Laptop CPU downclocks ONLY during games or CPU benchmarks

[Lievre]

After trying out Throttlestop to undervolt and installing an Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver, I noticed that my CPU now downclocks and stays pinned at 3.08Ghz during games but not during regular use as I've seen it at 3.30Ghz. The CPU in question is a i7-6700HQ. I doubt the driver should affect the CPU. But even then, I don't even know which driver to uninstall. And Throttlestop was only temporary. I've already deleted the .ini related to it and restart my system, but the problem still persist. And made sure that Windows is set to High Performance mode. At this point I'm thinking of just doing a full windows reinstall. 

[Kilrah]

Sounds like the usual throttling. Temps?

[Vishera]

That's how the CPU behaves when the cooling solution is not good enough to sustain those speeds under load.

[Vishera]

Just now, Kilrah said:

Sounds like the usual throttling. 

It's technically not throttling since the CPU hits it's base clock speed.

[Lievre]

1 minute ago, Kilrah said:

Sounds like the usual throttling. Temps?

Temps stays under 76. This happens regardless of temp range. Only when I start playing a game.or attempt to benchmark in XTU. And it only started happening today. 

[Vishera]

Just now, Lievre said:

Temps stays under 76. This happens regardless of temp range. Only when I start playing a game.or attempt to benchmark in XTU. And it only started happening today. 

Seems like the boost algorithm,it's still based on temperature - it just needs lower temps than what you currently get under load.

[Lievre]

19 minutes ago, Vishera said:

Seems like the boost algorithm,it's still based on temperature - it just needs lower temps than what you currently get under load.

So (seemingly) out of the blue, the boost algorithm decided it no longer wants to go above 3.08Ghz on all cores when under load. If this is a driver issue, would a complete windows reset remove the current drivers? and revert back to basic drivers since this was not an issue until today?

[Vishera]

6 minutes ago, Lievre said:

So (seemingly) out of the blue, the boost algorithm decided it no longer wants to go above 3.08Ghz on all cores when under load.

Wrong,what happens is that the cooler the processor the more efficient it is,and more efficiency means higher clock speeds - until the temperatures rise.

[Lievre]

46 minutes ago, Vishera said:

Wrong,what happens is that the cooler the processor the more efficient it is,and more efficiency means higher clock speeds - until the temperatures rise.

Except this was never a problem until today. The CPU *will not* go above 3.08Ghz when a game is running regardless on if temps where 50c when before it had no problem going to 3.5 when called for. After more looking around it seems Throttle Stop did change something stopping the CPU from reaching max clocks under certain powerstates after seeing other people have the same issue. 

[Mark Kaine]

11 minutes ago, Lievre said:

Except this was never a problem until today. The CPU *will not* go above 3.08Ghz when a game is running regardless on if temps where 50c when before it had no problem going to 3.5 when called for. After more looking around it seems Throttle Stop did change something stopping the CPU from reaching max clocks under certain powerstates after seeing other people have the same issue. 

I agree it sounds like throttle stop did something... I don't know how to fix it though (I use intel xtu) but a fresh install of windows should obviously fix it. though it might not be necessary, I'd definitely do some more research for a possibly better solution if I were you before doing a fresh install...

 

 

[Vishera]

1 hour ago, Lievre said:

Except this was never a problem until today. The CPU *will not* go above 3.08Ghz when a game is running regardless on if temps where 50c when before it had no problem going to 3.5 when called for. After more looking around it seems Throttle Stop did change something stopping the CPU from reaching max clocks under certain powerstates after seeing other people have the same issue. 

It's possible that throttle stop is responsible for it,

But you can try in the power settings to change the minimum processor speed to 100%,this will kind of make the frequency fixed and consistent.

This method is not good for battery life and power consumption.

[Kilrah]

What GPU do you have? What laptop model altogether?

 

Often on laptops the power delivery isn't capable of supplying enough power for both CPU and GPU to run at full speed, so if something heavily taxes the GPU the CPU will throttle back.

[-rascal-]

The i7-6700HQ, according to Intel specifications, is supposed to behave like this under Turbo Boost 2.0

• Base Clock speed -- 2.60 GHz
• UP TO 3.5 GHz when 1 core is active.
• UP TO 3.3 GHz when 2 cores are active.
• UP TO 3.2 GHz when 3 cores are active.
• UP TO 3.1 GHz when all 4 cores are active.

Seeing ~3.08 GHz when all 4 cores are active / loaded during gaming or benchmark makes sense.

If all 4 cores are under stress, and you are seeing 3.1+ GHz, then the CPU is operating, while violating outlined specifications.

[unclewebb]

17 hours ago, Lievre said:

The CPU *will not* go above 3.08Ghz when a game is running

http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Core_i7/Intel-Core i7-6700HQ Mobile processor.html

 

It is not supposed to. The maximum multiplier when 4 cores are active is 31. The BCLK speed is 99.77 MHz so multiply that by 31 and you get 3092 MHz. Your 6700HQ is running exactly as it was designed to run. The 6700HQ is a locked CPU. It is physically impossible to use a multiplier higher than 31 when 4 cores are active. Whatever monitoring software that told you 3.5 GHz when gaming was not reporting your CPU accurately. Reinstalling Windows will not change anything.

 

17 hours ago, Lievre said:

ThrottleStop did change something

Did you use ThrottleStop to change the Windows power plan that your computer is using? Go into the Power Options and make sure this is set to High Performance. Beyond that setting, ThrottleStop does not make any long term changes to a computer. If you shutdown your computer and do not run ThrottleStop, your computer will be exactly how it was.