HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

[dood]

My boss calls me over the weekend... all the sudden his laptop is very slow. I assume virus of some kind. Get it in this morning and I find that it's very slow before it even hits the OS. If you're in the BIOS changing screens around, the laptop is slow to respond and slow to refresh the screen.

Fired up memtest and it does run, but it's also very slow. Tried different memory, unplugged everything I could (wireless, modem, USB ports, keyboard, touchpad, hard drive) and it still has the same issues. I thought maybe a bad processor (doesn't happen often), so I grabbed a t2500 out of a Dell D620 and it still has the same issue (original proc is a t5600)

Does this sound like a motherboard issue at this point? I don't think it's video, but the vid card is separate in this, so I could replace that, too. My boss is ready to authorize the motherboard for $150 on eBay, which is being sold as new (not refurbished)

This laptop has been quite a dud all its life (it is a few years old). It's already had a motherboard replaced, batteries, power adaptors, memory, hard drive... all in maybe the last 3 years.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

I would've said CPU (shot cache perhaps), but since you say you tried another one, most likely mobo.

[jetadm123]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

First of all, it was nice of him to call you on your day off! You say that the AC power adapter has been replaced. When? Could the replacement be bad already? If it was an aftermarket replacement, maybe bad caps? If possible, try testing the output voltage under load.

[dood]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

The most recent power adapter was purchased a few weeks ago. It's also slow when running on battery. I went ahead and ordered the mobo off eBay, so I will let you know if there's any change when it comes in.

[Funkimunk]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

This sounds like a thermal management problem.

If modern CPUs overheat they throttle to stupid levels (200ish mhz, possibly less).

Is your fan running reliably?
How much/old is your thermal paste?

[dood]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

First of all, it was nice of him to call you on your day off! You say that the AC power adapter has been replaced. When? Could the replacement be bad already? If it was an aftermarket replacement, maybe bad caps? If possible, try testing the output voltage under load.

Well.... you were right. After purchasing a motherboard and a video card and trying every damn thing I could, I thought "let me try it on the battery one more time". And the sucker works. I swear I did that before and it made no difference, but I must've been mistaken.

Why would a power adaptor cause this?

[seanc]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

This rings a bell... was it a new power adapter, is it genuine HP?

Edit:http://www.itwriting.com/blog/985-hp...er-supply.html
http://h30499.www3.hp.com/t5/Noteboo...er/m-p/1156184

[dood]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

This rings a bell... was it a new power adapter, is it genuine HP?

Edit:http://www.itwriting.com/blog/985-hp...er-supply.html
http://h30499.www3.hp.com/t5/Noteboo...er/m-p/1156184

Thanks for those links. It does appear to be a genuine HP adaptor. I will surely be cracking it open to see if anything is amiss internally. This adaptor was purchased a few weeks ago, but I do not know if it was new or used, or where it was sourced from (probably eBay)

[mockingbird]

Re: HP/Compaq nx9420 very slow - not OS dependent

You probably didn't source a "brand new" "genuine" adapter off eBay. What those sellers from Hong Kong do is mold the plastic very similarly to the original, and ditto for the label, and market it as genuine, but there are subtle differences like the end connector which show them to be counterfeit. Also finding genuine adapters there is like finding a needle in a haystack because of all the junk sellers' spam listings.

I'm not saying they're no good. In fact, there are different quality levels of off-brand bricks ranging from the obscenely junky to acceptable. I for one recommend the Kensington K33404. But judging from what seanc posted, it seems that your problem is that you don't posess the original.