Optimal throttlestop settings

[johnanderson]

Can someone recommend some good throttlestop settings, that are optimal for less heat with minimal performance loss. My temps are at around 92 C (198 F) all the time, and I want to bring them down without losing too much performance. I have an i5 - 10300h and a rtx 3060.

 

[unclewebb]

Post some ThrottleStop screenshots including the FIVR and TPL windows. There is no point in making any recommendations if your laptop has locked out CPU voltage control.

If your computer is not locked, set the core and the cache to a negative offset of somewhere between -50 mV and -75 mV. If your computer is not 100% stable or suddenly starts crashing with blue screens, that means you have gone too far and the CPU needs more voltage. The built in TS Bench 960M benchmark is a good quick test to check for basic stability.

You can also use ThrottleStop to slow your CPU down. This will create less heat but will reduce performance. Check the Speed Shift box in the TPL window and lower the Speed Shift Max value if you want a slow and cool running CPU.

No two CPUs are the same. You need to adjust the voltage and do some testing on your computer. That is the only way to find out what works best for your computer. Do not just copy someone else's voltage settings.

 

[johnanderson]

Cache is set to -110 mv, intel gpu is at -90, and gpu unslice is at -90 too. I can't seem to go lower or else it bluescreens, but it's still running hot under load. A "hot" warning appears frequently when playing games and no matter what settings i use the temperature is at around 91-92 and throttling.

 

[Che0063]

When "HOT" appears, is your CPU at 92 degrees? Or is something else triggering it prematurely?

Go into Options and change PROCHOT offset to 2 or 3 - that might give your CPU a tiny bit more headroom (increases maximum permissible CPU temperature from 92, to 97 or 98)

If it is still triggering PROCHOT (Processor Hot) signals despite undervolting, then your laptop manufacturer has failed to adequately design your laptop to remove heat. Short of reapplying the thermal paste on your CPU, there is nothing you can do about this.

Changing turbo ratio limits is unlikely to do anything meaningful. If you really want to decrease the maximum temperature you should do it by increasing PROCHOT offset. That will maximise both frequency and power limit, within a given thermal window

 

[johnanderson]

When "HOT" appears, is your CPU at 92 degrees? Or is something else triggering it prematurely?

Go into Options and change PROCHOT offset to 2 or 3 - that might give your CPU a tiny bit more headroom (increases maximum permissible CPU temperature from 92, to 97 or 98)

If it is still triggering PROCHOT (Processor Hot) signals despite undervolting, then your laptop manufacturer has failed to adequately design your laptop to remove heat. Short of reapplying the thermal paste on your CPU, there is nothing you can do about this.

Changing turbo ratio limits is unlikely to do anything meaningful. If you really want to decrease the maximum temperature you should do it by increasing PROCHOT offset. That will maximise both frequency and power limit, within a given thermal window

Ok, Thank you!

 

[unclewebb]

you should do it by increasing PROCHOT offset

That is a good idea but many laptops lock the PROCHOT Offset value so it cannot be changed. If ThrottleStop shows a yellow lock icon near this setting, there is no point changing the PROCHOT Offset value because it has been locked by the BIOS.

Not sure what laptop model he has. Many Acer laptops lock PROCHOT Offset to 8 which forces thermal throttling to start at 92°C instead of at 100°C like Intel suggests.

 

[johnanderson]

That is a good idea but many laptops lock the PROCHOT Offset value so it cannot be changed. If ThrottleStop shows a yellow lock icon near this setting, there is no point changing the PROCHOT Offset value because it has been locked by the BIOS.

Not sure what laptop model he has. Many Acer laptops lock PROCHOT Offset to 8 which forces thermal throttling to start at 92°C instead of at 100°C like Intel suggests.

I have an acer nitro 5, the setting is unlocked. I set PROCHOT to 95 C which seems appropriate.

 

[unclewebb]

I set PROCHOT to 95 C

95°C is OK. Anywhere between 95°C and 100°C is OK too. 100°C is the Intel spec.

 

[Luckyswazi]

Hello, I recently bought a gaming laptop (MSI Katana 15 B13VGK, 4070, I9-13900H) and since buying it whilst running games like Hogwarts legacy, The Finals and battlefield 1 the CPU temps has been reaching like 95-100 degrees regularly and at idle it isn't bad at all as it only reaches max like 55 degrees. Whilst the GPU I haven't seen go over 70 degrees. I tried the usual fixes when it comes temps like repasting and cleaning but that had little affect. I was wondering if using an application like throttle stop could solve this problem? Thank you.

 

[unclewebb]

@Luckyswazi
What thermal paste did you use and how did you apply it? A lot of thermal pastes that are popular on desktop CPUs can fail and start to pump out in as little as a week when applied direct die to a mobile CPU. MX-4 has this reputation. Try using Honeywell PTM 7950. It seems to work well for most users long term.

If you cannot improve your cooling then you can use ThrottleStop to slow your CPU down so it does not get so hot. Post screenshots of ThrottleStop including the FIVR and TPL windows so I can see what settings are available to you. Intel has removed access to CPU voltage control in their H series processors so the adjustments available are limited. Next time you buy a laptop, look for one with an HX processor. The 13900HX is a fantastic processor for enthusiasts. The 13900H, not at all.

You can try lowering the Speed Shift Max value in the TPL window to slow your CPU down so it does not get so hot. A better method is to adjust the turbo power limits in the TPL window. No point in having the power limits set sky high to 200W if your cooling can only manage 50W.

 

[Luckyswazi]

Hello, thank you so much for replying. Regarding the thermal paste I used the MX-6 version thermal paste as the same company, I heard about the issue with the MX-4 paste but then saw a lot of people saying that the MX-6 was better in that regard. Do you think the problem might have still carried over with the newer versions? When applying the thermal paste I did the cross method as people say it has great coverage.

Intel has removed access to CPU voltage control in their H series processors so the adjustments available are limited. Next time you buy a laptop, look for one with an HX processor.

Yah I sadly found out about this after I had bought it, I used to have one with a i7-8850H and kind of assumed intel would keep tuning access a consistent feature

You can try lowering the Speed Shift Max value in the TPL window to slow your CPU down so it does not get so hot. A better method is to adjust the turbo power limits in the TPL window.

In regards to this, are there any tips in determining the correct values to use? or is it just trail and error.

Also thank you again so much again.

 

[unclewebb]

The wide variation in peak core temperatures usually indicates poor thermal paste application or perhaps a poor thermal paste.

I did the cross method

This method is intended for desktop CPUs that have an integrated heat spreader over top of the cores. Most people get better results by spreading a thin layer over top of mobile CPUs or GPUs. I have no idea if MX-6 is good or bad. I just know that MX-4 is horrible on mobile CPUs. Order some Honeywell PTM 7950 and see how that works.

Your screenshot is showing that your cooling system is struggling to cool a 45W CPU. You might have to reduce the power limits in ThrottleStop to 40W or 45W to try and prevent overheating and thermal throttling. Check the MMIO Lock box in the TPL window and start lowering the two power limits in the Power Limit Controls section.

In the FIVR window you can try lowering the Ratio values in the Turbo Groups section. This might allow you to slow your CPU down to control the heat. You can also reduce the Speed Shift Max value in the TPL window to slow the CPU down.

Bottom line is your CPU is way too powerful for your available cooling. Even with your cooling working as intended with the best paste, it still might not be enough to keep your CPU at a reasonable temperature. You can either reduce the turbo power limits or the CPU speed or you can run your CPU at full power and full speed and let it bounce off the thermal limits and constantly thermal throttle. I am not sure what would be better for smooth performance. Some thin laptops are not well thought out by the manufacturer.

 

[Luckyswazi]

Hello, I will give the Honeywell PTM 7650 a go as you've recommended and see how that goes, I have heard it is well received by people.

reduce the power limits in ThrottleStop to 40W or 45W to try and prevent overheating

I am quite interested to try this as well as I have noticed my CPU trying to pull upwards of 75W on multiple occasions when gaming. I have used my CPU with its turbo boost disabled on other occasions and honestly the loss in performance isn't massive so reducing power limits and speed shift max values etc will be perfect top try out. I'm sure just a bit of trial and error and ill find a nice green zone unique to this laptop.

Thank you for the help man, your honestly a lifesaver!

 

[unclewebb]

Honeywell PTM 7650

It is PTM 7950.

trial and error

That sums it up. All laptop manufacturers seem to sell products that are border line defective. It is up to consumers to figure out how to get consistent performance out of what they have bought. I am lucky that I do not need a laptop. I much prefer a desktop computer with proper cooling.

The term "gaming laptop" seems like a myth. The ads look good but manufacturers need to put more effort into including proper cooling.

Post an update here if you ever find a way to tame your beast.

 

[Luckyswazi]

Post an update here if you ever find a way to tame your beast.

Hello sorry for the late update. Been doing a lot of trial and error with reducing power limits, turbo groups ratios, speed shift EPP value and Speed shift max value in the TPL page. I was using cinebench as the stress test program in the beginning and found a good balance in thermals and performance with a 49W PL at 80 speed shift EPP and default for the max speed shift in the TPL as well default turbo groups ratio values. With the CPU not getting above 81 degrees and most of the time actually staying stable at like 78 degrees 99% of the time (Screenshot attached). However, I then encountered an issue were when tested it with a game or using resource heavy 3d-editing programs, I found the CPU to sort of bypass the limits I put in with throttlestop. With my CPU forgetting the 49W PL and started going back to trying to pull 60-70W and bringing with it the incredibly high CPU temps I'm trying to lose lol. Is there anything I might have missed with things like settings or something? after experiencing that problem I went back into cinebench and got the results I was expecting like it did before and I even used XTU's stress test and saw my PL limits and things were still functioning. It was just outside of the stress tests that I was noticing that it was almost like the limits didn't exist.

The term "gaming laptop" seems like a myth. The ads look good but manufacturers need to put more effort into including proper cooling.

Yah id agree, originally I was aiming for a desktop but I'm currently moving around a lot and travelling for work a lot of the time so it didn't seem realistic and settled on this laptop which I manage to snag at like 900$. They are beasts of machines but its really only the terrible cooling that is letting them down so much.

 

[unclewebb]

started going back to trying to pull 60-70W

The screenshot you posted does not show that. It shows Max power at 49.5W which is normal variation compared to your 49W setting.

Turn on the ThrottleStop Log File option. Maybe a log file will show the high power values.

Do not use XTU and ThrottleStop at the same time. Having two different programs both accessing the same power limit register can cause inconsistent results.

 

[Luckyswazi]

Hello, attached are some log files for which are when im using the laptop generally (Statistic programs, gaming etc).

Do not use XTU and ThrottleStop at the same time. Having two different programs both accessing the same power limit register can cause inconsistent results.

I did a full restart after reapplying the settings I mentioned before and that seemed to have basically fixed the issue. Now the PL limit seems to have taken place as seen in the log files. Before I mentioned I kept the turbo group ratios at default, I was wondering if you could explain there use and how I could possibly use them to lower the temps a little more? I am not the sharpest tool in the shed but definitely would like to solve these annoying high temperatures, also I'm very sorry for all the silly questions and false issues on my part.

 

[unclewebb]

There is no need to adjust the turbo ratios. The lower turbo power limits are already forcing your CPU to slow down so it does not run so hot. You can lower the power limits further if you want your CPU to slow down further so it generates less heat.

would like to solve these annoying high temperatures

The only solution is next time you buy a laptop, look for one with better cooling. They are difficult to find. Also get one with a HX processor. This might allow you to reduce the voltage as long as the manufacturer has not locked out this useful feature. Other than that, there is not much else you can do. The Intel 13900H runs hot. This is the new normal. I prefer my old 4th Gen laptop from the dinosaur era. You could not pay me to use a modern laptop that heats up to a ridiculous level the moment you throw any serious work at it.

The 49W power limit seems to be working correctly. It is being quickly enforced in your last log file. Nothing is perfect. Power consumption of modern mobile CPUs can shoot up so fast that it is impossible to clamp it right at 49W. A small amount of overshoot at times is just the way it is.

 

[Luckyswazi]

I prefer my old 4th Gen laptop from the dinosaur era. You could not pay me to use a modern laptop that heats up to a ridiculous level the moment you throw any serious work at it.

Yah I'm starting to miss my old 8th gen laptop, the PL do seem to be working quite well at generally averaging the CPU temp at mid 80s but no piece of hardware should be said to be comfortable at even that heat. The good thing is that besides the outrageous temps it still performs to perfection but I don't know how anyone could be comfortable knowing that they have the literal sun as their CPU when doing heavy workloads. I think my next steps are to stop limiting anything of the CPU as I don't really want the performance loss haha, but ill try the PTM 7950 and possibly buy a laptop cooling pad because I've heard good ones can work wonders. Thank you for all your help man, through you ive actually manage to lower my temps by like practically 20 degrees which is pretty crazy.

 

[Natcuber]

@Luckyswazi
What thermal paste did you use and how did you apply it? A lot of thermal pastes that are popular on desktop CPUs can fail and start to pump out in as little as a week when applied direct die to a mobile CPU. MX-4 has this reputation. Try using Honeywell PTM 7950. It seems to work well for most users long term.

If you cannot improve your cooling then you can use ThrottleStop to slow your CPU down so it does not get so hot. Post screenshots of ThrottleStop including the FIVR and TPL windows so I can see what settings are available to you. Intel has removed access to CPU voltage control in their H series processors so the adjustments available are limited. Next time you buy a laptop, look for one with an HX processor. The 13900HX is a fantastic processor for enthusiasts. The 13900H, not at all.

You can try lowering the Speed Shift Max value in the TPL window to slow your CPU down so it does not get so hot. A better method is to adjust the turbo power limits in the TPL window. No point in having the power limits set sky high to 200W if your cooling can only manage 50W.

Hello sir. I've been looking around at thermal pastes to perhaps replace the ones on my laptop (Lenovo T480 Intel Core i5-8350U) and see if it helps with my temps. Do you know of other thermal pastes that work well on mobile CPUs, or would you still recommend the Honeywell PTM 7950? I have a rather low budget. Thanks.