S-XPS 1645 AC Power Throttle Issue Investigation

yeah Siphen you have probably the most demanding configuration aside from having more RAM.

 

I have tested with 2 separate 130W adaptors... both with the same results, I’m thinking about bringing the laptop with the 130W adaptor to our Engineering Department... We have several 2000+$ testing machines... wouldn’t doubt it if one could tell me the W rating ;p

 

I plan on under volting (is that a word?) the CPU soon, or at least attempting to , we’ll see how that goes....

 

On a side note, has anyone noticed the AC plug being a little loose when plugged into the laptop? It goes in, and stays in, just seems to wiggle a little...

 

For what it's worth, I handle about 60+ E6400s and we've also got another 30+ E6500s, all with 90 Watt power adapters... and none of them have had any performance issues. I'm not doubting that it's happening, but I wonder if it's more limited to specific configurations -vs- being a problem with the entire series.

 

Yeah it solves your problem but it depends on the laptop's configuration. When RAM prices come down and we upgrade to 8 GB are we going to hit more problems with a 130 watt adapter?

 

Hello Inkjammer,
I do not doubt you at all but, what are their specs ? Looks like only Core i7 systems coupled with good enough GC are affected. Could you confirm ?



Besides this, here are some news from the french front. A user tested two different 90w adapters, a 2 years old PA-10 (non-slim) and the shipped PA-3E :

3Dmark 06

90w (PA-10) 6429
90w (PA-3E) 5813

 

thats interesting. As we get more people testing and verifying results with different configurations. It may be that the newer slim adapters are overrated by a good bit. The 130w brick max420 received might just perform better then the slim in real world conditions. Have to say even on idle the 90w on my system burns hot when charging. Havnt had many other laptops do that.

Siphen just curious, are you using the slim version for your test. Perhaps theres more to the picture then higher power drawing specs. well vs max420 results anyway

 

These numbers for the 90W adapter 6962 6123 suggests that the RGBLED is consuming significant power than the WLED, that is why people with the WLED are not reporting this.
The 130W charger results don't show any significant difference among the different combination, but again 3DMark does not stress CPU and GPU at the same time (i.e., does not consume the maximum power), so this benchmark can be deceiving if the required power is provided.
Please run a graphic intensive benchmark in parallel with a a CPU intensive task like prime95. Observe the performance for the maximum and minimum brightness settings. If there is any difference then again 130W is not enough for the configuration with RGBLED, otherwise it is a BIOS problem.
Thank you

 

No, both are the old form factor large 130's. Exactly like Max420's. to be more specific.. PA-13, Model PA-1131-02D2

 

These systems are P8600, 4GB of RAM and 160GB hard drives. Great all around mid-range. Some of them have LED, some TFT (our company was cheap on some of the orders).

Power adapter model #DA90PE1-00

 

Intel graphics right?

these systems only need 90W adaptors.

 

Hey guys,

My Dell XPS 16 is estimated to be delivered on Dec. 9, but I'm leaving US on Dec. 16 (7 days after estimated delivery). Just wondering, for ppl who got their 130W adapter replacement, how long did it take?

My second question is whether 130W is enough to power my system: i7-720, 6GB RAM, 500GB SATA, RGBLED, ATI 4670 1GB. If not, should I ask for 150W? Will 210W burn my laptop (plz excuse my ignorance...)? Or does the laptop only draw wutever power it needs...

 

It draws only the needed power. If you get a more powerful adapter, the adapter will also run cooler because it is not fully stressed.

 

so what is it kids whats the consensus on the best power adapter to get?

the PA-4E??

a dell guy i talked to today says this issue has been "fixed"

maybe it was the adapter, maybe it was the BIOS

all i know is that they're still sending out 90Watt adapters

i need to be sure before i shell out $100 for the PA-4E

 

Let me guess its fixed, but didnt explain to you the solution? since you have that laptop? I totally believe that.

Unless you needed a backup i dont think id shell anything near 100 dollars out for its dells problem and they should fix it. been mentioned triangle laptops sells the 130w for around 20 bucks

As for whats best, i dont think we are sure just yet, as it may depend on system configuration. Seems max420 is happy with his 130w solving his issues. While siphen with a more demanding system seems to still have issues although his performance seems to be better. So not 100% on that just yet, only more testing will tell.

 

Havent heard anything about a fix yet. No new bios on the support site. I am waiting on hold to talk to someone about it.

 

triangle laptops you say?

hope they ship to canada

best i've found thus far is $70

this is the PA-4E right?

 

hot damn

how is it that they have it so cheap?

these things are usually like $120+

i think it says its refurbished

ahh but the new one is only $10 more

do we know if this one lights up at the end like the 90 watt one does??

i also notice that the used version (https://www.trianglelaptops.com/p-11087-dell-latitude-inspiron-pa-4e-130w-ac-adapter-ju102.aspx) says ""power cord included"

does that mean that the new one (https://www.trianglelaptops.com/p-9...piron-pa-4e-130w-ac-adapter-ju102-pa-10.aspx) does not come with a cord?

 

yes, this is the one i ordered for a back up not to long ago. link should be here tomorrow, ill test it out and see if it clears up the l4d2 issues etc ive been seeing, and post pictures of it.

edit: is true i believe theyre refurbished. But for a back up its not bad.. Like i say dell really should be the ones replacing the 90w with a new 130w or whatever we need to fix the problem

 

Here is the link:

http://www.trianglelaptops.com/p-9604-new-dell-latitude-inspiron-pa-4e-130w-ac-adapter-ju102-pa-10.aspx

 

I got a phone call indicating that they are collecting my machine for further investigation and are going to replace it.

 

Just to follow up with most recent chat with a tech support just now:

Tech Support (TS): I would like to inform you that we have received a lot of feedbacks from the customer and we have gone thru all the testing on the system and we have resolved the issues with the upcoming system.

Me: may I know how you resolved the problem?

TS: The motherboard of the system has been changed with few of the settings and more capacitors. That would take care of the issues.

Me: so it's not an issue with the adapter itself? cuz ppl have been replacing the 90W with 130W adapter, and it seems to resolve their problems

TS: Both the parts are begin designed in such a way that it would be compatible with each other.

That's all I could ask... According to Dell, they are aware of the problem, and have resolved it.

 

the shipping was very reasonable too surprisingly to ship to canada

just hope i don't get nailed on duty

 

yeah the guy i just talked to said this issue has been "addressed" as well

and he also could not tell me how

capacitors my

 

Maybe we are all going to get Flux Capacitors to fix our laptops....

 

im weary that one wont come with a cord, the used one says "cord included"

i'll email them

 

lol that was the best bullsh!t the guy could come up with

"yeah we uhhhh added some gremlins to yer flux capacitor there"

*sitting there watching *

 

well capacitors make sense- if that is really been done as the solution. there could be a case where there was faulty capacitors, missing some, or they weren't able to sustain enough energy as the system required.

 

I am on with Dell support right now. They are going to send the Pa-4E out. They do say that they are aware of the issue.

 

>< so wut's the story now... should i still get 130W adapter?

 

i'm still gonna buy the 130Watt even if there are more flux capacitors and vorshhtines just so i know im gettin all the juice out of it

 

The invoice for my order actually says it is included.

Ordered: 1 Shipped: 1 6964-1 Dell Latitude Inspiron PA-4E 130W AC Adapter JU102 $20.95
Ordered: 1 Shipped: 1 6964 Dell PA-4e AC Adapter - JU102 $0.00
Ordered: 1 Shipped: 1 7046-A Dell Angled Flush Cloverleaf Power Cord $0.00

 

looks like you bought the used one $20.95

 

well if i ordered mine yesterday then theres no way its been built yet

hopefully i'll get the modified one if that was in any way true

 

I ordered mine on Nov. 14, and estimate delivery date is Dec. 9. I asked the tech support guy, and he promised me that my xps 16 would come with the new motherboard.

 

indeed, should be here Thursday.

Ok I just got off the phone with Dell. Again we seem to be getting conflicting information here. However, the tech told me that they are now confirming the power adapter is indeed the issue.

They are overnighting the Pa-4e

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...etail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=330-1829

I asked him specifically about the motherboard issue others are reporting, he told me emphatically that it is the adapter. Not sure whats true here. Holding out hope the new adapter solves my issues.

Other than the 45 minute wait it was not a bad experience. I urge everyone to call in.

 

are you in canada?

 

damn that things only got a 3 foot cord

do we know how long the cord is for the triangle laptops one?

theres a three foot and a six foot version

 

I would highley recommend we get them to send us a 150W adaptor. Even if you dont need the extra 20W, it would leave the room to allow the battery to charge faster when in use.

im going to ask for the 150... once i find the part number some where..

 

err. i am, but i'm ordering from the US website, and my friend will bring it over in xmas saves huge...

 

Please tell us if you manage to get it for free from Dell

 

They really mentioned it was the issue? wish i knew whats going on with them eesh. motherboard, power supply capacitors?!

 

I have my doubts. He sounded pretty certain though. When pushed he said it was absolutely the adapter. He cited the relatively new age of the laptop and said it had been confirmed with "the techs" (whoever they are) as the fix for this issue.

The reality is, its gonna be alot more expensive for Dell to replace the motherboard in every 1645 already sold than to simply send the few who call in a new adapter and quietly replace the motherboard in new ones.

 

It would make sense for Dell to send out adapter replacements to the sold machines (like yours), and modify the motherboard in new machines (like mine), but khaledseif is neither case:

Can ppl make more calls / chat online to figure out wut's going on? It seems that Dell has discrepancies within their own team.

 

Actually i just contacted support. Got the usuall lets check your system, and ill call back in a hour.. but about 5 minutes later i got a call from a different guy, taking information on the problem etc. It seems they are aware and still working on the problem but having trouble reproducing our real world results. Fair enough. He did mentioned it would take a few days for them to confirm and if the 90w was the problem they would start sending 130w etc. But he did say he would call back in a few days or once they for sure found the fix.

Sounds like standard stuff as they have to reproduce the problem first etc. And be very sure they have a fix. It seems their test methods may be flawed for the new tech in the laptops or something, and scrambling to reproduce and confirm the results. given its just tuesday, may take a few more days or so i would expect

 

link to a compatible 150 watt?

havent even seen one yet

 

btw while we're all here

how exactly does the turbo boost technology in the i7 work?

like the 720q - 1.6ghz (2.8 turbo boost)

can somebody please explain?

 

Ryan,
The turbo boost is an internal feature to the chip, it has 4 cores, and if all 4 cores are not being utilized by software, it will speed up the cores that are in use. If you are running a single threaded application and not much else in the background, the system will speed up to a maximum of 2.8 Mhz. Intel's website has more details on it if you are curious. The reason it does not always run at 2.8 has to do with power used on the chip, the chip has some power management logic to determine if it can speed up clock based on overall power usage. There are middle steps for 2 and 3 cores as well, but single core max is 2.8 Mhz.

Hope that helps..
if not see Intel I7 Mobile Technical Docs

 

Hey guys. When i run furmark (gpu stress test) along side with prim95... I get the same issues, but the power adapter shuts off. as in the blue light shuts off etc. i have to unplug and replug in the adapter. Im just curious has this at all happened to anyone? as its repeatable for me.

edit: i get my 130w tomorrow and will be able to test.