NVIDIA GeForce GT 130 Kernel Panics/Freezes in Lion & late Snow Leopard

I am having the same screen issues others are reporting on this thread. SMC Fan control keeps the display from freezing in chunks. Thank you to all contributors here.

But---what is the highest safest rpm for my ODD on SMC fan control?

I want to run the rpms fast enough to keep the GPU from freezing and damaging my graphics card, but I don't want to wear the fan out in a month or two. I guess I need to be able to run the fan until Apple makes a patch.

iMac9,1, 2009, 24" with NVIDIA GeForce GT 130.

Hello, i have the same issues from time to time since i installed Lion on my iMac 24".

iMac9,1 early2009, 24" with NVIDIA GeForce GT 120

I think that I'm going to take the plunge and visit the Genius Bar to have them take a look (and hopefully fix) the graphics issues on my iMac.

Briefly: That's GT130, early iMac 2009, currently 10.6.8. I could live with the random on-screen pixels for a time, but I have noticed that I can't render anything out of Final Cut Pro without the random pixels being imprinted on the output video (presumably because FCP makes use of the GPU for rendering). Also it does do the scrambling and eventual unresponsiveness we have seen from this problem. I want it fixed and reliable.

I have made an appointment to go see the Genius bar in our local Apple shop. Before this I intend to back up data and do one final clean install of Snow Leopard. Drunken Hobo reported that anything prior to 10.6.8 was trouble free so I will try to do incremental updates from the Apple website to see if these pixels remain. But if they do I will keep the appointment. It's out of any kind of warranty so expect that there will be a charge for any repair.

I am a bit concerned about them carrying out a repair/replacement for the GPU and then finding that problems remain. Ramona said in one of her messages that she had the GPU replaced through Apple at a cost of $180, but then in a later message (10-Sep-2012) she said that it crashed again. I'd imagine that if the GPU got replaced that this would be under warranty and as Mountain Lion is apparently suitable for this model then I would expect some further repair or recompense?

I bet that following a replacement of the GPU there is no difference in Video ROM version number. It may be a newer and more repliable unit maybe. Is there anything I should grab from the current hardware which could reveal a deeper difference following an upgrade?

Many thanks, Will

Hi Will,

My computer has only had one kernel panic since the repair, so it's not a continual constant thing anymore. I can use it and it seems to be doing great.

The Apple genius ran all kinds of hardware tests and could not find anything that would show up on a test. I had to ask him to replace the card. You may want to bookmark this forum and show them. When I mentioned that many other people had experienced the issue, he told me that these forums were trolled and that often people really didn't. I think that must be their "programmed" response.

At any rate, to me it was money well spent. My computer was out of warranty too, but the $180 was cheaper than the Applecare would have been in the beginning. The new card is under warranty for a year, I think. I am running the latest version of Mountain Lion. I don't use Final cut, but I do have Photoshop CS4 and Aperture which I use often.

Good luck.

great thanks for this Ramona. sounds like you are putting it under similar loads. glad its working now for you

Well to keep it quick (will put more info here is needed):

Took iMac to genius bar, they replaced video card Gefore GT130 for £130. They seemed to use Grapher to test.

Seemed to fix the constant onscreen clusters of pixels

Didn't notice any difference in Rom version for the card.

Upgraded to Mountain Lion and in the first day again found the screen lock ups that I'd already seen in Mountain Lion the first time I encountered the problem. Tried testing GPU using various OSX programs, but found that mainly crashed during normal household use. Screenshot here: http://s14.postimage.org/jywleapwx/Screen_Shot_2013_01_17_at_20_49_22.png

Rolled back to SL and found that the screen lockups continue.

The guys in the shop had advised me that the iMac should be able to take Mountain Lion and advised that should upgrade now whilst there is a 3-month guarantee on repairs. So I intend unfortunately to visit the Genius Bar again next weekend having made an appointment, to see what they say next. I'm not totally sure what they do the next stage (is there a chance they are keen to replace the logic board? should I expect a refund of original repair if so? will the cost of a new logic board be refunded if fault continues?)

I want to have a reliable machine so it occurs to me that there are two ways forwards: Either video card replaced again but this time resign to using Snow Leopard forever.

Or ask the card to be replaced with a compatible alterative which would allow me to safely upgrade to Mountain Lion. I understand the ATI Radeon HD 4850 was an original option for this computer. This is a better option for me as I use Mountain Lion elsewhere, plug the plugins I have for Final Cut Pro only work in ML.

Thanks to all for taking time to read, bw, Will

I have been having the same problem for quite some time, I cant even pinpoint when it began, but it seems like shortly after I installed Lion.

http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/imac/specs/imac-core-2-duo-3.06-24-inch-al uminum-early-2009-specs.html

Good site for looking up hardware info on a specific MAC.

My problem started when the computer was probably only 2.5 years old and still under AppleCare, but the freeze ups were so occasional that I did not realize it was a problem at the time. I called the tech support before my AppleCare ran out, but since the closest Apple store is 4.5 hours away, I didnt do anything about it. In December my computer froze, and when I tried to restart, I got the spinning wheel and apple grey screen. This and talking to a Apple cert repair shop, I figured it was HDD, not knowing this freezing screen was an issue for many others. I replaced the HDD with a SSD myself and cleaned all the dust out hoping the temps would lower now. Since mid December I have had a couple freeze ups.

I have now decided to run multiple screens as I am doing a lot of online classes. I am not even running the screen, it is just plugged in and off, but my iMac still freezes up when the iMac screen is asleep.

I am running SMC fan control, but I think that is a crappy solution. It has not solved the problem, but I think it did lessen it for a bit. Seems to me that adding the SMC and having to try to fix a problem because the iMac is not functioning as designed is ridiculous. That program has its purpose and is a good idea to keep the whole unit cooler and extend the life, but what about overuse on the fans themselves, then there is another issue to fix down the road. Its like putting a bandaid on something that needs stitches.

Class action almost sounds like a good idea, but I doubt that this is such a widespread problem that Apple shouldnt be able to fix it on a small scale. Even in good faith to keep their loyal customers.

My issue also does not seem like overload, more than if I am using my computer for a few hours, then I sit down to watch a movie. Seems the temp is just slowly creeping up and randomly will freeze.

One thing I have also had VERY good luck with is the BBB. Every time I have tried to resolve an issue, and it was not to my liking or even rational by whatever means a business offers with their customer service representatives, I file a complaint. I have NEVER not received what I wanted, even if it was my fault to begin with. I even had a bill that became delinquent becuase I could not find work. I tried to work with the company but they just couldnt offer what was within my abilities. They ****** me off, so my counter offer was just ridiculous, and I told them I would not settle for anyting other than my ridiculous offer. Filed a complaint and got exactly what I wanted, even though it was my fault to begin with.

Now this hardware/software problem, is not our doing at all, and should be repaired by Apple at no expense. Even if only to keep us loyal customers in the future.

I have submitted a complaint as well as emailed the tech rep listed in previous posts to try to resolve. We shall see how it pans out. Apple may think they are too high and mighty to be bothered by a little complaint like ours.

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As I alredy told i've what seem the same problem to the same iMac model.

Yesterday I tried to install the OS 10.6.0 on an external drive to test it.

After 2 minute of youtube videos the mac freezed, so I think the problems with the faulty graphic drivers have ruined the hardware :\

And that's a really really bad thing. I need a working computer.

Maybe a good idea. I think it could provide some impact initially, but just like this forum, I think eventually complaints on the social media would be lost in a sea of nonsense from the disgruntled or the haters. If it could make a change that would streamline complaints and allow alike problems to be addressed even when they are not on a full racall scale, I guess that would ba success. I definitely think this is one that needs to be remedied. We are the ones that found the forum to look for a solution, what about those that are not quite so saavy, or even know what to do with this same problem. I would assume that the issue is much larger than we know. I do know that Apple will do what is necessary to prevent bad publicity. I will keep this thread updated with what Apples reply is. Havent had a bad dispute on BBB, so I expect a good resolution.

I'm from Italy, and the problem is the same. I have the mac in a repair centre that says it's a software iussue and not hardware but Apple didn't made anything !!! I bought an Apple 2000€ and i didn't use it.....it's a scandal.....

Bye Gigi

Fa "piacere" realizzare di non essere l'unico italiano nel gruppo!

Keep us updated... Using windows I cannot set fan speed and it keeps crashing during gaming.

With smcFan control I've had only 2 crashes during last months. But I don't know if my iMac will give up during gaming or heavy gpu usage.

E forse non siamo gli unici 2...io ho spedito il mio mac a Jump i quali dopo 3 settimane di test hanno verificato non esserci alcun problema hardware, e mi hanno indicato che è solo un problema di driver inadatti a far funzionare alla giusta temperatura la scheda video. Ho passato quasi 2 mesi con l'assistenza apple che dopo avermi fatto fare varie raccolte di dati...non mi ha risolto nulla e mi ha letteralmente abbandonato al mio destino. Mi sono arrabbiato e come unica soluzione mi hanno dato l'indirizzo del loro ufficio legale in francia...conclusione 2400€ buttate nel cesso e imac utilizzabile a malapena per navigare.

Brava Apple !!!! Ma se non risolvono giurò che gliela farò pagare.....

Bye

Another issue I forget about was that sometimes the screen gets slightly blurry, and as the mouse arrow is scrolled around, there is a section of clarity that surrounds about a half inch of the cursor. I have also just hooked up a secondary monitor, and if the "wake on LAN" setting is on, when the iMac wakes itself, the screen will freeze while it is still blank.