Guest zeroflux Posted June 2, 2004 Report Share Posted June 2, 2004 when playing games I get slow downs..not lag, but everything slows to half the speed for 2-3 seconds, then goes back to normal. Its a very smooth slow I am sure this is because the processer is throttling down for some reason. I have everything set at MAX performance. Is there a way to keep the computer running at a constant 3.06 GHZ? Edit: The two Games it happens the most is UT2003 and Lineage 2 My video Drivers are 56.72 with Pieter's Modded INF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sdw Posted June 2, 2004 Report Share Posted June 2, 2004 This is quite common on 5150s and is most likely caused by thermal throttling of the graphics GPU. At about 100 degrees, the nvidia drivers throttle-back the GPU to protect it from burning up. Some Dell owners modify the heatsink interface to correct this problem. See video card mod for more information. Also search the Dell forums for 5150 video overheating problems. -Scott- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Chrno Posted June 2, 2004 Report Share Posted June 2, 2004 Well... Im having a same kind of problem.. but im affraid that i dunno how to modify it....well is there any other things that i can do other than this modify thingy...? Or maybe i should call DELL company for help ? :) :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zeroflux Posted June 2, 2004 Report Share Posted June 2, 2004 I hope you mean 100 Degrees F and not C. The Hottest My computer gets is about 60-65C. If a notebook were to get 100 Degrees C, the plastic would melt lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted June 2, 2004 Report Share Posted June 2, 2004 I hope you mean 100 Degrees F and not C. The Hottest My computer gets is about 60-65C. If a notebook were to get 100 Degrees C, the plastic would melt lol Sometimes us Americans forget that people in other countries actually use the Celsius systems and metric systems. Over here we almost always use Farenhight (I can't spell). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sdw Posted June 3, 2004 Report Share Posted June 3, 2004 I hope you mean 100 Degrees F and not C. The Hottest My computer gets is about 60-65C. If a notebook were to get 100 Degrees C, the plastic would melt lol No, I meant Celcius ! :o But also I am refering to the temperature of the GPU's silicon substrate. Most modern processor chips have "thermometer" diodes to monitor this temperature. I believe that NVidia GPUs will operate at close to 120 degrees C! Most of this heat is siphoned off through the laptop's cooling system so your plastic (and hands) are safe. The heat is a particular problem with 5150s because the main pentium cpu is also quite a heat generator, taxing the cooling system to its limits. If you don't want to modify the insides of your computer, the main alternative is to use a fan-based cooling pad -- Antec is one brand. -Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest citrixcl Posted June 4, 2004 Report Share Posted June 4, 2004 guys no one answered the question... Get Speedswitch XP... there is a new version out now... it keeps your computer at 3.06 Ghz and you dont get those weird slowdowns in game... also at the same website you can get I8kfanGUI and use it to keep your fan running high all the time because on my 5150 the fan doesnt go on until a certain temp causing it to fluctuate up and down alot in temperature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest zeroflux Posted June 4, 2004 Report Share Posted June 4, 2004 Awesome Tyvm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sdw Posted June 4, 2004 Report Share Posted June 4, 2004 guys no one answered the question...Get Speedswitch XP... there is a new version out now... it keeps your computer at 3.06 Ghz and you dont get those weird slowdowns in game... also at the same website you can get I8kfanGUI ... If it's temperature related, I think a fan-based cooling pad will be more effective. I doubt that it has anything to do with SpeedStep. I'm not even sure that SpeedSwitch XP would stop the CPU throttling if it is temperature-induced. That would be a good recipe for burning up chips. I use I2kfanGUI to monitor temperatures, but I'm not in favor of just cranking the fans on high. They should already be at high before the GPU reaches 100 degrees. If that doesn't reverse the temperature-rise, I don't think turning the fans on sooner will stop the rise either (though it may delay the overheating a bit). Again, the problem of GPU overheating is quite common in 5150s. The only solution that has been effective for this is to improve the GPU to heatsink interface. If the computer is still under warranty, have Dell replace the card. The only other solutions I can think of are external cooling fans/pads or a BIOS mod (the 5150 throttles the GPU at too low a temperature). Edit - Oh yeah, one more thing: On a 5150, you should clean out the fan ports every few weeks. Compressed air is recommended for this. Many people have solved their 5150 temperature problems by keeping the heatsinks dust-free. -Scott- p.s. If you want to verify that it's the GPU throttling, install RivaTuner and invoke its hardware performance page. This will generate a plot of the clock speeds. Also i8kfanGUI has a good graphing function to monitor temperatures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest citrixcl Posted June 6, 2004 Report Share Posted June 6, 2004 heh i have a 5150. yes cleaning the fan ports is a great idea and for some it fixes the problem but i wouldnt say that would affect throttling at all... speedswitcchXP is possibly the best solution for any 5150 owner... you could say just use the dell quickswitch program and set it to always on but i find it more effective to use speedswitchxp... also using the fan control utiility isnt perfect as it expects two fans like the 8100 but only finds one in the 5150... but it controls it just fine with the slow and fast settings... the GPU MAY be throttling if you use the powermizer feature in the driver settings but he said that he had it at full performance... the expensive and well designed fan base i bought is very useful when im in a hot room and i cant get the hot air away from the laptop but i found its cooling power VERY WEAK. i expected much better performance but when it comes to games i will always get up to 100 degress farenheit or 65 degrees celcius. no matter how many fans i have on it... the most effective fan is the internal one and if you DONT set it to always high IT WILL THROTTLE and change and cause all sorts of spikes in heat... this is because the fan slows down once the cpu usage goes down instead of keeping it cool all the time... without speedswitchXP the computer will get too hot and decide to throttle the processor down to 1600 and then slow the fans down to the speed needed at that temp THE BEST SOLUTION FOR HEAT on the 5150? Set your Processor to 1.6 Ghz ! You don't need the 3.0 Ghz for most games and it runs 10-20 degress cooler without it. THE QUESTION: "I am sure this is because the processer is throttling down for some reason. I have everything set at MAX performance. Is there a way to keep the computer running at a constant 3.06 GHZ?" THE ANSWER: SpeedswitchXP, I8kfanGUI, nvidia 61 series or 53 series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Le_Murphant Posted March 29, 2006 Report Share Posted March 29, 2006 Hi. I'm new to this forum, i found it while googleing. I recently realized that my inspiron 5150 wasent running at full capacity (1.6 ghz instead of 3.2). I have installed speedswitchXP, but it doesn't seem to work all the time (although it seems to help). My cpu speed sometimes randomly slows back down to 1.6 ghz. Any idea why/how to change it? atm, i have speedstep set as disable in the bios. TY. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSudlow Posted March 29, 2006 Report Share Posted March 29, 2006 It sounds like it's behaving as designed, which is to slow down to half speed whenever full speed isn't needed. That's what SpeedStep is all about. It's designed to reduce heat and conserve battery llife in laptops. You can override it by going into the Windows Control Panel and choosing one of the different options in the Power applet. "Always On" and "Desktop" will both keep the CPU running at full speed all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Le_Murphant Posted March 29, 2006 Report Share Posted March 29, 2006 I did that, and the cpu stays at max speed most of the time, but for some reason CPU-z shows a drop of a few seconds to half the speed about once a minute. Any idea why? TY. Btw, i re-enabled the speedstep from the bios. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSudlow Posted March 30, 2006 Report Share Posted March 30, 2006 It might be heat. If the CPU is overheating, it will slow down to cool off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Le_Murphant Posted March 31, 2006 Report Share Posted March 31, 2006 Yeah, it seems to be the CPU overheating indeed, for there is a drop when it hits temp 71-72. Is there a way to make it drop farther up, like at 75? or is it dangerous? what's u guys's average cpu temp? Thx. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Le_Murphant Posted April 6, 2006 Report Share Posted April 6, 2006 Yep, that was it, I openned my computer and cleaned the heat sink (it was reaaaally dirty) and not it runs around 50 degrees celcius avg. Thx for the advice guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest DellFraud Posted May 26, 2006 Report Share Posted May 26, 2006 Hi. I'm new to this forum, i found it while googleing. I recently realized that my inspiron 5150 wasent running at full capacity (1.6 ghz instead of 3.2). I have installed speedswitchXP, but it doesn't seem to work all the time (although it seems to help). My cpu speed sometimes randomly slows back down to 1.6 ghz. Any idea why/how to change it? atm, i have speedstep set as disable in the bios. TY. Actually your problem is that Dell has modified the BIOS so when the thermal diode in the processor reaches a certain point they cut the frequency of the processor in half. I have verified this by turning off Intel SpeedStep in the BIOS and turning off all power mangement and then running a long calculation like n! where n is a large number. Dell cannot fix this problem and they will just keep trying to replace parts on your laptop until the warranty runs out. I have been arguing with them about this problem for the past 2.5 years and I am now trying to start a class action lawsuit against them for fraud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Dell Fraud Posted May 26, 2006 Report Share Posted May 26, 2006 Actually your problem is that Dell has modified the BIOS so when the thermal diode in the processor reaches a certain point they cut the frequency of the processor in half. I have verified this by turning off Intel SpeedStep in the BIOS and turning off all power mangement and then running a long calculation like n! where n is a large number. Dell cannot fix this problem and they will just keep trying to replace parts on your laptop until the warranty runs out. I have been arguing with them about this problem for the past 2.5 years and I am now trying to start a class action lawsuit against them for fraud. If you would like to be a member of the class action lawsuit, please send me email at DellFraud@gmail.com. I am done working with Dell on this issue and the only way that they are going to change their policies is if someone makes them pay for their lies and poor customer service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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