Does your laptop feel slow?

My M17x R4 has been feeling slow for quite a while now. It's baffling because I bought a ton of upgrades for this machine.

Well, today, I noticed this:



CPU: 0.49Ghz!

It feels slow because it is LITERALLY slow! I'm guessing that it's maybe getting too hot so the chip is being throttled down?

 

Maybe, I don't know the CPU throttle numbers but worth a look with HWInfo to see the temps.

 

Try putting a load on the CPU and it'll clock up. It's a power saving thing. Unless the CPU is actually being utilized, it'll downclock to conserve power.

 

This looks to me like Throttle stop or similar software downclocking the CPU.

 

It could be throttling due to the temperatures or it could be just saving power. Try changing the PC power plan to High performance and monitoring the temperatures with HWInfo.

 

Wow I've never seen throttle to 500mhz, usually teh lowest I can get my CPU to go is 798Mhz

 

Thanks everyone for the ideas. I downloaded this:

HWMonitor CPUID - System & hardware benchmark, monitoring, reporting

And when it's throttled down to 490Mhz, the CPU's are running 90-100 deg C. Is that too hot?

I've already tried switching to the High Performance power plan, but I haven't tried putting a load on it. I'll try that next.

I've also noticed that my battery life has gone from 4-5hrs when it was new to just over 2hrs now. That is probably just due to the battery being old?

Does Alienware use high quality paste at the factory or do they use cheap paste?

I love this laptop and want to keep it for as long as possible because it has VGA and esata which I still need.

It would be nice to get this running as good or somewhat as good as new again.

BTW, is there a way to set the laptop to use High Performance power profile while plugged in and automatically switch to Extended Battery Life when on battery?

If there is no such feature built into Windows, Dell should write an app for their laptops to do that.

 

90-100 is very hot and looks like its throttling to help it stay cool. Would recommend you clean the fans/vents and see if that helps, then try a repaste if that doesn't make a difference.

In terms of the power profiles you can make your custom power plan (I let my cpu downclock from 0-100% however it likes on battery and plugged in, but you can force it to stay at max clocks when plugged in if you want to.

Battery life probably related to the heat issue making the fans need to be on all the time.

 

Yeah something has gone wrong and the cpu is barely running. Either the paste has shifted, your heatsink is damaged, your heatsink is super clogged or your fan has failed.

 

Way too hot IMO so throttling could well be the problem. I only see around 85c max when really pushing the machine, normally around 50~55c.

Repasting the CPU is a breeze, no pads or fiddly bits. I've redone mine twice in two years. As soon as I notice the fan clicking up a notch when I do things like open a large window in icon view it's time for a clean out.

Dell will tell you (and they told me) that the paste is 'phase changing' and is the best around. When you buy a pre pasted heatsink from dell the core area has a thin, even, layer of a paste that is almost solid. Under compression as you screw it together it liquefies. Personally I think the reasons they do this is it allows them to use machine pre-pasted heatsinks and not have to rely on the skill of assembler, and it lasts longer.

I wouldn't waste any money on super high quality paste, that's more for the hard-core overclocker where a couple of degrees is the difference between a successful benchmark or a BSOD/lockup.

This old article is fun reading: Thermal Compound Roundup - October 2011 | Hardware Secrets

As DDDenniZZ says, just a clean out of the heatsinks and fans may be all that is needed. If you have never cleaned them out there is a good chance they are blocked with dust-bunnies. A can of compressed air is the best thing for blasting it out, don't use a vacuum cleaner, you could zap it .

The advanced power options in Windows allow you to set power plans on mains and battery. I've done as DDD.... says and run all at high when it's plugged in (probably why mine is a little warmer than others I have seen). The GPU will usually step down automatically when unplugged.

Do you frequently use it on battery and only run it down a little before charging it? This was said to be a way to shorten battery life, and a few years ago Dell had a utility in the BIOS that run the battery fully down then charged it fully to tests the efficiency. My five year old Latitude's battery only lasts around 20 mins ATM . There is some data on the battery life in HWInfo IRRC.

Good luck

 

It sounds like you need to repaste the CPU. I recommend IC Diamond. The stock paste isn't too bad. It just depends how it was applied at the factory, which most of the time, isn't that good. Also over time, you can need a repaste.

As for the battery, it's probably just old. You can find new oem ones on ebay. Unless of course, you were getting 4-5 hours a few weeks ago and all of a sudden it's only 2 hours now. If that's not the case, then it's the old age of the battery.

You can edit the high performance profile so that when it's on AC power, it'll be high performance, and when it's on battery, it'll be saving power. Just go to control panel > system and security > power options > change plan settings and customize it to your liking.

 

You could check the battery via AlienAutopsy. It will show two values: designed and full capacity. Full capacity is brand new (so 4-5 hours in your case), current capacity should translate into the expected time on battery power now. Batteries are usually only covered for 12 months as they are consumable items and degrade over time. If your battery lost 35-40% capacity and you and not happy with how much laptop use you get on battery power, you can buy a new battery. I would advise to advoid non OEM batteries as they usually have lower capacity.

 

I solved the issue!

The problem was my exhaust vent was clogged with dust!

From the outside, the vent looks clean and just fine!



However, on the inside, it was a totally different story!



While I had everything open, I repasted the CPU as well and now my temps are more normal.



Before this, my machine would hit 90-100 C within <5 minutes of turning on. Now it stays around 60 C all day!

 

That's a nice carpet you have there, cleaning involves taking out the heatsink or using compressed air, everything else is not cleaning.

 

I removed both heat sinks and fans and cleaned it all with compressed air.

Thanks!

 

Wow that's like major fluff blockage.
Goes to show that all ports should be thoroughly checked when temps are an issue.

 

Hold Hell, that's some serious insulation right there. Glad you're back in business again.

 

Gosh that's thicker than my loft insulation lol