MR9600 (Mobility M10) Random slowdown

acemaverick · Jul 14, 2005, 11:55 PM

I guess its best to start with the spec of my laptop:

CPU:

3 GHz Intel Pentium 4

RAM:

512MB DDR400 RAM

HDD:

60gb

Video card:

128Mb ATI Radeon Mobility 9600

Audio card:

3D Stereo Enhanced Sound

Modem:

Smart Link Internal 56Kbps V90 Data / Fax / Voice Modem

LAN:

Realtek RTL8169 / 8110 family Gigabit Ethernet NIC

Optical drive:

DVD/CDRW (combo) or DVD-R/-RW

PCMCIA:

1 x Type II ENE CB1410 Cardbus Controller

Ports:

1 x FIR (IrDA 1.1).SIR/ASKIR, 4 x USB 2.0, IEEE 1394 port, 1 x 15-Pin VGA, 1 x 25-Pin EPP / ECP, 1 x PS/2 External Mouse or Keyboard, 1 x Headphone Jack, 1 x Microphone Jack, 1 x S/PDIF, 1 x S-Video, Internal Gigabit LAN (RJ45), Internal 56k Modem (RJ11)

Bluetooth:

Internal Bilionton Bluetooth Module

Power Supply:

Input: 100 - 240V 50 - 60Hz 2.0A Output: 20V 6.0A

Battery:

Li-ion DC 14.8V 4400mAH 8 Cell

Screen:

15 inch

...the problem is that when Im playing anything that uses the graphics card after a while the framerate drops from 60.0 and becomes erratic (about 20-45fps) before climbing backup to 60 again.

This happens about once every 5-10 minutes. This happens with absolutely any game Im playing and doesnt seem to stop happening even when i reduce graphics settings. Im currently playing: The Sims 2, Unreal Tournament 2004, FarCry, ePSXe (playstation emulator playing Final Fantasy Tactics) and this problem presents itself in all these programs at all levels of settings and screen depths of between 640x480 and 1400x1050 and Minimap and texture detail etc in the advanced settings.

I have tried changing (in Omegas latest drivers) fast writes PCI read/write and AGP read/write none of which have worked. I have also used the default OEM drivers for the graphics card, their update, the Omega drivers (latest version and the 2 preceeding versions), and the latest catalyst modded using the mobility modder available from this site.

I think Ive tried absolutely everything (except overclocking and Im not too confident on that) but if anyone has any suggestions Ill be willing to give them a shot......

Thanx in advance...

Aligokalppeker · Jul 15, 2005, 08:50 AM

I 've same problem with my IGP 9000 card,,,i also tried everything.I'm suspicious about heat problem.There should be a solution.Are you using Omage 2.5.42.Because it started after i installed omega

acemaverick · Jul 15, 2005, 10:09 AM

I have used omega 2.5.42 but im not using it at the moment, at the moment Im using the default set (gonna use modded ati catalyst though after i use driver cleaner). Im sure this problem is fixable as I dont remeber it happening prior to me reformatting my computer (which I did last week) so there still is some hope I guess....

IgneousPrime · Jul 15, 2005, 10:12 AM

If you're that desperate, you could always re-install windows and start with the official 5.7's. Lol. Hey, it might work. If not, it's most likely a heating or hardware problem. Be sure all of your drivers are updated too.

Aligokalppeker · Jul 15, 2005, 10:29 AM

All drivers are up-to-date.Reformatting (at least for me) is not easy.I'm using .NET Studio and many other programs and i had to reinstall all of them.SDK's etc....Formatting windows is the first but not a good solution.There should be another solution.

br00ksintexas · Jul 15, 2005, 11:20 AM

Check the back of your laptop. It sounds like the vents as well as the heatsink fins are clogged with dust. You'll have to remove the rear cover and use compressed air to clean it. Definitely sounds like the culprit if it's running in those time cycles. Right about when the fan is coming on and off. Good luck.
Kev

Aligokalppeker · Jul 15, 2005, 12:01 PM

I'll try...Thanks,,, so is there any other possibility?It has happened immediately.I mean if there's dust in fans so dust must be collected day by day,in a while.It started after i've installed omega's , can this cause any hardware specific change?

IgneousPrime · Jul 15, 2005, 12:29 PM

Well, other than Omega drivers, what else did you install that could possibly change the hardware configurations? Maybe you have have spyware/adware or something. You can try to clean out your computer using a cleaning utility such as Tune Up Utility or DriverHeaven's own TuneXP. Spybot and Ad-aware are good programs to remove spyware, I suggest you use them both. You're a smart person, and I think you've done this already, but it's worth another try.

Good luck man, hope you find a way to fix it!

Aligokalppeker · Jul 15, 2005, 01:01 PM

Thank you too man,i'll try i'm thinking about that.I fact i check system always to detect uncontrolled or memory monster processes.Spyware might be another source.It fits to problem definition.Tweak maybe another one.....I don't know i've nothing as a problem source only an unknown slowdown.

Shuflie · Jul 15, 2005, 02:31 PM

Have you tried the simple solution of disabling vsync, I noticed you said that framerates run at 60FPS then become erratic before climbing back to 60FPS. This has all the symptons of your laptop not being able to maintain 60FPS in certain areas at which point you will get significantly lower FPS but it will still try to sync with the screen updates which means you will never get something like 59FPS, it will drop to say 45FPS or 30FPS. Disable vsync and see what happens.

Aligokalppeker · Jul 15, 2005, 02:57 PM

That was icemavericks FPS count.In mine FPS starts with 25-20 FPS and after it count down to 15-5 fps

acemaverick · Jul 15, 2005, 07:21 PM

Ive found a solution for my problem taking br00ks advice i took a few of the outer covers off my laptop and used a vacuum cleaner with a brush attatchment to brush and vacuum directly around the fans, heatsinks, ram etc....and it worked the rates not only returned to stability for more than 40 mins play but my laptop also produces less heat from the exhaust and the fans dont work as hard as they used too.....thanks for the advice. If youve owned your laptop for more than a year without trying this and youve got problems I'd suggest giving the vacuum cleaner a shot...

Aligokalppeker · Jul 18, 2005, 10:22 AM

Yes , i appraised acemaverick and br00ks actions and i decided to do a test.First i moved notebook to a low temperatured environment , i see frequency of slowdowns are decreased.Also i changed drivers from omega to normal cat. and with cats laptop started to work with less temp. and so less fan action.I've cleaned dust of fans a little bit after that it turned to normal.

Jul 14, 2005, 11:55 PM	#1
acemaverick DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 4 Rep Power: 0	MR9600 (Mobility M10) Random slowdown I guess its best to start with the spec of my laptop: CPU: 3 GHz Intel Pentium 4 RAM: 512MB DDR400 RAM HDD: 60gb Video card: 128Mb ATI Radeon Mobility 9600 Audio card: 3D Stereo Enhanced Sound Modem: Smart Link Internal 56Kbps V90 Data / Fax / Voice Modem LAN: Realtek RTL8169 / 8110 family Gigabit Ethernet NIC Optical drive: DVD/CDRW (combo) or DVD-R/-RW PCMCIA: 1 x Type II ENE CB1410 Cardbus Controller Ports: 1 x FIR (IrDA 1.1).SIR/ASKIR, 4 x USB 2.0, IEEE 1394 port, 1 x 15-Pin VGA, 1 x 25-Pin EPP / ECP, 1 x PS/2 External Mouse or Keyboard, 1 x Headphone Jack, 1 x Microphone Jack, 1 x S/PDIF, 1 x S-Video, Internal Gigabit LAN (RJ45), Internal 56k Modem (RJ11) Bluetooth: Internal Bilionton Bluetooth Module Power Supply: Input: 100 - 240V 50 - 60Hz 2.0A Output: 20V 6.0A Battery: Li-ion DC 14.8V 4400mAH 8 Cell Screen: 15 inch ...the problem is that when Im playing anything that uses the graphics card after a while the framerate drops from 60.0 and becomes erratic (about 20-45fps) before climbing backup to 60 again. This happens about once every 5-10 minutes. This happens with absolutely any game Im playing and doesnt seem to stop happening even when i reduce graphics settings. Im currently playing: The Sims 2, Unreal Tournament 2004, FarCry, ePSXe (playstation emulator playing Final Fantasy Tactics) and this problem presents itself in all these programs at all levels of settings and screen depths of between 640x480 and 1400x1050 and Minimap and texture detail etc in the advanced settings. I have tried changing (in Omegas latest drivers) fast writes PCI read/write and AGP read/write none of which have worked. I have also used the default OEM drivers for the graphics card, their update, the Omega drivers (latest version and the 2 preceeding versions), and the latest catalyst modded using the mobility modder available from this site. I think Ive tried absolutely everything (except overclocking and Im not too confident on that) but if anyone has any suggestions Ill be willing to give them a shot...... Thanx in advance...

Jul 15, 2005, 12:01 PM	#7
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	I'll try...Thanks,,, so is there any other possibility?It has happened immediately.I mean if there's dust in fans so dust must be collected day by day,in a while.It started after i've installed omega's , can this cause any hardware specific change? Last edited by Aligokalppeker; Jul 15, 2005 at 12:19 PM.

Jul 15, 2005, 08:50 AM	#2
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	I 've same problem with my IGP 9000 card,,,i also tried everything.I'm suspicious about heat problem.There should be a solution.Are you using Omage 2.5.42.Because it started after i installed omega

Jul 15, 2005, 10:09 AM	Thread Starter #3
acemaverick DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 4 Rep Power: 0	I have used omega 2.5.42 but im not using it at the moment, at the moment Im using the default set (gonna use modded ati catalyst though after i use driver cleaner). Im sure this problem is fixable as I dont remeber it happening prior to me reformatting my computer (which I did last week) so there still is some hope I guess....

Jul 15, 2005, 10:12 AM	#4
IgneousPrime DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 20 Rep Power: 0	If you're that desperate, you could always re-install windows and start with the official 5.7's. Lol. Hey, it might work. If not, it's most likely a heating or hardware problem. Be sure all of your drivers are updated too.

Jul 15, 2005, 10:29 AM	#5
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	All drivers are up-to-date.Reformatting (at least for me) is not easy.I'm using .NET Studio and many other programs and i had to reinstall all of them.SDK's etc....Formatting windows is the first but not a good solution.There should be another solution.

Jul 15, 2005, 11:20 AM	#6
br00ksintexas DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: May 2005 Location: Watauga, Texas (Just N. of Ft. Worth and S. of Keller) Posts: 119 Rep Power: 0	Check the back of your laptop. It sounds like the vents as well as the heatsink fins are clogged with dust. You'll have to remove the rear cover and use compressed air to clean it. Definitely sounds like the culprit if it's running in those time cycles. Right about when the fan is coming on and off. Good luck. Kev

Jul 15, 2005, 12:29 PM	#8
IgneousPrime DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 20 Rep Power: 0	Well, other than Omega drivers, what else did you install that could possibly change the hardware configurations? Maybe you have have spyware/adware or something. You can try to clean out your computer using a cleaning utility such as Tune Up Utility or DriverHeaven's own TuneXP. Spybot and Ad-aware are good programs to remove spyware, I suggest you use them both. You're a smart person, and I think you've done this already, but it's worth another try. Good luck man, hope you find a way to fix it!

Jul 15, 2005, 01:01 PM	#9
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	Thank you too man,i'll try i'm thinking about that.I fact i check system always to detect uncontrolled or memory monster processes.Spyware might be another source.It fits to problem definition.Tweak maybe another one.....I don't know i've nothing as a problem source only an unknown slowdown.

Jul 15, 2005, 02:31 PM	#10
Shuflie DriverHeaven Addict Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Belfast Posts: 269 Rep Power: 0	Have you tried the simple solution of disabling vsync, I noticed you said that framerates run at 60FPS then become erratic before climbing back to 60FPS. This has all the symptons of your laptop not being able to maintain 60FPS in certain areas at which point you will get significantly lower FPS but it will still try to sync with the screen updates which means you will never get something like 59FPS, it will drop to say 45FPS or 30FPS. Disable vsync and see what happens.

Jul 15, 2005, 02:57 PM	#11
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	That was icemavericks FPS count.In mine FPS starts with 25-20 FPS and after it count down to 15-5 fps

Jul 15, 2005, 07:21 PM	Thread Starter #12
acemaverick DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 4 Rep Power: 0	Ive found a solution for my problem taking br00ks advice i took a few of the outer covers off my laptop and used a vacuum cleaner with a brush attatchment to brush and vacuum directly around the fans, heatsinks, ram etc....and it worked the rates not only returned to stability for more than 40 mins play but my laptop also produces less heat from the exhaust and the fans dont work as hard as they used too.....thanks for the advice. If youve owned your laptop for more than a year without trying this and youve got problems I'd suggest giving the vacuum cleaner a shot...

Jul 18, 2005, 10:22 AM	#13
Aligokalppeker DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: TR Posts: 184 Rep Power: 0	Yes , i appraised acemaverick and br00ks actions and i decided to do a test.First i moved notebook to a low temperatured environment , i see frequency of slowdowns are decreased.Also i changed drivers from omega to normal cat. and with cats laptop started to work with less temp. and so less fan action.I've cleaned dust of fans a little bit after that it turned to normal.