G55 new HDD, new problems

[Boooke]

Hello. I have travelled a lot with my previous work, and my G55 has been such a lifesaver, and I've been very happy about it. Problem is, less than a year has gone, and I'm close to giving up and just play some dominos instead of this.

After a lot of travelling I'm afraid the original HDD has been worn out from all the travelling. I am unable to enter it through SATA/USB interfaces, so I bought a new one - a Seagate SSHD. Thought it would get rid of all my problems, and that I could just install windows again.

I could, but I had to do it with a fresh installer of Win 7 64bit from Microsoft, so now it doesn't recognize it as an ASUS computer anymore, and the ASUS utilities (Alot of which I actually really liked) will not work.

But, it seems to be the least of my problems. My computer makes an repetive, fast, and subtle clicking noise around the HDD, which begins a bit after it gets heated. It also did so with the older HDD, and I thought it was the HDD until I replaced it... I fear some fan (If there is any around the HDD) has had a rough time and broken? I don't seem to have any perfomance issues, but I fear I will have in the future.

I also noticed another clicking noise from the same area, when I moved the computer around three-dimensionaly (Not as in throwing, lol) - even if it is in a slow manner. It didn't happen in the beginning, nor it is there now. It didn't sound like something that was loose and then now stuck, but can't be sure.

Just to summarize:
Clicking noise around HDD area
HDD broke (BSOD 0x00000024 at win 7 startup)
Replaced HDD, clean install of Win 7, not recognized as ASUS laptop, no licence issues
Same clicking noise, also a random clickin noise provoked by moving the laptop.


I hope you can help me figure out what it is. This poor laptop has had a rough time, and as mentioned, I've moved around with it alot, and it has been in rather dusty and ****ty enviroments.

[rewben]

i think that you should send your laptop for service. for the 'broken' hdd, perhaps you should try to use some system utilities to check the its health first.

for mobility purposes, it is better to use ssd in your laptop instead of spindle drives to minimize potential data damage. i prefer to use an external storage such as usb sticks (32gb or more). i have the things backed up to external storage when i am free. alternatively, maybe you can consider cloud storage if internet is not a problem in those areas.

as for the question about your laptop not being recognized as asus laptop, try install atk package first, then followed by other asus utilities. atk is known to be the first one to install, before all other asus software.

[Zygomorphic]

Also, one other thing is that the environments you have been in are hard on laptops, so something may have been damaged. If you are going to disassemble your computer, I would highly recommend giving it a good cleaning, since that will help the temperatures a great deal.

[Boooke]

Hello, and thank you both for the replies and help. I tried the thing with the drivers, and it worked! Feels like having my old laptop back again 😮

Since I believe something is loose inside of it, maybe it could be a piece of a fan, that has chipped off(?) Could it be possible to open into the grill and ventillation system without making the warranty void? Otherwise I'd probably send it in for some check as you mentioned, when I get a reserve computer up and running.


I believe the subtle, continious ringing/clicking noise comes from a fan - the one I thought to be from the HDD area. I localized the sound to be somewhere around upper right corner. Other threads suggest removing the larger portion of the bottom of the g55 case (The part not covering the HDD) will void the warranty, but I hope I have read wrong.

[rewben]

sweet, @Boooke 🙂

the common way for people to 'clean' the fan and vents is the use of compressed air. in g75, it's possible for you to stick a tooth pick to stop the fans from spinning while you blow the dust off with compressed air.

however, this is impossible in g55 (there is no way to access the fans, even the back cover is taken off). i don't know the point of blowing compressed air into the vents. the dust will just keep accumulating INSIDE the laptop. so, the better way when it's still under warranty is to send the laptop to service center and let them do the maintenance for you (you might wanna ask them to replace the thermal paste/pads for you also).

of course, you can tear down the laptop and access the fans and vents by yourself. however, it's kind of a tedious job to do (for first timers); and you risk loosing warranty 😕

[Boooke]

Thanks for the explanation. I'd probably do it when the warranty is gone. But, it seems like I'll be sending my laptop to a service check. It has started to freeze out now, quite often. Thank you both for your help, it has been really, well, helpful 🙂