GPU temp

[OneByteCPU]

I have a later T61 with the 15.4 screen and an NVIDIA Quadro 140M GPU.

I just upgraded the CPU to the T8300 from a T8100. I know, not a big step, but I had to check and re-do the thermal compound anyway and I got the CPU for free (actually traded another CPU for it). I also replaced the French Canadian keyboard with an US English keyboard while I was at it.

To get to the quick .. I've just run CPUID HWMontitor on it to see what temps I'm getting and while doing nothing the CPU is running about 34C the GPU is running 60C. Playing a YT HD video brings the CPU up to 51C and the GPU 67C. So the CPU is doing fine, but is this normal for the 140M? The fan is running, but not doing anything crazy.

[kfzhu1229]

I have a later T61 with the 15.4 screen and an NVIDIA Quadro 140M GPU.

I just upgraded the CPU to the T8300 from a T8100. I know, not a big step, but I had to check and re-do the thermal compound anyway and I got the CPU for free (actually traded another CPU for it). I also replaced the French Canadian keyboard with an US English keyboard while I was at it.

To get to the quick .. I've just run CPUID HWMontitor on it to see what temps I'm getting and while doing nothing the CPU is running about 34C the GPU is running 60C. Playing a YT HD video brings the CPU up to 51C and the GPU 67C. So the CPU is doing fine, but is this normal for the 140M? The fan is running, but not doing anything crazy.

I think I have run into the same problem when downgrading the CPU from T8300 to T8100 on my barely alive T61 (and it killed the unrevised GPU in the process, which I revived by running memtest86 overnight to cook it).
My suspicion is the GPU cooling mounting on the T61. It's mostly relying on the shape of the copper coldplate of the heatsink, with just a few brackets that passively hold it down in place. When you took out the heatink, you might've bent the coldplate a little that the GPU cooling is no longer making firm pressure! In which case you wanna reseat the cooling and bend the coldplate so the GPU receives more mounting pressure!
P.S. While T8100 to T8300 on itself is actually a decent upgrade, as if you use software decoding, a T8300 handles 1080p YouTube far better than T8100, it won't play well if you wanna attempt FSB overclocks later... I found out with my slew of FSB overclocks on 965PM/GM machines, T8100 will overclock to 2.8Ghz perfectly stable with a 1066Mhz FSB, while T8300 requires more voltage to go to 3.2Ghz...

[OneByteCPU]

I checked all that at installation time. The temp does not rise very much and I'm not too concerned about the max temp, but the no-activity temp seems a bit high. This may be normal .. I just don't know enough about this chip.

[kfzhu1229]

I checked all that at installation time. The temp does not rise very much and I'm not too concerned about the max temp, but the no-activity temp seems a bit high. This may be normal .. I just don't know enough about this chip.

Well whether that temp is normal is up to how you play Full HD YouTube.
If you have a low res XGA or WXGA screen and played Full HD YouTube with h264ify and hardware encoding, then that temp is perfectly normal. This will NOT work with any resolution beyond WXGA+ as you run out of VRAM for the GPU's h264 decoder to push Full HD on those panels. If you have CPU doing the work, then there is very little load on the GPU and hence it shouldn't run that hot.

[OneByteCPU]

Not sure how I check for hardware encoding, but the display is a 1680x1050.

Playing 1080P videos is smooth and no drooped frames I can detect. I assume if the GPU is there it will be used unless you do something to prevent it.

The CPU does not seem to get overly abused during playback either.

Any hints on how I can ensure the GPU is taking care of graphics? (Seems like asking how to tell if the wheels on my car are being used for rolling, but I'm the last to assume there is nothing left for me to learn. )

[kfzhu1229]

Not sure how I check for hardware encoding, but the display is a 1680x1050.

Playing 1080P videos is smooth and no drooped frames I can detect. I assume if the GPU is there it will be used unless you do something to prevent it.

The CPU does not seem to get overly abused during playback either.

Any hints on how I can ensure the GPU is taking care of graphics? (Seems like asking how to tell if the wheels on my car are being used for rolling, but I'm the last to assume there is nothing left for me to learn. )

If your NVS140M graphics does not have 256MB of dedicated VRAM, it will NOT decode 1080p youtube as you run out of VRAM.
ONLY if you have h264ify or enhanced h264ify plugin installed and configured properly will it try to do full 1080p decoding (and it will not keep up in your case).
So I do believe you are currently dealing with CPU decoding, but the GPU might end up doing some light work.

[OneByteCPU]

Thanks for the info. Makes sense.

I watched the Supercross race on it last night in FHD with no issues. Where would I look for the required hardware the next time I'm inside it to verify?

[theterminator93]

Try installing TPFanControl. Some of the more generic hardware monitors sometimes report temperatures with an incorrect offset and may be reporting anywhere from 10-20 degrees too hot.

My T601F with the 140M and a T9900 runs in the low-mid 50s most of the time. My GPU is also overclocked and undervolted (via the 1066 FSB mod BIOS).

[unixed]

Your OS and driver plays a role. The chip can run different power profiles by varying or fixing voltage, shader, core and memory frequencies.
The linux and windows XP nvidia driver allow you to choose between 3 power profiles, the windows 7 doesn't -- I found some program (the name eludes me now) to do that with win7 some time ago. When selected to by the driver, the GPU switches between two voltages (1.15 V - 1.20 V) depending on load. When you need max performance the voltages and frequencies don't step -- a driver mode selection, much the same idea as Intel speedstep but called powermizer.
So first you can find some program that tells you what the GPU voltage is to see if it is stepping. You can search the forum for Windows programs, also if you later get interested in the hardware mod (member binh) or the BIOS (highsun) mod (both of these are great but less than perfect and I've only been interested in correcting that for the FX 570M) to undervolt the GPU but you definitely want to get the driver sorted out first and even more basic the thermal paste/pad. The CPU and GPU share the same heatsink and I've even seen thermal pads without the protective film removed.