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    Dell Inspiron 1520 Low WEI score after processor upgrade.

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by vi3tboitim, Nov 5, 2012.

  1. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just recently upgraded my Dell 1520 from a t7100 to a t8300. Before the upgrade my WEI score was 2.2 for the processor and now its only a 2.3. I made sure the drivers are fully updated as well.

    Overall I just feel like nothing has changed since the upgrade it is still running quite slow even with only Chrome open. Even youtube and facebook feel sluggish.

    Dell 1520 -
    Core 2 Duo t8300 2.4ghz
    3GB ram
    Nvidia 8600m gt


    If there is anything I can do to improve performance please let me know.

    thanks
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 5, 2012
    #1
  2. tijo

    tijo Sacred Blame

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    Have you checked that your system simply isn't starving for RAM?
     
    tijo, Nov 5, 2012
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  3. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I guess my best bet would be to upgrade to x64 and get some more ram?

    but does that still explain the low wei score?
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 5, 2012
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  4. Tsunade_Hime

    Tsunade_Hime such bacon. wow

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    Are you sure you are running a 90W AC adapter or higher? Sounds like something is throttling the CPU down as it shouldn't get WEI scores that low, that being said, never rely on WEI scores.
     
    Tsunade_Hime, Nov 6, 2012
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  5. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just checked to see if my charger is 90w+ and it is. So it cant be that.

    What are some other things that could be throttling the cpu down?
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  6. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just checked to see if my charger is 90w+ and it is. So it cant be that.

    What are some other things that could be throttling the cpu down?

    cpuz.png
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
    #6
  7. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    You should run something like wPrime two thread and see if you get approximately the "right" score for a T8300. If you do, I wouldn't worry about WEI; it has definitely proven to be worthless more often than not.
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  8. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    lets see I ran wPrime and this is what I got. Does it look correct?

    it shows im getting a core clock of 1200

    - is it a problem if I dont have my battery in?

    wprime.png
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
    #8
  9. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    Err, did you, you know, run the actual benchmark?
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  10. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  11. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    Lol, yeah, you have definitely have something screwed up; it should be getting something in the 35s range. Are you by any chance getting the "AC adapter not recognized" error in BIOS?
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  12. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just checked and yes I do have the "AC adapter is not recognized"

    I also have speedstep turned off. should I turn that back on?
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  13. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    The speedstep thing won't do anything if you have the adapter error. You either have a bad adapter or a bad motherboard.
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  14. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    Darn if I have a bad motherboard thats a costly fix isnt it?
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  15. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    I'm seeing good motherboards on eBay for about $70... that's actually better than I'd have thought, but still getting close to half of the entire laptop's value. You could be lucky and just have a bad adapter, though.
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  16. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    Yeah lets hope its my adapter. It is making this weird buzzing sound anyway so I guess i'll go pick up a new one tomorrow for like $15.

    the only thing is im worried that I will mess up installing a new motherboard.
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  17. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    okay I just got a new charger and it reads it as 90w now. The test is still in the 70s. Any other suggestions?
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  18. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    You probably aren't running it with two threads... there should be an option to change thread count somewhere.
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  19. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just checked and I am running it with 2 threads.
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
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  20. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    Use CPUZ and monitor the CPU clockspeed during the wPrime run. Are you getting the full 2.4GHz? Did you re-enable SpeedStep in BIOS after replacing the adapter?
     
    Commander Wolf, Nov 6, 2012
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  21. vi3tboitim

    vi3tboitim Notebook Enthusiast

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    Okay awesome I turned on SpeedStep and now im getting over 2.4ghz so I guess all is good in the world now.

    I also reran wprime and got 36. WEI is giving me a 5.8 for rating now too. Stupid AC adapter.
     
    vi3tboitim, Nov 6, 2012
    #21