Screen turns black when gaming?

Someone bought the laptop in these days? Probability something was solved in last packaged computer (reading outside here some people say that the temperature with some macbook pro is lower than 80c°).

I would to buy the new MacBook pro. I'll go to Apple Store in two days and I would to try something before making this purchase. I'll try to make screenshots in battery mode and I would to try the 9600 card with some games... but I'm not sure I will can test some games... is there another program to test the video card?
Thanks.

My MBP started getting the Black Screen in World of Warcraft. The problem persisted even after the SMC and EFI firmware updates. I went in to the Apple Store and they replaced the logic board.

Unfortunately, even with the new logic board, the black screen still happened. Worse yet, whatever happened appears to have fried some part of the new logic board, since my fans are now running at full speed all the time and my power management icon says I don't have a battery. I'm currently waiting on a replacement MacBook Pro. Since I got a CTO hard drive, it'll take a week.

On the bright side, there have been no Black Screen crashes with the fans running at top speed all the time. :-/

Update time: Okay so first few days, I was having no problems. I played WOW for Hours on the OSX side and Portal and Bioshock for over an hour on the PC side. My first run of 3dMark (PC side obviously) also had no problems. Yesterday I reported my first BlSOD after having run 3dMark... however, since then I had played WOW again for over an hour on the OSX side as well as playing Counter Strike Source for 2 hours on the PC side... so far no BlSOD. I'm going to run 3dMark again once I get home and see if it's able to cause a crash.

...Thinking back i had installed a program called SpeedFan to monitor the temp when I was running the 3dMark that crashed. but I had since uninstalled it before gaming again on the PC side. It probably forced different default fanspeeds on the fans, maybe causing the 9600 to overheat faster.

Update 4.0:

After testing out my pro last night with the new update and still getting a BSoD I reported back to the tech helping me with my report. He called today at around lunch time to ask me if I was willing to have my pro be sent to the engineers at apple to disect it and find out what's going on. This would require me to have it swapped out for a new one (which I have the feeling is going to have the same issues) so I agreed to it and will be exchanging my ok for a new one tomorrow. The reason I don't think it will solve the problem is because I had just received my pro within the last two weeks I doubt they have secretely repaired the obvious hardware problem. I asked what happens after I receive a new one with the same problem. He responded with, "we are going to have to ask you to sit tight and wait for a fix". That would be fine with me, but when I asked if and when they finally find a fix would I still be entitled to a new replacement. He said, "I'm not really sure I would hope so". Not really the answer I was looking for.

I have installed all firmware updates & the OS X update which was released yesterday (10.5.6).
As I expected: the BSOD problem remains. I'm pretty sure this is a hardware problem.
I'm really sick of this problem, and even more how I'm treated by the apple store: they keep saying I have to wait for a software update.

Well, I give them 1 more week before I return my MBP for good. And this time they WILL accept my MBP, or I will demand my money back and/or sue the sh** out of them.

I paid a lot of money extra for this 9600M GT. And it doesn't do what it is expected to do.
I don't accept software updates which will force the fans to run all the time and/or underclock the GPU.

This is my first Mac, and so far it has been literally a '****' of an experience. OS X is nice, but the hardware and the customer service are just terrible!

_*APPLE, IF YOU READ THIS: A LOT OF CUSTOMERS ARE DESPERATELY WAITING FOR AN OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT/RESPONSE REGARDING THIS PROBLEM!*_

This is the content of the crash report OS X sends to apple when the machine is rebooted after the BSOD:

Tue Dec 16 20:53:28 2008
panic(cpu 0 caller 0x00405DEB): "NVRM: Read Error: GPU 0, PCI 0x00000200, BAR0 0xe4000000 0x5929f000"@/SourceCache/xnu/xnu-1228.9.59/iokit/Kernel/IOLib.cpp:724
Backtrace (CPU 0), Frame : Return Address (4 potential args on stack)
0x585f7c38 : 0x12b4f3 (0x45b13c 0x585f7c6c 0x1335e4 0x0)
0x585f7c88 : 0x405deb (0x49da40 0x5894a280 0x585f7ccc 0x585f7cbc)
0x585f7ca8 : 0x5871b4f7 (0x5894a280 0x5894a280 0x5890ec88 0x0)
0x585f7ce8 : 0x589d2d1a (0x7438c04 0x7859804 0x61002c 0x58757b13)
0x585f7d28 : 0x589e679a (0x7859804 0x61002c 0x585f7d68 0x587579af)
0x585f7d48 : 0x5884d881 (0x7859804 0x791d004 0x585f7e58 0x742d404)
0x585f7d68 : 0x5888005d (0x7859804 0x791d004 0x1 0x0)
0x585f7ec8 : 0x587ff17e (0x7859804 0x0 0x585f7f18 0x585f7f14)
0x585f7f38 : 0x5871c0a5 (0x7438c04 0x4318a004 0x0 0x0)
0x585f7f58 : 0x587071f0 (0x4318a004 0x2983c16d 0x585f7f78 0x1a336f)
0x585f7f78 : 0x13eed2 (0x746a800 0x4318a004 0x1a336f 0x8ea05d0)
0x585f7fc8 : 0x1a017c (0x0 0x0 0x1a30b5 0x81f3a78)
Backtrace terminated-invalid frame pointer 0
Kernel loadable modules in backtrace (with dependencies):
com.apple.nvidia.nv50hal(5.3.6)@0x5895f000->0x58bb3fff
dependency: com.apple.NVDAResman(5.3.6)@0x58702000
com.apple.NVDAResman(5.3.6)@0x58702000->0x5895efff
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IONDRVSupport(1.7.1)@0x586f4000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOPCIFamily(2.5)@0x51286000
dependency: com.apple.iokit.IOGraphicsFamily(1.7.1)@0x586d7000

BSD process name corresponding to current thread: kernel_task

Mac OS version:
9G55

Kernel version:
Darwin Kernel Version 9.6.0: Mon Nov 24 17:37:00 PST 2008; root:xnu-1228.9.59~1/RELEASE_I386
System model name: MacBookPro5,1 (Mac-F42D86C8)

This is the first Apple Computer I have ever owned also (although not the first I've used by far). I agree that apple has not dealt with this issue in the best way, but this has been my first real issue with apple including ipods and apples owned by my office and friends. I'm VERY convinced that this is probably not apple's fault, at least not entirely, since the Nvidia cards seem to be the only problems on the MBPs.

It's unfortunate for both the users and Apple that this issue occurred, but Apple does need to step up and at least make a statement/apology while they continue to work on a solution. I hope that new users, like yourself, realize that this is a rare exception to the quality of Apple products and services.

If my new logic board arrives and still does this problem I am probably going to go through corporate and get a refund. I'm not paying a premium to sit on a defective piece of hardware that depreciates in value every day.

Coming from a TiBook that has never given me any trouble, I worry about Apple's direction in their "pro" line.

Appears to be quite the common issue for us. Apple better ready my money. I bought this machine because I thought it could handle 2004 graphics like World of Warcraft. Guess I was wrong. This BSoD is killing my switch from Microsoft to Apple. Nice try Apple, not quite there yet. I'm willing to try Linux.

I have Windows Machines already, so I can't say....I guess I'm going back to Windows when I never really left. I'm just looking for something not Windows. I know games with Linux is not an answer but at least its something not Windows. I just wanted to experience something different....just not Black Screen of Death different.

Same problem ... screen goes black when gaming Warhammer Online.

Tried every solutions proposed :
New graphic driver,WHQL and beta, mod driver.
Speedfan.
RivaTuner to underclock the 9600 GPU.
put the mac on a laptop cooler (with 2x120" fans).

Nothing worked !!
Yesterday i brought the laptop to an apple care center.
They said it would take a week ... at least ...
They didnt want to tell me what they will do exactly, i hope they will replace the motherboard with a working GPU otherwise i'll ask a refund immediatly.
2500€ for a non working computer is a bit too much for me.

I called the Apple store .. again.
I told them I bought the laptop 1 month ago, and that the 9600GT M card was defective since day one. They told me to wait for software updates, but 3 updates later (2 firmware updates + 1 OS X update) it still isn't fixed.
I demanded to either give me a replacement machine, or replace the defective card.
They are going to replace my logic board. FINALLY! I hope it will solve it.
I'll keep bugging them until I get a normal working 9600M GT card.

GeekORenO wrote:
Same problem ... screen goes black when gaming Warhammer Online.

Tried every solutions proposed :
New graphic driver,WHQL and beta, mod driver.
Speedfan.
RivaTuner to underclock the 9600 GPU.
put the mac on a laptop cooler (with 2x120" fans).

Nothing worked !!

GeekOReno, is this even after the firmware updates and 10.5.6?

Then of course you should have a repair or even exchange.

One thing generally, I'd be careful about all these "solutions", that people are proposing. The thing should work as it is, really.

Some more interessting stuff to read and a follow up to the last article:

http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/052/1050052/nvidia-chips-show-underfill -problems

Short version: its a hardware problem and a serious one 😟

Regards,
ToM

Hi all,
I'm only running in OS X, no games, but am alarmed when I read about this issue with other peoples' machines and want to know if mine could be affected.
Tonight I switched to the 9600, ran 4 1080p trailers in quicktime at fill screen at the same time, a fill-screen movie in vlc, 3 browser windows, google earth, itunes visualizer, and something else for ten minutes, in a non-gamer's attempt to tax the thing.
Fans went to 4500rpm pretty quickly, cpu and gpu were in the 85-88 celsius range. That was it. I quit everything, and the fans shut down within a minute and the whole machine cooled down fast, not a hiccup.
I have not had a single problem with it since I got it at the end of November here in Seoul. Anyone else know people that are using one with no problems? Just trying to quell my fears.
Peace

Wow, just wow. Honestly, things happen and I don't blame apple for nvidia's screw ups; however, I'm not nvidia's customer... I'm apples customer. I would be more than satisfied with an official word from apple on this issue telling us to sit tight and a recall of some sorts will be in order.

This is the first time in over 10 years that I had a problem with Apple.

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