Dell Latitude 5420 - i7 1185G7

[TurboGlitch]

Hello,
So I have a Dell Laptop with an i7 1185G7, which can't be undervolted.
I needed some suggestions about the Power Limit settings on this CPU. The static PL1 and PL2 are 40W and 60W respectively but the dynamic PL1 after a while goes down to 15W. When playing a game, it stays at 15W, and the temps hover around 60C.

Is it better to change PL1 and PL2 using throttlestop, setting PL1 to 18W and PL2 to 40W for example, because the dynamic PL2 stays at 57W most of the time anyways, but the dynamic PL1 goes to 34W sometimes, so will I lose a lot of performance under normal usage (YouTube, Discord, browsing, app startup/load times) or will it be fine at 18W. And is it a good idea to stress the CPU using CPU-Z using different Power Limit values to find the right temps and the right TDP?

Also, is it fine if I change the PL1 and PL2 values time to time, can doing that damage the CPU in someway? And are 75-85C temps fine, because the laptop feels pretty hot at the bottom.

 

[unclewebb]

the dynamic PL1 after a while goes down to 15W

I prefer to check the MMIO Lock box in ThrottleStop. That disables the dynamic power limits. After you do that, you can set the MSR PL1 and PL2 power limits however you like.

is it fine if I change the PL1 and PL2 values time to time, can doing that damage the CPU in someway

No one can predict when your 5 year old laptop will die. It might die tomorrow whether you are using ThrottleStop or not.

A million people a year download and use ThrottleStop. Not a lot of reports of computers being damaged because they used ThrottleStop to adjust the power limits. Your computer has locked out CPU voltage control so it is even less likely to cause any damage.

Ultimately you have to take full responsibility for your computer. Do not use ThrottleStop if you think it could damage it.

 

[TurboGlitch]

I prefer to check the MMIO Lock box in ThrottleStop. That disables the dynamic power limits. After you do that, you can set the MSR PL1 and PL2 power limits however you like.

I will do that. Also, are temperatures around 75°C to 85°C okay? And does speed shift in the TPL window reduce the maximum speed? For example reducing it from 48 to 38 should bring the max speed to 3800MHz? If so, i tried reducing it but the speed still goes to 4200MHz when playing a game.

Thank you.

 

[unclewebb]

are temperatures around 75°C to 85°C okay?

Intel says any temperature less than 100°C is a "safe operating temperature". That is why Intel sets the default thermal throttling temperature to 100°C for the majority of their CPUs. This keeps the CPU at a safe temperature. The majority of laptops set the PROCHOT temperature to less than 100°C so the CPU is extra safe. The main screen of ThrottleStop will show the PROCHOT temperature. There is no reason for most users to worry about the CPU temperature. Intel CPUs are well engineered to take care of themselves.

And does speed shift in the TPL window reduce the maximum speed?

You will probably need to switch to the Windows High Performance power plan when adjusting the Speed Shift Max value. If you use the Balanced power plan, ThrottleStop and Windows will be in a constant battle, writing different values to the Speed Shift Max register.

The best way to control your CPU is to adjust the PL1 and PL2 power limits. Reduce the power limits to whatever your cooling can manage. If your CPU thermal throttles when running at 60W then you need to either reduce the PL2 power limit or reduce the amount of time the CPU is allowed to run at that limit. You might need to adjust both. Most laptop heatsinks are tiny and can be quickly overwhelmed with heat.

An 8 second turbo time limit makes sense for most laptops. Not sure why Intel defaults this to 28 seconds or 56 seconds in recent laptops. Laptop heatsinks are not big enough to dissipate full power for this length of time.

 

[TurboGlitch]

Intel says any temperature less than 100°C is a "safe operating temperature". That is why Intel sets the default thermal throttling temperature to 100°C for the majority of their CPUs. This keeps the CPU at a safe temperature. The majority of laptops set the PROCHOT temperature to less than 100°C so the CPU is extra safe. The main screen of ThrottleStop will show the PROCHOT temperature. There is no reason for most users to worry about the CPU temperature. Intel CPUs are well engineered to take care of themselves.

Oh okay thats good to hear.

You will probably need to switch to the Windows High Performance power plan when adjusting the Speed Shift Max value. If you use the Balanced power plan, ThrottleStop and Windows will be in a constant battle, writing different values to the Speed Shift Max register.

Oh so thats why. Yes I will just play with the PL1 and PL2 values.
Thanks for the help.

 

[Lew Zealand]

I have the same laptop, let us know how your tests go.

From my very annoying tests, the laptop seems to prefer throttling down to 11-17W in general gaming (and benchmark) use after a few minutes and it doesn't stay at a consistent power, cycling around those wattages. Almost as if the power stages are overheating and the laptop is reducing power to accommodate them. It runs at a ridiculously low ~55C, for once a Dell CPU cooler can manage way more power output yet it's kneecapped by something else. Kinda expected even if disappointing on a business-class laptop though.

My NUC with 1135G7 performs way better as it can maintain 40W consistently, all while keeping temps below 80C.

 

[unclewebb]

seems to prefer throttling down to 11-17W

Do you have MMIO Lock checked in ThrottleStop when this happens? If MMIO Lock is checked then it is likely an embedded controller EC power limit that is neutering your laptop.

 

[TurboGlitch]

the laptop seems to prefer throttling down to 11-17W in general gaming (and benchmark)

Even when you have MMIO locked and higher PL1 values? That's odd, never happened to me. I set PL1 to 18W and while gaming (and stressing) the power stays at 18W and the temperatures are around 65-75C.

In the BIOS, there are some Thermal Management settings, maybe you have it set to Cool and hence your laptop runs at lower wattages, or maybe Turbo is disabled?

 

[Lew Zealand]

I made the time to troubleshoot the 5420 today and can report success. I did not have MIMO locked but it is now. Also, I reset the BIOS (but not back to Factory yet) before doing this and whichever worked, possibly both, has helped. Maintaining 22 or 28W is constant now and the cooling keeps the CPU in the 60s. I'll probably go for higher wattage later as there's cooling headroom but what I really want from this li'l laptop is the Xe iGPU to always work at 100% while under load at 1350 MHz without downclocking and it easily does that now even at 28W with the CPU running at 3.5 GHz (set in Throttlestop).

Unfortunately undervolting is still locked out but that's a small matter compared to getting the power delivery working properly, thanks to you both!

 

[unclewebb]

Unfortunately undervolting is still locked out

Intel removed CPU voltage control from their 11th Gen G series CPUs. The MMIO Lock trick seems to work quite well on many of these laptops. Glad to hear you got a nice free performance boost.