Loud fan

[AKD]

Hi, I just bought a used x20, p3 version. And the fan is quite loud compared to most laptops, although it is fine in general, when i am in the library it seems VERY loud (and i study there daily). Does anybody else have this problem or is there a problem with the one i bought. I am just wondering if i should buy and install a new fan or if it is all the same. OR is there any way to throttle the fan speed?

I searched this forum, there is a lot on other models but have not found people complaining about this model, does anybody else think it is loud?


Thanks,
Matt.

[selvan777]

I often use mine in the dead of the night with total silence and I don't think it's loud, in fact, it's quite quiet. But than again I'm not exposed to other X20's to compare with.

[AKD]

Thanks for the reply!


I actually just encountered someone on campus walking with an x20, the guy was nice enough to power his on so that i could hear it. I powered mine too and it makes about twice the noise.

So next step is to replace the fan, i can obtain a fan but dont know how to take the laptop apart. I took off all the screws off the bottom but something is still holding it , if you have any idea please let me know.

thanks.

[monty cantsin]

So next step is to replace the fan, i can obtain a fan but dont know how to take the laptop apart. I took off all the screws off the bottom but something is still holding it , if you have any idea please let me know.

Hardware Maintenance Manual:
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... IGR-4UZMN7

[selvan777]

I hope that manual helps, I have no hands-on experience.

[AKD]

thanks for the manual. Now i have everything to change the fan.

But i do have a new problem.... yesterday i was on the web just reading, no surfing just reading 1 page (no cpu usage) , my battery was at 11% and all of a sudden the fan shutdown (i still have not changed it). Everything totally silent...so i waited for about 2 minutes then decided i should plug in, in case the fan is not operating due to low battery and cpu overheats. Once plugged in (2 sec or so after) the fan started up again. So i unplugged it again and this time fan did not turn off, battery took another 15 min or so to die and fan was still on....also after plugging in i just left it to ensure no/low cpu usage. So now i am thinking maybe it's not the fan but a heat sensor or something? this had happened twice before when i first got the laptop. before bios upgrades i had many bsod's and the fan turned off on two occasions.......

So now i am really confused. I am guessing maybe the fan has trouble so cpu overheats, which leads to fan always being on.... I cant get cpu temperature monitors to work on the laptop ( i tried two, one being speedfan, dont remember other but they work on my desktop.) I went to computer stores and found a bunch of x21's and they were all silent, so i know that its abnormal. Comparing prices i got a good deal so i could just sell it to someone who does not mind the fan but i like fixing computers, so want to keep trying.

Is there a cpu temp monitor you know of to work on thinkpads/laptops? if there is maybe we could use that to compare our laptops and see if mine is overheating. if it is then it's probobally then fan, otherwise somehting else....although if it is overheating why did plugging in suddenly turn fan on with no other activity? maybe it would have turned on anyway?????

anyways, sorry for the long post and thanks for the help, i really appreciate it.

p.s.- selvan I checked out your website, you have the cutest kid.

[AKD]

Ok so i found 2 cpu monitor utilities that work..
one is mobile meter http://www.geocities.co.jp/SiliconValley-Oakland/8259/
other is http://hmonitor.net/product.html

both give around 59 C!!! This is with normal web surfing alone. someone with a x21 in the forum says his runs around 56 but on the ibm page (http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... IGR-4KYMXK)
it says between 5-35C is normal temp!

Selvan, or others with x20's are you getting same temps or lower??

When i get time i will try to somehow cool the case and see if that stops the fan....

thanks!

[skanky]

my X21 is about 40C idle running up to about 55C+ when in use :/ as far as i cna tell, my fan is working, it just gets really hot!

[AKD]

well this morning when i first booted up temp was 40, and last night i put a fan on the bottom of the case, lowered the temp to 44 from 60 but no help....also, this would not really explain how the fan shut off on it's own when i was using it considering it could not have lowered to less than 44 on it's own.

my old thinkpad a 760el (133mhz) would also run so hot without a similar problem...

the other night when i was browsing used laptops for comparison i saw a x23 with broken screen and hd/ ram removed, the guy asked $300 canadian for it, I will see if it is the same lcd as in x20 , if it is, i will try to buy that for a lower price (300 is way too high, considering i already paid 500 for this laptop making my total come to 800) and put my x20 lcd in there. Then i get a 866mhz cpu , more ram capability and hopefully quiet fan. and i think infra red, which i dont really need right now.

It's a pity thinkpads are so sexy , I cant bring myself to sell it and just buy a dell l400 , i prefer the touchpad too.


Well i am going to try seeing if that x23 switch is possible (if parts are exchangeable), if anybody thinks its a bad idea please let me know since once i buy it i will be stuck with it even if switching parts dont help.

Thanks for all the input so far, and thanks again for that repair manual it is really helpful. Especially if i do the x23 switch thing.

[AKD]

OOPS!

Ok i have a very amature mistake to admit. It's not the fan at all, it is the Hard disk!!!!! After removing the hd and turning comp on it is totally quiet! Fan is obviously on but no noise!

That explains a lot. Well i do need a bigger hd anyways, so i will look into that. This makes things a lot simpler.....although i was kind of looking forward to having fun with the x23

I will post here once i can buy and test another hd to let you all know.....

[monty cantsin]

So now i am thinking maybe it's not the fan but a heat sensor or something?

The thermal diode is built into the CPU.

before bios upgrades i had many bsod's

Sounds bad. Which OS are you running? BSOD do happen with W9x even on systems that are perfectly OK, but they shouldn't occur with Windows 2000 or XP.

and the fan turned off on two occasions.......

That doesn't necessarily have to be a malfunction, perhaps the CPU is cool enough so that the fan simply doesn't need to be turned on. My ThinkPad 570E with a P3-500 CPU starts its fan only when the CPU temperature goes above roughly 70 degrees C, so that means that the fan isn't running most of the time, as the system stays at about 50 degrees in general when working on it, even when it is placed on the laps.

I am guessing maybe the fan has trouble so cpu overheats, which leads to fan always being on....

You didn't tell us anything about your software installation. Could also be screwed up drivers and the like. A fresh Windows XP Pro installation running the video driver that comes with the operating system by default gives me around 60 degrees C on the aforementioned ThinkPad 570E when it is idling. After installing the Windows 2000 display driver provided by IBM, the temperature goes down by 20 degrees.

both give around 59 C!!! This is with normal web surfing alone. someone with a x21 in the forum says his runs around 56 but on the ibm page (http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... IGR-4KYMXK)
it says between 5-35C is normal temp!

No, you misinterpreted this. These values are related to the ambient temperature of the air in which the computer is operated, and it is also a very conservative specification. People have been using their ThinkPads even in tropical and arctical areas of the world successfully. Particularly the X-Series:

http://www-5.ibm.com/ch/franklin/images ... dpi_kl.jpg

http://www.ictworld.co.za/EditorialEdit ... &Archive=1

And when non-operational, they can even stand much more. A German guy thought it would be a good idea to put his Thinkpad in the oven in order to hide it from burglars, until his wife baked the computer at 180C. The system no longer looked pretty, but at least it remained fully functional...

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/ ... i_94778749

Btw., a baked ThinkPad can look like this:

http://www.wfu.edu/%7Ejld/bakedthinkpad.html



The P3-500 in my TP 570E on which I am typing this right now can stand as much as 100C before it has to be shut down. Actually I have been running it at 95C once, when because of an error the fan did not turn on as it was expected. Start Mobile Meter, right-click its icon in the systray, choose "Options" and in the window that opens, go to the "ACPI temperature" tab. "Critical temperature" is the temperature at which the computer has be turned off in order to prevent severe damages, "Passive Cooling Temperature" is the point at which CPU speed throttling kicks in, "Active Cooling Temperature" finally shows the value at which the fan should go on. Only if it does not do so, there's something seriously wrong.

[monty cantsin]

OOPS!

Ah, I see. Problem solved, OK...

[AKD]

Monty, Sorry for making you go through all that trouble, my bad.... I appreciate your insight. I am amazed at how much knowledge you have, are you an ibm rep or just crazy about thinkpads? Is that picture with the guy in the arctic real?

Thanks to everyone who helped...