XPS fan issue: Solved?!

Thank you funky monk. That makes sense. I like your username bTw. I am a meditator from way back who enjoys solitude and consider myself to be somewhat of a monk or a hybrid monk. catcha round.

 

I've done a clean install with all new drivers. It was slightly better.

I've got another workaround to recommend - repaste. I did this (with MX-4) and now my laptop idles around 42 and not 56 - meaning I can do ordinary tasks without the fan coming on. With the SSD I added it means my laptop is completely silent Only when I start doing intensive things like photo editing or gaming does than fan come on (and stay on).

I'm going to try ThrottleStop to see if I can make it even cooler during gaming - it's all about the GPU, don't need an i7 on max to game.

 

which windows power plan are you using for normal use and getting 42C idle?

 

monk,

indeed, it has to do with graphics. I was able to replicate the ON/OFF behavior in linux using "acpi_call" to power off the nVidia gpu. So whatever it is, it has to do with the nVidia gpu. Here is how the fan works here:
(fan speed on a scale from 0 to 10, 0=off 10=maximum)

linux (medium load), no "acpi_call" (nVidia GPU is powered) - fan is constantly ON, speed 2

linux (medium load), with "acpi_call" (nVidia GPU is not powered)- fan cycling on/off: OFF for 2 minutes, then ON for another 2 minutes - speed 4 initially then, after 3-4 seconds speed 2

windows (light load) - fan cycling on/off, OFF for about 3-4 minutes then ON for 30-40 seconds - speed 4-5 down to 3

 

pjcronie - What CPU do you have? I have the i7-2630QM and Hw Monitor shows that it idles between 50C and 57C with spikes over 61C to trigger the fan. Lowering that idle temp would be great, but 10 degrees seems like a lot to ask for.

 

Balanced, on AC power min CPU = 5%, max = 100%. Having some trouble uploading pics, but I'll get a screencap to show you. It *may* have been affected a little by ambient temperature, as my door was open (due to alcohol fumes from cleaning old paste), but that was max 2 or 3 degrees. Worst case, let's call it 45C idle.

Same - i7-2630QM and GT 540M. When I repasted there was tons of thermal paste all over the place - Dell seemed to go for quantity over quality. I cleaned it all up, and used Arctic MX-4. I'm also using an SSD which helps (a little) with overall heat inside. I also put a tiny bit of MX-4 on the heatsink, where the copper heat pipes join into the radiator grill, to maximise transfer from heat pipes. This is something more experimental, not sure how it'll work in the long run given that dusty air gets blown over it. Made sure it won't get onto other components though. I also removed the dust filter at the fan air inlet, but that only affects it when the fan is actually on.

 

I already have my L702x for 2 months now and in the beginning every was going fine with the fan and the turbo boost but the last couple of days it can't shut up. I've read all the posts and I've noticed something...the cause of the problem is skype. For some reason when I open skype the fan goes crazy. Closing down Skype immediately forces the fan to go silent and I can use almost every other application without the fan goes rambo. Go figue....
In case you using skype and you haven't tested that please try it. If you dont use skype and still experiencing the same issues I have no idea whats going on.
Hope I helped.

 

Hi all,

Just thought I would chime in..... I finally told Dell I had enough of the fan noise and they sent a technician. The fan was replaced and the heatsink was repasted. End result. BLISS! No more crazy fan noise! The difference is night and day.... the way the laptop should have been from the beginning....

The technician told me that the temp. sensor is actually on the fan itself. So it looks like the one I had originally was faulty. CPU temps seem to be on par with what they were before (52-55 idle) but the fan no longer goes ballistic all the time.... Also, my processor isn't ramping up and down as crazily as it was before.... If you have not had a technician over to replace your fan, I would suggest you ask Dell to do so....

 

I spoke to soon..... Using the laptop for the next hour or so... The fan is ramping up and down now.... but at least not to the highest setting....ramping up to the medium setting I believe.

 

If the graghic driver is the isue, can I disable Nivida's original and use integrated graphic card instead since I am not gaming all the time? How to do this since I am a novice owner? Thanks.

 

The clean install will get rid of the unnecessary crap that spike cpu and hence leading to the on/off cycle.

However, you have to set the nvidia control to use intel HD graphics for all apps except your designated games. Nvidia gpu will spike the temp and lead to on/off cycle because the cpu and gpu shares same heat outlet.

Clean install and set Nvidia gpu...then report back.

 

Where do I change nVidia settings? I did a clean install and only update driver from Device Manager instead of installing a full package. There's a Intel Graphics icon in my notification area, but I can't find anything to config nVidia. Thanks


EDIT.

I run the setup from the driver director, only got Enable/Disable 3D on start menu. I don't think I have 3D vision when I order the computer. Not sure if they are the same thing.

Anyway, I found a nVidia Control Panel, launch it and there's a Set PhysX to GT550M or CPU. Is that what you talked about? Not sure if I'm imagine it, but I think the fan hasn't been on since I made the change and while typing up this message.


EDIT2.

I changed PhysX back to Auto Select and in Manage 3D settings, Global - Integrated Graphics. I think it does quiet it down completely. So much for paying extra for a high-end graphic card. The interesting thing is, the default setting is Global/Auto, then Chrome/Integrated. And I'm only browsing and nVidia still acting up.


Anyway, problem solved. Great thanks to all your guys effort.

 

I see some people are getting their L702X now with A13 or A14 bios....
can someone with new bios tell how is the fan working with new bios???

 

I have A14, it does not solve the fan problem. I have clean install with driver scan/update only and fan runs very few minutes while browsing simple forum using Chrome. I almost thought it was normal and couldn't remember how I got started on this journey.

Anyway, changing nVidia global default to integrated video works very well. Fan never comes up again while browsing. When I stream video, it does come up and stays up. So sounds like it's nVidia/Windows fault instead of Dell.

Thanks again for the great effort of everyone on this board. Now I can really love my one and only new computer in 10+ years

 

Some of us don't think that disabling the NVIDIA card is much of a solution. What's the point of having a graphics card if you disable it?

 

It's not disabled, you can set your game to use nVidia and let it spin.

If you run the nVidia setup package, it will set global default to auto select, then Chrome to Integrated and game to global. But somehow that's not working, GPU is powered on while you are browsing and thus the on/off fan. So you basically switch it to default integrated and game nVidia.

 

For me it spins fast and then slows down alot when browsing with Firefox and Chrome. I think is a BIOS issue but people with A14 are still having this problem.

 

Folks already get a very effective workaround, just give it a try. Fan still occasionally spin up on balanced plan and mostly browsing, but a lot less frequent, at much lower speed and for shorter duration. More like 5 seconds every 30 minutes.

So it's just a workaround and it's only winter. Already looking for a cooling pad and maybe eventually a new BIOS and fan speed control software.

 

I have the exact same processor and issue with the spinning up and down. Cutting it 70 as per the OP, and it works like a charm. NO MORE SPINNING.

simple web browsing and even youtube vids and it stays silent.

granted, this is just a workaround until dell can come up with something more concrete but at least I can work in my school library and not have the fan driving people nuts


EDITED: an interesting note. While the fan now comes on much less frequently..it unfortunately still comes on. However I have noticed that if I switch from my custom plan to any other, the fan noise is immediately killed, then i can switch back to my custom and it will stay that way... for a little while anyhow
not too sure what to do about this

 

I have some possible light to shed on this issue, though no solution:

1) I received my XPS17 laptop in July 2011, and had no fan problems. It was both the quietest and coolest laptop I'd ever owned.

2) Last week a technician came out and replaced the motherboard, audio board, USB board and camera (for problems not related to fans or temperature). No changes to the software, drivers, etc - same setup that was perfectly quiet up till then.
Ever since then, I've been getting the kind of fan problems described in this thread. Fan coming on full speed every couple of minutes and running for a long time. Huge difference from the way it was prior to the board replacement. I updated the BIOS to A16 - no dfference, except that now I get a power supply error on boot!

3) The fact that my fan was perfect for 9 months, then became a problem immediately after a motherboard replacement, suggests to me that the problem is not instrinsic to the XPS design or the BIOS, but occurs only on certain systems. In other words, it may be a quality control issue - flaky motherboard/chipsets, bad fans, improper heatsink installation, etc.

 

The same happens here; I think it has something to do with GPU activation "resetting" the current fan profile. If you watch the Nvidia GPU activity icon, it will flash momentarily when switching a power plan. The same can happen if you turn off the screen, just start a game etc. I think that there is a slight compatability problem with CPU & GPU and who dictates the fan. (Well it's a theory anyway)

EDIT
@skyh

Just saw your post - hmmm....

 

In previous 9 months, what is your BIOS version and do you ever update the BIOS to A14?

When Dell replace the new motherboard the BIOS version is probably A14.

If you didn't have the fan problem with the old BIOS then it is probably the new BIOS causing the fan problem.