Does your CPU get too hot when you run intensive games or heavy applications? While the fan is screeching like crazy, you also run the risk of the processor hitting the brakes to protect itself. If your laptop or desktop often overheats, it pays to reduce the temperature by undervolting.
Tip 01: Standard voltage
Laptops in particular can become extremely hot. A major cause is dust combined with the cramped housing. It’s a step in the right direction if you can blow out the dust with a can of compressed air. You can possibly use thermal paste or sometimes even place a better cooling, but there is also a way that only takes a little of your time: undervolting.
Each type of processor is tuned by the chip manufacturer to a standard voltage. This voltage ensures that the CPU can do its work in a stable manner. Because it is impossible to test each CPU individually, the manufacturer ensures that the voltage is higher than necessary. The chip builder wants to be sure that all its CPUs work properly, but no single CPU is the same.
If you fine-tune the voltage of the CPU in your machine, this provides several advantages. You can lower the temperature of the CPU between 5°C and 20°C. The battery lasts longer. The fan has to rotate less and therefore makes less noise. And the processor has a longer lifespan, although it usually lasts longer than the rest of the PC.
A lower CPU voltage reduces power consumption and temperature
Tip 02: Looking for the limit
Undervolting means reducing the voltage that the processor receives. Even when you lower the voltage by relatively small amounts, not only does the power consumption drop, but also the heat generated by the CPU.
It sounds too good to be true… Where’s the catch? The worst that can happen when you overdo it and lower the voltage too much is your computer crashes and you get a BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) sees. But after a reboot, the processor will run at the default voltage again.
So it’s a bit of a shock, but you actually don’t run any risk. If you know at what undervoltage this happened, you just have to return a little more voltage. So it’s a matter of pushing the boundaries.
No performance loss
To avoid confusion, undervolting has nothing to do with overclocking or underclocking. Overclocking can damage the processor and underclocking results in a loss of performance. You don’t get this with undervolts. The chances of something going wrong are virtually nil and the performance remains the same.
If you have a laptop or desktop that does its job well every day, you don’t have to experiment with undervoltages. If the temperature of the CPU continues to rise to 90°C and more, you must take measures to temper the load on the processor. Gamers in particular know that long gaming sessions put the cpu and the gpu (graphics processor) to the test. This user group best monitors the temperature of those chips.
Tip 03: Tools
Where is the button to lower the voltage? Nowhere, you use the freeware program for that ThrottleStopwhich by the way has an excellent manual.
In addition, you can also use a program to load your system afterwards, so that you can check with new voltages. We use Prime95† This system stability checker has a stress test, the Torture testwhich puts the whip on the memory, the processor or a combination of both.
We’ll start with ThrottleStop. It doesn’t take much to install the software. Extract the program and run it as administrator.
If the temperature is too high, the CPU can decrease its speed
Thermal throttling
A CPU protects itself against self-destruction. When the temperature rises too high, it is possible that the CPU switches back to a lower speed on its own to avoid releasing more heat. There are even processors that turn themselves off to prevent damage.
As a result, a 3GHz processor can step on the brakes and, for example, only deliver 800 MHz. This downshifting is called thermal throttling. This is a common cause of sudden PC performance drops. By pressing the temperature via undervolts, you run less risk of thermal thottling.
Tip 04: Specifications
When you open the program, it seems a bit intimidating. This is because you can also do other things with this than undervolting. At the top right you can read the specifications of the processor that is in your machine.
You can minimize the app by clicking the numbers next to VID or clicking on one of the MHz values. The app will then be minimized to the notification area or taskbar, depending on how the app is configured at the Options† VID is the voltage required by the cpu. Under these specifications you can read the temperatures of the different processor cores.
Tip 05: Profiles
ThrottleStop maintains four profiles. If you click on the four bold dots on the left one by one, you’ll notice that these profiles already have a name: Performance† game† internet and battery† You still have to set these profiles yourself and you can also change the names. The changes you make to one profile will not affect other profiles.
By the way, you quickly lose that left window if you click on something, but you can always get it back via the button PKG Power†
Tip 06: Offset voltage
To go to the settings for undervolting, click on the button FIVR (Fully Integrated Voltage Regulators). At the top you will find the box FIVR control† Remember that you need to make the undervolt adjustment, called offset, on these three: CPU Core† CPU Cache and Intel GPU†
Start at CPU Core and check the option at CPU Core Voltage Unlock Adjustable Voltage at. Make sure the option adaptive sure is checked. Then use the slider to lower the Offset Voltage†
How do you know how much you can undervolt without the system becoming unstable? If your computer has a popular CPU, google your computer’s name and CPU type along with the term “undervolt.” Read how far others have gone and use these values as a starting range. Otherwise you have to try it yourself.
CPU Core and CPU Cache must always have the same offset voltage
Tip 07: Note the offset
Don’t drag the offset slider all the way to the left, but start with –50mV† Then click on CPU Cache in the section FIVR Control and set it to the same offset. Then click on Apply† It’s important that CPU Core and CPU Cache always have the same offset voltage.
The Intel GPU is less aggressively undervolted, so you use a milder offset there. Activate the option at the bottom right OK – Save voltages after ThrottleStop exits† Should your system crash due to excessive undervoltage, the same settings will not be automatically reapplied. Make a note of the numbers you used, because if the system were to crash, the values will be reset to zero.
Click now Apply and OK† Then click on Turn On in the main window of ThrottleStop† To disable undervolting, simply close the program or press the Zero Offset use.
Tip 08: Stress test
To test the operation, play an intensive game for a few hours or use Prime95. If your computer freezes or restarts on its own, reopen ThrottleStop and decrease the offset on each part by 5 millivolts. For example, if the system freezes at -70 mV, try -65 mV.
If the system has no problems after a few hours of testing, you can increase the voltage offset a little more, for example from -70 mV to -75 mV. The greater the undervoltage, the cooler the CPU will run and the less power it will consume.
TrottleStop also has the button TS Bench, this is a built-in benchmarking program. While not as taxing as Prime95, TS Bench is useful for seeing how recent tweaks you’ve made affect the CPU under load.
Tip 09: Automatic start
To start ThrottleStop automatically with Windows, use Task Scheduler. type task scheduler in the search box and open the app from the search results. In the right column click on Create taska window with four tabs will open.
In the tab General name the new task ThrottleStop† Check the box Run with most privileges at. Then open the tab triggers and click on the button New† In the window New trigger select you at Start this task the option At startup† click on OK†
Then go to the tab Actions and click on that too New† Choose as new action Start program and via the button To leaf through navigate to the program ThrottleStop.exe† click on Open and finally on OK†
Open the tab Conditions and clear all check boxes. Finally, select the tab Institutions and leave only the following box checked: Task may be performed on demand† Close the Task Scheduler and restart the computer. Now the ThrottleStop program should automatically merge boot with Windows†
