i7700HQ processor issues

[SCova]

Hello,

I have a Dell 7577 laptop (two months old). Running the latest BIOS; Windows 10. Haven't touched the default settings - no overclocking etc.

One core becomes, only under load, consistently 10-15 degrees Celsius hotter than the other ones (that would be Core 2, if you start counting from 0). It will also ramp up the temperature faster than the other ones. While the others don't reach 90 degrees under a stress test (max up under 85), this core can reach 95-96-97 consistently - very close to TJmax (100).

Running Aida64, it reported throttling in one instance. While the above scenario I can reproduce consistently, getting it to throttle I cannot.

Also, more worryingly, running the Intel Processor Diagnostic tool, I had one instance when the IMC test failed. FWIW, when it raised this error, I was running HWMonitor in parallel, and the temperatures never reached Tjmax. This, again, is something that I couldn't reproduce upon a few subsequent runs. I may be looking at two unrelated issues.

FWIW # 2, I had Memtestx86 run for 8 hours with no errors being raised.

All tests were conducted on a hard, firm surface, ensuring proper ventilation.

Please advise - thank you.

[SCova]

Just to clarify: when I received the IMC error, I wasn't running any other app in the background than HWMonitor (and possibly a minimized Firefox).

(When I was testing, prior, with Aida64, I had selected only the FPU stress test. This should not have stressed the memory at all.)

[SCova]

Another clarification: when I said that Core 2 reaches 95 - 97 Celsius, this happens right before the coolers kick in. Then, the temperature drops and stays around 80 - 82. However, because this one ramps the temp up much sooner, it gets very close, or in one case reached, TJmax. Just one week ago, running Aida64 with the same settings, would not allow this core to reach a spike over 90, so it seems that "something" is not working as it did before. The coolers have show the same rpms.

I would've suspected a cooling issue or a temp sensor calibration one (?), but the IMC fail (which happened below 70 C) makes me second-guess whether there's something wrong with the processor itself or not.

[idata · Accepted solution]

Hello scovasa,Thank you for contacting us regarding the thermal issues that you have been experiencing with your Dell 7577 laptop; it will be more than a pleasure to provide you with guidance on this matter.We really appreciate all the attached information; it is extremely helpful in order to isolate the issue.Based on the thread, this behavior seems to be normal (processor-wise) due to the fact that each core has different temperatures, and all of them compose an average temperature, when this average temperature is higher than usual, the fan/cooling solution kicks in and increases its RPMs in order to decrease the CPU'S heat.However, our concern is that the core that is overheating, is not supposed to behave like that, so instead of a sensor calibration (temperatures) we suspect that there might be something wrong with the CPU, especially after the IMC failed test.We strongly recommend you to get in touch with Dell through:http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04 http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04At this point the best thing is to try to troubleshoot the unit from the BIOS of your machine, so they can tell you if there is any sort of setting or state that you can modify in order to decrease the temperature of that specific core.If needed the can process a warranty claim as well, since the unit is almost brand new there should be no problem.Hope this helps. Best regards, Diego S.

[idata]

Hello scovasa,

I was taking a look to your thread, and I wanted to confirm if you need further assistance?Please do not hesitate on replying back so we can provide you with assistance regarding your issue.I hope to hear from you soon. Best Regards,Diego S.

[SCova]

Hello,

Thank you, I think you've helped me very well, I will mark your answer as such. If anything new arises, I will make a new thread.