M15x A08 Bios Released - 3/9/10

righta and if you're like most of us and use a lot of raiding mods and damage meters, even more cpu processing is done.

 

I'm not far enough into WoW to see heavy CPU usage. My client never goes above 10% even in dungeons. But as I said, I'm new to the game.

What you could try is set the affinity of WoW to 0,2,4,6 - that lowers the CPU powerdraw (effectively disabling Hyperthreading) and most games not only perform better but it creates less heat and less power.

If it works, there are apps like startaffinity that can start an app with specific CPU affinity or Process Lasso that can implement persistent settings for CPU.

I've been watching the load meters for GPU and CPU and they are both minimal. That is, assuming you don't use Antialiasing. If you are, then turn that off I can't get the GPU usage over 20-30% and the CPU never uses more than 10% so far.

Just out of interest I'm using a GTX260M slightly overclocked. But even at stock settings with everything on max EXCEPT for AA (which is usually the killer for FPS), then I get solid 60fps at 1920x1080 with less than 30% GPU usage. Strange.

 

Ah right, the addons probably use up a lot of CPU..

Still I'm surprised at the GPU usage, I guess AA?

 

CVar processAffinityMask - WoWWiki - Your guide to the World of Warcraft

Just FYI WoW has its own cvars for affinity. It works great for i7s and allows you to configure how WoW uses each of the threads.
I cannot fully explain what is going on...

The only things I know for sure is:
While I was testing throttling in A03, A05, and A06 I was able to reproduce the throttling much easier with WoW then any other real world game.

During testing of beta bios(s) I was able to again recreate throttling and reported it.

Then now since A08 has been released I have had 4 instances of throttling.

Also someone else experienced throttling recently as well while playing WoW.

On top of all of this, it is well known that MMOs in general use more CPU then traditional games. That is backed up by me as I have been playing WoW off and on over a span of years so I have had several different setups.
I agree this doesnt totally make sense but this is my 2nd M15x and the first one was able to recreate the throttling fairly easy.
Perhaps you are not experiencing this because it is on newer content which has updated textures and effects. All my testing nowa days has been done in end game 10-25 man dungeons.

To comment on the usage I will check out mine as I dont usually focus on that. While I was testing a 5850 I noticed that often my GPU usage was locked at 90%-98% I even had a discussion with inap about this as it seemed odd to me. Dunno, I will test more.

I appreciate the reply. Check out that affinity link!


I figured I would attach my last throttling screenie..

 

Thanks for the link, I use process lasso for that kind of thing I'm sorry to see that you are getting throttling. It was just a big surprise to me but I understand more now

In terms of those settings presented in the wiki - I would recommend trying the setting number 85 (which uses one thread per core) and see if that reduces throttling.

 

85 is the setting I use.

 

Just a quick note about the cvar setting - they are no longer needed since patch 3.3.2 and the game adjusts that automatically for you

I would also like to ask if anyone is currently experiencing throttling with a 5850 card in WoW? I'm quite confused regarding that in particular, since I am considering "upgrading" to a 5850 just to avoid that.

 

Hi Guys, been a long time (gave up on the M15x ever performing faster after i spent all that time proving it was in fact throttling with the others)
got excited about this 24 multiplier across all 4 core thing with A07 (i was running a05 for ages) but I can't seem to get it to work?
I'm on the 920xm, 8gb, win 64, 256gb SSD, A07 (M15x) and using intel burn test across 8 threads, my average multiplier on unclewebb's turbGT and TS is about 17
is there anything i need to do to make it go to 24 across all?
(i've got the turbo ratios set in TS 2.85)

many thanks!

 

If the multipliers are already set to 24-24-24-24 in Throttlestop, but it's running at 17x +/-, then it's power starved. In ThrottleStop, set TDP to 80W and TDC to 73A. That's what it takes to run 4 cores/8 threads on a 920XM at 3.20Ghz (or just slightly less). That's a lot of power and generates a fair amount of heat, so watch your temps and be careful. However, you really also need A08 BIOS to avoid/mitigate the famous throttling issue.

 

cheers, thanks for that. It was awesome while it ran. I decided to chuck furmark on as well, and it did seem to bugger up my power supply (default 150w) when i tried that though. so do i need the bigger m17x one to do this?

 

Well, maybe. The 150W adapter is normally fine (barely) for normal use even with the overclocked CPU, but probably not enough to simultaneously handle the power required by the video card running Furmark, particularly with all the bells and whistles. The 920XM by itself will draw around 81W at these settings. But more probably, you're seeing BIOS induced throttling if still on A07 or even on A08, but much less so. Just can't torture test it all at the same time with that hard an o/c. Sure is fun to play with though -- try wPrime v1.55 (32M Speed Test) while using the 24x (or more) across the board settings at different power settings and 3dMark06, which clearly benefits from the CPU o/c.

 

rev, being able to convert a home recorded movie to dvd in around 15 min on a laptop... that's golden.

25x across the board baby

yeah the torture test still fails (either that or my psu itself fails cutting the power)

 

Just like magic. LOL.

 

bummer. my 150w doesn't seem to be able to hack 4 cores running at 24
i had the w set at 80 and a and 73
i'll get the 210 and see if that fixes it, but in the meantime, what are the defaults again so i can run it stably?

 

Defaults are 55W/47A.

 

I read somewhere that the higher powered PSU doesn't help because throttling happens in bios even with more wattage.. Not sure, just thought it's worth mentioning

 

the bigger psu doesn't help because the bios is only designed around a 150w psu.... therefore you won't notice any improvement...

to benefit from a bigger psu... there will need to be a bios fix from Dell... which i doubt will happen...

 

i think i may hold the record for cpu vantage. even beating M17xr2 with 940.
M17r2 has the benefit of the 5% oc in the bios.

i have seen my psu go to 170 on vantage.

 

just disable TStop and reboot. i think its 24 24 ?? 17
can't remember the 3rd number

also, you wouldn't happen to have a 260m would you?

 

Ok. I am using a 720M (1.6GHz) + 260M.

Here's what was happening before (from about A06 to A07, first dell display drivers):

1. PES2011/Winning Eleven 2011
Whenever the match runs, the GPU downclocks to 383 MHz as opposed to 550 MHz. As I hit pause, the GPU goes back up to 550. As I resume the game, the same thing happens.

2. WOW
In almost every raid situation with 25 players, as soon as a Boss fight begins, GPU is automatically throttled down to 383MHz.

After I patched A08 (and newest Dell display drivers)

1. PES2011
This still throttles. But instead of maintaining a constant 383MHz until I pause the match. I noticed that with CPU-Z running, the GPU only downclocks when the CPU multiplier is about x14 or lower which is about 1600MHz to about 1733 MHz.

2. WOW
haven't test yet.

My CPU never runs at x12 which is the default clock speed.

I was wondering would programs like Throttlestop help me?

 

When you first download ThrottleStop, it will start up in monitoring mode. You can check the Log File option and then go do some gaming. When you are finished gaming, stop ThrottleStop and you will find a log file saved in the ThrottleStop folder. Send it my way with a few details like what time you were playing and what time you finished. Clock modulation throttling is an issue for many Dell laptops. If this is a problem for your M15x, it will show up in the log file. You can use ThrottleStop to reduce this problem but it's up to Dell to eliminate the problem with an adequately sized power adapter and a bios fix that can take advantage of some extra power.

 

Unclewebb, how do I get to the TDP/TDC screen and the multiplier screen in the new RealTemp v3.60?

 

Right click on the system tray icon and there should be a menu option in there.

I tried to make it easier to find.

RealTemp 3.60
http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/1872/Real_Temp_3.60.html

 

Just have to know where to look. LOL. Thanks.

I am finding challenged, one of Inap's special ones.

 

new real temp with tdp sweet, gonna download now. awesome!!!!

edit: uh where do i right click, hehehehe just kidding. i think its actually harder to find.
love the look of the tdp sub menu.

unclewebb i know i'm asking for too much but if can make everything in one single screen it would be perfect for oc'ers. purdy please!!!!!!!

 

You're right, you are asking for too much.

I don't have any plans for a work over at the moment but I'll keep your idea on the maybe pile. ThrottleStop is a multi-purpose tool for both Core 2 and Core i so it doesn't make sense to include the adjustable multipliers and adjustable TDP/TDC stuff on the main page since most people are not going to have any use for this information.

I'll consider doing a one off ThrottleStop XM OC edition someday to keep the 920XM/940XM users happy.

 

Hahah thanks unclewebb, throttle stop is already the prefect tool. But a guy can dream, hehehe.

 

yeah i have a 260m. bummer. so i've had to tone down my enthusiasm for running it super fast.
i'm currentlky doing 67W and 58a and that seems stable. will run up to about a multiplier of 20 on 4 cores which is a handy boost
would dearly love 24 across all of them - can i ask how joker5150 got 27's stable across the board?

 

joker is just using throttle stop. 24x used to be default multi for M15x but with A08 its back to intel's default.

 

ja, i know, i'm using throttle stop too, but my system is grossly unstable if it try and get 4 cores running at 24x at the suggested 80w 73a
so i'm just wondering how to solve that problem?

 

i ve heard from others that A08 reduces performance in a way, it this true.
also i have a i7 q820 and 5850 would i need to use throttle stop as during bad company 2 it does seem to throttle a bit. what is the best set up to use for these issues? thanks

 

A08 only affects 920/940 owners. before A08 alienware had them oc
ed now with A08 they just dropped it down to intel defaults.

please make a log of the cpu and gpu when gaming, then we can see if it throttles or not.

 

I have just updated to a08, however after the machine complete the installation, it automatically shut down without going into windows

Is this normal or have I done something wrong? I am pretty sure I did everything right though

 

If your computer will turn on after it shuts down you should be good. Go into the bios by pushing f2 at start up and verify the bios version as well.

 

Ok well, just in case itll help anyone out im currently in the customer support cycle concerning why my throttling didnt stop post A08, apparantly they havnt ahd anyone with this problem(?!?!??!) so are testing a same specc'd systems clocks against mine and will call me tomorrow with more information. Not really sure how comparing their working system and my not working system will do anything but ill jsut let them get on with it until they send someone out who can actually do somthing. If they/I do find any useful information i shall post it.

Until then, may i ask, will being forceful with these support reps in terms of asking them to send someone out, or take the machine in to be serviced work or should i just wait till theyve ran out of things to tell me to install? (Bad past experiances)

 

Be firm, not necessarily forceful, and stand your ground no matter what happens. If you are forceful or rude most of them won't give you a dang thing, but on the other hand if you're firm and don't waiver on what you're looking for(as long as it's fair too) then you'll eventually get what you're looking for.

 

Did some tests, unchecked some devices and activity, didnt change anything sending out a tech to replace the card and mobo. Not a subtle solution but at least its affermative action. They dont really seem to know why the 260M is still having so much trouble but so long as they keep patching it up till i can afford a new laptop i dont really mind.

 

hi i just got my new mobo with bios A06 should i upgrade to A08, im with i7 q720, and is there anything special during the instalation or is just like a common installer just next>next>next ???

 

you have to burn it on a cd, reboot the laptop with the cd on the optical unit and select with the f10 button to boot from the cd
the you need to press a pair on buttons to accept and its all

 

thanks, cheers m8

 

Sorry...I guess I'm ordering an M15x today with a Geforce GTX 460-obviously we don't yet know how that will fair for throttling, but my GUESS is it'll be at worst like a 260, at best like a 5850.

So...what's my 'safe' CPU choice if I don't want to risk having any throttling? I won't ever overclock it, and I don't want to have to run throttlestop or anything-I want it to just work.

I'd prefer a 1.86GHz quad, but I'm willing to go to a 1.73Ghz, or even a dual core if you guys think that will prevent any throttling.

Does the 5850 or 260 ever throttle with a 1.73 or 1.86GHz chip and this newest BIOS? If so...I probably need to drop to a dual core :-/

 

The 5850m does not throttle with the i7-820 (1.73-3.06Mhz). This was true even before the A08 bios update. If safe is the most important factor, get the 5850m. The GTX460m is and will remain an unknown until it is in the hands of enough knowledgeable users to properly test and report their experiences under a wide variety of circumstances and uses.

 

Yeah, figured that was the safest just because it's a known quantity, but I really want the GTX 460-I've been waiting for it for ages really.

Not sure if there's a CPU I can pair it with that's more likely to be safe or not. I'm even willing to drop down to a dual core the more I think about it.

I thought there was one person on here who had throttling...I guess it was with the 1.86GHz CPU + 5850? Although someone else it just turned out to be by design (when they unplugged it).

I wish there was no such thing as a notebook that throttled... *sigh*

 

Then go for it. Throttling is frankly overblown. It started and mostly remains a 920/940--260m issue, with very occasional reports with other processors, many of which are probably unreliable. Not every hiccup or lag is throttling. I doubt you will have a problem, particularly if you drop down to an i5-540 (what happened to the i7-620/640?), but I don't recall any throttling reports for the 740QM or 840QM since the A08 bios. Still, you just can't be certain until the 460m is out there.

 

^^^^Wise words Rev, could have sworn I told him the same thing in 2 other threads Uh well everyones entitled to a second opinion.

 

Yeah, and I appreciate it DaneGRClose! I'm being worried/parinoid! :lol:

Hey, it is like $2600 for me!

 

Hey, Dane. It's hard when you're all set to buy and know what you want, but there isn't enough data available to provide comfort that it will perform as it should. Sure as you take the plunge, problems will arise; if you resist and follow the more conservative path, no issues ever surface. The joys of the early adopter. We've all been there at one time or another. LOL.

 

I have, and yes it is very tough lotta money to have issues with so it's better to check everything even if it's 12 times Hope you enjoy it if you take the plunge Wolfpup! If not can't go wrong with the 5850

 

Just upgraded to A08, works a treat with better benchmarking scores, thank you!

 

one question. i am not sure wad version my bios is. but jus to be sure. can i direct update to a08 or do i have to update in order like a06 then a07 and finally a08?