Limiting maximum CPU frequency / Downclocking

Is there a software to downclock the CPU or set a limit to the maximum utilization? I am only interested in this feature for
1. maximizing battery life when needed
2. reducing CPU fan noise by reducing the need for cooling
3. will be using this for class mainly

I have a 3720QM. Under normal circumstances the noise doesn't bother me but it does get a little bit loud in class.

I am asking about a different way than the power options in windows (maximum processor state).

 

Make sure to set minimum processor state < maximum processor state (e.g. 10%). You can also try to force core parking as suggested in this post:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo-reviews-owners-lounges/655833-official-clevo-w110er-sager-np6110-owners-lounge-65.html#post8813331

Just setup your windows "power saver" power profile with all those settings. It's the simplest way. Make sure to switch hotkey power mode to "energy star" before applying the windows power profile, as it tends to override some settings. Any reason why you would not use windows power settings?

If you have an nVidia, you can use nVidia Inspector to downclock your GPU to the minimum.

Depending on your PC model, you may not be able to cool it passively indefinitely without some airflow. So beyond that, it's a fan policy problem, and without custom control over the fan tables you're pretty much SOL.

 

ThrottleStop should help you a little... but there is no program to downclock your CPU... not on the P150EM

 

Thx for your quick replies

I do not want to completely depend on passive airflow; I just want to decrease the need for fans.

I will try changing advanced settings as suggested in the post. I also looked into throttlestop about a month ago but didn't really know how to use it. I'll just check guides and try to fiddle with it a bit

Second, wow! I just saw how many more features there are in the hotkey notification area icon. There are a lot of features that do not have a keyboard shortcut (Fn something). For instance is there a hotkey for changing the power conservation and power options?

 

Another thing to consider is if you have the latest BIOS/EC updates for your laptop. It looks like Clevo has made efforts recently to limit the idle fan speeds. At least the P170EM fans spin relatively low at idle now (~2000 rpm vs 2500 rpm):

http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/652388-high-fanspeed-noise-clevo-p170hm.html#post8770228

What fan RPMs and temperatures do you get at idle at the moment? Maybe you're already bottomed-out... (you may be able to measure them with HWinfo64)

 

ThrottleStop can be used to run your CPU at whatever speed you like from fastest to slowest. You can set up multiple performance profiles and you can define keyboard shortcuts to quickly swap profiles on the fly without having to open the GUI. This seems to be a rarely used feature of ThrottleStop so send me a PM if you need any help setting it up.

 

I will check out throttlestop asap but I can't seem to view fan speeds in hwinfo. My temps are 45 40 43 45. The 4 cores are at about 1.2 Ghz now. I'm only using chrome and Hwinfo at the moment


Sorry just got the Clevo EC driver on and fans are at 2150 RPM

 

Try Throttlestop, I've used it to underclock my i7-3820QM to an 8.0x multiplier so CPU stays at 800MHz and the battery of my P150EM lasted 3 hours while doing a videocall in skype.

Also use the power profile settings in the Hotkey app.

 

That's within the lowest operating range that i've seen reported out there. If you find the fan particularly noisy, it's possible it's due for a little lube job. Many have found it reduces the noise by a good amount. Dried sleve bearings tend to be loud, and will get worse.

 

If you unlock it by flashing the P170EM bios you will have full turbo controls including frequency, TDP limits and time limits.

You can turn it into a 36W part if you like.

 

any way to turn off 2 out of 4 cores when needed?

 

In my initial reply, concerning forcing 7/8 cores to be locked, I had forgotten to include an important setting in the referenced link:

"Processor performance core parking core override" = Disabled

Each physical core has 2 logical cores. The default windows settings prevents fully parking a physical core. This setting will allow any processor core to be fully parked (instead of only 1 logical core per physical core).

e.g. I can lock my i72860QM @ ~5W. You can start at the lowest possible settings and then work your way up to where performance tradeoff suits your needs.

I updated my post here:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo-reviews-owners-lounges/655833-official-clevo-w110er-sager-np6110-owners-lounge-65.html#post8813331

unclewebb's linked article in this post is also interesting:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo-reviews-owners-lounges/655833-official-clevo-w110er-sager-np6110-owners-lounge-65.html#post8814624

Maybe allowing all cores to be parked (as opposed to forcing 7/8 to be parked) and setting your minimum processor state to 0%, max @100%, might be sufficient for minimum power usage without too much of a hit in performance. E.g. you let the processor run either 100% and 0%. That way, you'll get the job done fast and then "race to idle" to save power. Windows may be smart enough to manage this.

However, if time is on your side, and given that the CPU performs no work at idle, then you'll achieve the minimum power consumption possible if you max-out the CPU usage (CPU never goes idle) with your work load over a given span of time. Ultimately, you would set the processor performance to exactly fill the time schedule you have to accomplish your workload and finish right on the deadline.

 

The msi machines can turn off cores in the unlocked bios, but clevo have locked their em series tight.

 

I actually don't have the core parking setting

 

Did you reveal the options by first setting various "Attributes"=0 in registry as explained in this post?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sager-clevo/416916-clevo-bios-thread-52.html#post8773184

(You may have to reboot)

 

Thx to everyone.

I managed to do everything with the power saving option. Decreased the maximum process usage to 30% and using arg8's tips I managed to park 4 out of 8 cores. Total CPU usage barely goes above 10% even when I simulate a high usage.

Should be great for battery life when almost "idling" the laptop (taking notes/viewing slides...)

When using TS bench in power saver it takes 46 secs, when reverting to balanced it takes 8 secs.