core i5 430m running at 400 MHz

[javier_machuk]

i have an hp dm4 laptop with a core i5 430m, 4 GB ram, hd graphics and intel 510 ssd. The problem is that the computer is really slow, so i downloaded cpu-z and surprise! its says core speed is around 400 MHz with a multiplier of 3x. It occasionally goes to 2 GHz and in that case it is really snappy, but the majority of the time sits at 400 MHz even on full load. I downloaded the latest chipset driver from hp but the problem persist. Any ideas of what is going on? it's beginning to drive me crazy!

 

[Kenmitch]

Did it come with the SSD or did you swap it in? If swapped was windows a fresh install? System restore? Cloned the drive?

Laptops sometimes have factory software that'll allow one to change power setting. Maybe look and see if it's set to max battery or something like green, etc

 

[javier_machuk]

I did a clean install of win 7 ultimate.. installed all the drivers that came with my computer, tried downloading the new drivers from hp's webpage but the problem persist, the rare thing is that when i bootup sometimes it stays at ~2GHz for a short period of time and it is very snappy, but then it drops to 400 MHz again and stays there. From what i know, no core i5 first gen should work at 400 MHz even if it is on power saving mode, when my computer was new, the lowest it would go was ~1.3 GHz (10x multiplier) if it was on power saving mode

 

[Rifter]

what are the temps? Im thinking its throttling the chip due to heat.

 

[javier_machuk]

around 50C.. i dont think thats the reason.. I've just put my battery, disconnected from AC and it works fine.. maintains 1.3 GHz at idle and increase with load... I am completely lost now, i have no idea what else to do..

 

[sm625]

Go into your power plan settings and click on "Change Advanced Power Settings". Note all the differences between your "plugged in" settings and your "on battery" settings. (You have to exit Advanced Power Settings and then change plans and then go back into Advanced Power Settings.) Change all your "plugged in" settings to match your "on battery" settings. If that works then work backwards to figure out which setting is causing the problem.

 

[javier_machuk]

already done it, i exactly matched the configurations for battery and AC, but it still down-clock when i plug the AC on. It happens on all power settings(balanced, power saver and high performance) any other ideas?

 

[Rifter]

return it, sounds like either the power management on the mobo or CPU is no good.

 

[javier_machuk]

unfortunately thats not a choice, i bought it from amazon USA and i live in southamerica... anyway it its about a year since i bought it and it worked fine until about a week ago BEFORE i changed the hd for the ssd, meaning that the change to an ssd its probably not the issue. Can it just fail suddenly just like that? i googled it and it doesn't seem like a common problem. I think the last thing i can do its install windows xp and see how that turns around; how can i get the drivers for win xp? (or would i need any?), since i don't think that the win 7 ones will work in xp..

 

[Rifter]

well you could take it apart make sure the inside is clean and dust free and hope it works ok again when you put it back together. Just because the CPU itself isnt over heating doesnt mean the mobo isnt.

I dont think going to XP is going to help but it might be worth a shot. Burning a linux live CD and running that would be faster and have no permanent effects, might be a better idea than installing XP to the HD then having to uninstall and re install win 7 later.

 

[javier_machuk]

i made a booteable pen with ubuntu 10.04 and did run it in "live cd" mode. I used the frequency monitor that you can put in the top bar and it showed the correct speed, the problem is that i don't know if it is reading right, since in win 7 cpu-z reads 400 MHz and coretemp reads the "normal (~2 GHz)" speed. I first though that cpu-z was the one reading it incorrectly but the computer is really slow, and when cpu-z says its running at 1.3 GHz or up (when its on battery) it feels really fast, so i concluded that cpu-z was actually reading it correctly..
thanks for the help btw

 

[Rifter]

you could download linpak for linux and run the benchmark then compare it to posted i5 results to figure out if your CPU is running at rated speed in linux. If it is then i guess it is somehow a win 7 issue.

http://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/intel-math-kernel-library-linpack-download/