M5N Fan Problem

The temperature stabilises at 60C with no fan which is interestingly also the temperature at which SpeedFan changes from showing a red temperature rising arrow to showing a burning flame sign.

Do you think that some kind of internal protection trips in the CPU at this speed and it lowers the clock speed to reduce temperature?

The machine now feels a little warm to the touch (rather than the usual M5N stone cold) but its nothing unreasonable.

Do you think in practice one can run with no fan without any significant affect on the processor?

I still hear a noise now like a very quiet fan (the sort I might have hoped that Asus would use) but I suppose that's actually the whirring of the hard disk?

 

yes, it drives me crazy. but i'm keeping it anyway
i own the m5 for 2 or 3 month now. i know speedfan for much longer (its a really great little utility, not only for laptops) but i didnt know that it can turn off the m5-fan until tonight. 4.21 is quite new and maybe it is the first version that is able to do that trick, i don't know.

 

i think it's the hard disk, i can hear that, too.
somewhere in the configure-dialog you can set 2 temperatures for each temp.-sensor, one is "desired temp." and one for "warning" and that has an influence on the appearance of the little red arrow/the dangerous looking flame. unfortunatly i could not make the fan start and stop at THOSE temperatures. that would be really nice.
i myself have my fan turned on again now because i also am a little bit unsure about how safe it is running the m5n without a fan ...

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by markus

 

Quite honestly, I barely ever see my CPU in my M6Ne LOWER than 60...
I love the silence. (my fan doesn't turn on until 65 degrees)

ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, Tohiba Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by markus

 

Suddenly without warning the temp of the CPU shot up to 79C even though I hadn't been doing anything to increase CPU load. All I had been doing was surfing the web and looking at email.

So the behaviour of the CPU without a fan can't be trusted. Exactly why it should be stable at 56C for ages and then shoot up to 79C is beyond me.

However having run without any fan noise for a little while the fan is now even more unbearable to me than I found it before. Its really horriffic but if you have to listen to it all the time your brain tries to dull the pain a little by not hearing quite so much of it.

This machine goes back for the refund. Can anyone tell me of the fastest light Centrino notebook that has almost zero fan noise. Needless to say Asus is not in the running.

 

Man, get rid of the computer. Personally I'm sick of hearing your complaints... the more and more I read them the more and more my ears are trying to pick up this "whinning" noise and I find myself with my ear to the fan. Needless to say I look like an idiot doing it, but it boogles my mind that you're still talking about this. Something isn't right, but you sound like you're the type of person who enjoys pain.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

[/quote]
The next thing we will be hearing from you is that there was never a holocaust in Germany and it is all in my imagination.
[/quote]

Wow, you worthless Brit. Why bring up something like the holocaust? Are you mental? You're flaming this thread for unknown reasons. Whether you've been jaded by Asus or you have some other agenda, I don't really care. The point is, no one else has had the experience you have and speaking of cotton balls, pull them out of your own ears......

You make comments on other notebooks like " why not go with this, it has fan noise but i'm sure not as bad as the M5" Well you can't even be trusted with the noise you supposedly hear on your own computer.. how can you suggest one that you haven't laid your ears?

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Well, no one has complained about the fan as extreme as you have... perhaps your M5N really was defective.
Most have complained about a nonstop fan... but they also say it isn't THAT loud (i.e. that it can be heard from 24 feet away).

ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, Tohiba Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by AuroraS

 

I don't care if we never sell another M5 as long as it exists. One sore brit isn't going to take away all of the good reviews the system has gotten worldwide and if anything the more you talk about other systems, the more people realize you aren't a credible source.... afterall, you are the one who said your laptop with the crusoe cpu didn't get hot and didn't make noise and couldn't understand the difference. Everyone else in this forum should be able to understand the difference because it's easy to grasp. Obviously you aren't. Before you send your M5 back, if you really have one, why don't you record the whinning sound it's making and post it!

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by AuroraS

 

Hmm.. I just got back from the ASUS Product Showcase here in Vancouver and I asked the ASUS representative about the M5N "fan issue". He claims it should have been fixed in the latest BIOS release (0212)...

I wonder if this is true or not.

ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, Tohiba Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

Buddy, the M5 uses a heat pipe.. What you must not understand is how a heatpipe works.

A heat pipe allows the cpu to be more centrally located and in a thinner chassis. If a heatsink was used, it'd need to be near the edge of the system (which messes up weight distribution) so that the fan can blow over the heatsink and out of the system. Since the heatsink would need to be on top of the cpu, this creates the need for a thicker chassis.. Now, the M5 has a heatpipe. It's filled with a liquid and as the cpu gets hot, it transfers the heat to the liquid and that turns into a gas and flows through the pipe and over to a some copper fins which the heat then transfers to, towards the edge of the chassis. Your whinning fan blows through those fins and removes heat from the system and that gas turns back into a liquid and around we go.....

So, that proves you don't know anything. This is pointless. I'd like to find out what the odds are that you don't even have an M5.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

You've had this since June and you haven't taken care of it yet? I can certainly understand your dealers situation... but you said you complained about this 2 days after you got it and you've had it for what... 8 months now? I feel sorry for you, you can't even take care of your own problems. If this is as serious as you claim, if I felt there was a "defect" and it took this long for the company to clear up, without a doubt you should have filed suit against them.

As far as the heatpipe issue is concerned... it's not a matter of you understanding how it works, it's you saying and I quote:

"Processor speed should only grow at a rate that allows manufactures to keep the noise issue under control by adding more silent noise cooling measures (eg heat pipes)."

Well, the M5 has one, so stop shifting the attention around. I might not backdown, but you are unreasonable..... Someone in your situation should have written documentation about this problem and legal suit against Asus at this point. You obviously haven't gone about it the right way and are unhappy with the fact that you seem to have no power over the entire thing.

Great your fan is whinning... no one else's is. This thread is about the temperature threshold of the M5's thermal sensors... not a defective fan. So get it right. Are you sure it's your fan whinning and not you?

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Capvermell,
I have been monitoring this thread for a few weeks now, and some questions come to mind. But before I proceed, I must also tell you that we are also " Pro ASUS ". We sell 200-250 ASUS notebooks each month, and the RMA rate we experience is less than 1%. This having been said, I would prefer not to be considered an " obnoxious American" as you referred to Justin at ProPortable. I do not know Justin, nor have we ever spoken, but he has provided accurate responses.
For starters, why has your UK reseller not resolved this issue for you? Our relationship with ASUS in the US would have had you a replacement M5N after your initial complaint ( as long as it was verifiable )Secondly, if your CPU fan is indeed making so much noise, why has your reseller not offered to replace the fan under warranty? We sell on average of 40 M5N's monthly, and never have I heard of such an issue with any of our systems, especially related to excessive fan noise.
Although I do not know all of the info surrounding your concerns, initially I would suspect that a lot of the blame falls on your UK reseller.
ASUS has always handled warranty concerns very professionally ( from our end )and believe me, ASUS is much better than Compal or Quanta when it comes to warranty issues. So as I mentioned earlier, I would have to wonder what your reseller is doing to rectify this situation.
In case you are unaware, the warranty of all Built On ASUS notebooks are handled by the reseller, not ASUS. It is the responsibility of the reseller to pitch the issues/concerns to ASUS for repair /replacement

Rick

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Intel Premier Provider

 

Once again, I would have to say that the fault lies with your UK reseller. If he had handled your concerns immediately, I believe you would have had a much better outcome.
Also, I am not defending Justin at ProPortable, but I do not see him as someone attempting to portray himself as the all knowledgable. I do however see him as a loyal ASUS reseller ( such as ourselves ), simply stating protocol for ASUS warranty concerns and issues.
I am truly unaware of how your UK reseller handles warranty concerns, and what his limitations are ( although there should be none )but I would personally persue the reseller before I would speak poorly of ASUS.
Keep this in mind. EVERY manufacturer has thier own set of issues with a particular product ( or notebook series ), and in most cases, the issue(s) are corrected. Despite all that, you will find a "lemon" in every batch. I would never dispute that, nor do I feel that Justin ( ProPortable ) would dispute that, its just plain fact. In a sitaution like this, it would be my responsibility to resolve the issue to the very best of my ability, even if it meant an outright replacement. Your UK reseller should have the same mindset.
We currently sell three different lines of notebooks, ASUS, Compal and Quanta with ASUS being our #1 seller hands down. We feel that ASUS is our #1 seller because of their warranty handling procedures, it's seemless.
Its a matter of us picking up the phone, explaining the issue at hand, delivering a serial number of the unit, and its done !! The replacement unit will be received the very next day. Like I said, seemless !!

Rick Roberts CEO
Integrated System Technologies Inc
http://www.istnc.com

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Intel Premier Provider

 

I think blaming ASUS for not selling retail is insane personally. No ODM sells retail to my knowledge ( although I could be wrong ). I can not think of any retail facility that sells ASUS, FIC, Quanta, Compal, AOpen barebone notebooks to the general retail public. The RMA rate would be insane. Dont get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that everyone is incapable of building a notebook. But as we have seen selling to resellers, the failure rate is alot higher. You dont need a degree in rocket science to assemble a notebook, BUT, you do have to have some common sense when installing add on hardware.
For instance, we use only two manufacturers for memory, these are original memory modules, not third party crap that is available all over the Internet. Because of this we lose sales ,because the memory costs more. But we also believe in using validated memory modules for a particular system.
ASUS, Compal and Quanta rely on us to use validated components in our builds. This more than likely would not be done by the retail buying public.
I realize that you feel your hardships are with ASUS, thats unfortunate, because from where I sit, this could have been easily rectified by your UK reseller. I will make it a point to contact ASUS N.A on Monday just to validate my opinion.


Rick Roberts CEO
Integrated System Technologies Inc
http://www.istnc.com

 

Rick,

Asus sells complete retail systems everywhere in the world. In the US, the W1 and S5 models are handled in the same way as this guy is experiencing in the UK. On these models, if there is a problem the warranty ideally it is handled directly with Asus. Asus doesn't have their own stores like Apple does, but you can find Asus in most of the big european outlets like our Best Buys and so forth.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Justin,

So am I incorrect in assuming that this is a BOA notebook?

You are correct, we do not sell any of the pre configured notebooks, only because of their pricing

Thanks

Rick Roberts CEO
Integrated System Technologies Inc
http://www.istnc.com

 

Rick,

Yes you are, but that's ok. The only place Asus is offering BOA notebooks is in North America. Everywhere else it's like going to Best Buy and buying a Sony or Hp or Toshiba.... 1, maybe 2 options, take your box and you're out the door.



Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Then I stand corrected. I had assumed that this was a BOA unit, hence me blaming it on the reseller.

We have zero experience with ASUS prebuilt units, only because we do not offer them. But I can say that based on how ASUS handles the BOA warranties, I am somewhat surprised on how this situation is ending up. ASUS is normally very responsive in dealing with warranty concerns, unless the concerns are unjust

Rick Roberts CEO
Integrated System Technologies Inc
http://www.istnc.com

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Intel Premier Provider

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by vladimir_goren

 

I am curious that you say the fan speed doesn't go lower than 500rpm or 900rpm for a temp of 40C. I have never seen my fan go that low! It is between 1200 and 1800, all the time from the minute it's turned on, even when there are no processes running. The temperature stays between 40C and 50C.

What I am having trouble determining is whether I also have a defective fan, or whether this sound is, indeed, normal for the M5. I can certainly hear it across a quiet house. It sounds like my old desktop computer used to do when it had a CD-ROM in it that it was trying to read.

However if this is normal and just a flaw in the machine that I have to live with, I don't want to go through the hassle of sending it back and being without it for days or weeks and so on (I am also in the UK). I am otherwise quite happy with the notebook, and have no issues with the screen or keyboard or anything. The fan noise drives me nuts, but not so badly that I would chuck the whole thing in just based on that, because the rest of it I am very happy with.

I wish there were some way to determine what degree of noise it should be making for this type of design, and when/where it crosses into the possible defective fan category.

And I wish there was a way to stay objective about it all, and not descend into all this bickering. I really appreciate the help that people with experience are giving. But I do also think that the fan noise is seriously irritating, and would be happy to hear of solutions to solve it without resorting to ditching the whole model. And any feeback they can offer to ASUS about customer complaints with regard to this could be very helpful.

 

yes, staying unemotion is a bit hard, isnt it boys?

Fact is, is that the fan noise is totally normal for any laptop. The problem is, is that it runs all the time, not that it is noisy.

Does any1 know how to extract temp info from hardware? i was thinking about writing a program to automatically change those pwm settings in speedfan, but cant find any way to read in the temperatures of the system. Unfortunately source code for temp monitors in windows are rather limited.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Robyn

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by duzigo

 

No problem... I have gone over the top myself, but only in the interest of really getting the bottom of the issue. Considering every Asus office in every country really works independently of each other, their product is really the only thing that can stand up against what we have here...... and that is only if that country orders the same hard drives, and cpus and lcds and whatever.... What we can't compare is who runs these places and what their practices are.

For instance, in Italy, one of their top people leaks info on new pocket pcs, phones and notebooks all the time. Stuff that we're privied to but not aloud to talk about until the NDA allows us.... and then someone just leaks info from another office..... They all work in different ways, but in the end the are all held accountable to someone. But in your case, Your dealer is purchasing the notebook from Asus maybe... who knows.. last march lets say... They have it around their store for a few months and then you buy it for their markup price. Yes, your warranty starts when you buy it and register it, but as far as getting a refund direct from Asus, they aren't going to give you what you paid back for it, because they didn't make that money on you to begin with. I know one thing for sure, in Europe, these complete systems have a much higher profit margin for the reseller than they do here. Thats basically why Rick said ISTNC doesn't want to sell them..... complete systems are hard to move because you need someone to want that exact system, and there isn't much to make on them. However if we were to sell complete sony systems of toshiba... there is a lot of money that can be made.. That's how these things are sold in Europe, just like any other major company and you could probably double our margins if we were in Europe and that would explain why Asus would "exchange" rather than "reimburse" because they would be losing a lot of money and your dealer already made his money. Then it goes back to what the return policy is with your dealer. No matter if you brought it to someones attention at the time, overall, you've let the time slip way past the period where he would be responsible to help. But then again, I don't know how it works in Europe on these models. There are a lot of things in the US that no matter what happens, even if it's within 30 days, you have to go direct to the manufacturer. But after 30 days that thing can explode and your dealer can only say, go to Asus or whoever. On pre-built models they would be who makes the money on the warranty so they take care of it and your dealer is only a pawn who you shouldn't take it out on.

sorry for another rant... I didn't expect to write so much.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

I think we can figure this out right here and now. If you still have your M5, take off the CPU cover and remove the heatpipe... on the M5, the heatpipe is attached to the fan in one nice little package. I've taken mine out and posted a picture on our website. The link is below. If you have a different fan, this arguement may have been for nothing. However, even if it is the same fan, the fan is thin enough that you can spin it and take a look at fins to see if there is a problem. When you spin it, it should spin pretty freely. If it holds up, the fan has been damaged. You really need to do this to put an end to this issue. If they are already going to take back your system, all you need to do is take out 4 simple screws. The one that holds the CPU cover on and the four that hold the heatpipe to the CPU.

http://www.proportable.com/images/m5fan.jpg

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

I just have a feeling that since there is a built in combo drive, there's less room for heat (thus the fan runs constantly).
I've had the opportunity to fiddle with an S5N and I can say that the fan was NOT constantly on and it was quiet.


ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, Tohiba Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by AuroraS

 

The heat on the M5 is mainly centered around the cpu. The hard drive and optical drive can play a role, but only if and when they are rip roaring... so your dvd burner is not causing this. I can tell you that much.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

Well you only make one bios no matter what the cpu, hard drive, ram or optical drive is used. If you're talking about the heat levels... yes, they vary with cpu. This is the whole point. They set the temperature of when the fan will kick on. A 1.3ghz will take longer to heat up to that level than a 2.1ghz will, in theory. Hence the reason most 12" systems sold in stores will always come with whatever the slowest cpu at the time is.. 1.4/1.5... whatever.

HOWEVER, with Asus' systems, the powergear software will run every system, no matter what cpu is used at 600mhz when not in use. This levels the playing ground between you and me no matter what cpu or configuration or how hard we use them. When it is standing still, on a table with nothing around it....... it should run at a consistant temperature and our fans should kick on and off at the same time dependent only on what the room temperature is. So, at that point if we still have a problem it's either a different make or model of fan (which is common for such a large company like Asus... they often use two or more manufacturers for the same model notebook.. so why not fans?) ... or, as I think everyone suspects.. the fan is defective itself.... somehow.

Are you going to remove the fan like I asked? That should nail the problem right on the head.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Chaps,

Just to make a point here
‘
I purchased a M5N two weeks ago and took it back within 24 hours due to Noise and heat issues. I initially purchased it after using the 1 spindle version.

It got so hot that I could no longer comfortly hold it or use it and the fan noise just got worse, even after switching it off for 2 hours , it was still annoyingly penetrating, and you could feel a distinct vibration on the keyboard whilst typing from the fan.

Basically it was a pain, so I took it back and showed the retailer, who unpackaged a “New” unit same issue.. so he agreed to change it for a different system.

I believe that the issue here is that this 2 spindle machine is to packed, i.e. the “Empty” space in the case is reduced by the inclusion of the DVD drive, which I am sure effects the thermodynamic properties. Do the 1 spindle and 2 spindle fans have the same part number ?

So I am now happy with my Acer Ti 382 , same form factor but is a 1 spindle design, although they did include an external self powered DVD writer in the BOX.

Would I buy Asus again…yep I asked the dealer if he had the 1 spindle machine, but unfortunately the local importer no longer carries it. But I am interested in the new w5n which I hope due to the bigger chassis, has improved cooling and less noise/vibration.

In order to give a balanced view however, even the Acer is not perfect, due to the position of the breather hole, I have to be careful on how I put it on my lap, so as not to cover it up. As this baby can get quite hot under these conditions, but under no circumstances does it have the whiny fan issue.

just my $0.02 worth..

 

Actually, I've stripped both the S5 and M5 done to pieces and the optical drive doesn't really change the make up of the inside of the case. If anything there is just slightly more room in the M5 than in the S5...... it really has to do with the fact that the M5 is the same height in the front as it is in the back. The S5 gets much thinner at the front.. This just really isn't an issue of air supply over the board... and if it is, it's seriously very minimal.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Nobackup

 

Well, first off... take out your fan and lets see what the issue is. Whether or not you're taking the system back we have to get to the bottom of this. Either it's a certain fan used on the European model......... or five of you just happened to get bad fans or motherboards. I know there are more of you, I'm sure.. but the number is fan less than people who say the opposite. So, take that fan out and lets see.

Thanks,
Justin
PROPortable
www.proportable.com
[email protected]

 

Hi,

I just bought my M5Np yesterday from a shop micro anvika in tottenham court road in london and the first thing i noticed after switching on the system is the loud fan noise and it's getting worse every second since the system has been switched on.

The only thing that i've been able to do on this system is read all the 10pages of posts here and can certainly confirm the problems others are having... it's a loud whirring noise that's driving me nuts

I'm an IT professional and have worked on/owned atleast 4 IBM-T20 to t41's, a fujitsu lifebook, and compaq presario series of laptops (including the one with the athlon processor), none of them come close to this system's noise levels (not not even the athlon processor equipped laptop!!!)...

I have not used the CD drive, not run any cpu intensive programs or installed any stuff on it.... the sound is too loud for me to work on this system, i'm taking this back to the micro anvika store in the next few hours and get it replaced.... will post my experience when i come back from my T-40 or the new system that they would have replaced (or get my money back)

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by PROPortable