAM and removing the boot drive. The laptop power cycles every few seconds non-stop.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    >>>Replacing the RAM and removing the boot drive. The laptop power cycles every few seconds non-stop. >>>

    Is the boot drive an HDD or SSD? Make and model number?

    Jack E/NJ

  • Matps
    Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
    edited July 2022
    SSD.
    Model: MTFDDAV256TBN
    P/N: MTFDDAV256*********
    S/N: 190220***********


     Edited the content to hide sensitive information.

  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    That's supposed to be  one of the better m.2 Sata SSD cards. Is there also a 2.5" HDD lurking around inside? If yes, temporarily disconnect from the mainboard. Re-Insert the SSD and try it again without the HDD connected.

    Jack E/NJ

  • Matps
    Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
    Still all the same symptoms are present. I have somehow missed along the way that the SR40B Intel chip is getting REALLY hot very quickly and I think causing the shutdown due to thermal overload.
    Is the only way to resolve that to replace the entire motherboard? It looks pretty much impossible to resolder?
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    Is it still restarting or just shutting down altogether?

    Yes, the integrated CPU/GPU chip and board is fairly cheap but it's a solder ball grid array not easily replaced without special tools and board preparation for the replacement arrary. But this usually doesn't suddenly blow like this from overheating without some prior warnings like worening stuttering/throttling behavior or a few random automatic shutdowns.

    Jack E/NJ

  • Matps
    Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
    The laptop didn't have any stuttering or throttles and I don't remember a single instance of automatic shutdowns or restarts before this issue. It's definitely getting extremely hot now though. The computer keeps restarting. After several tries, it does seem the rate of increase of heat in that chip is causing the restart.
    Would all issues (restarting and total black screen) be explained by this integrated chip failing? I'm guessing it's failed short inside?
    Is it realistic to grab the equipment and try to replace? I have done quite a lot of electrical work (more 415V generators type stuff), but not so much electronics.


    Thanks so much for the help JackE!
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    >>>Fans spin up, keyboard backlight comes on. After 20-30 seconds, the laptop turns off,>>>

    Does it shut completely off anymore? Or now  it just keeps automatically restarting?

    Jack E/NJ

  • Matps
    Matps Member Posts: 6 New User
    It automatically restarts once switched on, every few seconds. Pushing the power button does not switch the laptop off, but holding it down does.
  • JackE
    JackE ACE Posts: 44,330 Trailblazer
    >>>Laptop is showing black screen (no logo, BIOS, anything). Fans spin up, keyboard backlight comes on. After 20-30 seconds, the laptop turns off, if on charger or on battery. >>>

    >>>It automatically restarts once switched on, every few seconds. Pushing the power button does not switch the laptop off, but holding it down does.>>>

    So does this mean it now behaves differently then in you first post? As I recall, this behavior change happened when you first removed the boot drive. Is this what you recall?


    Jack E/NJ

  • CoolHck
    CoolHck Member Posts: 2 New User
    Have you tried finding a different outlet, if so you might need to buy a new charging cord.