S-XPS 1645 AC Power Throttle Issue Investigation

Haha, thanks. That actually made me laugh out loud

 

ok well they didn't have a fix for me; they refused to send the adapter at this time so maybe it's not really the solution. They will follow up with me in a few days after further investigation and the issue will be fixed for sure. It just might be a combination problem with possible BIOS update in the future, maybe it's not even fixable completely yet. blah

 

I had the power adapter do that to me as well. It happened to me while testing a game performance, to see if I could replicate the issues here. I was unplugging it and replugging it in and one of the times the adapter just shut down. I was unplugging/plugging it in every couple minutes allowing the machine to adjust power settings, and to be sure it corresponded to the power change(It did). One of the times, it just shut off when I plugged it in, and the screen went blank, but the sound was still on. I think it must have some sort of MOV or other current protection, it shut down, and didn't power back up for a minute or so. I tried to switch the monitor back on by using the screen switch keys, no luck. So I shut the laptop, and the machine went to standby, then opened it back up, and the screen came back up and I could continue the game. This machine has some power issues, but it sure is nice to look at, and in general runs fast, just can't push it as hard as you should be able to.

I haven't requested a 130W yet, I'm waiting for Dell to conclude that this is the root cause, and not just a factor in the overall issue. It is not that I doubt the work here, I just want to official solution to come from them. Hopefully with the work guys here did, Dell is on the way to fixing it. Shame on them for not noticing it sooner, as it seems pretty easy to replicate.

i7-720, RGB, 500GB HD, 4G RAM, Win 7 (BIOS A01)

 

It seems the Alienware M15x has similar issues. Although it doesn't throttle like the SXPS 16 at stock clocks, a very mild overclock leads to the same problem:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5577019&postcount=2567

 

I went ahead and bought mine, I figured it couldn't hurt and at least I'd have a superior power supply that has better rated components at whatnot. I paid $28.75 shipped for a brand new unit from trianglecomputer. The way to get it for this price is to go through Bing to find eBay, then lookup the pa-4e from triangecomputer listed for $31.95 with free shipping, and pay using PayPal (PayPal takes credit cards, too). Viola, you get it for $28.75 after 10% ($3.20) Bing cash back.

 

I run furmark and prime95 and it shuts if off almost instantly. seems to be the right combo. the computer though is fine and switches to battery. i just un plug and replug in the adapter and it comes back on.. tomorrow ill try the 130w, and if it works fine, id say its the final nail.

Its seems when loading the laptop it pulls a boatload of power (the plus of the i7 heh). Even for my more power friendly specificiations. I really am wondering if 130w will be enough for some people.

 

I just figured out an awesome test for figuring out how many watts each laptop uses at load.

1) Begin with the computer plugged in and with full battery.
2) Disable hibernation on low battery.
3) Start Furmark and Prime95.
4) Unplug the computer and start a timer.
5) Stop the timer at the point at which the computer powers off.

Since the 9-cell battery in the laptop is an 85 watt-hour battery, we can divide 85 by the number of hours the laptop runs to obtain average usage at load. We can then work out wattage numbers for each individual component, since there are so few possible variations of the laptop.

If you run this test, be sure to post:
Time to shutoff
CPU Model
Amount of RAM
HDD or SSD
RGBLED or WLED

 

if you do that you should note how long windows 7 says there is left on the battery, since its making predictions based on load as well.

 

I looked at this further, I never saw anyone check this but the CPU speed under heavy load drops to 931MHz, the lowest speed, and 15-watts power utilization, and only achieves it maximim 1.6GHz speed and 45-watts power utilization while on battery. No one has tested this before with a 130-watt adapter so who knows how far it really goes to fix it. Here's my post with the details. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5577220&postcount=11

 

I just noticed the same thing while using Tweak 7 and gaming in a window.. dropped all the processor speeds to 931Mhz. This also occasionally happened with the battery in use, but it was pretty constant with AC adapter.

 

I don't trust Windows since I don't know the exact method by which it calculates its numbers. That also complicates an otherwise simple process.

 

guess i'll just test it when i get it with the 90 watt and see if the issue has been addressed

otherwise i guess the PA-4E is the only solution

 

i believe max420 did this earlier in the post around page 8 or 9.. on the 90w adapter he had a 7 multiplier and on the 130w he had a full 13x multiplier for his 820qm. on the battery he did have a 12x multiplier

 

Ok thanks someone needs to take all the information that has been gathered and put it in the first post. I'd do it but I don't want to take over someone elses business. The first post is very vague about the issue and doesn't explain the problem in full, or give any examples or results.

 

Has anyone tried to see if this problem happens in Vista? My system shipped with win7 so I'd never know. I'm also banning my self from games until the end of the semester because I REALY don't have time to be doing lots of gaming and testing. But believe me, come winter break I'll definately be gaming and benchmarking it up.

I do however have my own concerns about Dell's video driver being buggy in win7. When I run as a standard user ACEeventLog spews out events/errors, and even has a number of errors in my admin acount that I don't think should be there. Looking at the release date of the last video driver from dell, it's possible its just not optimized for the final win7 build.

 

Well I eBay'd a 330-4128 210w adapter. I should get by this weekend, so I'll let everyone know how it works out. Its nice when I can get work to pay for such things.

 

werent they saying that the charge rate with the 90watt was incredibly slow too?

that leads me to believe its a mobo issue

just charging with no games playing?

i hope somebody elaborates on this,

MAX tell us how fast the thing charges from 1%-100% when left idle

 

...with both adapters.

 

how do we know which adapters are even compatible?

id like to see somebody get a 130watt and a 210watt and see if theres a difference

 

Give me a day or two and I'll let you know on this one. Hell...That's half the fun with Dell....

 

because then we'll know for sure theres no way it needs more than 130W it really shouldnt

that charge thing is really curious the guy who said he was playing crysis plugged in, and the battery only charged like 2% in an hour

damnit im all excited for this thing why'd it have to be this laptop

 

I called and was told that a new BIOS update will be coming out soon to fix the issue. I don't know if they're also going to send an a/c adapter or not.

 

how do you update the bios anyway?

 

It's just an executable file you download from their drivers site and run on Windows.

What I'm worred about is we've seen strong evidence that the problem is the a/c adapter, yet they're apparently preparing a bios update. I'm betting they're just going to try and workaround the issue rather than ship an adapter to thousands of people.

Also they mentioned that I shouldn't use a higher-wattage adapter cause it can cause long-term problems with the computer since it's designed for 90 watts.

 

would these two work with it too?

guess we'll find out today if it would be overkill

150 Watt

210 Watt

 

Probably, but wait for the guy who got the 210W to confirm. Assuming they're new enough, they'll work.

 

STALKER!!waaaaah

 

I don't know, Dell just told me that they don't sell any new adapters that are greater than 90 volts (they kept saying volts instead of watts) and the XPS is the most powerful machine ever and it uses 90 volts. I'm just going to call back at another time and hopefully I'll get a different story.

 

Yeah i dont see how thats possible without an adapter or they cripple the system. as the 90w adapter i have wont even stay on when everything is under full load, shuts off with what i assume is overcurrent protection. Bios isnt going to fix that. Makes me think theyre chasing a whole different problem and not taking this seriously, as in doing a proper test. They should have awesome equipment compared to what we use, should be an easy days work to verify if that.

If the voltages are the same between the adapters i dont see how it will damage the computer or do anything, capacitors i dont see helping either besides stability. The only thing i can maybe think of if the circuits in the computer arnt able to handle the extra heat from the extra current the 130w adapter would be able to provide. If thats the case then thats a huge fail on dells side, as you would think the mobo would be able to handle the power of its own components.

I think theyre still looking into the issue and coming up with solutions. that possibly that bios update is to fix some other problems/bugs.

 

heres another question - how do you check and see which bios version you have? by going into the bios or is there a way to check in windows?

i see as of right now version A02 is the latest

 

dxdiag.exe will tell you.

 

90 VOLTS? HAHAHAHA. The adapter doesn't put out anything like 90 volts. It's probably between 12 and 20 volts.

 

You guys really need to stop letting Dell yank you around.

Not only did they escalate my issue and say they'd call me back, but they DID call me back. A supervisor did, and explained that they were able to identify an issue with the 90watt and tomorrow I'll be receiving my 130watt adapter at no cost. (this was yesterday that He spoke to me, and I've alreayd received my tracking number and fedex shows delivery tomorrow).

Obviously the problem is known somewhere in Dell's ranks, and obviously the Adapter is at LEAST part of the solution otherwise dell certainly wouldn't waste time and money sending me a new one overnight.

Now the bottom line is that there is a problem and the 130watt adapter at the very least HELPS. Why not call and get one on the way? If they wont listen to you, link them to this thread and ask for a manager.

If you let them bully you around and yank your chain, they will. Call them up and be firm... They didn't update the mobo, they didn't update the bios (yet), and they didn't update anything else either. They are BSing you. Stop buying it, and start yelling.

 

Yeah I talked to the manager and they were just as stubborn. Just going to try another time. I was supposed to get called back by a level 2 technician but never did.

 

My problems with dell XPS 1645:

1. Gaming/Performance problems (RGBLED screen)
2. Very Hot power supply
3. SSD HDD or main board is making high pitching noise
4. Today when I was editing some documents I've noticed 1mm dust under my screen.

My laptop is 20 days old and it's got more problems then my 3 yrs Vaio model.

I've spend £1,129.55 on the laptop and I was expecting good quality machine !!
Made 2 calls to dell support (got standard warranty) and nothing was solved so far.

1. Problem with power supply was passed to research team (no call-back so far)
2. Forgot to mention that the power supply is very hot.(will call them againg today)
3. They asked me to diagnose what exactly is making the noise. – Well laptop base is making noise
4. Dust under screen it's not a technical problem and can't be solved by technical support...

£1,129.55 machine, so far no help from support, no problems solved.

Also why XPS helpdesk is called Premium Service - what's so premium about it?

I want a new laptop or my money back !!!

 

does this apply to the XPS-1340 series laptops?

 

Same problem for the noise. Dell changed my main board J+1 but doesn't solve this issue.
After my diagnostic, the SSD have an electronic noise in idle and the noise is high when my laptop is in activity. My heatsink have a noise too when my laptop is in activity.

After the main board remplacement, a tech will come to my home for change the fan & heatsink.

 

wait why isnt anyonebeing issued the 150watt PSUs the AW m15x is getting its the same pin barrel.

 

So is normal for SSD drives to make that noise?

 

You can check the Bios, Hardware and software on the system by typing Msinfo32.exe into the search bar in the start menu or by opening the Run command.

 

I tested a OCZ Summit (Same PCB/Controler of Samsung PM800) and it dosen't noise.

I have 3 others SSD for my deskop (3 Indilinx) and only one does noise.

So, i don't think it's normal for the SSD to make this noise but my 2 SSD (PM800 & Indilinx) make the noise and they run fine.

 

LOL, I think that Dell needs to get there act together because every time you call we get different answers. So far it has been:

1. Software issue
2. Driver issue
3. Motherboard Replacement
4. Bios issue
5. Power Adapter Replacement
6. Capacitor issue
7. There is no issue at all
8. Send in your Laptop for testing/replacement

This is ridiculous as I rather just here that we are not sure at this time, the engineering department is working on it and we hope to have a resolution soon. This is a disgrace!!!!!!!!

 

the ssd should not make noise

 

I contacted Dell UK Support for the power issue yesterday afternoon, by 10am this morning I had the 130w adapter arrive by courier.
Not sure if i'm meant to give this out, but here is the email of the tech support guy that dealt with my issue ([email protected]).
He offered me a replacement 90w adapter with a new motherboard, a complete replacement machine (as mine was 'so new') and finally I asked for the 130w adapter which I now have
So hopefully if you contact him, you may be offered the same opportunity to have a replacement machine (or whatever would make you happy).

 

Called Dell again (from UK),
This time service was very very nice...

1st thing they offered me was 130W power supply replacement (free of charge), but they didn't have any in store, so I need to wait.

Also my screen and HDD will be replaced (laptop will be picked up tomorrow)

It's like a lottery, when you will get a nice guy then you can sort everything without a problem.

 

Dont let them BS you saying they are out of stock, what they actually mean is there isnt one on the system for the xps 16 (which they interpret as out of stock).
Stick to your guns and insist on the PA-4E!
GL

 

Also apparently "there are no new adapters over 90 watts, and using one will harm your laptop".

 

Talking to a Dell Rep will do more harm to your laptop than any of their power adaptors.

We should rename all the dell topics to "Dell Drama etc. etc."

 

I'm going to attempt to get this one, since 130W doesn’t completely fix my issue.

 

That's why I bought the 210w. It was cheaper new on eBay than the new 150w from Dell. I know it might be overkill. Only down side I see is that I will no longer be able to cook my breakfast and keep my coffee warm on my power supply.