going from 1.8GHz down to 1GHz and going unstable.

adventure_of_link · Post by **adventure_of_link** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 1:29 am

OK so here lately my laptop has been doing this. I would start Windows and be at 1.8GHz. However, when I would run something like Clean Disk Security, Unreal Tournament 99 GotYE, iTunes, Windows Media Player, PeerGuardian, antivir (only sometimes tho) and FireFox (especially when using YouTube) my CPU would go down to 1GHz and the system would be VERY unstable (although all these programs listed can normally work on a 1GHz CPU), to the point where it just slows to a crawl. Sometimes the computer will do this even when idle. When (and if) the system recovers from its unstable state, about 80% of the time it'll just sit on 1GHz mode and not click back into 1.8GHz mode. When the system goes into unstable mode, one of the mentioned programs (whatever is/was running at the time) would report in the task manager as using whatever free CPU time I had (although usually the program wouldn't need that much CPU, example: UT99 normally needs 500MHz (just a guess here, don't flame) and I had 90% of the CPU free, it would eat up every single MHz, rather than use up the 500MHz it needs.) Oh yeah, the laptop is plugged in, and is free of spyware and viruses. BTW, when it's in 1800MHz mode the mentioned programs use up ~30-40% CPU (although it's known to do it even when I barely use the CPU at all) then when it clicks to 1GHz it'll use all the CPU and everything goes VERY unstable until it decides to recover.

Specs are as follows (although I've listed this over and over in the past)
AMD Sempron 3200+, 1.8GHz
1.25GB of RAM
ATi Radeon Xpress 200m
40GB HDD
Windows XP SP3 (it used to do this back when I used SP2)

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 1:50 am

It sounds like overheating really...

It helps if you've installed the Cool N' Quiet driver... but that's not a guarentee to fix your problem.

DOLLS (J) [!] · Post by **DOLLS (J) [!]** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 3:02 am

Yep, sounds like CPU throttle is kicking in.

neo_bahamut1985 · Post by **neo_bahamut1985** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:04 am

Definitely CPU throttling. Like what Deathlike2 said, when a CPU gets overheated, most have a feature that lowers the clock speed to prevent it from frying itself or the motherboard. I once had a CPU crap out due to overheating and believe me, it sucked. Is there anything hindering the air flow to the laptop?

adventure_of_link · Post by **adventure_of_link** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:08 am

well, for some reason the fan won't ever kick on.. I was hoping one of those laptop cooling pads (preferably) the ones with the two fans on it) would help, but I guess not. hopefully a can of compressed air will solve that.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:22 am

If your mobo has a fan-throttling option in the BIOS, turn the fucking thing off. I'm very weary of the fan spinning down to the point where the system could overheat and the fan being "off" for whatever mentally retarded reason.

adventure_of_link · Post by **adventure_of_link** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 4:45 am

I've been in and out of my laptop's BIOS so much, it's not even funny.

I haven't seen any such option in the BIOS. I don't even have a temperature read-out in the BIOS.

I don't think the fan turns on at all, even when I first turn it on.

snkcube · Post by **snkcube** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 10:21 am

That's not a good sign. Is there any way to possibly replace the fan?

franpa · Post by **franpa** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:21 pm

put your laptop in front of a giant fan just to confirm it is overheating.

Post by **odditude** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 12:59 pm

Let's compare our two suggestions...

franpa wrote:put your laptop in front of a giant fan just to confirm it is overheating.

And just how much air do you expect that to force through the miniscule vents on his laptop? Seriously, that's going to help less then aiming a box fan at the closed side of your case to cool off an overheating video card.

snkcube wrote:Is there any way to possibly replace the fan?

We have a winner, folks. Fan that's not spinning == dead fan, most of the time.

The fan can definitely be replaced, although if you've never been inside a laptop before it might be a little nerve-wracking. It might involve a full tear-down of the laptop, or it might simply be pop the keyboard (or an access panel on the back) and unscrew the fan. Either way, it's nothing that a little caution and patience can't get you through.

Please provide DETAILED model information and I'll see what I can dig up in terms of a part number for the fan/fan assembly.

franpa · Post by **franpa** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 1:32 pm

odditude wrote:Let's compare our two suggestions...

franpa wrote:put your laptop in front of a giant fan just to confirm it is overheating.

And just how much air do you expect that to force through the miniscule vents on his laptop? Seriously, that's going to help less then aiming a box fan at the closed side of your case to cool off an overheating video card.

Apply both, one cools the inside, the other cools the outside and ensures a good amount of fresh air is available for the box fan to blow inside.

Post by **odditude** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 1:59 pm

franpa wrote:Apply both, one cools the inside, the other cools the outside and ensures a good amount of fresh air is available for the box fan to blow inside.

logic, ur doin it wrong

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 6:55 pm

If worse comes to worse, exploit your warrenty or pay $$$ to get that fixed. I'm not sure how appealing that sounds though.

franpa, there's something called airflow that you're forgetting about.

Gil_Hamilton · Post by **Gil_Hamilton** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 8:15 pm

And heat transfer. Cooling the outside of the case does nothing, as it's not connected to any of the components in need of cooling(except for one or two VERY exotic cases).

Post by **grinvader** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 8:25 pm

But the case would be cool. Come on, I have seen people fight to the death over a cool case.

adventure_of_link · Post by **adventure_of_link** » Fri Aug 01, 2008 11:23 pm

snkcube, odditude: It is possible to replace the fan, a buddy of mine on IRC was pointing to a bunch of CPU fans for my laptop (even some for mine

).

odditude (again): it's a HP Pavilion zv6000 (the shitty ones, ask xaimus), but the box said zv6107-w (orsmth, the laptop case says zv6000) also, I got a can of compressed air coming my way, maybe I can use that to kick the fan back into high gear.

Deathlike: the laptop has been out of warranty for a couple years now.

franpa:

your ideas would work if I were to destroy the areas around the vents and try it. and even still, I'd put it in front of a fucking AIR CONDITIONER.

franpa · Post by **franpa** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 4:33 am

Heat dissipates through the case too doesnt it? if you have a hot case, wont it make it even harder to cool the insides? I'm not sure what AOL is thinking im talking about with his comment about damaging the case o_O".

DancemasterGlenn · Post by **DancemasterGlenn** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 5:59 am

A fan on the outside of the housing simply will not get the job done in this situation.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 7:03 am

I'm convinced I should never let franpa build a house, ever.

Gil_Hamilton · Post by **Gil_Hamilton** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 7:11 am

franpa wrote:Heat dissipates through the case too doesnt it? if you have a hot case, wont it make it even harder to cool the insides?

Touch your case. Right now. I'll wait.
...
Back yet? Now open your case and touch the CPU heatsink. Again, I'll wait.
...
Feel the difference?

A negligible amount of heat makes it to the case, even in a terminally overheating system. There's not an effective conduction path from the CPU and GPU to the case.

Barring exotic cases with finned and heat-piped case panels, there's simply not any real benefit to blowing air across the outside of the case.

I'm not sure why I'm even arguing this. Your idiocy in this case is obvious even to the most uninitiated.

Post by **grinvader** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 9:19 am

Gil_Hamilton wrote:Your idiocy in this case is obvious even to the most uninitiated.

Come on, you know there are others like him.

I.S.T. · Post by **I.S.T.** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 9:24 am

i was going to spray paint it, but it would have ended up melting.

Lawls.

Gil_Hamilton · Post by **Gil_Hamilton** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 9:58 am

grinvader wrote:
Gil_Hamilton wrote:Your idiocy in this case is obvious even to the most uninitiated.

Come on, you know there are others like him.

Heh.

Ya know, the only way I can think of that blowing out like that is if he plated it WITH the power supply installed.

I.S.T. · Post by **I.S.T.** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 10:00 am

Or if the PS was going down the shitter and letting voltage leak/bad wires and cables.

Deathlike2 · Post by **Deathlike2** » Sat Aug 02, 2008 6:01 pm

I.S.T. wrote:
i was going to spray paint it, but it would have ended up melting.

Lawls.

Darwin had a funny sense of humor.