Anyone use TPFanControl?

Just wondering if many people here use TPFanControl for their ThinkPads. I know personally, it saved me from Lenovo's current system controller fan temp/RPM thresholds for the T60 WS which tend to keep the fan on more than is necessary (they also increased the minimum RPM for the fan in the newer BIOS's, so even at minimum it's not terribly quiet anymore).

I don't know about you, but instead of the minimum fan speed being somewhere in the 2500-3000 range as it is now, I would much prefer it if they changed it back to how it used to be (1500-2000 for minimum), that way instead of running audibly and too often, it could just run constantly at a quieter speed. This would eliminate the need to run as much as well.

Any thoughts?

 

This one is leaving me at at a tough decision, especially since I'm not an expert in computers. I hear that cooling the laptop is very important to maintain/increase the life of the laptop but I also am frustrated with this increased fan noise. But it seems necessary as I've heard people recommend a cooler for the laptop in addition to the fan.
Will going below this minimum speed hurt the life of the laptop? This contant fan noise is bugging me.

 

Well, with the current BIOS at least, you can't actually control the fan RPM; what you can control is the fan speed settings (0 for off, 1 for low, 3 for medium, etc...). This is why it would be up to Lenovo to change their RPM settings for the different speed settings that TPFanControl *can* control.

My logic is that if I can reach a good balance between temp level and fan noise then I'll do it; no sense in being constantly irritated when you use your notebook.

Remember, the really hot notebook components (CPU, GPU) have MUCH higher max temperature ratings than they will likely ever get up to (as long as the cooling system is working properly). That's one of the differences (at least in the past it was this way) between parts meant for desktops or notebooks. Notebook parts have historically had much higher max temp ratings, although desktop parts may be increasingly held to the same standard these days, which is definitely a good thing.

 

Thanks for the response ultra, I am interesting in changing the controller fan temp/RPM thresholds and have my fan run quieter and less often but since I'm not an expert in computers and wouldn't know how to make sure the temp level doesn't get out of hand I am hesitant to do it. Also, hesistant because if lenovo could have set minimum fan speed at an acceptable lower speed that would keep the computer quieter and run less often, then why didn't they?

 

Question for you guys if anyone wouldn't mind. I just downloaded the TPFanControl utility for my T60 just because I'd like to monitor my temperatures and the RPM, but I do not want to change anything. Does the program change anything if I just open it and read the temperatures, or is that safe to do? Thanks!

 

Well, I would guess that they did it as a precaution when the C2D's came out (apparently this is around the time of the BIOS update with the modified RPM tables). A rather unneeded precaution if you ask me, as the C2D's don't really run that much hotter in practice.

Seleur, I believe that TPFanControl will by default operate in "read stats" mode when you first start it. I'm actually not sure if the regular version of it can modify fan behavior; the one I've been using is a T60 modified version (apparently) that runs as a service, so, not entirely sure if the commonly found version supports T60 control. Either way, as long as you don't go playing around with mysterious settings I wouldn't worry about it.

I need to go re-download the T60 service version anyway, so I'll see about finding that link for you guys.

 

Sounds good, look forward to hearing from you on the link.