*HP Envy 15 (11XX / 12XX series) Owners Lounge!*

Yes, that is normal, it's the 'power play' feature. You can disable it buy turning off power play in the CCC panel but it shouldn't make any difference as long as you have 'maximum performance' selected while plugged in. This is the same control that is in win 7's advanced power settings > ATI power options....

Have you tried any other games? Or do you notice any other graphics problems other than in the one game that you get the low FPS?

 

I checked and it does go up to 500/800 while gaming. And I do have maximum performance while plugged in selected.

The only games I have right now are The Orange Box, and BF:BC2. I just started getting into PC gaming, which is partly why I bought this computer (I wanted something pretty portable, so not a gaming rig, but with decent gaming). I was planning on getting a few more games, but I haven't yet because of this problem.

I also get low FPS in BF:BC2 just like in TF2, and around 70 FPS in HL2.

Edit: Does the Envy 15 get processor whine? I think I just noticed a sound that may be processor whine. Fortunately I can only hear it when I point my ear at it a certain way. I have the i5-520m by the way.

 

I would honestly do clean windows install and see if you still have the FPS issues, seeing that you've tried so many things. If I were you I would be freaking out. If that doesn't work then I would guess it's a hardware issue, since you've tried mostly everything.

 

Yeah, I guess I'll do a clean install this weekend. I've never done one before, though. Does anyone have a list of all the drivers I need to install? Or does that thread with the HP Envy 15 have all of them?


Does anyone have a short guide or something on how to do a clean install? About how long does it take to do everything?


Also, I'm frustrated, but I'm not freaking out because I can just return it if I can't fix it. I really would prefer not to have to use my old laptop for two weeks while I wait for a new one, but whatever. Actually I just remembered that the Envy 15 is no longer on HP's site, so that might actually be a problem. Hopefully they are going to put up a new one soon. In that case I may return this one for the new one anyway...

 

HERE is the link from page one of the envy 14 thread. 3 good clean install guides about halfway down under the 'guides, drivers software' heading.

I would make a set of recovery discs first (the HP version) and make sure and backup the C:/SWsetup folder to an external drive, it has some drivers not available from the HP site.

 

Wonderful, thanks JJB. I would rep you for all the help you've given me but apparently I haven't repped enough people since the last time I repped you, so I'll do it as soon as possible.

I've made the HP Recovery discs and backed up the swsetup folder already, but thanks for the reminder.

 

have you tried adjusting the resolution in CCC for your external monitor (HDTV)?

 

You know there are some programs that can fix this up... right?

 

Thanks. Costs $121 for the 6-cell compared to $68 for the 9-cell slice. Too bad the 9-cell is out of stock.

 

Engadget reported this today, bummer for a lot of those who were looking to purchase with the radiance screens.

http://www.engadget.com/2010/09/29/hp-envy-15-and-envy-14-with-radiance-display-no-longer-available/

 

HELP!!!! I have done a clean install to windows 7 ultimate. I created recovery disks before the clean install, but I dont have hp recovery manager anymore and my disks are now useless. Is there a way to get recovery manager back or restore using my disks to factory state somehow?!

 

The discs should work fine after a clean install. I honestly can't remember how to stat the process right now (it's been so long since I used the discs), I do know that the HP discs worked fine on 2 machines that I returned to HP which had been clean installed with Win 7 Pro.

 

Ummm..... well I just ran 3DMark06 3 times on my envy 15 and got an average of about 6400 to 6500..... I OCed the 5830 to 550/1200 (yes, those numbers are correct), and still only got a slight boost in performance. I have yet to update the graphics driver from the one that came pre-installed. Could someone tell me exactly what I need to do to have a successful update? I've heard on here that I need to go as far as getting rid of EVERYTHING to do with ATI, and then reinstalling the drivers. Is that correct? Oh btw, the cpu only got like 1300-ish on 3DMark06. I remember that the i5-450m on my old dv6tse got around twice that on average. Is there anything I can do to help this?

 

A few random thoughts: I LOVE typing on this laptop. There is ZERO keyboard flex, and the keys feel soft and smooth and rebound nicely. Also, the screen I have (1920x1080, glossy) is awesome. Colors look great, and the max brightness is incredible. Most of the time, I have the brightness at around 50% or less brightness, and it looks great. My biggest gripe with this laptop is the godawful battery life, caused by the stupid lack of swtichable graphics. I get about 1.5-2 hrs MAX browsing the internet, wifi on, bluetooth off, brightness at 50% or less. I never thought poor battery life would bother me, but this is ridiculous. It makes no sense at all to me why HP left out switchable graphics.

EDIT: I am also really missing having a backlit keyboard. I find that I have to tilt the screen down towards the keyboard to see the keys in the dark, and this is a little annoying. A backlit keyboard is definitely on my wishlist of upgrades for the 3rd gen envy 15.

Another issue I have, though minor, is the sharpness of the edges on this laptop. My wrists right now are very irritated, and a couple minutes ago when I held the laptop up in a way that the edge of the ports area was pointing directly at my palm, I thought for a second it had actually broken skin, lol.

EDIT2: Also, I find that two-finger scrolling doesnt work at all sometimes. Scrolling downwards isnt normally a problem, but trying to scroll upwards sometimes takes 10+ tries to get it to register the gesture, and thats with my fingers at multiple different distances apart.

 

I've found it helps to enable Momentum Glide for Pointing and Coasting for 2-finger scroll, as well as setting up the top right corner as a Tap Zone to replace right-click. This way, I never have to use my thumb, or the buttons.

 

Yeah, the keyboard on this is much nicer than the dv6tse. I also love the screen. If I have the lights off and my eyes are kinda adjusted for that, when I open up the laptop the screen almost hurts my eyes with its brightness.

The sharpness hasn't bother me at all. I actually kinda like it.

I had the same problem with the touchpad on my dv6tse. Scrolling down usually worked, but scrolling up was problematic. There were also other problems, but that was one of them. The touchpad on that wasn't seated correctly, so if I tapped it (anywhere) it sounded hollow. The one on my Envy 15 definitely sounds solid, and works amazingly. The only thing is on the right side it isn't quite flush, but on the left it is, but that isn't a big deal to me.

Now if I can just fix this problem with my graphics card or whatever so I can game... Hopefully a clean install fixes it.

 

Where do I go to do that and how do I do it?

@Everyone I've heard that audio ouput qualtiy through the headphone jack in this laptop is well above what most other laptops can do. Is this true? If it is, is it because of the beats audio software, or something else?

 

Something is off with that score. Is that at default settings in 3D06? Your CPU score is very low, I average 2900 with the 540M and yours should be very close to that, BTW my default 3D06 runs are at ~8000pts.

It almost sounds like you are on battery which throttles the CPU to an x9 multiplier, a CPU score of 1300pts is way to low on any power plan setting.

As to battery life I get an average of 3+ hrs with light browsing... This is after a clean install and several tweaks which I have posted here several times and don't have time to search for right now. Just getting rid of all the HP crapware and reducing / turning off all the unecessary processes will get you up to ~ 90% of max battery life. Check page 1 of the envy 14 owners lounge for a whole bunch of setup tips and tweaks, most of which work on the E 15 as well HERE

EDIT: You will find my touch pad setup guide on the E 14 link above also.... The sound output quality (headphone / HDMI) is good do to the higher quality components that HP uses in the amp / preamp circuits as well as the audio drivers. To get the most from the envy's speakers follow my 'Sound Tweaks' also on the E 14 page one link above...

 

Right click on the Synaptics icon in your system tray, go to Pointing Device Properties -> Device Settings Tab -> Settings

Depending on which version of the Synaptics driver you have installed, the settings for Tap Zones might not be visible in the menu, in which case you would have to perform another step to enable them in your Device Manager.

 

There are two different programs that can help this... but ahving not installed either of them myself I can tell you: the key is how far apart your fingers are, and when going up don't start too low or it won't understand (start at about middle of the pad or so).

 

You sound like your coming from the E14 thread, they all seem to think the 3rd party software is necessary. It's not, no other programs are needed with the touchpad, the synaptics software / drivers work flawlessly if you take the time to read the tutorials and set things up correctly.

 

I love the touchpad and have barely changed the settings. All I did was change it to scroll 1 line instead of 3, and increased the speed and sensitivity a little bit.

 

Try the 'momentum > glide' option, once you get used to it you won't know how you lived without.... Also I love edge motion for scrolling long pages or moving files, it allows you to keep going when your finger(s) hits the edge of the touchpad, you don't need to lift your fingers and restart the 'scroll'...

 

I tried the gliding thing on the dv6tse and I liked it on there, but I when I got the Envy I liked it without and haven't tried it yet. And, at least with my touchpad, if I swipe really fast it scrolls through the whole page immediately, so I have found I don't need the edge motion scrolling. On the dv6tse it was really glitchy, but I think there was a problem with that touchpad. I'll still try both out and see if I like them better.

 

Where did you go to find that setting to change from 3 lines to 1 line?

 

In the synaptics 'mouse properties' control panel under the 'wheel' tab...

 

hey guys was there ever a fix for CPU whine / high-frequency noise? it really gets on my nerves.

 

Yes (possibly), Try T HIS tweak I came up with for improving SSD R/W speeds, it essentially prevents the CPU from going into the lowest idle state which is when most CPU whine occurs. Several people with CPU whine have reported that it has worked for eliminating the noise or at least greatly reducing it.... You may also see improved HDD R/W speeds as a side benefit...

Edit: Just noticed you have an intel SSD, you definately want to use this tweak. My 4K Random reads went from 15MB/s to 22Mb/s and writes went from 20MB/s to 56MB/s....

 

I have been trying since last night for HOURS. I tried going into the bios and booting from cd drive first and that didnt work. I cant find a hp recovery manager download that works anywhere. Can you please try to remember what the process is? Im desperate!

 

I really can't rmember, all I can find in win 7 is the recovery from system image which may be what I used. See path to this option in image below:



Edit: Maybe you need to install the 'HP support assistant' program from HP drivers and support page to make the discs work....

 

If you need to, you can look in the Windows forum and get the Legal Windows 7 Download ISO and download and burn that. You can boot from that on an external drive, and basically do a clean install. Other than that, I don't have many suggestions. If your recovery CD's aren't working, you may need to contact HP for replacements: Order Recovery Discs for Windows 7, Vista, or XP HP Envy 15t-1100 CTO Notebook PC - HP Customer Care (United States - English)

 

I have the hp support assistant program downloaded already. it just displays warranty, specs etc. I will try using the system recovery option

 

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooohhhhh I know why my score was so low. I installed granola and had the power setting to maximum power saving lol. *facebedbouncebackandhitthewall*

 

@JJB so would there a be noticeable difference in audio quality between this and, say, a dv7tse on headphones like these: Amazon.com: Audio-Technica ATH-M50 Studio Monitor Headphones: Gateway

 

You may have to try 'Pitabred's' suggestion above. The more I think about it I believe I just put in the first recovery disc and it booted fom the CD drive when I restarted....

 

I would use "pitabred's" suggestion but i need to restore to factory condition. As if it were just taken "out of the box" My envy doesnt seem to bootup from the disc when i restart, but when i boot from cd drive first, the recovery manager pops up but doesnt allow me to restore though disks.

 

Are you connecting to your external DVD drive using one of the USB 3.0 ports?

I learned the hard way that the win7 recovery discs and system repair discs don't contain the drivers for USB 3.0 ports. Even though these are backwards compatible with USB 2.0, and they appear in the boot menu in BIOS, when recovering from a backed up system image, I had to connect my external optical drive to the USB2.0/eSATA combo, then as soon as the recovery manager loaded, I had to quickly switch to connect the external USB drive containing my system image to the same USB 2.0/eSATA port before it scanned for system images.

 

I didnt make a screen image. It was just a suggestion by "JJB". I made recovery discs.

 

Why?

If you're just sending it back to HP as a return, then dban wipe it and let it be.

 

Could me problem with low FPS in games be something other than the graphics card? I believe my i5-520 got something in the 2000s in 3DMark06 when I ran it, but I'm not sure of the exact number. I can run it again if needed. I think someone said it audio drivers caused them problems, but I uninstalled and reinstalled the ones from the HP Envy 15 drivers thread.

Edit: Is the only way I can do a clean install to download Windows 7 and make DVDs?

 

@eight35
you can load windows 7 install to a usb flash drive and do it that way.... if a clean install does not work for you then I would return/send it in for repair while you can

 

But I would still have to download it? Using this thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/win...-7-download-links-just-like-vista-before.html

Also, should I back up my whole computer before doing a clean install just to be safe? I don't think there is anything on here that I need to keep or that I couldn't easily get again.

Oh, and I think I'm going to follow this guide: Clean Install Windows 7 - How to Perform a Clean Installation of Windows 7 - Part 1 of 3

Edit: Where can I find my product key?

 

ya you still have to download it but you dont have to burn it to a disk if using the flash drive method.... if you want to keep the corel software copy the keys to a text file.... other then that just wipe it and hope for the best of luck

 

Great, thanks Texanman.

One final thing I just thought of: The guide I linked above ends after installing it and setting up Windows like when I first got my computer (name, password, date and time, etc.). What can I expect after that? Can you give me an idea of what drivers will already be loaded and what I will need to get?

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-drivers-software-forum/426181-drivers-hp-envy-15-intel.html

head over there and grab your latest drivers, then head over to ati and grab the latest gpu driver

 

This might apply to Gen2 E15 as well, so...

Hmm I seem to have removed the LFM lock on battery... not sure what I did but I do get turbo boost clock on my 720QM just like when plugged in...

This is using ThrottleStop 2.85.
I might have explored the hidden CPU options that JJBdescribed in the SSD performance fix thread - not sure. Or perhaps latest Windows Update did something.

Anyways this is great news for anyone who wants to burn out their batteries quickly. Hehe. I should be able to get battery life down to well under an hour.

Still choppy performance in apps, perhaps related to graphics power savings mode. How do I ensure good GPU performance on battery? Power plan for ATI set to High Performance.

EDIT: Graphic performance seems to be good, I was mistaken about that.

 

So I'll need all of them? OK, thanks.

 

Can any one point me to instructions on how to use the Windows Product Key on the battery compartment to install a fresh copy of Windows. I downloaded a copy of Windows home premium and did a fresh install, however, when I try to activate using the key that came with the machine, it tells me the key is invalid for activation and that I have to use the phone system. Do I really need to call or am I missing something?

 

Never mind, I did the automated phone activation thing and it worked.

 

Ok so I'm still trying to get used to the not-so-great battery life. What can I do to extend it as much as possible?