XPS 15 9550 temperature observations (undervolt + repaste)

Sorry, im a bit at lost here. 1733 Mhz where?
0.900v undervolt to the CPU?

 

I guess Philaphlous was referring to the Nvidia 1050 GPU. That GPU can be undervolted to run at about 0.900/0.925v while keeping the frequency near it's original factory max.
With these lower voltages the GPU runs about 10° cooler and that's really helpful to keep it below the temp that trigger it's throttling (78°).

If you want to try it, install and run MSI Afterburner, press CTRL+F to show the frequency/voltage curve, then flatten the frequency line around 1700Mhz starting from 0.925V (see http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...5-9560-kaby-lake.802345/page-25#post-10585001).

Depending on the ambient temp, usage and other useful optimizations (CPU undervolt, CPU/GPU repasting, VRM padding) you may be able to play AAA games for hours with the XPS 9560 running unthrottled.

 

Yeah, that makes more sense, do you know if you can undervolt on the 960m?

 

Hi all, I have already undervolted and repasted with good results, now I want to finish it off by doing thermal pads. From what I have read, the main ones to do are VRM & PCH, however, is it worth changing any of the factory pads also? If so, what thickness pads would be best for me to use? 0.5, 1 or 1.5mm? Thanks in advance

 

It seems the 9550 might have a problem with 1 or 2 pads on VRAM where the pads were too thin; that was corrected on the 9560. You can search this thread for some ideas. If you decide to replace them, you should use very soft, fluffy, low performance pads so you get full contact with the heatsink and don't pust the the heatsink away from the GPU. It takes a bit of trial and error to get the right thickness since this is a defective design every system is different. That would also require you to repaste once again.

Thermal pads between the PCH and the case bottom might prevent the fans from ramping up at low temps for more quiet daily operations based on some posts here. The PCH is low power so probably will not saturate the case bottom alone. Not sure it helps otherwise based on posts here.

If you want to install thermal pads between the VRM and the case bottom, that is a it is very difficult to get a reasonable balance as the case bottom is a terrible heatsink. There is also a downside as it will superheat fan intake air, rendering your CPU & GPU radiators much worse. Also, the hot case bottom will send heat to any PCH thermal pads you install. . .

 

Thanks for the detailed reply. I think the PCH alone might be my best bet then, as my main goal is to keep fans as low as possible. I should add that I don't do any gaming or run any demanding tasks - I purely use the system to browse on...

 

I think that is your next logical next step.

You might also try running "DellCommand-PowerManager" on "Quiet"

You might also look at SpeedShift. An EPP of 255 will be lowest performance but might not be optimal. EPP around 78 will allow you to hit max turbo speeds (which is ideal for temps as tasks get completed quickly and the CPU can go into sleep fast). EPP of 0 is max performance.

Another idea is to consider windows power plan of "balanced" or "power saver" although SpeedShift might ignore those settings. And the new Windoze 10 seems to entirely change the approach to power management so I can not comment there. . .

 

I think that padding the VRM mosfets is advisable to those using CPU+GPU at high loads, like gamers or video editors, as it contributes to reduce or completely eliminate throttling depending on the load and other mods (repasting + CPU/GPU undervolt).

It's not that difficult to obtain a good result! A well executed radical mod could reach the best results, but keeping it simple can give reasonably good results.

Thanks to the contribute of many good folks on this threads, I've got the following and it works well for my usage:
use low grade thermal pads (eg: Artic 1,5 x 50 x 50mm 6,0W/mK), cut it in small chunks and create stacks of 3 layers about the same size of the area of the chip where you're going to apply it to, pad only the VRM mosfets not the chokes.

It's true, the case bottom is not a good heatsink, but if you sit the laptop over an active cooling pad, having a padded VRM/PCH or not, drastically changes it's effect.

I have a Zalman nc3000u and verified that it has almost no effect on the internal components temps of a stock XPS 15.
But after the VRM/PCH padding, while using an active cooling pad I'm seeing important drops in internal temperatures.

 

Hi Guys,

I have the Dell XPS 15 9550 with i7 6700HQ and 960m. I know there is a lot of information in this thread but I wanted to ask (Now that a lot fixes have happened) what is considered the best overall solution to reducing Power limit throttling and high temps on my particular machine?

 

I think I read something like this elsewhere. What exactly is wrong with which thermal pads on the 9550. The only thermal pads are the 4 around the GPU and the one on top of the SSD. Is something wrong with the 4 around the GPU? How can this be remedied?

 

The 4 pads are the same thickness but the heatpipe is bent near the fan where it changes level. Two of them get quite squished, while one near the fan doesn't seem to have much contact. But rarely there are particular performance problems due to this. It is relevant if your temperatures look too high and you suspect heatsink alignment issues, so that the paste remains thick on one side of a chip when you screw on the heatsink and take it off again for inspection - otherwise you can't see if it sits well. Particularly important if you want to use liquid metal. You can use "fluffy" pads (ultra thermal conductivity is not needed, and such pads tend to be less compressible), or tailor bits of thin pads around the heatpipe. One can also use the thick K5 pro paste instead of pads, or even some regular paste.

 

Thank you for the explanation. I'll leave it as it is for now and keep an eye on my temperatures, and if the paste spread evenly the next time I go in there. GoNz0 also advises to leave it as it is. But for future reference, do you by any chance know which thermal pads to use for the MOD? There doesn't seem to be a consensus according to this:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/threads/xps-15-9560-owners-thread.800611/page-21

I'm reading low W/mk fluffy, maybe 1.0 thickness? I have the 1.0mm and 1.5mm Arctic silicone based 6.0W/mk. Would one only replace the one below the pipes as shown in the OP?

 

Well you can leave stock and stack bits of 0.5mm, or try the 1mm. The important thing is that it has some contact and doesn't keep the heatsink away from the chip causing too wide a gap. But if your temperatures are okay just leave as is.
The stacked 1.5mm should be good for the VRM mosfets.
You can also try stacking it on the PCH chip, it might make the fans spin less.

 

Yup. I used the 1.5mm and stacked 3 of them on top of each of the 6 VRM mosfets as well as the PCH. I have no idea if this helped as I don't know what my temps were before the mod. I'm not sure what kind of temps to expect but I'll sift through this thread some more to see what people are achieving. Thank you for the advice.

 

Hi all. Greatings from Russia.
XPS 9550 i7.
I want to change thermal paste and pads at VRAM. I bought Arctic MX-4, Artic Thermal Pad 1mm and 1.5mm.
Can you say me:

1) What thickness of VRAM using DELL in 9550 model? 1mm?

2) At one memory microchip, that is under heat pipe, should i use 1.5mm, or may be prefere stock thickness in 0.5 or 1mm(question namber one)?
Thank you.

 

Use Cooler master maker gel nano or phobya nanogrease mentioned here http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...nd-apply-traditional-and-liquid-metal.806840/
Mx4 simply will cause overheating after 2 weeks. Invest in a good paste.

 

Ok, thank you. But this TI is very very dificult to find in my location.

Who can help me with my questions?

"
1) What thickness of VRAM using DELL in 9550 model? 1mm?

2) At one memory microchip, that is under heat pipe, should i use 1.5mm, or may be prefere stock thickness in 0.5 or 1mm(question namber one)?"

 

Stock pads are okay, nobody reported an improvement after replacing. Except the one under the heatpipe bend, there you can add some 0.5mm cut to the shape of the heatpipe. If a pad is too thick, the heatsink may not be aligned well with the chips, and too much paste may say in the gap between the chip and the sink, maybe on one side, when you fix the screw with a reasonable torque. Fix once with just a tiny drop of paste, then remove and check if it spread nicely.

 

Someone here (maybe custom90GT) had about a dozen 9550s and all had bent heatsinks which reduced contact with one or two of the VRAM chips. You can search for that here if you like.

Two of the VRAM pads did not make contact with my bent heatpipe so I added an extra 0.5mm thickness to those two. You just need to use trial and error as everyone's system is different. It is easy and made a difference on my system.

If you decide to change, make sure to use soft fluffy pads and don't make them too thick or you will risk lifting the heatsink off the GPU and cause thermal issues there.

 

Thank for your reply!
I think that is add additional thermal pad to the existing stock pad is not a good idea. IMHO.

The only working scheme for reduce temperature of CPU/GPU is a correction of angle of the heatsink, so as to reduce the gap between GPU and heatsink, and it also can help with VRAM (chip under heatepipe)? Isn't it? Undervolting i did (-0.145 CPU and 0.140 iGPU).

Must i bend the heatsink to the side of radiator of the heatsink? Or at another direction?

After bending heatsink, should i use thermal interface at VRAM or use 0.5mm thermal pad only?

Does exist any method to increase the pressure of the heatsink to GPU/CPU? Exept adding thermal pad between heatsink and case? Maybe use a short bolts at the heatsink?

 

If the heatsink is confirmed bent by leftover paste on the die you can attempt to tweak it a bit. As for the thermal pad on the vram you need if you insist to fit a small triangle to fill the void. Putting better thermal pads on allows the cpu & gpu heat to be dumped into the vram.

Don't take this the wrong way but jumping in with fresh ideas in a thread this old with more than 1300 posts won't result in any improvements. What you need too do it's sit down and read it all as it will have been asked and answered before.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

 

I have Artcic Thermal Pads. Is it good for repadding VRAM?

 

The heatsink is bent because it changes the level between the chips and the fins. Don't bend it unless you notice a particular problem, the heatpipe may crack easily. I don't think this needs much re-engineering. Replacing the thick printed paste from the factory with something like Kryonaut or Gelid EC is the main thing, then the screws should be fine if the alignment is ok. If you feel like going ballistic you can try liquid metal and do the iunlock's 9560 mod in another thread to get some cooling for the VRMs.

Thermal pads between the heatsink and the case reportedly do more harm than good, because the case heats up and the intake air.

 

Just leave stock pads they're fine. The bottom two in mine get squeezed a lot, it wouldn't be good to replace them with something less spongy.

 

Yesterday i disassembled my XPS.

And what i can saw...






At the second VRAM chip does not have properly thermal contact with heatsink.

What you recommend to me?

 

Grab a cuppa and read the thread, the answers are in here

 

Just want a quick recap.
1/ Repaste is OK. (Kryonaut)
2/ Replace the thermal pads with better ones (higher heat transfer) for the VRAM chip which is the black SKhynix in the pictures above? (Fujipoly ? Arctic? And which level of heat transfer?)
3/ Don't touch the VRM as it will cause heat loop.

Are those all good?
I'm waiting for my 9570 and can't wait to dig in after undervolting a bit.

 

Study some more m8

 

VRM and PCH i also padded with Arctic pads. The case is cool. At max load is warm. And the fan of heatsink always stops at low and medium loads.

 

I don't pad with thermal pads, using aluminum heat sinks for PCH and VRM. It's so cool~

 

Hello. Can anyone says - what is the Intel PCH Temp DELL 07NTVV?
South bridge?

 

Are you asking if the PCH temp is the southbridge? If so yes. It's the bare chip somewhat near the battery connector.

 

Thanks. I padded southbbridge, but the temperature Intel PCH did not go down. That why i asked about this temp.

 

I think it's somewhat difficult to cool because of the distance. Do you have other things sinked to the bottom of your cover? Sometimes that can overwhelm it so to speak.

 

Ssd have stock pad. Vrm pads and chokes.
After 15 min of end of burn test in Prime 95 temp goes down(cpu 35, vrm 41, ssd 39). Botton is warm, not hot. But PCH temp still at 61-62. And the fan is 3200 rpm. After 1 hour working with notebook the temp of PCH goes down to 42, and the fan is 0 rpm.
Maybe Intel PCH is not south brige?
I check - the south bridge have a good contact with cover.

 

I mean it should be the PCH. @pressing , do you want to comment here. I sinked mine but never looked at PCH before/after temps.

 

Maybe the pad isn't touching the case? I've padded mine with TG 8 pads but it is still warm (over 50) when on the WD15 dock. Maybe try copper plates with just thin pads for seating (mind fixing well with isolating tape).

 

The contact is very good. I look it when i open the cover.
When i look on battery youtube 1080p the PCH temp near 40-45.
BUT! In idle on battery 32-36, when i plug AC charge the temperature rise to 42-45 and then the fan is turns on at 2600 rpm. Why? Notebook is on idle. CPU, VRM, SSD is 30-35 at AC plug in idle.

 

The fan seems to be trriggered at these relatively low PCH temps. And that the fan doesn't cool the PCH at all

Considering that we have no influence over fan thresholds and that Dell obviously doesn't care, you could only try a better heatsink. Even with good contact, thick pads aren't best there is, Cu or Al is much more conductive. And replacing the black insulation with a thin pad might help.

 

Why the temp of PCH is rising when i plug AC? CPU freq is still 800 mhz.

Thermal pad at south bridge does not have influence on PCH temp. But the cover is warm in a part of a cover, where the padding south bridge is located. It means thermal contact is good.
I use 5mm thermal pad. It is impossible to use copper pad.

 

Dunno why, maybe works more (on battery many things are restricted), maybe it gets heated by nearby power supply components. Mind there is no airflow there. With the WD15 dock (power + external QHD display), the PCH temperature is even ca 10 degC higher than with the AC charger.

Sure it is possible to use a sandwich like 4mm copper + .5mm pad on both sides, fixed with insulation tape at sides, but dunno if it would help (not if the case feels warm there as you write). Maybe it would be possible to thermally "sink" the PCH to the nearby vent case which is expected to be cool with a copper strip (mind proper wrapping and fixing with insulating tape). But there might be other temperature sensors triggering the fans...

 

(???)

 

Maybe diod of PCH does not in south brige?

Who can say what under the 1 at the picture and what is the 2?

Thx!

 

See here
https://www.laptopmain.com/dell-xps-15-9550-disassembly/

 

Nothing information about it.

 

I took that cover off at one point but I don't recall what was under it. I mean you can try padding things one at at time to see if it makes any difference.

 

Images below "7. Removing the right cooling fan". One small chip dunno what, many small smd components, display connector.

Further below there's the south bridge chip marked with a green rectangle.

 

Has anyone here ever fixed what causes the fans to go on at complete idle, when you have a TB16 connected? I don't mind the fans when pushing a workload, but the constant fans of the laptop when doing absolutely nothing is a bit annoying. Still haven't read about what actually causes the fans to turn on. PCH? TB chip? Something else?

 

EDIT: I was mistaken about the fact that my fans are off at idle. It turns out they were on at low speed, and I just wasn't hearing them until I put my ear against the laptop.

I'm sensitive to noise and that would annoy me a lot. You're talking about the laptop fans, correct? Not the fans on the TB16 unit itself? I can never hear either of the fans when idle with the TB16 connected. Here's some information about my setup that may help ID the problem:

1. MOD: I added thermal pads on top of the PCH and the VRM's. The thermal pad I used is ARCTIC Thermal Pad 1.5 mm, Silicone Based, 6.0W/mK Thermal Conductivity. I cut 3 small pieces and stacked them so that it touches the aluminum base of my computer. Some people say that this is not effective or may even worsen the heating. I have no idea but I can read you my temperatures at idle if you want. I didn't make any mods to the TB3 chip (I have no idea where that is).

2. I have a laptop cooler. Whenever the TB16 is used the laptop cooler is running.

3. TB16 connections used: I use the thunderbolt outlet to connect my 4K monitor at 60Hz (via thunderbolt to displayport cable). None of the displayports are used. USB 3.0 port connected to my monitor's USB 3.0 hub and peripherals attached to the hub. USB2.0 port used to power laptop cooler. I think that's it but I can check when I get home.

4. Latest drivers/firmware from Dell Support and Thunderbolt website. most recent bios for my 9550 (1.7.0 I think)

I hope this help. Let me know if there's anything else I can check for you to help troubleshoot. Thanks for recommending the TB16. I'm very happy with it's performance and my laptop performs to its full potential thanks to the high power delivery. Love the 1 cord solution and currently using my extra power cord that I keep in my bag at the library. The TB16 is a wonderful solution that does exactly what I need. I don't know why it has such bad reviews (hopefully it doesn't die on me).

 

Is it that they are actually silent or you just don't hear them spin?
I mean, I don't hear my 9550 on the WD15 at work usually, although the fans are spinning at low speed around 2500 rpm, due to the office noise. But I hear it when I'm alone and all other computers are off. I assume most folks that are bothered by these fans would actually like them to be totally off when idling (light browsing, word processing and such).
I've got TG8 pads on the PCH and the fans are sometimes totally off on the AC charger at home (laptop on a flat desk) but very rarely on the WD15 (with the rear raised slightly for better airflow). Idling PCH temps in the forties on the charger and in the fifties on the WD15.

I've got a laptop cooler pad, but it doesn't make a difference at idle, because it makes about as much noise as the fans at low rpms, isn't totally silent. Just raising the rear by a few cm with a straight bar lowers the temperatures a little bit already.

I thought I might try using a metal strip to thermally sink the PCH to the nearby fan case. Dunno if cooler than the case when the fan is still, but at least cooled actively when the fans work. And rather use metal for conduction than thick layers of pads, just thin pads or paste for the contact surfaces. And fix with insulation tape so that nothing can move.

Throttling down the power profile would probably help, because the fans spin less on battery where the profile is downthrottled by default. But this is not a popular move

Another thing I've noticed is that is seems possible to take over fan control
http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...ol-fans-on-dell-laptops-under-windows.805317/
If I read correctly there is a program that can take fan control away from Dell EC; not so good at substitute control but that SpeedFan and such can be used; however only coarse PWM control over fan speed in large discrete steps is possible. So the thing looks a bit messy.