Gateway LX6810 BIOS and fan issues. Help!

[Hnrgd]

RFC,
There is an old style 4 pin HDD Connector under the internal HDD bay. The 2 Fans I bought had adapters for this style connector. Then just rearrange the pins in the adapters so the power runs thru both fans before running to the black wire. When the system is supplying power to the HDD, the fans will run.

 

[jbguest]

Many thanks to Happy1984 and AMileAway. Old bios and clarified instructions worked great.
Have a blessed 2010!

 

[iyzmi]

Can somebody check what the version of the older BIOS is on the LX6810? Mine was running at the 3250 RPM but has recently dropped down to constantly running at ~1200 RPM. That seems a bit low considering the old/good BIOS kept it at 1400. Is 1200RPM normal?

 

[iyzmi]

In the BIOS, there is an option called Smart Fan. When this option is enabled, the CPU fan runs around 1200RPM; when it is disabled, the fan jumps up to 4000-43000RPM. Has anybody else noticed this or is this some other version of the BIOS that is not even from Gateway? Geeksquad installed this version and they told me it was from a technical service bulletin. More info on it:
Version: R01-A1C0
Release Date: 7/17/09
v02.64

I'm considering flashing back to the original BIOS using the instructions in this thread but maybe this version is even better?

 

[Hnrgd]

Hello iyzmi,
Was there anything else done to the system? If there's no additional fan added to the case, then the system will probably overheat. One fan in the case is not a proper ventilation.The only really problem with this unit is a lack of fresh air. As designed the case will just recirculate the air inside, getting hotter and hotter. At least one exhaust fan needs to be added to the back of the case. If this was done, just run a stress test and see what the temperatures look like.

 

[iyzmi]

I ran the computer for about 30hrs (running downloads) and the temps stayed very steady. The GPU is the hottest part of the system, hovering between 65-69C, but nothing overheated and nothing shut off. This is my home theater PC so it sits horizontally on a shelf above my TV next to my sound receiver; air ventilation here isn't great and I still had no problems.

I have recently added an 80mm fan I had from an old PC as an exhaust fan and have ordered a 120mm as well. I'll put the 80mm in the front of the case and the 120mm in the back once I get it.

Even without the fans though, mine doesn't seem to be overheating, even with the abnormally low CPU fan speeds. I'm still wondering what version of the BIOS Geek Squad installed and would greatly appreciate if someone could check what version they have so I could get some idea. It doesn't match the characteristics of the original BIOS that ran at 1400RPM or the updated ones that run at 3000RPM+. Whatever they did, it seems to have made the computer stable and run even quieter. I'm going to go back and ask for some clarification on this on Friday.

EDIT: Almost forgot, I also swapped CPU's with a different computer I have so there is a different kind of thermal compound applied rather than what came on it. I can't imagine this making much of a difference though.

 

[poptot]

I purchased the Gateway LX6810 for my children for Christmas, we have been using it with no issues for almost 3 months on Vista. I upgraded to Windows 7 a few weeks ago, and everything seemed Great. Until recently, It started shutting off by itself . I first thought it may be Windows 7 or IE software related, until I left it at the login screen for an hour or so and it turned off. I installed an 80mm & 120mm case fan yesterday (as other's have done), and it has been on non-stop, without shutdown, since. So I just wanted to reply as a Thank You and recommendation to others.

Install an 80mm & 120mm case fan for $25, and you have yourself a great computer.

 

[onapartyrock]

I got one off of woot for $460 and immediately put in a 780W PSU, 120mm and 80mm fans and had Prime95 running for 2 days with not one issue. Adding fans is a must for this system. Core 0 and 3 do get to 50C (using speedfan to check), but that is their max.

Will be adding a GTS 250 1GB this week; added a Blu-ray tonight and then had no video - I can't figure out why, replaced the original video with a spare and it worked, put the original one back in and it worked once again.


Only thing I want to add is a HDD activity light, hoping it is pin 1 and 3 as with most systems; can't find anything online and the board is not marked.

Happy with the system overall, for the price I kind of wished I just built one from scratch with everything I've had to replace.

 

[ihategateway]

Hi I followed the instructions of updating back to the old bios like you described.

1. download the old bios and the new bios (722 version).
2. Rename the old bios name to the 722 version.
3. delete all the files in the old bios folder except the .rom file (which I renames to the 722 version).
4. copy all the files in the new version (722) except the .rom file to the old bios folder.
5. install using winflash.

after this i did a restart and went to the bios setup menu and did a restore to default.

Now my computer shuts down before it even starts up on windows.

I was wondering if this happened to anyone who tried this method.

I need help quick because I am starting school soon again and i can't afford a new computer right now. I am still paying for this piece of junk.

 

[Guest]

I do repair computers for living. I did repairs to this computer, problem was "ocasional-shoutdowns". The solution is to:

1 Update lates bios update, but thats not the solution it self, rather logical move to update lates improoved version of the bios. It has updates for CPU fan controler. The CPU it self does not overheat dramatically if you clean your heat sink clean, but good to have lates bios update anyway.
2 This one eliminates ocasional-shoutdowns problem. The hit sink next to the CPU which has no fan overhits very dangerously high. The termal sensor inside the chipset is designed to cat-off the voltage in case of overheating. This oviously shoutdown or freez the computer. Small fan will fix the problem! Tested afterwords and no problems at all.

 

[pinkplumage]

I purchased the Gateway LX6810 for my children for Christmas, we have been using it with no issues for almost 3 months on Vista. I upgraded to Windows 7 a few weeks ago, and everything seemed Great. Until recently, It started shutting off by itself . I first thought it may be Windows 7 or IE software related, until I left it at the login screen for an hour or so and it turned off. I installed an 80mm & 120mm case fan yesterday (as other's have done), and it has been on non-stop, without shutdown, since. So I just wanted to reply as a Thank You and recommendation to others.

Install an 80mm & 120mm case fan for $25, and you have yourself a great computer.

Any suggestion which fan should I use? Is it difficult to add a fan and replace a fan? I have no experience.

 

[Guest]

This is a common problem with the Gateway LX6810 and is obviously a defect they must repair or give us a refund. We are filing a class action against gateway about this problem. if you would like to join, send an email to classaction.com@gmail.com.

 

[Guest]

NO NEED TO DO ANYTHING EXCEPT CLEAN THE HEAT SINK.

Sorry for yelling but also had the same problem but as with most users the problem didn't arise until a few months. Yesterday I opened up the case, took off the fan cone that was on the CPU, then took off the CPU fan and found a lot of dusk clogging the gaps on the heat sink. I vacuumed that clean and re-assembled and now I have no Shut down problems at all.

 

[dkarakoutas]

Your solution is very smart.
It should probably fix 50% of all problems.

In my case the system fan was not spinning fast enough and lately not spinning at all together. I hard wired the system fan to always work at full speed by taking power from one of the spare power cables for the hard drives. My fan now works at full speed all the time, it makes almost no noise and my pc never shuts dows. I am now running on my 25th consecutive day without a shutdown.

I used the GND and +12V.

http://www.pcdoctor-guide.com/wordpress/images/cpufanpinoutlabeled.jpg

got power from back and yellow hard drive power cable.

use a voltmeter to check that black and yellow gives you 12V to be safe.

 

[skifreak3535]

Has anyone had any issues with the getting BSODs on this computer? About a month ago I began getting them and I thought it to be an issue with the RAM, so I removed one of the sticks to test the others and all the sudden, no more BSODs. The yesterday I began experiencing issues again, (no with only 6GBs in the system) and the solution again was to remove one stick. I now have 4GBs in the system and I would like to get it back to proper running condition with all 8GBs in the system. Has anyone seen this as well?

For the record, about a year ago I have installed two case fans and applied new thermal paste to the CPU heat sink and that took care of all the problems I had with overheating.

Zach

 

[drmusic4771]

I used a different bios update do a google search for LX6810_BIOS_722 and I did it and bios updated correctly and no more issues with it shutting down on it's own. The cpu fan even went from like 1500rpms to 3100 rpms after the updated bios.

 

[ihaveapentium266]

I got this computer for free from my boss. I installed a Samsung SSD 840 Pro and W8.1 pro and it feels like a 4th Gen i7. Solid, fast BUT i had the same problem with overheating. My bios has the "Smart Fan" feature. I opened the case, removed the cpu air horn, cpu fan, and heatsink. Cleaned everything out with an air compressor. Put a new grain of rice of arctic white and put it back together and installed a new 80mm intake fan in the front and 120mm exhaust fan out the back. Never overheats anymore. When i use a program thats CPU intensive, i reboot, go into the bios, disable "smart fan" and good to go. My advice, get the fans
I spent a total of $25 at newegg for both and that did the trick. But if you really want to wake up this PC, get an SSD. You'll have a solid PC