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    CPU underclocking by itself?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Zecter, Nov 11, 2007.

  1. Zecter

    Zecter Notebook Enthusiast

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    Hi! my notebook (Pentium M Dothan) seems to underclock by itself. Is it normal? Will it affect my gaming? It goes (CPU-Z) by multiplier x6.0 then x16.0.
     
    Zecter, Nov 11, 2007
    #1
  2. Lithus

    Lithus NBR Janitor

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    Power saving methods include dynamically variable clock frequency and core voltage, allowing the Pentium M to throttle clock speed when the system is idle in order to conserve energy, using the SpeedStep 3 technology.
     
    Lithus, Nov 11, 2007
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  3. JabbaJabba

    JabbaJabba ThinkPad Facilitator

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    Yes it is quite normal. It is done to save power and reduce heat.

    It will not affect your gaming as it will adapt to the performance need.
     
    JabbaJabba, Nov 11, 2007
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  4. Zecter

    Zecter Notebook Enthusiast

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    Wow! thanks guys! It never happened before as X16 multiplier is stable whenever I check it with CPU-Z. I thought something was or went wrong. Thank you so much guys!

    PS/Edit:

    IS there no way of stopping this? Thanks
     
    Zecter, Nov 11, 2007
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  5. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    I know there are definitely utilities to control the SpeedStep function, but I don't know if they're just generic programs or specific to a certain make and model. Go to your manufacturer's website and see if you can find a SpeedStep application for your machine.
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 11, 2007
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  6. Zecter

    Zecter Notebook Enthusiast

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    Found it. I just need to turn it Home/Office Desk in Power scheme to disable Speedstep. Thanks guys!
     
    Zecter, Nov 11, 2007
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  7. Greg

    Greg Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    There really is no need to disable it...
     
    Greg, Nov 11, 2007
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  8. JabbaJabba

    JabbaJabba ThinkPad Facilitator

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    Agreed. As I mentioned earlier, it will automatically adjust according to the performance needed. Since it is a notebook processor it will throttle the CPU to reduce power consumption and heat. This is a good thing :) But as soon as you start running a demanding application, it will adjust to full speed immediately.

    As Greg mentioned, there is no need to disable Speedstep. In fact I would rather recommend you not to.
     
    JabbaJabba, Nov 11, 2007
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  9. Zecter

    Zecter Notebook Enthusiast

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    It doesn't seem to have speedstep until I installed speedfan and NHC. My notebook is always at the "Always On" power scheme and it's always at a stable 1.60ghz. I think one of the software mentioned enabled it, and since I did system restore last night before I installed those softwares and it's back to normal.

    So I'll just put it to portable/laptop power scheme so I can use speedstep again. Thanks guys!

    (sorry for the bad english)
     
    Zecter, Nov 13, 2007
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  10. Nocturnal310

    Nocturnal310 Notebook Virtuoso

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    When on power saver mode...by AMD turion 64 X2 underclocks at 800 MHz per core.... imagine!!

    Otherwise its 1.80 - 1.83 GHz
     
    Nocturnal310, Nov 14, 2007
    #10