T43 fan questions

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manny · #1 Post by **manny** » Sat Apr 16, 2005 7:27 am

I've had my T43 2687D8U for a week now, and it is awesome. The screen is nice and bright and the laptop is thin, light and well-built. I am however a bit concerned about the fan - it runs all the time - even though I am not really doing much on it. I do have it connected through the wireless network so I don't know if that keeps it on. The sound is not very looud, but can be hear very clearly. Even when I put the display brightness down to 0 and the CPU speed to 'lowest' in the Power Manager, it keeps running whether on battery or not. Can someone please let me know if this is normal? Or can I do something to stop the fan running so much?

Cheers.

#2 Post by **K. Eng** » Sat Apr 16, 2005 9:00 am

Hmm... this seems to be a recuring annoyance on some ThinkPads, my own T40 included.

I did some tests on my T40 and found, to my surprise, that the fan would shut off if the wireless card was disabled. I also found that the fan would shut off if I was running on batteries.

tgtoss · #3 Post by **tgtoss** » Sat Apr 16, 2005 1:02 pm

manny wrote:I've had my T43 2687D8U for a week now, and it is awesome. The screen is nice and bright and the laptop is thin, light and well-built. I am however a bit concerned about the fan - it runs all the time - even though I am not really doing much on it. I do have it connected through the wireless network so I don't know if that keeps it on. The sound is not very looud, but can be hear very clearly. Even when I put the display brightness down to 0 and the CPU speed to 'lowest' in the Power Manager, it keeps running whether on battery or not. Can someone please let me know if this is normal?
Cheers.

Normal... and if you want to know more.. just search "fan issue"

manny · #4 Post by **manny** » Sat Apr 16, 2005 3:01 pm

If its normal I guess there is not much to be done. I was also just curious whether this was a disadvatage of having a faster CPU t43 over a T42. I'll skip the search for the 'fan issue' since this is supposed to be normal. No point agonizing over something thats normal, not-fixable and not that annoying anyway.
Thanks.

tgtoss · #5 Post by **tgtoss** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 8:14 am

hum...

it is not fixable , but it is meaningful to check your setting ,

I mean speed step setting or power management setting.

If you don't need SXGA+ , X31 can be recommended ..

much more heat but less fan ..

jmt · #6 Post by **jmt** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 9:30 am

I have both a T42 1.7g and a T43 2.0g. With both CPUs set to adaptive the T42 idles at 600mhz with a temp. that varies between 39c to 42c. The T43 idles at 800mhz. with a temp. of 47c. The T42's fan is silent while the T43 runs continuously. I like the T43 better but I cannot stand the loud fan noise. Unfortunately the T43 is being returned

manny · #7 Post by **manny** » Tue Apr 19, 2005 10:35 pm

Is it possible to set the T43 to idle at 600mhz and see if it becomes quiet?

#8 Post by **aamsel** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:50 am

I also noticed that the fan runs more and is louder on the T43 than on the T42 that I had.

Andrew
Austin, TX

jmt · #9 Post by **jmt** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 12:57 am

manny wrote:Is it possible to set the T43 to idle at 600mhz and see if it becomes quiet?

jmt wrote:I have both a T42 1.7g and a T43 2.0g. With both CPUs set to adaptive the T42 idles at 600mhz with a temp. that varies between 39c to 42c. The T43 idles at 800mhz. with a temp. of 47c. The T42's fan is silent while the T43 runs continuously. I like the T43 better but I cannot stand the loud fan noise. Unfortunately the T43 is being returned

The lowest I could get it to idle was 800 mhz on the 2.0g prosser. At that setting the noise was stll quite loud, much louder than my T42

FTC · #10 Post by **FTC** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 3:37 am

Hi, if you want to lower temps, another option is to lower the voltage with the help of the RM Clock utility. With the help of this tool I've been able to lower 8ºC the temp of my BANIAS processor by reducing voltage from 1.484v to 1.421. However, if you do this, be prepared to test hard for stability with programs such as PRIME95 or similar.

manny · #11 Post by **manny** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 5:01 pm

Can this clocking app. harm the TP in anyway? I'm not sure what PRIME95 is.

FTC · #12 Post by **FTC** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 5:17 pm

Hi,

No, changing the VIDs of the processor to lower values than default (which is what RM Clock utility does) will not harm your hardware, but it can cause unstability... if you go too far. This is why you need to verify at every step with a stress test utility (such as PRIME95) that your CPU is still responding correctly when operating at such low voltages.

In a sense the technique is similar to overclocking your system, but much less agressive since you are *lowering* the stress on the silicon instead of increasing it.

manny · #13 Post by **manny** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 5:31 pm

Has anyone had any success doing this with a T43 and making the fan quieter?
I don't know whether at this point it is worth sending in my T43 to get a T42. Does anyone know of a T42 model that has a similar config to mine (see sig below)? It would be nice to have bluetooth, 3 yr warranty, and fingerprint reader as well. I got a great deal on this through EPP, so I'm reluctant on sending back (about 1600 incl tax + shipping) just for the fan noise, and possibly lack of bluetooth (can't think of uses for fingerprint reader). If I can quiten the fan down, I only lack the bluetooth which I beleive can be had for a small price and can replace the current wireless mini PCI.

manny · #14 Post by **manny** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 8:59 pm

Does anyone else have problems with the T43 overheating?

ppk800 · #15 Post by **ppk800** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 3:25 pm

I have been experiencing with my T43 (2668-94U) since Monday. I have not had any problem with respect to fan noise. My wireless is on at all times and the left fan is on simultaneously; however, I have not noticed any "loud" noise. It could just be very subjective regarding how loud is loud. I do not have the means to measure the dB ...

I did notice that the fan(s) significantly increased the rpm when I played game while the wireless function was still left on. However, the fan(s) did not remain to blow out the hot air at this higher speed continuously. While playing games, I noticed the left side of the laptop to be hot, especially the bottom portion right below the vent. It was hot, but not unbearable!

fbrdphreak · #16 Post by **fbrdphreak** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 3:29 pm

The T43's definitely run hotted and the fans are louder in my opinion.
I'm reviewing a T43 now and I have to say I wouldn't own one for that main reason: more power draw = more heat = less batt life; no thanks!

in regards to getting the T43 proc to idle @ 600MHz instead of 800MHz, that won't happen w/out changing the Front Side Bus. The T42's idle @ 600MHz because at idle it uses a 6x multiplier, i.e. 6*100MHz FSB = 600MHz CPU clock
Sonoma platform (T43) uses 133MHz FSB, i.e. 6*133=800

Sonoma is neat & all, I like the extra perf & DDR2, but its not worth the loss in batt life if you ask me. Just buy a T42 and get one of the new higher capacity batt's for the T43's

davidlg16 · #17 Post by **davidlg16** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:01 pm

i dont think T43 is that bad on the battery...

I have a 9 cell on my T43, and it lasts a little more than 4 hours with the battery set to "max performance", LCD is set to brightest...and it lasts about 5.5 hours with battery set to "max battery life", LCD set to low brightness. Doing browsing with Wifi always on in both cases

I got these results from continuous use from the battery is at 100% until the T43 goes into standby on its own at 3%

The fan is significantly louder than my FVU tho

fbrdphreak · #18 Post by **fbrdphreak** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:15 pm

The battery life isn't "bad" by any means. But IBM upped the battery capacities by about 10% to compensate for the extra power draw of the Sonoma platform. Take your 9-cell and slap it on a similar clock speed T42, you'll see more batt life.

#19 Post by **daeojkim** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:15 pm

jmt wrote:I have both a T42 1.7g and a T43 2.0g. With both CPUs set to adaptive the T42 idles at 600mhz with a temp. that varies between 39c to 42c. The T43 idles at 800mhz. with a temp. of 47c. The T42's fan is silent while the T43 runs continuously. I like the T43 better but I cannot stand the loud fan noise. Unfortunately the T43 is being returned

I did not know that T43 idles at 800MHz during adaptive mode. This could explain why the fan is on all the time. My T42 idles at around 42 C but if it goes to 47 C then the fan would run faster and clearly I can hear the noise.
Unless you can somehow set the idle speed to 600MHz in T43 to make it run cooler, I don't think there a way around to make it quiet.

fbrdphreak · #20 Post by **fbrdphreak** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:19 pm

in regards to getting the T43 proc to idle @ 600MHz instead of 800MHz, that won't happen w/out changing the Front Side Bus. The T42's idle @ 600MHz because at idle it uses a 6x multiplier, i.e. 6*100MHz FSB = 600MHz CPU clock
Sonoma platform (T43) uses 133MHz FSB, i.e. 6*133=800

manny · #21 Post by **manny** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:44 pm

So which T42 model can you guys recommend? I'd get the FVU but I would need to add on 3 yr warranty, dvd ubrner, 60gb drive, extra ram, etc. It may cost much more than my current T43.

pointfielder · #22 Post by **pointfielder** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 2:21 am

I saw the following page on Thinkpads' fan noise problem:
http://www.thinkwiki.org/Problem_with_fan_noise

People can try out some of the things there and report here
whether it worked for them or not.

danny_isr · #23 Post by **danny_isr** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 4:55 am

from looking on that page i learn that this problem fan on all the time is not T43 problem only, all the t4x may suffer from it

manny · #24 Post by **manny** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 7:44 am

The noise I refer to on my T43 is not very loud and does not sound like something is wrong. Its just that the fan is constantly on even when I am just reading a web page. I oculd understand if I was playing games or a DVD or doing something computationally intensive, but I think it should be silent when I just a web browser open and using the wireless connection. I don't know whether this is a problem or something normal that simply annoys me, but I would like to know if a T42 functions similarly. In that case, it is not even worth considering switching to a T42 as I really like this TP and can live with the fan contstantly on. Btw, are the Dell Inspirons any better with fan noise?

danny_isr · #25 Post by **danny_isr** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 8:08 am

mine is the same . it's on all the time (it did stop few times , or at least i noticed few time).
it's not laud at all , but like u said , it can be anoyying .
so i think it's "normal" for T43's . maybe IBM will send some update driver that will fix this ... ?

manny · #26 Post by **manny** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 11:29 am

The link above seems to suggest the problem may be solved by controlling the clocking for the ATI graphics card. Has anyone had any luck with this?

fefland · #27 Post by **fefland** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 9:08 am

I have been reading through the fan issues and have a couple questions. There have been posts saying the fan is loud and on all the time, and hearing it described different ways.

1. Is the noise the air pushing through or a buzz/hum of the fan motor, both?
2. When fan is running, is the thinkpad still warm and/or hot?

I haven't got the T43p I ordered yet. I currently have an A21p. It gets hot. When the fan turns on it is still quiet. With the new Sonoma platform, M770, and a new PCIe graphics card shouldn't one exect higher temps, thus the fan on more? If the fan is an issue now, will it get worse as technology advances? Does anyone know if liquid cooling would help?

One last question, do the other manufacturers have the same cooling issues with their Sonoma laptops?

Sorry for so many questions, just trying to understand the problem better.

danny_isr · #28 Post by **danny_isr** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 12:15 pm

on mine ,the fan is on almost all the time. it's not laud at all and i need to be in quiet place to hear it . (but it can still be annoying if it's very quiet around)

i just hear air blowing out , no buz . some times i need to put my hand near the vents to check if it's works or not (and it's most of the time on),

and it's still warm.

i hope that helps

jmt · #29 Post by **jmt** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 1:13 pm

More power + More speed = More HEAT.

There is nothing wrong and looking for what's wrong is futile. This is the only reason the fan in the T43 runs all time. If you similarly equipped a T 42 it's fan would also run all the time to deal with the higher temperature.

danny_isr · #30 Post by **danny_isr** » Sun Apr 24, 2005 1:28 pm

some times i feel this forum is all about "what's wrong" with those laptops

i notice "bad" things about this laptop only because i was reading here .
like for example "leak of light from the right side of the screen " I would have never notice that by myself …

and now the T43 officially got a PROBLEM with the fan . it's really funny how a rumor becomes a fact (usually by people that never even seen a T43), and that's it . guys asking now for T42 recommendation instead because they won't buy a laptop with a problem. (and i dont blame them)

I Understand that Sonoma chipset had high expectation , and the T43 maybe didn’t fill them. But hey it’s still a very good/fast laptop. And most likely over all faster then T42. So what’s going on here ??? beyond me.

this is by far the best , fastest , highest quality PC i ever own , period !

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