Q: 2011 MacBook Pro and Discrete Graphics Card

I think we do agree on the basic fact that a pro machine should run pro stuff flawlessly, otherwise it ain't a pro machine ;-)

My advice to any client using a MBP for heavy video work is pretty universal:

Use a cooling pad, Zalman models are very good.  I have clients with MBP's, airs and even Mac mini's sitting on them!

A fan control app - used to use smcfancontrol a lot but my new favourite is macsfancontrol by crystal idea. It's free and they also offer a windows version which works very well for bootcamp users.  On the 2011 models the left fan is triggered by the CPU0 sensor and the right fan by the GPU diode.

If your idle temps are high and you are outside AppleCare consider getting a specialist to remove the logic board, clean out the thermal system and use better quality and more important less quantity of thermal material.  Having had every model of Apple computer apart for a re-paste I've yet to find a single Mac with the same or even fractionally better thermals post work.  Typically about a 10C drop on average idle temperatures but I've seen more than double that often!

For me the petition is not really what I want - an exchange  program will only offer badly lead free resoldered, some with warped surfaces 'depot refurbished' boards prone to  fail again, the usual massive over application of thermal paste as per  Apple's engineering guidelines (which I believe are wrong for our  particular model)

No, iff Apple acknowledges the problem they will offer a proper remedy as they've done several times in the past. Whether that will happen and what a petition will help is a completely different topic. I'm afraid someone resident in the right country will have to put money where the mouth is and get something going otherwise this is going nowhere fast.

Also it's about time to get rid of this BS aversion to lead-free soldering. This is by far not the first Apple product to use lead-free soldering; RoHS went effective in July 2006 and Apple had to even stop shipping products because they couldn't fully comply for all of them. Lead-free soldering is the standard today, quite manageable and if done right might even produce more reliable results than lead based solder. I find it also somewhat interesting that the far more taxed CPU in the same system never seems to have manufacturing problems, only the GPUs...

Good news potentially - If yours fails the third time even outside AppleCare it's likely you will be offered a retina as a replacement.

You do realise that many people consider the rMBPs a (huge) step backwards and would actually prefer to continue working with properly fixed old MBP?

Therefore any Macbook Pro that fails doing what you call an intense workload is not a Pro machine and isn't worth the money it costs.

Far more troubling than a few MBPs breaking due to extreme use is that many of those devices (mine for example) break despite proper care and without torturing workloads.

Or in my case, they no longer make the 17" MBP. I just started having the dreaded bars and lockups and reboots Monday.

The Apple store looked at it and basically told me they wouldn't even send it to depot because I have too many third party products (I upgraded the RAM, boot drive to an SSD) and added a second hard drive...never mind the fact that the part that's failing has ZERO to do with any of that.

I've purchased a replacement as I *have* to have a functioning laptop for work, but I should have gotten more than 2.5 years out of a $2500 laptop.

I'm going to get it repaired, but it still angers me.

it angers a lot of folks w this issue.

However, I don't know if its worth fixing if it keeps having to be redone. How many logic boards are you willing to fix before you give up on this one?

I gave it one. After that, it's down for "light use" while my wife uses it to search for a job. After that its sold

Another broken MBP 2011

What is the recommended way forward?

Send it the local Apple service center and simply pay it or is there any chance that this issue will be addressed by Apple?

At first, I just thought it was just bad luck, but this looks like a major production/design error that causes issues a very high procentage of all sold MPB PRO 2011.

degger wrote:

 

You do realise that many people consider the rMBPs a (huge) step backwards and would actually prefer to continue working with properly fixed old MBP?

Indeed! I prefer the 17" form and would prefer not to buy an external optical drive.

A bit of trawling and it does appear the whole Sandy Bridge implementation with the AMD GPU in these machines was A Bad Idea.  I hate to say it but form over function rules here.

24 hour after my early 2011 MBP was checked and "fixed" by the Apple Store, I run into the same problem: blue screen with lines, booting problems, etc... Something is rotten in the kingdom of Apple.

Nick Talop,

In your case, what did the Apple techs do to 'fix' your problem?

(Needless to say, whatever they did didn't work - I'm just curious as to what they 'tried'.)

Clinton

They made a test with their own RAM, cleaned my RAM (2x8) and put it back. That's it.

Nick

PS: And of course, they totally ignore that 2011 MBP have a GPU problem...

Nick Talop,

Sometimes those "Geniuses" and techs can be idiots. I had my logic board replaced under AppleCare but they tried to fault every modification that I had made: RAM and SSD, before admitting that it was THE GPU problem.

And Apple won't - and never will, I don't think, admit to a soldering defect.

Clinton

Update.

Macbook Pro 17" late 2011 model , 2 years old when problem occured. Nice doorstop now.

After a reflow that failed 2.5 months later, given to repair specialist for GPU replacement, told logic board has some socket damage so the machine is now dead & unrepairable unless a new logic board is put inside. 9 other boards came back ok.....apparently the reflow may have damaged mine! (point to note)

Logic board in Hong Kong 4500HKD incl labour.

Originally I asked apple excutive for this discount off of a new machine over 1 month ago, only to be told no chance. My reasoning being they get to keep me as a customer & I have a machine that is guaranteed to work over 1 year....unlike the 90days for new logic board! Anyway after being told no & no chance to repair this logic board i went & bought a samsung NP870Z5G , not bad especially as I need to run windows for 3D CAD & some other software. 6-12 hrs battery & 2 years warranty! 50% of the cost of a new 15" Retina. Ok not as good but a big saving & not bad for the money.

I do still love my 17" so I went to get a new logic board anyway......only to be offered & persuaded to buy a new mac with an offer of 10% discount & 3 years applecare (which obviously we now know we all need in future with MAC! Total value equivalent to my replacement costs of the logic board. (WHAT I ASKED FOR IN THE FIRST PLACE!)

So.... I would advise pushing for this option as my Apple guys were extremely keen that I do not do the repair.....I wonder why ;-) . If I had known earlier it would have saved me a lot of trouble & i wouldn't have bought the samsung.

So, Apple retail staff really gave me some belief in their customer service again but the way this situation was handled by Apple Customer Executive was just plain crazy. Advice......go to the store & negotiate with the manager in the store. If you bought a lot of apple stuff from that store they will be keen to help I am sure.

For now..........actually enjoying the windows 8.1 experience......never thought I would say that!!!

Clinton,

The "genius" asked me to describe how I proceed to change RAM...

Nick

(Mac addict since 1987)