XPS L501x Overheating????

So as you can see in the pictures my max temps for the processor are 93c and 96c, the gpu is 87c. I have already done a full cleaning, and replaced the thermal paste on the gpu and processor. The chipset had a thermal pad so I left that alone. What could be causing these temps? The max temps are from playing crisis 2 for half an hour. Idle temps are in the low to mid 50's. Funny thing is, the laptop itself doesn't get hot to the touch, only a LITTLE warm. The battery only holds a 50% charge and the charger gets a little hot, but not hot to where I can't touch it or hold it. The thermal paste I used was some china bought one I got for like $3. Should I get something better? Could that be the problem? I watched how to videos on applying thermal paste so I'm pretty sure I did it correctly. The reason I reapplied the paste was because the laptop was getting really hot to the touch. Now the laptop physically feels ALOT cooler. But the temps are still pretty high. I'm just baffled. Thanks in advance for your help.

I also want to add that gaming remains smooth and not laggy, even though the temps are high.
I also realized that my power supply somehow "trips" itself now. Meaning that it it turns of and stops charging until I unplug it and plug it back in to the wall. It's never done that before.

 

As long as thermal compound is properly applied (a very thin layer), the difference between silicone, and other TIM isn't that significant. 90+ for CPUs and GPU are in the danger zone. It could be your heatsinks are defective if it is pasted correctly.

Have you tried replacing your AC adapter?

 

I only applied a very thin coat, so that should be good. I don't believe the AC adapter needs replacing. It only "tripped" itself once and it doesn't over heat. I had it plugged in overnight and it's still cool to the touch. Also, I get the high temps when I'm just on battery power as well, so the problem could be within the battery itself? I ordered a replacement battery and should be here within a week, so I'll see if that changes anything. As for the heatsink, I wasn't aware that they go bad, since there are no moving parts to it. Thanks for your help.

 

Did you remove and clean the fans and heat pipe assy ?

 

Yes I did. I remember something like this was happening with my old HP dv6500 laptop. The fan would be loud and working its but off, then I replaced the battery and the temps and fan died down and worked perfectly. Has dell had any recalls on the battery for the L501x? Also, on my l501x the fan works normally and is not over working itself. It's just weird. Another thing, does the ac adapter on the L501x have a safety that turns itself off when the laptop or the ac adapter itself get's too hot? Cause I think that might be happening with mine.

 

I just ran a stress test using the dell support center software. It got to 7 minutes and the temps reached 101c. I got scared and stopped the test, and as soon as I did the temps went down to the low 50's. Also, the fan wasn't fully working during the test. It would try to start up and then stop, start, stop. It never fully kicked in. Do you think I might need to replace the fan? Right now the temps are at in the high 40s to low 50's and the fan is running but quietly.

 

Let me know what you think of my above^ posts. Thanks

 

Sorry I only skimmed the posts, but the fact that your fan is not working properly is concerning to me. It may also be one of the larger factors in terms of why you managed to hit 100C during the stress test (and I recommend you NOT do that again for a while )

For how long have you been getting these temperatures? A day? A couple days? A week?

Normally it takes a little while for a newly applied thermal paste job to "settle in" before temperatures start to look normal. Of course, 100C isn't normal at all, but I would say give it a couple more days of normal use. Some sources say it needs something like 200 hrs or some such, but I think that 3-5 days of regular use should at least start to show the new results.

 

It's been about four days now. I stopped doing stress tests and playing all games for now. The temperatures I get while just doing normal stuff(internet, itunes, movies, youtube) are in the high 40's to mid 50's. I'll give a few more days for the thermal paste to settle in. I honestly think this has to do with some hardware issues. I'm guessing the heatsink and the fan are bad. I might end up just buying new replacements and see where that get's me.

 

This seems absolutely normal to me as these are numbers I normally get.

Heatsink and fan: same as what I was thinking when you said that the fan was acting up. Certainly something to look into. I'm not too experienced with the XPS15's heatsink and fan assembly so I can't comment on it. Hopefully someone else can chime in with more info on it and help you out!

 

I could use all the help I can get . I'm about to buy the replacement heatsink, but if anyone else has some info that could help let me know.

 

If the fans seems to be not working right - consider replacing it.

You may also want to do the thermal application again - clean and re-apply

make sure the thermal pads (if any) are still set properly

 

Yeah, I'm also gonna get the fan.

There's been another problem going on. The laptop now freezes randomly for like 10 or so seconds. Even while just browsing the the net, watching a movie, or listening to itunes. The temp stays in the high 40s to low 50's. I stopped playing games and running any cpu intensive software till I receive the new fan and heatsink. I hope this laptop isn't dying on me. I just bought it and the owner before me said he's never experienced any of my problems. He also said that he restored windows and downloaded all the drivers. Could this all be a software issue? I've personally checked that all the drivers were up to date. Should I do a fresh install of windows? Please let me know what you think.

Also, I wanna add that I have the newest Bios that dell has, A08. Are there known issues with this version? If so, then which Bios version do you all recommend?

 

Another thing I would like to know. I stated earlier that the chipset had a thermal pad, I took that off because it was torn up and replaced it with some new thermal paste. What I want to know is if the thermal pad bridged a gap between the heatsink and chipset?

 

You will need to install a proper thermal pad, the gap is too large for thermal paste to do a proper job.

This maybe why your having freezing issues.

 

Do you know what size I should get? Primary the thickness

 

Also, I did a clean install of windows 7 and all the drivers. Now the computer doesn't freeze up on me. The temps are still the same. High 40's to mid 50's with normal use, and high 80's under stress.

 

Dont recall off the top of my head, I have them at home but I am in China at the moment.

 

If i recall a 1.5 mm thick thermal pad should be a good fit.

 

Related question: Are there any good thermal pads?

 

Thanks dave-p. That's what I ended up getting.

 

I used the silicon thermal pads, but how much better are the others - I have not noticed any differences, the real important thing is having the proper size.

Of course copper shims work better but you have to know what you are doing when installing those. - thus careful research is required.

 

Just letting everyone know that I ordered the new fan , and heatsink. Still waiting on them. Apparently they lost my order and I had to re-order. So as soon as I get them I'll let you know if the temps change. Also, the new heatsink comes with the thermal pads and thermal grease(or pads) already installed. Should I remove the thermal grease(or pads) and apply my own?

 

keep the thermal pads, but if you have some Artic Silver or simular thermal paste I would use it over the stock paste

 

So I received the new fan and heatsink today and installed them. Temps are a little better but not by much. I get about 84c when using prime95 for about twenty minutes. During normal use I get between 44-50c. Doesn't go higher than that. I'm gonna order some arctic silver and see if I can get any lower temps with that. What do you think about these temps? Are they normal for this laptop? Thanks for your help

 

I forgot to put the gpu temps. Using furmark for about 20 minutes I got 79c for it's highest. I'm guessing that's okay?

 

yes those temps are fine.

its when it gets into the 90's I would be concerned.

You can also try using a cooliong pad to reduce those temps more.

Bottom line cooler = longer GPU life

 

I have a Cooler Master Ergo stand, but it doesn't really make much of a difference in temps. Just about 2-5c.

 

Okay so I ended up getting some Arctic Cool Mx-4. I applied it pretty well I think. Not too much not too little. Now I seem to not have some contact. Should I get some copper shims? My cpu temps while idle are in the mid 50's and within one minute of prime95 the temps shoot up to 98c. The gpu temps are normal. What should I do? Here are some pics so you can see the paste job. I've tried every possible way of pasting(pea method, spread method)

 

Let me know what anyone thinks.

 

Your paste looks OK, though it's hard to tell from the photos if there is too much paste or too little. Only a few valleys that look like a result of spreading? (see attached image) But those look like they wouldn't be causing the intense jumps that you're getting with prime95.

Now, don't forget that repasting doesn't have immediate effects. People recommend waiting the 200 hrs after a repaste to see more results. You're at the very start of the break-in period. I would try re-pasting again (I prefer pea method, less risk of bubbles IMO), and giving it a week. If you are still getting jumps to 98C then you might be using too much, or too little.

I also have MX-4, but havent' repasted my XPS15 yet - so far stock paste seems to be doing quite well (considering it's stock and it's Dell's 50/50 handiwork). Idle:40-55, Gaming: ~70 (GPU: 70-80); this is with a laptop cooler and the battery removed.

 

I tend to apply paste on the CPu / GPU dies and a thin layer on the heat sink side. I have no problems using this method, it makes sure i have good coverage and thermal transfer.

 

I thought with mx-4 you didnt have to wait for it to cure?

 

Even though Arctic says it doesn't need that break in period, I don't totally believe it. I'm sure that it doesn't require as much of a breakin period of say 200 hours, but I am willing to bet that the temps you get the day of re-pasting will be slightly different than the temps 1-2 weeks later.

Even so, it's worth trying it out, if you have the time for it!

 

Okay. It's just weird cause when I installed the new heatsink it already had the paste pre-installed, and the temps I got with that were ideal. Idle would be in the high 30's to low 40's and the max temps I got were in the mid 70's to low 80's. And that's right after I installed it. I guess I'm just not pasting it right.

 

perhaps you were putting on too much?

 

If you look at the heatsink in the pic you can see that it looks like there's not enough contact. I used the spread method. Maybe I should try the pea method?

 

Just did another paste job. This time I used the pea method Temps shoot right up to 94c using prime95. Pretty sure I put just the right amount on both dies. This is just annoying.

 

I want to add that if I use furmark and prime95 at the same time the cpu temps stay under 70c. As soon as I stop furmark and keep prime95 going, the temps shoot right up to 94c. I also notice that the fan is faster when running both prime95 and furmark at the same. As soon as I stop furmark the fan slows down. Why is that? Is there a way to control the fan speeds on this laptop?

 

that is really strange, that the temps are LOWER under (artificially) more stress from both applications.

What are your temps when you are gaming? If there is one thing I learned from artificial benchmarking, it's that their numbers and temperatures are not completely indicative of "real world" stress such as gaming or encoding videos, etc.

 

I get about 93c while playing ghost recon super soldier. Sometimes it reaches 100c

 

And your fans are kicking in at full speed?

Do you use a notebook cooling pad?

Do you have the 9-cell battery that raises the bottom of the laptop, or something to prop it up?

 

I have a notebook cooler but it doesn't really help. The fans do kick in at full speed. I do have a 9 cell battery and I always use my laptop on a desk.

 

Just to clarify. The fan and heatsink are BRAND NEW.

 

Just made an account here hey guys .

I also got a L501x and today i put new thermal paste on it. GPU got nice temps but the CPU is just getting 2 hot. 62 degree idle and 75 load.

@typesh86 the fan is only connected with 1 yellow wire. so i think when your GPU gets hot is starts blowing. with prime your CPU gets hot and not the GPU end up the fan not spinning @ the right speed. this is just a design fault from dell i think.

 

You get 75 with full load? I wish I could get that :/

Does running stress test while on battery make a difference than if it's plugged in? I get about 15-20 less if im on battery. I have all my advanced power settings set the same in battery mode and when it's plugged it. Could it be a faulty ac adapter? I ordered a new one a few days ago cause the one I have gets a little too hot for my liking

 

No, battery power means you're using only a portion of the available computing power (CPU and GPU will run slower). It would make sense that you're getting temperatures 15-20C lower while on battery.

Your AC adapter definitely will not help with your thermal problems.

Have you contacted Dell yet? This sounds like something you need to contact Dell Support with. It might be something wrong with the motherboard.

 

Is there some sort of recall on the motherboard? I don't see them helping since I don't have warranty on it.

 

well sorry not full load but when i play diablo 3 maxed out.

 

I get about 89 playing diablo 3