Laptop constantly overheating (Reaching temperatures of 80/90c)

[SwHJoKeR]

Hi, I bought this laptop a good 5 months ago, I'm not sure if I've done something to the laptop but in the last 2 months it keeps overheating, sometimes if I turn the fan off from being on maximum it shuts off due to overheating.

This happens even if I'm not using the laptop for gaming purposes, it runs hot just on startup and if I don't have the fans on max from startup it'll overheat.

I have it on a flat surface, and slightly raised at the back to make sure the bottom fans have some room to breathe, I do have it running most of the day, but as stated even on startup after a good 8 hours or so from being turned off it runs hot. Someone suggested I remove the battery and leave it plugged in which seemed to have worked for a short amount of time but it's back to overheating again.

Any help or suggestions would be great.

Specs for reference.

 

[Resistance100]

Can you post your full specs from the order page so we know what we're looking at

 

[SwHJoKeR]

Can you post your full specs from the order page so we know what we're looking at

Sure here they are.

 

[DarkPaladin]

If it's overheating to the extent that it's shutting down, the first thing I'd do is open up the laptop and check to see if the air vents and fans have too much dust build-up. If that is the case, it's definitely worth cleaning them out carefully with compressed air and/or cotton buds.
After that, I'd definitely check to see about doing a repaste on the CPU + GPU. I'd personally recommend either:

• Grizzly Kyronaut (excellent at keeping temps cool, but it can dry out and require frequent repastes if temps exceed 80 degrees)
• Noctua NT-H2 (difficult to come by on Amazon due to supply/demand issues, but it does the job well and spreads easily)
• Coolermaster Mastergel Maker

If temps are still bad after a good cleanout, and a good thermal paste application, I'd consider looking into purchasing a laptop cooling pad.
undervolting the CPU slightly in Throttlestop. I'm using KLIM Cyclone for mine and reduces the temperatures by a few degrees.

If all else fails, it might be worth undervolting the CPU in Throttlestop by small increments to see if that helps reduce temperatures.

Hopefully it gets sorted out!

 

[SwHJoKeR]

If it's overheating to the extent that it's shutting down, the first thing I'd do is open up the laptop and check to see if the air vents and fans have too much dust build-up. If that is the case, it's definitely worth cleaning them out carefully with compressed air and/or cotton buds.
After that, I'd definitely check to see about doing a repaste on the CPU + GPU. I'd personally recommend either:

• Grizzly Kyronaut (excellent at keeping temps cool, but it can dry out and require frequent repastes if temps exceed 80 degrees)
• Noctua NT-H2 (difficult to come by on Amazon due to supply/demand issues, but it does the job well and spreads easily)
• Coolermaster Mastergel Maker

If temps are still bad after a good cleanout, and a good thermal paste application, I'd consider looking into purchasing a laptop cooling pad.
undervolting the CPU slightly in Throttlestop. I'm using KLIM Cyclone for mine and reduces the temperatures by a few degrees.

If all else fails, it might be worth undervolting the CPU in Throttlestop by small increments to see if that helps reduce temperatures.

Hopefully it gets sorted out!

Thanks that's all useful information and I'll give it a go! I'm a bit unsure about opening up my own laptop because I'm a bit heavy-handed but I've got a mate who might be able to do it with less risk.

I've been looking at a cooling pad but there are so many different ones out there I'm not sure what to get.

I'll give this Throttlestop a go as well while I wait for both of those things to happen, can't hurt to own it or at least give it a go!

Edit: I checked out Throttlestop and apparently it doesn't support AMD CPU's unfortunately.

 

[FerrariVie]

Thanks that's all useful information and I'll give it a go! I'm a bit unsure about opening up my own laptop because I'm a bit heavy-handed but I've got a mate who might be able to do it with less risk.

I've been looking at a cooling pad but there are so many different ones out there I'm not sure what to get.

I'll give this Throttlestop a go as well while I wait for both of those things to happen, can't hurt to own it or at least give it a go!

Edit: I checked out Throttlestop and apparently it doesn't support AMD CPU's unfortunately.

That is very unusual for a Nova chassis, since the fans work so well. Even though my CPU is different, I can game with the fans at around 50% and keep CPU temperatures below 75°, so you should be somewhere below 80° I would say, or 85° max and that is still far from the 96° limit, so wouldn't make your laptop shutdown.

Yeah, throttlestop won't work on AMD. We have alternatives though, but don't think that this alone is going to solve your issue. Have you received your laptop with windows or have you installed it yourself? Just asking because you need to have Control Center software up and running so that you could switch between the different power profiles. 3 things to check:

1. If you click on the start button and type "Choose a power plan" and then select that, what plan is selected at the moment? It should be called Ryzen Balanced or something like that;
2. Now go into Control Center software (you should be able to find it as a tray icon) and find out which power profile are you using (from power saving, quiet, entertainment and performance). Change the power mode to quiet, as that should make your CPU use less power, producing less heat and noise. However, keep in mind that quiet should not be used for gaming as it is reducing performance, so you need to switch to entertainment whenever you want to play something. Performance should be avoided if you're having thermal issues.
3. For testing purposes, make sure that you're not using a custom fan curve. Leave it on the default/auto and check your temps now.

The quiet mode should give you some comfort over light usage. If you're still having issues after making those 2 changes that I suggested, either on quiet or gaming on entertainment, then it is very likely that you have dust blocking the fans (or are they turned off for some reason?) or your thermal paste is gone and needs replacement, as @DarkPaladin rightly said.

 

[SwHJoKeR]

That is very unusual for a Nova chassis, since the fans work so well. Even though

Yeah, throttlestop won't work on AMD. We have alternatives though, but don't think that this alone is going to solve your issue. Have you received your laptop with windows or have you installed it yourself? Just asking because you need to have C
my CPU is different, I can game with the fans at around 50% and keep CPU temperatures below 75°, so you should be somewhere below 80° I would say, or 85° max and that is still far from the 96° limit, so wouldn't make your laptop shutdown.


ontrol Center software up and running so that you could switch between the different power profiles. 3 things to check:

1. If you click on the start button and type "Choose a power plan" and then select that, what plan is selected at the moment? It should be called Ryzen Balanced or something like that;
2. Now go into Control Center software (you should be able to find it as a tray icon) and find out which power profile are you using (from power saving, quiet, entertainment and performance). Change the power mode to quiet, as that should make your CPU use less power, producing less heat and noise. However, keep in mind that quiet should not be used for gaming as it is reducing performance, so you need to switch to entertainment whenever you want to play something. Performance should be avoided if you're having thermal issues.
3. For testing purposes, make sure that you're not using a custom fan curve. Leave it on the default/auto and check your temps now.

The quiet mode should give you some comfort over light usage. If you're still having issues after making those 2 changes that I suggested, either on quiet or gaming on entertainment, then it is very likely that you have dust blocking the fans (or are they turned off for some reason?) or your thermal paste is gone and needs replacement, as @DarkPaladin rightly said.

Thanks for the advice!

-I do have the power plan set like that so it's ok there.

-I actually can't put it on Quiet mode, that's the time when it mostly overheats and shuts off, I found that having it in Entertainment mode keeps it from shutting off, but not from reaching temperatures of 85° or more.
-I have the curve set as default but at the same time because of the overheating, I always have the fan on max to avoid it being too hot.

I ended up buying a cooling pad, which seems to help for casual use, but when gaming my laptop is still reaching temperatures of 90°.

I do agree it must be the thermal paste, because I didn't have this issue a few months ago, or maybe somehow a fan might have broken? If I open it up that doesn't void any warranty does it? Would it be better to send it back to PC Specialists for them to have a look?

 

[JUNI0R]

Thanks for the advice!

-I do have the power plan set like that so it's ok there.

-I actually can't put it on Quiet mode, that's the time when it mostly overheats and shuts off, I found that having it in Entertainment mode keeps it from shutting off, but not from reaching temperatures of 85° or more.
-I have the curve set as default but at the same time because of the overheating, I always have the fan on max to avoid it being too hot.

I ended up buying a cooling pad, which seems to help for casual use, but when gaming my laptop is still reaching temperatures of 90°.

I do agree it must be the thermal paste, because I didn't have this issue a few months ago, or maybe somehow a fan might have broken? If I open it up that doesn't void any warranty does it? Would it be better to send it back to PC Specialists for them to have a look?

I'm no where near an expert on laptops so wouldn't have an idea to do a self diagnose/ repair.

What I do know is that for a laptop of 5 months old, this shouldn't be happening. It seems like you've tried a few things to not much avail. I'd get on the phone to PCS as soon as and explain the issue and what you've tried. The wait times are long due to covid so I'd recommend calling early (open at 9 on monday - saturday) but their customer support is fantastic and they will do what's needed to get your issue sorted!

 

[Deleted member 41971]

if this is of interest, Jays 2 cents re pasted the cpu and gpu of what I think is the nova chaises, this may help or not as the case maybe,

 

[JUNI0R]

if this is of interest, Jays 2 cents re pasted the cpu and gpu of what I think is the nova chaises, this may help or not as the case maybe,

Jay is great! But you might want to check the warranty before you open up your laptop. I know they operate on an open case basis for desktops but I'm not sure it's the same for laptops

 

[SpyderTracks]

Jay is great! But you might want to check the warranty before you open up your laptop. I know they operate on an open case basis for desktops but I'm not sure it's the same for laptops

Yes, it's the same, you can repaste or do anything to the internals so long as you don't damage in the process.

It's likely just a bad paste job, happens all the time. that's the first thing I would try.

 

[DarkPaladin]

Agreed with Sypdertracks. Two extra points I'd like to share that'll hopefully help you out:

• From my experience with laptops, applying thermal paste is very much trial and error. Sometimes it spreads perfectly, other times temps aren't ideal and it might be worth re-doing it
• Additionally, there's dozens of ways to apply thermal paste but the method which gave the best results for me would be the X method, since that usually spreads the past across the CPU/GPU almost perfectly when the heatsink is seated correctly.

 

[Ambassador Spock]

It's likely just a bad paste job, happens all the time. that's the first thing I would try.

I really hate to be "that guy", but is that really acceptable? I am having (I think) the same issue with my 17.3" Defiance - the system is running insanely hot even when doing what I would consider very "mild gaming" (early-game Factorio or Eve Online on "potato" settings). I am hoping it is just a bad paste job, but I have seen people having similar issues over and over and over on these forums. We are paying an awful lot of money for these systems, is it really okay for so many of them to be shipped out with issues? I am personally not comfortable with the idea of re-pasting the system myself - I paid £2,200 for a laptop so I wouldn't have to worry about things like this. I have the Gold warranty so I can send it back to get fixed free of charge, but I can't really do without it for a month - I'm teleworking due to covid and I need the laptop... Everyone is human, even the PCS techs, so a bad paste job here and there is unfortunate but expected. But I have seen so many posts like this in the past year, it is really discouraging.

 

[SpyderTracks]

I really hate to be "that guy", but is that really acceptable? I am having (I think) the same issue with my 17.3" Defiance - the system is running insanely hot even when doing what I would consider very "mild gaming" (early-game Factorio or Eve Online on "potato" settings). I am hoping it is just a bad paste job, but I have seen people having similar issues over and over and over on these forums. We are paying an awful lot of money for these systems, is it really okay for so many of them to be shipped out with issues? I am personally not comfortable with the idea of re-pasting the system myself - I paid £2,200 for a laptop so I wouldn't have to worry about things like this. I have the Gold warranty so I can send it back to get fixed free of charge, but I can't really do without it for a month - I'm teleworking due to covid and I need the laptop... Everyone is human, even the PCS techs, so a bad paste job here and there is unfortunate but expected. But I have seen so many posts like this in the past year, it is really discouraging.

As someone who has built many laptops and desktops over the last 20 years, it’s both acceptable and unavoidable. It’s just one of those things that happens in system building.

Happens the same with any other manufacturer as well, branded, custom.

 

[Ambassador Spock]

As someone who has built many laptops and desktops over the last 20 years, it’s both acceptable and unavoidable. It’s just one of those things that happens in system building.

Happens the same with any other manufacturer as well, branded, custom.

That is unfortunate indeed then. This is my second PCS laptop I've bought, and I can't say I'm happy with either of them. I really hope it just needs re-pasting, but I'm not confident enough to do it myself, and I am loathe to risk being without a laptop at all for a month... Whereabouts do you live Spyder, do you want to re-paste it for me?

 

[SpyderTracks]

That is unfortunate indeed then. This is my second PCS laptop I've bought, and I can't say I'm happy with either of them. I really hope it just needs re-pasting, but I'm not confident enough to do it myself, and I am loathe to risk being without a laptop at all for a month... Whereabouts do you live Spyder, do you want to re-paste it for me?

This is what a lot of people don’t realise. Buying a custom laptop is like buying a kit car - you have to know how the car works and it will take constant maintenance.

It’s entirely different to buying a branded laptop.

A lot of people don’t realise that and buy it because it’s cheaper not knowing the extra work required to maintain them.