M11x Fan "always on/stuck" Behavior Discussion

Lets hope so!

 

I have found that if I alter the power plan savings using Windows, my fan seems to get stuck on. If I set things back to default using Alien Fusion and then make the changes I want, the fan works normally.

Not a scientific test by any means - just another bit of anecdotal evidence.

 

My reported bug with fan control has been resolved by....





selling it! Actually, I just got tired of it and looking forward to HP Envy 14.

 

Can you elaborate on the rattling noise from your hinges? I'm not sure I follow what you are talking about. Is it like something is loose in there? When exactly does this happen? Any chance you could share a video of this?

 

FYI - continuing to investigate this with our engineering teams. They are doing thermal testing to determine if any changes can be made to the fan algorithms. I hope to have some additional information that I can share soon. Apologies for the delays.

Brian
Alienware Quality

 

Thank you for the update, Brian. It is reassuring to hear directly from Team Alienware on this forum.

 

Thanks Brian for keeping us updated, fingers crossed!

 

im experiencing the same problem. ive had my m11x for almost 2 months now and at first it was barely noticable but now its gotten worse. slight pressure on the hinge or the weight of the screen itself when the laptop is moved in the screen open position causes the hinge to move inwards and rattle. in short there is play in the hinges and i can only attribute it to poor build quality. i am keeping a close eye on it but so far i can live with it. when it gets too loose as seems inevitable considering how it has deteriorated in the less than 2 months ive had it, i will have to send it in. this is my first alienware product and overall i am quite disappointed, my 300 dollar samsung netbook has better hinges. and by the way my m11x also suffers from the fan stuck behavior. it gets stuck after i go to bios and after changing from onboard to discrete gpu.

 

Is there any update to a possible "fix" for the people who have "constant" on fan getting stuck?

Maybe a different bios to change the fan algorithms?

The A03 bios just makes my fan stay on all the time now had to flash back to A01.

 

I'm noticing that I'm getting less battery life from the A03 BIOS update. With A01 BIOS, I get 6 hours without much trouble, but with the A03 I'm struggling to get 5 hours, this is with WiFi on and light surfing. Anyone else noticing that about the BIOS?

I'm kinda afraid of going back to the A01 BIOS because of the CPU cooling settings that the A03 has, but the fan is sapping battery life on A03. Choices...

 

this fan always on sucks ..

 

flashed back to A01. Fan problem got even worse now...

 

but there´s no big fix since them ???

 

Bump, come on Brian please provide us with an update on this!

Cant even update the bios to 03 or 04 as the fan is constantly which is even worse on it goes off for 2 seconds and then turns back instantly on even when the cpu temprature is only 28/31 degrees and at idle using integrated graphics card.

A01 bios fan issue still stuck as well for no reason and appears to be random, I need to sleep turn on again to fix the fan issue.

 

Bump......

 

Brian,

It's been almost a month since you posted this. Can we get an update please? I'm on BOIS A04 and last night left my m11x on to do a full system antivirus scan. When I got up this morning the fan was stuck in the on position. The AV scan had been completed for hours and the PC was literally doing nothing yet the fan stayed on for no reason...and this is in Intel graphics mode. I had to shut down and restart in order to fix it.

There is clearly an issue with the fan getting stuck on these things.

Thanks,
mario64

 

I think this is in your head as there haven't been any changes to the fan control in the current BIOS releases. I'll check with engineering again on this as I haven't heard back. Several of the guys took some well deserved vacation after launching the M11xR2.

 

Registered here to put in my .02

So far the only issues with mine is the nvidia GPU staying on after switching to the Intel which drains battery by 50% more (fixed by putting the system to sleep or reboot).

The other issue is the stuck fan which everyone else here is having a problem with, but mine doesn't seem to do it as often and I'm almost sure the fan does shut off when it reaches around temps of 30C or lower (OCCASIONALLY).

I'm always on the nvidia GPU while plugged in, and always on the Intel IGP while on battery unless I want to play a game.

 

My laptop won't be here until tomorrow. If I have it set to use the Intel integrated video card will I have to worry about the fan going on high in class?

This is the main determining factor of an instant return tomorrow evening.

 

if R2 does this, it's going back to where it came from.

 

So far there hasn't been one report here of of any R2s having he stuck fan issue.

 

Any update on this Brian for us R1 owners?

 

this fan sucks ... i start to worry about r1 onwers like me, look the beta nvidia drivers ... no updates at all.

 

Checking with engineering. I'll let you know ASAP.

 

anyone can confirm that switching back to a03 will fix this? this fan kills the battery

 

If I remember right, according to Brian at AW, the fan control hasn't been changed from A01-A04.

 

An observation that I noticed using EVEREST is that the fan kicks on when the CPU hits 45 Celsius, and wont let up until it hits 40. (The individual cores flutter between 35-40 Celsius.) The fan will also instantly kick once the CPU is under load, and I'm not too sure how the system reacts when the 335 is on,but the heat management algorithm is pretty whack onceyou flip the 335 on/off.


That said....is the 335 really off once you hit FN + F6?
Either way, it's impressive engineering that this machine can run a sizable graphics card without roasting your lap in the process.

 

I'm not aware of any fan changes from A01-A04. There should be some fan changes in A05, ETA some time mid to late next month.

 

Thanks Brian. Do you get a feel that engineering fully understands this issue and can fix it?

 

They are fully aware of the complaints here. I have yet to receive a test BIOS, but I'll check it out when I do.

 

Sounds great. Thanks again.

 

Bump any update yet?

Dying to get this fan issue fixed...

 

Is this only a R1 issue & not a R2 issue as far as we know?

 

I don't think anyone with an R2 has reported this issue here.

 

R2 has no fan issue...when i got mine it was whisper quiet during normal operation.

 

Nope just R1 users I believe

 

how long we will have to wait till some new bios fix? ... damn

 

Im confused. R2 is fixed, but R1 still has no fix.
R2 is basically a clonse aside from the processor and other minor things that have NOTHING to do with fan issue.

Also with i5/i7 processor, its probably going to run hotter, yet R2 users have no issues with fan and R1 with cooler processor makes the fan run continuously?

Im thinking maybe its nvidia driver issue that bios since the graphics driver is biggest different in my opinion

 

Is it normal to have that issue if I always have my M11x R1 OC'd and with the Nvidia Graphics on? (Also with some applications like Chrome, Msn, Antivirus (Scanning), and games)

 

I would assume the always on fan is related to the always on Nvidia part, or is this still the case?

 

Read...

Posted 06/29 by me - "I'm not aware of any fan changes from A01-A04. There should be some fan changes in A05, ETA some time mid to late next month."

 

I.e this month - interesting

 

Been using HDMI more to get surround sound, and the fan seems to get stuck on. I noticed real temp returned a GPU temp of 37c and CPU of 28c. Cool yes, but totally unnecessary.

Appears there is a different alogorithm when using HDMI, which makes sense, but having it stuck on, when basically idle is just quirky.

BTW, I am not outputting video over HDMI, just sound. also couldnt replicate with second monitor over display port.

Anyone else take notice? (A04 bios, 197.72 drivers from dell)

 

this is a shame ... 02-24-2010 was the 1st post and till now nothing change, im now with air on 16 celcious in my room, intel graphics and the fan is spinning like crazy. thanks alienware .... the battery time calculation should mention this on web site.

 

I lurked back to this thread and surprised this hasn't been addressed.

 

I have read but there has still been no update to this issue, I find it ridiculous that there has been no bios update regarding this issue since I purchased the laptop almost 5 months ago.

It is obvious that it is a well known I've rang tech support numerous times now and they are "aware of the issue" but have no idea when/if an update will be released.

My first and last alienware laptop this CPU fan sticking has gone on too long without any update with the issue, it seems that you have forgotten us R1 users.

 

maybe they are trying to "proactive" in stopping hte processor from heating up? i mean the alienware's a couple of years ago had major overheating issues so maybe by stopping the temp rise, or at least controlling it, before it happens, they won't HAVE to deal with it blasting once it does reach a specific temp. quite cheeky if you ask me

i think it's all bullox

 

Approaching the end of the month and getting anxious for that A05 . Will there be any other changes or just the fan?

 

I have updated my bios to the latest as well as drivers from DELLs website.
my fan goes on and off at times, but usually stays on at a low level.
For a while I got used to it and even while watching my movies via HMDI cable the fan goes on at a higher level, but the sound from the movie makes the fan unable to be heard.
BUT
when my wife plugs in her sony laptop with i5 via HMDI to watch her movies, i actually hear the difference. My M11x R1 is incredible loud and my wifes sony is near dead silent, sometimes I dont even think there is a fan in her notebook.
Just dont understand why the fan kicks in so high for HDMI while my wifes sony fan does even kick in, I mean m wife was watching drama and movies almost the entire day and the fan NEVER kicked in once.
I just plug in my HDMI cable in my m11x and my fan kicks in high gear.

We difinitely need a fix with a bios update!

 

I personally don't think the fan on my m11x r2 is loud, but then the main intake fan on my desktop is a box fan that has replaced the side panel