# Helios 300 ThrottleStop POWER STATUS CHANGE



## jayrlouro (Mar 6, 2021)

Hi all.

I'm getting the Power Status Change every 5 secs in my throttlestop log.
Can someone help? What does it mean?!
How can I fix it?

I'm attaching my log with a bit of RUST gaming time and mostly idle. Also my TS settings.

Thanks!


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## unclewebb (Mar 6, 2021)

Constant POWER STATUS CHANGE notices in the log file show that your computer is constantly adjusting itself so your battery is kept at a ~70% charge. I know this is supposed to make your battery last longer. I prefer to always have a fully charged battery so I turn this battery saving feature off. If my battery craps out a year too soon, I will go buy a new one.

Intel CPUs can run reliably up to 100°C. That is why Intel sets the thermal throttling temperature to this value. Your laptop manufacturer has set the PROCHOT (processor hot) temperature to 98°C so it is extra safe. You do not have to slow your CPU down to 3500 MHz. It is only running at 75°C. CPU temperatures over 90°C are fairly normal for any recent gaming laptop. If you are doing this because you prefer a cool laptop, I understand. If you are doing this to protect the CPU, you really do not need to do that. Intel CPUs are well protected.

When your computer is idle at the desktop with nothing besides ThrottleStop open, have a look at your C0% numbers. The less useless background tasks running on a computer, the more CPU you will have available for doing more important things like running your games. Windows and ThrottleStop are very lean when setup properly.


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## jayrlouro (Mar 6, 2021)

unclewebb said:


> Constant POWER STATUS CHANGE notices in the log file show that your computer is constantly adjusting itself so your battery is kept at a ~70% charge. I know this is supposed to make your battery last longer. I prefer to always have a fully charged battery so I turn this battery saving feature off. If my battery craps out a year too soon, I will go buy a new one.



Hi @unclewebb! Thanks for your input! I was hoping you would answer  I have my laptop always plugged with AC so it never is in battery. (see newly attached pic). As you say, I don't mind buying a new battery, so how do I turn this off to avoid this? Can you explain it to me pls?



unclewebb said:


> Intel CPUs can run reliably up to 100°C. That is why Intel sets the thermal throttling temperature to this value. Your laptop manufacturer has set the PROCHOT (processor hot) temperature to 98°C so it is extra safe. You do not have to slow your CPU down to 3500 MHz. It is only running at 75°C. CPU temperatures over 90°C are fairly normal for any recent gaming laptop. If you are doing this because you prefer a cool laptop, I understand. If you are doing this to protect the CPU, you really do not need to do that. Intel CPUs are well protected.



I set it up to 98ºC as it was at 92ºC. I've read your guidances in another thread so I've followed it. I personally prefer to keep it cool, that's why I've undervolted it and cutted it to 3500 MHz.
If you don't mind, can you let me know if all ok? Do you agree with the "tune"?

Let me know if you need anything else.

Cheers


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## unclewebb (Mar 6, 2021)

jayrlouro said:


> I set it up to 98ºC as it was at 92ºC.


That is what I like to hear. Using a ThrottleStop feature to improve your computer.   
Some manufacturers are way too conservative.

The partially charged battery is usually a hidden setting in some manufacturer's power plan / fan control software. What laptop model do you have and what manufacturer software are you running? I am not familiar with where this setting is hiding. I dislike seeing those POWER notices in the log as much as you do. 

The rest of your settings look good. If 3500 MHz gives you the performance / temperature balance that you are looking for then that's great. I prefer seeing screenshots of people running their laptops at maximum speed with the help of ThrottleStop but running a CPU at a more comfortable temperature is another great feature of ThrottleStop too. Your voltage settings look good.

I usually set TDP Level to 0. That is the default level. Yours is set to Level 1. If your computer is running fine set like this then no need to change it. If a 9750H is in TDP Level 1, the power limit is supposed to drop down to 35W. I am not sure if your 45W PL1 power limit setting will override the 35W TDP Level setting or if the 35W will override the 45W setting. When set to Level 0, I know that the PL1 value is in control so that is why I recommend TDP Level 0. 

For maximum performance when benchmarking, I would bump the PL1 power limit up to about 70W and the PL2 limit up to about 90W. The 9750H will limit maximum full load performance when it is set to a 45W power limit.


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## jayrlouro (Mar 6, 2021)

unclewebb said:


> The partially charged battery is usually a hidden setting in some manufacturer's power plan / fan control software. What laptop model do you have and what manufacturer software are you running? I am not familiar with where this setting is hiding. I dislike seeing those POWER notices in the log as much as you do.


I have an ACER predator Helios 300 (i7 9750H, 1660ti and 16GB RAM). I believe I've got it (please check the log again for the last entries (after suspended)



unclewebb said:


> I usually set TDP Level to 0. That is the default level. Yours is set to Level 1. If your computer is running fine set like this then no need to change it. If a 9750H is in TDP Level 1, the power limit is supposed to drop down to 35W. I am not sure if your 45W PL1 power limit setting will override the 35W TDP Level setting or if the 35W will override the 45W setting. When set to Level 0, I know that the PL1 value is in control so that is why I recommend TDP Level 0.


I will test it has you said now! Let's see if I note anything different. Apart from that, any boxes that I need to tick there? I've read somewhere that these power limits are defined and capped by the manufacturer (Don't know how can I confirm it). Intel also says that the max TDP is 45W... My AC adapter has an output of 180W.


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## unclewebb (Mar 6, 2021)

jayrlouro said:


> I believe I've got it


No more constant POWER notices every 5 seconds. That looks a lot better. Can you post a screenshot of where this setting is located?

I think you are right. Acer caps some of their laptop CPUs to the rated 45W TDP value. A laptop that does not enforce the 45W TDP limit can run significantly faster when fully loaded. Cinebench R20 is a good test for this. If you set the turbo power limits to say 60W and 70W, run Cinebench and watch Limit Reasons. If you see 45W of power consumption and PL1 is glowing red, that means Acer has set a fixed 45W limit internally. There is no easy way to get around this. 

A 9750H with a 45W limit will score about 2500 or 2600 in the Cinebench R20 test. With no power limits, a score of 3100 to 3200 is possible. That is why I am not a fan of limits like this set by conservative manufacturers.









						MAXON Cinebench (R20.0) Download
					

CINEBENCH is a real-world cross platform test suite that evaluates your computer's performance capabilities. CINEBENCH is based on MAXON's award-winn




					www.techpowerup.com
				




Next time you boot up, have a look at the TDP Level value in ThrottleStop. I am not sure if you or the BIOS set this to 1. If the BIOS sets this to 1, you will need to use ThrottleStop to set it to 0. You only need to check the TDP Level Control option if you are trying to control this setting. If this is set to 0 by default, you can leave it alone.


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## jayrlouro (Mar 6, 2021)

unclewebb said:


> No more constant POWER notices every 5 seconds. That looks a lot better. Can you post a screenshot of where this setting is located?


You need to go to SETTINGS > SYSTEM > BATTERY and then just turn off the option of battery saving and then just say NEVER in the next option.



unclewebb said:


> I think you are right. Acer caps some of their laptop CPUs to the rated 45W TDP value. A laptop that does not enforce the 45W TDP limit can run significantly faster when fully loaded. Cinebench R20 is a good test for this. If you set the turbo power limits to say 60W and 70W, run Cinebench and watch Limit Reasons. If you see 45W of power consumption and PL1 is glowing red, that means Acer has set a fixed 45W limit internally. There is no easy way to get around this.
> 
> A 9750H with a 45W limit will score about 2500 or 2600 in the Cinebench R20 test. With no power limits, a score of 3100 to 3200 is possible. That is why I am not a fan of limits like this set by conservative manufacturers.


I will run cinebench tomorrow and show you the results @unclewebb !

Thanks for your help! Much appreciated!



unclewebb said:


> No more constant POWER notices every 5 seconds. That looks a lot better. Can you post a screenshot of where this setting is located?
> 
> I think you are right. Acer caps some of their laptop CPUs to the rated 45W TDP value. A laptop that does not enforce the 45W TDP limit can run significantly faster when fully loaded. Cinebench R20 is a good test for this. If you set the turbo power limits to say 60W and 70W, run Cinebench and watch Limit Reasons. If you see 45W of power consumption and PL1 is glowing red, that means Acer has set a fixed 45W limit internally. There is no easy way to get around this.
> 
> ...



Hey @unclewebb 

I've done some testing. Can you please have a look and give me your feedback?

Scored 2814 in the first run and 2870 in the second.

I have some ideas but let's hear from you first 

Thanks in advance!


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