A64 Clockspeed Workaround

[Mike01]

I had some issues with my A64 notebook...on battery power, the processor would only run at 33%, no matter which power mode you had it set to. This was fine most of the time, but I wanted to be able to crank it up on battery power whenever I needed it.

I looked online for solutions, but found only people complaining about the same problem.

I discovered a workaround....

Hibernate your laptop. When it comes out of Hibernation, you will be able to set it to either run at 33% all the time (max battery), Go up and down when it needs to (minimal power management) or run at full clock (desktop or laptop modes) just by switching the power mode.

I've only tested this on two laptops, and both were Gateway 74xx machines, so it may not work for everyone.

 

[fbrdphreak]

Is this a common issue with A64 notebooks? I hadn't heard about it before, but it is known that putting your power settings on Minimal Power Management is what allows AMD Cool&Quiet to dynamically clock the CPU.

 

[Mike01]

On the two laptops I had in my posetion for any length of time, there was no way to dynamically clock the CPU when running on battery...not even on minimal power management.

I looked it up online, and found that it was a common problem. While on AC power, several power modes, including minimal power management, dynamically clock the CPU, and the Desktop mode runs it at full clock all the time. On battery...only 33%.

I can't comment on whether it's a common problem on all A64 CPUs....for me it it's no longer an issue if there's an easy workaround...which this is.

 

[kenan921]

The best workaround for any A64 laptop is to use a little program called the Right Mark Utility (formerly known as AMD64CLK) it allows you to choose an exact frequency for your A64 chip, set up profiles, or have the system determine the clock speed in 200mhz increments. You can even set up profiles so you can toggle opn the fly between automatic, minimal, and maximal clock management. I've been using this program in one form or another for nearly a year now (first on my Emachines M6805 and now on my Gateway 7422GX), and it has never failed me. It even places a neat little icon on your taskbar menu that shows your realtime clockspeed, and allows you to easily change between profiles.

Good Luck

Right Mark Download Page">http://cpu.rightmark.org/download.shtml</a>

 

[Mike01]

I heard of that program, but I try to avoid TSRs whenever possible. Before you know it, your PC is full of them and it slows to a crawl. We've all got antivirusm, firewalls, antispyware, antiunderwear... It's just too much.

Besides, since I frequently bring my laptop into and out of hibernation (I almost never reboot it), all I need to do is select the right power profile for what I'm doing. Nothing can be easier than that.

If for some odd reason you like to reboot every time, this workaround is not that convenient, I admit.

 

[kenan921]

It takes a tiny footprint, and is actually recommended by AMD. Unlike hibernating this is an on the fly switch. It's easier than changing resolutions. It is literally 2 clicks to change profiles.

 

[Mike01]

I don't think you understand....once you hibernate...it's fixed...until the next time you reboot. So if instead of powering down your laptop you are the kind of person who hibernates it...then you don't have a problem.

To swtich power settings, you use the power icon...the way you're supposed to (minimal power management for dynamic clock, max battery for low clock, and desktop or laptop for full clock).

If you reboot all the time, then obviously it's better to use that software.