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Question for MBP/8600GT owners...

groove-agent

groove-agent

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jan 13, 2006
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For those who found their 8600GT with fault, and had it replaced, did the problem come back?

Are there people out there who have this combination and do gaming who have not experienced this problem? If so, what model did you have?

I'm not a huge fan of the new uMBPs and want an older 15" but I'm worried about the video chip problem. However if it can be fixed either proactively or reactively, I"ll be happy with that.

Thanks.
 
groove-agent said:
Yes, I did read that thread, but was still uncertain if the problem could be remedied. With respect to your case, the answer is no, but I'd like to hear from others as well. Certainly they would have fixed the problem with the chip by now and can replace it with a reliable one.
Click to expand...

This not an Apple only problem. The 8x00 series mobile chips from nvidia are weak. They fail. Seems to be only a matter of time. Many, many PC & Mac users have had multiple replacements. I spoke to an AASC and they said a inordinately large % of the logic board replacements they receive are defective and they only find out after they've put everything back together.

At least Apple has given a few users new UMBP systems after multiple GPU failures. Sony won't even extend the std warranty and are actively charging customers to replace the logic board of their notebooks containing 8300 and 8400 GPUs.

Cheers,
 
Wow, that really sucks. Hard to believe that after all this time they can't fix the problem. I'm really getting frustrated that Apple is cramming oversized, glossy screens down my throat.
 
Interesting that the problem is through all of their 8x00 line of chips. The new GT130 is apparently an 8-something, and I wonder if that chip will have the same problems. Unreal.
 
So the question needs to be asked...

How long till a class action suit gets filed?


To those would would say that Apple is fixing the problem, I ask you this. How long did you need to wait to get a new one? How many billable hours were lost?
 
I don't even game with mine and had a logic board go out 3 months into owning it.:(
 
clyde2801 said:
<reads thread>
<pats his 2.33 MBP with ati card lovingly>
:D
Click to expand...

LOL :D it warms my heart to see such a loving bond between machine and man.

Back to topic: My suggestion is to just stay away from the 8600GT. The sense I get from Apple is their current solutions are simply a band-aid measure. Of course that leaves many out in the cold since you can't get a matte screen mbp unless you go for the 17." Suggestion hang tight for now, Apple might eventually offer the matte for the UMBP if not there's always techrestore
 
Hydroxs said:
I dont see an 8 in GT130 lol
Click to expand...

Nvidia has made a habit out of "rebranding"/renaming their chips, possibly leading to consumer confusion when it is the same model.

I.e. the 8800GTX-->9800GTX-->current 250GTS!

Srsly. Therefore I would not be surprised if the 130=8600.

For the record, I have an 8600GT MBP (2.4 Penryn) that I have pushed hard and have not had any problems yet. I think the number of defects is low. Kind of like how lots of people complain about burnt/stuck pixels...but in actuality you see very few of them. I'd take the FUD with a grain of salt.
 
Radio Monk33 said:
Nvidia has made a habit out of "rebranding"/renaming their chips, possibly leading to consumer confusion when it is the same model.

I.e. the 8800GTX-->9800GTX-->current 250GTS!

Srsly. Therefore I would not be surprised if the 130=8600.

For the record, I have an 8600GT MBP (2.4 Penryn) that I have pushed hard and have not had any problems yet. I think the number of defects is low. Kind of like how lots of people complain about burnt/stuck pixels...but in actuality you see very few of them. I'd take the FUD with a grain of salt.
Click to expand...

Interesting. How long have you had it?
 
The GT 130M is a die shrink from 65nm to 55nm of the 9600M GT which are both G96 cards. It squeezes in slightly better performance, no more than a few FPS while keeping the same thermal envelope of 23 watts which is why I think it'll be the successor to the 9600M GT in future MacBook Pros . The 8600M GT is G84.
 
zer0tails said:
LOL :D it warms my heart to see such a loving bond between machine and man.

Back to topic: My suggestion is to just stay away from the 8600GT. The sense I get from Apple is their current solutions are simply a band-aid measure. Of course that leaves many out in the cold since you can't get a matte screen mbp unless you go for the 17." Suggestion hang tight for now, Apple might eventually offer the matte for the UMBP if not there's always techrestore
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's not only the glossy screen that bugs me. I also have a 20" cinema that has the older connectors. I just returned a 24" cinema because it was far too big (especially since I plan on a triple monitor system), and the glare was just crazy - I could not use the thing if there was light in the room. So to use the older screen I would prefer an older gen MBP rather than use unsightly adapters. Also on the older gen I preferred the keyboard and the track pad, plus the edges dont hurt my wrists.

I was thinking of a 2.33 ghz ATI, but I think gaming is then out of the question. Mind you, I eventually want to get a Mac pro so if an albeit slower MBP will work reliably. Gosh, this is making my head spin.
 
I'm now one solid year into my 8600GT (and 5 years into my 2004 Mustang GT :D) and so far the MBP is winning the reliability contest. I've got AppleCare, and figure I'll see over the next two years any failures, if they're going to happen. I always have the option of selling it before the AppleCare runs out.

I've always wondered: is the problem with the 8600GT an actual design flaw, or is it a manufacturing flaw/defect/procedure that went wrong for a while. If it's a design thing having to do with materials or a flaw in the design, it could have been addressed, and corrected. If it's manufacturing problems, this also seems correctable. I'm not sure why if some early production runs of the chip were problematic, that they couldn't have been fixed/modified somewhere along the process. This is common in manufacturing, including with Macs (the old rev A avoidance advice) I still haven't heard why this is not the case, or at least a really good explanation that I could accept.
 
groove-agent said:
Interesting. How long have you had it?
Click to expand...

Uh around 1 year, 2-3 months I believe? If it hasn't failed within the extended 2 year window (Apple has extended protection for all 8600s), then I don't think it will magically fail on day 730+1.

I still maintain that the problems were overblown. Not all 8600's were defective. Due to a problem with some of the sourced materials, there were higher than average failure rates amongst some batches of 8600M GT's...not every single one with a critical design flaw that renders it a death trap like a Ford Pinto.
 
Engadget ran an article stating that all of the units made before october 2008 (right before the unis came out) were prone to failure.

If apple replaces your chip with a replacement made after that date, you're golden. If not, you may be looking at a chip failing after your applecare expires.
 
Radio Monk33 said:
Nvidia has made a habit out of "rebranding"/renaming their chips, possibly leading to consumer confusion when it is the same model.

I.e. the 8800GTX-->9800GTX-->current 250GTS!

Srsly. Therefore I would not be surprised if the 130=8600.

For the record, I have an 8600GT MBP (2.4 Penryn) that I have pushed hard and have not had any problems yet. I think the number of defects is low. Kind of like how lots of people complain about burnt/stuck pixels...but in actuality you see very few of them. I'd take the FUD with a grain of salt.
Click to expand...

The 8800GTX uses the G80 cores. The 8800GT, 8800 GTS 512 mb (the 8800GTS 320 mb and 640 mb uses the G80 core, as does the 8800 Ultra) uses the G92 core, as does the 9800GT, 9800GTX and 9800GTX+ and the 250GTS.

Yes, there is a lot of confusion over the G92 chip.
 
clyde2801 said:
Engadget ran an article stating that all of the units made before october 2008 (right before the unis came out) were prone to failure.

If apple replaces your chip with a replacement made after that date, you're golden. If not, you may be looking at a chip failing after your applecare expires.
Click to expand...

This is contrary to what others are saying. Some are saying that their chips have been replaced several times only to keep failing. I wish there was someone in the know i could ask but I guess the only one I could ask would be an apple tech or someone from nvidia.
 
clyde2801 said:
Engadget ran an article stating that all of the units made before october 2008 (right before the unis came out) were prone to failure.

If apple replaces your chip with a replacement made after that date, you're golden. If not, you may be looking at a chip failing after your applecare expires.
Click to expand...

If this is true (not just conjecture and tech media punditry) then Apple would be dumb to replace a failed 8600GT equipped motherboard with another chip built in the offending time frame because of the likelihood of another failure, maybe sooner than later, which could just wind up costing them another repair. If there is a definite batch number cutoff point where the problem was dealt with, smart business decisions would be to write off the old, defective parts, and move everything from that point on to the 'fixed' ones. That's just common sense, and saves Apple money, not to mention the tackling an issue which has led to questions about their quality control.

In any case, if it (gpu failure as a matter of course) was endemic to all 8600GT equipped MBPs, period, then there should be very few of that generation MBPs that haven't suffered the problem. I've heard the 100% figure bandied about, and that just seems hard to fathom. Apple would go broke if that were true. If even 30% of all MBPs had to be replaced because of this failure, there would have been no profit in that line of laptops for the life of this model - (Apple's margins are 30-35%) - yet we know laptops made up a large part of Apples sales revenues, and presumably... profit.

Something just doesn't fit, by my way of looking at it.
 
I've had my MBP with 8600 since August 2007. I play games on it semi-frequently and have never had a single issue with the video hardware.
 
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