Lowering G51vx's Temperature

Hi. I'm getting the new G51Vx-A1 from Asus. It's on order, and should start shipping shortly. When I get it, however, I intend to do everything in my power to push down the temperature of the machine so that I can pump up the graphics card, which is underclocked in this model. Now, I have a few ideas already, but I need help. I'm basically a noob at this, having never attempted to tweak any settings in any computer before now. So if any of you have advice for me, please explain it as simply as possible. Keep everything focused on lowering the temperature for now, I've already read a few good overclocking guides on this forum and I think I've got that covered.

My ideas so far are:

1) I've ordered this machine with Arctic Silver 5 on the CPU and GPU. Still, some initial things that I've read indicate that the AS5 really just stabilizes the model at 90C and doesn't really push it down bellow that, which is what I'm aiming to do. Nevertheless, I'll run a benchmark when I get it, see what comes up.

2) I'm planning to buy a notebook cooler, based on a belief that working together, the cooler and the AS5 should have a greater impact than either one would individually. Please correct me on this if I am mistaken.

3) Right now, from what I've been told, the G51's fan doesn't come on until it hits 90C. Anyone who's good with BIOS, is there an easy way to tweak that so it comes on at, say, 80C? What are the risks of doing this?

4) There has been a lot of speculation about that bottom circular vent on the G51 as to whether or not opening it up might in some way increase cooling. I know what Asus has said about it, but maybe using it with my notebook cooler might increase the cooler's effectiveness (the air being pushed right into the system through a giant vent). Again, inform me about any unforeseen risks involved in doing this.

5) I've also heard people talk about removing the back panel while its on the cooler. Will this have an impact, how easy is the back panel to be removed and replaced, and can this cause more damage to my system than its worth?

Well, that's all the questions I've got for now, but if you have any other ideas, please let me know. And for the record, I've already looked at undervolting in the G51 optimization guide. It's an option that, as a noob, I'd rather avoid, for the time being at least.

When I get this machine I will test out everything that is suggested, and I'll post the results back here for everyone.

 

U should also undervolt the CPU which should give at least 5*C drop if u wanna aim for the lowest temp.

 

toss it in the freezer for a couple minutes before running heavy duty programs. lol it's what i do with my laptop right now.

 

^ I hope thats not serious. Changing something's temperature so quickly is very bad. I wouldnt be surprised if part of it cracked from that. Its like throwing a cold stone into a fire which explodes.

Also, if you take our the circular vent the rest of the laptop thats not under it will get much hotter. You want air flowing through in a current to keep it cool.

 

That could potentially be disastrous. If the temperature gets cold enough, you will get condensation within the laptop due to water vapor in the air. If its on your motherboard and you turn the laptop on -> fried motherboard.

 

asus laptops, more specifically the g series are REALLY great in terms of build quality and being solid. i remember there was some guy trying to RMA his g50vt with water. the laptop survived being sprayed with 20oz of water. it survived water being sprayed on the motherboard O.O. it finally died when salt water was introduced, since salt water has more conductivity. you can see the adventure of that g50vt here.

 

What about my suggestion about adjusting the BIOS to turn the fan on earlier? would that have an impact?

also, would removing that circular cover temporarily only while its on top of a notebook cooler have an impact? with the cool air being able to go straight up inside the machine?

And as for undervolting, it seems extremely complicated to someone like me with no experience with these sort of things. what would be the easiest way to do it?

and just to go with the most basic thing, will using a cooler in addition to the AS5 have a greater impact than using just the AS5?

 

it would not have that much of an impact. it will only take a longer time to reach 90c.

that circular thing allows for optimum cooling. removing it will only disrupt the airflow and make other components get hotter.

the easiest way is to follow the optimization guide here

yes a cooler (i recommend a Zalman NC2000) and AS5 will make temps lower. it is optional but recommended to have both for good cooling.

 

Its still a bad idea... but im pretty sure condensation is pure H2O, which cannot conduct electricity. Its the minerals in water that do....

 

havent had a problem yet but it's not like i leave it in overnight. maybe just for 3 or 4 minutes. lol and I'd never take a chance with a new laptop, this one is a really old dell i bought maybe 9 years ago so no biggie if it starts to break

 

I would be interested in doing that. Anyone knows which programm to use to do this?

 

looks like ill b working on the undervolt when i get it. just a quick question: can i undervolt the gpu too, or just the cpu, cuz it seems like the guide is just talking about the cpu.

also, does anyone know if the dox drivers mentioned in the g51 optimization guide bring the 260m up to normal 260m standards (because it is underclocked in the g51) or to desktop 260 standards?

 

The dox drivers improve performance but do not overclock it. You would have to use nTools to overclock it to get standard clocks.

There is no program for the G51. In fact, there is no program for the vast majority of laptops. The only way you would be able to do this is if you can either edit the BIOS (not vBIOS) or write your own, both of which is probably extremely complicated.

Well....if its been a while and you get a little bit of dust, then the condensation would be able to conduct electricity.

That is the main reason why those crazy overclockers who use liquid nitrogen have to cover their motherboards with electrical tape.

 

There's nothing you can do. Undervolting the CPU won't change the GPU temp, you cann't create a BIOS, drivers won't change a thing, etc.

Just use a cooler or deal with the heat.

 

It won't decrease temperature directly, but the decrease in CPU temps will decrease the ambient temperature within the case, which may cause small improvements in the GPU temp.

It won't be big and it probably won't be noticeable but every little bit counts when you're optimizing right?

 

Lowering the CPU does affect the GPU temperature, not by much, but it does.

Drivers can change the temps, and can also get you better or worse performance.

 

Does anyone know if the thermal interface fits tight against the 260m's interface core? I'd live to put AS5 instead of having the foamy thermal pad, but I remember another G51 user get 80C+ idle temperatures when he did this.

His experience would mean that the two interfaces are not fitting flush, which means you need a thick thermal pad to bridge the gap.


Anyone successful with applying AS5 to the GPU?

 

I REPEAT DO NOT PUT AS5 ON THE GPU!!!!

I did the same thing and had to end up buying a new notebook. The thermal pads on the GPU are efficient enough. DO not REMOVE them unless you can remove the core shim thats on the GPU. That is what is causing the heatpipe to not sit flush on the GPU when the thermal pads are removed.

 

What's a core shim? Is it that transparent orange thing?

What I'm wondering at this moment is that my constant detaching of the heatsink--at leastt times since I've bought it--might have somehow disrupted the interface.

 

You didn't have to buy a new notebook, haha. You could have just cut a copper sheet for less than $5 and wedge it between the GPU die and the face of the heatplate. If that's not possible for you, you could have just bought a new thermal pad off of eBay. There are thermal pads out there that are of better quality than the ones that came with your GPU.

 

Any suggestions off the top of your head?

And I need to read up more on this copper mod.

 

Taken from here. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5156387&postcount=603

In this case with the GPU, you would cut a small square piece of copper sheet. Thermal paste would go on both sides to bond with the GPU die and the face of the heatplate. In short, you're making a pasty copper sandwich. From an engineering point of view, it is inefficient. But it's a whole lot better than a thermal pad.

I did the same thing with my old M38AW three years ago. I ripped off the thermal pad and replaced it with a copper shim to better cool my 6600 GO. I'd make a guide on it, but it was difficult to get to the GPU on my M38AW. It required dismantling the entire chassis just to get the the GPU heatsink, and I don't feel like relearning how to open up my machine. However, this person made a very detailed guide on the exact same mod for an 8400M GS on a Dell XPS M1330 about a year ago. You can use it as a reference when you plan to do install mod on your Asus. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=268081

 

I actually had read the Dell copper mod thread before. I just went and reread it. I might the about doing this if my soon-to-come Zalman.

By the way, when I meant suggestions, I was wondering about thermal pads. I'm not exactly confident in my handiwork.

 

Starting with post #356. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=339000&page=36

The thermal pads I used are a bit better than the blue stock ones that came with my GPU. The stock thermal pads are still pretty good, but I wanted to mod my GPU to the fullest extent.

I don't know what the quality level is for the thermal pads on your Asus, but because the thermal pad is on the GPU die, you can expect some fairly modest results by switching to a better thermal pad, or just straight up copper.

 

All the thermal pads I see on eBay seem to have the same specs, other than size.

As for mine... uh, the only thing I notice with it is that it's purplish.

 

Which thermal pads are you looking at?

Yeah, I heard purple thermal pads are the best. Color plays a huge factor in determining thermal resistance.

 

Well, I have no idea of what to look for, and I don't feel like opening it again to find details. But it's purple. So you say it's most likely the better pad?


The thermal pads were from here.

 

I was being sarcastic. Color has nothing to do with quality.

Those will work. All you would need is a razor and you're ready to go.

 

I thought you were. But on the off-chance that you might be serious I editted my post. Hah.

But seriously, is there any way to tell what thermal pad you're using?


By the way, I'm assuming thermal phase change pads are the ones that melt when they heat up.

 

I am using Bergquist 1.0 W/m-K Sil-Pads.

 

And I'll assume that the eBay 3.2 W/m-K are better at heat transference?

 

On paper, yes. But the difference is almost non-existant. Also, those are the theoretical values for thermal resistance for the pads by themselves. You still need to take into account density, thickness, and deflection value as a result of compression and the amount of pressure that is being put on the pad. I'd go over it all, but I'm too sleepy for that right now. In the end, both pads would still be roughly around the same thermal resistance, which is still a farcry from using copper. If you want to see real results, do the copper mod.

I switched my stock thermal pads with the Bergquist pads because they are more durable. The Bergquist pads are far more resistant to damage such as ripping and tearing compared to the stock pads on my system and yours. Damage to thermal pads will reduce it's effectiveness, and since Bergquist pads are highly resistant to damage, I won't need to replace them as often, and I would retain constant performance from the pads throughout their use on my GPU memory. I have a whole sheet of these pads so I'm pretty much covered for life.

 

Okay. I'll try to find some copper and try this out.

Forge will one again push the limits of the G51.

 

Make sure you lap the copper sheet to remove any burrs and off-centered alignment. Unlike starting with low grit sandpaper that CPU lapping recommends, you can start with mid to high grit sandpaper as the copper sheet would most likely be centered and flat already.

 

In response to that guy who said not to put AS5 on the GPU, I'm having XoticPc do that before they ship it to me. I think everything will be in good alignment with them doing it.

 

You can also use that new stuff who's name escapes me... supposed to be thicker and fill the space where a pad was.

 

No thanks, rather have just bought a new one.

 

Yes the transparent orange thing is the one on top of the northbridge chip. The one on the GPU is silver and is actually been put on the core itself with adhesive so i would advise trying to remove it. Thats the reason for the thermal pads.