PowerSpec 1710 + 1510?

1510 owner for about two months.

Has anyone found a solution to the problem of GPU overclocking control disappearing from Control Center? It disappeared from CC after I switched from Hybrid back to Discrete. The system tray icon also vanished. Tried reinstalling 1.1.74 and updating Geforce drivers. So far, no luck. I only used it for setting Fan speed offset. I tried using Afterburner, it let me change clock speeds BUT not fan speed.

Also, what is the best way to get BIOS updates?

 

MicroCenter only got into selling PowerSpec mid-2017, so expect their BIOS support to lag badly. I've contacted their online Tech Support, and was told updates will come when they're available. :/ You can get Clevo BIOS releases, but I'm wary to use those while under warranty, as I don't know MicroCenter's policy.

@Prema: Still hoping for some PA7xHS-G love from you some day. Not being able to adjust voltages for CPU/GPU and multicore multipliers makes Baby Jesus cry.

 

Might have missed it, but anyone done a video or write up on repasting the 1710? Saw some pictures and discussion on screw locations, that should work for me if not.

 

I would like a solution too. My GPU core temp readings show zero, but my temp sensors work fine in other 3rd party programs. I also cannot overclock the GPU or the offset the fan. The overclock crashes the program and the fan control resets itself after apply. My icon is still there, but nothing inside works except for the core and memory speed readings.

I've uninstalled and did a clean install, ver 5.0001.1.70 with Obsidian. No dice.

 

Use the pics from the posting on pg. 48 from this thread. The only connections you need to disconnect are the fan connect and the connect next to it just under the double fan array. This will allow you to flip the heatsink over. Oh, and remove the annoying Scotch tapes.

Once flipped over, clean off the gpu and cpu with 90% alcohol and Q-Tips. Do same for the matching heatsinks. Use a coffee filter and alcohol to get the thin film left behind on the dies. Once dry, apply your new paste, and make sure you place the heatsink back on top, straight down onto the paste.

When loosening/tightening the screws, follow the numbers on the heatsink for order of unscrewing. Tighten in reverse order. Use same routine for CPU. For the CPU screws, I used the largest phillip head in my Stanley Precision Toolkit.

 

Thanks!
I'll give it a go when the paste comes in. I saw there was a tricky screw under the keyboard to split the case? Everything else straight forward to get the case apart?

 

Good instructions above. Also, make sure you only use a small dot of paste in the center of the die when you re-apply. You'd be surprised how little you need. Only about the size of a BB, or half a grain of rice.

Most importantly, don't stress yourself out about this either. Unless you're a complete twat, you should be able to do an adequate job. I've done it so many times and in all different ways (none of them ever perfect), and my temps have never been high as a result. The differences between all the methods suggested are minuscule in terms of every day general use. Now if you were doing some serious overclocking...well that is a different story.

In fact, I re-pasted last night. I was confused though, because I was expecting to see thermal pads under the heatsinks, but Clevo had used paste instead. I swore I read somewhere in this thread that someone had thermal pads on theirs.




Look how scratched the bottom of those heatsinks are. I've never seen a surface that bad. Definitely a good candidate for a thorough lapping.

 

Do you have a picture of how is the compound spread when applying a rice grain amount of it? Laptops have lower pressure applied to the heatsink, so it might be not enough to spread evenly across whole chip. I remember @Meaker@Sager saying he applies X for square chips and line for rectangular.

 

That's correct. I didn't think of that. I'm so used to doing desktop builds. I work on laptops like once every few years.

It also kinda depends on the consistency. If you want to spread it you can use a razor blade or credit card; anything like that. I'm sorry I don't have pics of what you asked for. I didn't spread mine and everything is good with my temps. You can spread it you want. Works fine that way.

If you are worried, the BEST thing to do is try a method, then take the heatsink off and check to see see how well it spread. If its good enough, just clean it off and do the same thing over again. The tubes of compound come with plenty for you to do this and still have tons left over. You are probably going to have a tiny amount come out the sides. A small amount is ok. You just don't want it to spill out onto the chip to be on the safe side.

Like I said before, don't stress out too much. Just use common sense and you'll be fine. Did you look at my pics? Notice how much paste was caked on there from the factory and my temps weren't TERRIBLE. The laptop didn't brick itself.

 

This is what I'm going to do pretty soon, along with pictures (rice grain for both CPU and GPU), because the temps seems to be a little bit off. Also, I'm gonna go for paperclip/toothpick trick to increase pressure.

 

It also depends on the thermal paste you are using. ICD7 is too thick to spread easily, if at all. However, once it warms up, it spreads easily, but it also cools VERY FAST. This is why I just glop it in the middle, and let it spread itself.

To get to this one screw, you remove the 2 screws on the underside marked with the keyboard logo. Then one of these holes also has an icon of the keyboard lifting up. Using a punch, or the philips screwdriver you used on the screws, gently drive it up the hole to pop out the keyboard.

You can move the keyboard up a bit to expose this one screw, it'll be on the lower right side. Mind you to be gentle as there are several ribbon cables attached to that keyboard. Once removed, you need not have to put it back, making further case openings a lot easier.

 

Thanks again, I'll be giving it a go on Wednesday when my paste is here. I've done plenty of desktops, just my first laptop repaste so making sure I don't miss anything when splitting open the case.

 

I have the relevant Clevo service manual for this chassis if anyone needs a copy.

I just got mine the other day what a good deal. Temps are not horrible stock, I will re-paste mine later but so far running firestrike demo looped its not terrible, if you raise the rear of the laptop 1/2" it drops the temps 3 degrees across the board.

 

No, the temps were fine when new. 3 months later they began to creep up.

 

"I have the relevant Clevo service manual for this chassis if anyone needs a copy.

I just got mine the other day what a good deal. Temps are not horrible stock, I will re-paste mine later but so far running firestrike demo looped its not terrible, if you raise the rear of the laptop 1/2" it drops the temps 3 degrees across the board."


Is this a pdf file or a link? Could use this. Thanks!

 

https://repo.palkeo.com/clevo-mirror/PA7XHS/

 

there you go then, I am unneeded =) lol.. yeah the second one from this link listed as updated is the one I have, also note there is an error in the service manual regarding RAM slots as this system only has 2 slots, but on the page regarding Ram removal, it says there are four slots and never references the mystery second pair of dimm slots in the instructions.

I have a question as I am new to this particular system, is there any fan control at all with this system or is it strictly bios managed?

 

So I ran into the same issue with the GPU control panel disappearing as well. Like you said, reinstalling the control panel, chipset driers, or Nvidia Drivers had no effect... and I also tried switching from discrete to hybrid mode and back along with the reinstalls. But, what I did notice is that it stopped working after stupid Windows 10 installed an update against my will. Interestingly enough, a day later after additional windows updates installed, the GPU utility appeared after a reboot out of nowhere.

So I believe the issue is somehow related to a specific Windows update. Unfortunately since Windows 10 gives you zero granularity to choose which updates are installed, it's hard to say what's actually breaking/fixing this functionality, but my guess would be something related to either GPU or chipset drivers. If we could identify the specific KB# which is the culprit, powershell could be used to manually remove the offending update.

That said, I typically disable Windows updates and run them every few months because of the millions of things they can and will break, so now that it's working I've shut them off. This is riskier from a security standpoint, but I instead rely on an IDS to block malicious network activity, though obviously this won't be of help if I'm using the laptop not at home.

 

Got my repaste done. Very easy, I was nervous about popping off the keyboard and splitting the case but it all came apart very easy.

Put a small bb size drop onto each chip and bolted it back up. Only played around with it for a few minutes but seeing temp drops so far around 5°-10° c across the board and CPU was running around 75-79° max while gaming.

Thanks for the help/info here.

 

What'd you use for your re-paste?

 

MX-4.

 

A little bit of assistive pressure while screwing the heatsink down tends to do the trick.

 

Anyone know if there is a fan control app built into these units, not seeing it myself but not sure if its something hidden...

 

Fn + 1.

Full speed ahead Captain.

There is a built in one. In CCC, I believe.

 

Some resellers sometimes request Clevo remove the fn + 1 but most leave it there.

 

This is my first post on this forum. I am not a serious gamer but the opportunity to have future proof laptop with a lot of expansion options is tempting. I realize the battery life is not going to be stellar on a gaming machine but would like it to be at least decent.What are your impressions. Which one to get regarding battery life, 1510 or 1710?

 

I haven't used mine yet, but from everything I read the battery is pretty much non-existant. If you aren't a serious gamer, and care even an ounce about battery life DO NOT GET THIS DEVICE. A Dell Inspiron with a Max-Q would suit your needs much more.

 

4-5 hours of browsing is not bad.

 

Help! How do you guys remove this cable? Or there's no need to remove it at all?

 

I didn't remove it so I can't help there. I just flipped it over like you have it, repasted and screwed it back down.

 

That's what I ended up with anyway.
What's the order of screwing/unscrewing? Just follow the numbers on the heat sinks? Do you need to unscrew the screws for the fans first?

 

Everything is numbered, I removed the highest number first and went to lowest. When re-installing start at 1 and work your way up.

It's just a basic pattern like a valve cover on a car. Go in order and tighten a little at a time, I don't bottom out the screw on the first pass(But it'll probably be fine if you did)

 

What I did when tightening the screws was going back and forth diagonally to make sure it's balanced. (i.e. between 1 & 2 then 3 & 4 for GPU)
However I was concerned with the screws on the fans. Should you tighten them first? Or tighten the heatsink first?

 

Follow the pattern of the numbers, they are designed to give the most even pressure to ensure the thermal paste is spread properly and it sits flat.

 

Thanks for the information. I have some questions:
1. Should I go from 1 -> 4 when unscrewing, or should I go the opposite?
2. Also, should I unscrew the fans first before loosening the heatsink?
3. When I unscrew the GPU heatsink, those four screws has a spring on each, and it kinda scratches/carves the paint or the metal into tiny black particles, is that OK?

 

1 -> highest number when fitting the heatsink.
highest number -> 1 when removing the heatsink.

Scratches are cosmetic, those springs are helping with mounting pressure.

 

Thanks a lot!
Oh, I'm looking to replace the screen with a 120hz panel. Do you know where can I get it?
Thanks again!

 

I saw video of Linus past week and he mentioned Liquid thermal paste from Thermal Grizzly. According to him it will reduce temperature upto 20C which is unbelievable. I ordered one for myself and it will arrive soon. Just asking if anyone tried before then let us know and if its true then there is no thermal issues for these beasts. as only drawback of 1710 is low thermal management.

 

Be very careful, I use liquid metal on my personal machine but it can very easily kill hardware and it will void your warranty.

 

Yeah, I know but is there any real benefit of using liquid metal as thermal paste?@meaker@sager

 

Yes, with the right application it can take a few degrees off.

 

I have had the Powerspec 1710 laptop for a couple of months now, and really like it, except for the fact that I would really like to purchase a second power adapter for it, but have had no luck. I Contacted Powerspec via their website and was told that they do not currently sell them individually. I know that the Sager NP8372 is supposed to be the same model laptop...Can anyone confirm that the power adapter for the NP8372 is definitely the same as the 1710? Thanks in advance for any help!

 

The model is the Clevo PA70HS-G. (NP8372) (PA71HS-G has the black rear exhaust) You can find power supplies for it. Just make sure it's 230W or better.

 

I almost decided to pull the trigger. But still thinking about Dell 7577 with 1060 and 4 k display. My best friend told me it's very hard to distinguish the quality of a good 1080 p IPS display and 4k. How it is the quality of the Powerspec laptops displays?

 

Thanks for the suggestion! Unfortunately, I am having no luck finding a charger for this model either....Do you have a link or site to somewhere that would carry this? Thanks again.

 

Hey guys so i just got my 1710 and my cpu temps gpu temps would go to 55-65 while i'm just on google chrome and this site especially. When i open up task manager i get 30% cpu used and 30% memory used is this normal? I feel like its getting really hot and i'm not even doing much on it. At this rate i have to return the laptop

 

How much is the Dell? If it's about the same price as this 1710, then go with the 1710, because the gtx 1070 is 40% more powerful than the max-Q 1060 in the Dell.
The 1710 screen quality is quite OK. Compared to my old Acer V15 Nitro, it's not as bright and as vibrant, but it's not washed out or terrible either. G-Sync and 100hz is definitely a plus for the 1710 when gaming is considered.
IMO, I like to watch movies and entertainment stuff on my V15 due to its color vibrant, and play games on the 1710 due to GSync and 100hz.
Here's the comparison pic of them, all set to 100% brightness.

Spoiler

 

I suppose my avatar and signature provide some good contrast lol.

 

Are you using 1710 without Keyboard for better thermal management???

 

I just did this a few days ago with the Therma Grizzly Conductonaut on CPU and GPU, load temps in AC: Origins (very taxing game on CPU) went from 95+ down to low 70's on the cpu when combined with a small undervolt. GPU Never reaches over low 70's now. I'd say it's well worth it, just be careful!