Low CPU clock speed ONLY when gaming (Nitro 5 AN515-54).

ZaRe4p3r · April 2022

Hello, I have a problem with my Nitro 5 AN515-54. It used to work perfectly until this week where I had a sudden FPS drop in EVERY game. Like from 120 to 40. When I investigated the problem I found out that when gaming my cpu clock speed drops to around 1.5 GHz sometimes even lower to 700 MHz. Which is ridiculous My processor has a base clock speed of 2.6 GHz an it boosts to 4.5 Ghz. I should easily get 3.5+ Ghz clock speeds. I should also add that while web browsing or doing something other than gaming like using MATLAB or just web browsing, my clock speed goes up to 4.1 Ghz. which i find very weird.

I tried many many solutions but none helped. I even tried cleaning fans and re-applying thermal paste but nothing changed. I tried updating every driver, I tried re-installing a fresh Windows. I tried multiple games. I tried controlling cpu clock speeds using throttlestop. I tried undervolting for thermals. Nothing worked. It's making me crazy.

Please help if you can. I would gladly try every fix proposed.

My PC specs:

Intel Core i7 9750H @2.6GHz (4.5GHz Turbo boost).
RTX 2060 Mobile 6Gb of VRAM.
16 Gb RAM dual channel.
1080p@144Hz Monitor.

Here are some screenshots of my pc performance:

One is when i'm web browsing (Also included some of the games that I usually run very well, just for reference).
One is when I launch and start playing Sekiro (60 FPS @2.6~3.1GHz).
And the last one when playing for a bit (40 FPS @1.2GHz).

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/p6/6cjlvsl1xz8u.png

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/2n/lb4wqnndd1nn.png

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/2i/tng8kgrtkedb.png

unclewebb · April 2022

Your screenshot shows that when your CPU is running at 24.9W, one of the cores is at 92°C. Acer tends to low ball the thermal throttling temperature. For the 9750H, Intel recommends setting this to 100°C but Acer usually sets this to 92°C.

The 9750H has a 45W TDP rating. If it is thermal throttling at half that power level then you need to improve the cooling. Have you ever disassembled your laptop to clean it out? Have you ever replaced the thermal paste? This is normal maintenance for any gaming oriented laptop which most people never consider doing until log after there is a problem.

Post some screenshots of ThrottleStop and turn on the ThrottleStop Log File option so you have a record of your CPU performance while gaming. Play a game for at least 15 minutes. When done testing, exit the game and exit ThrottleStop so it can finalize your log file. Copy and paste the log file data to www.pastebin.com so I can have a look at it. The on screen MHz data is not very accurate when a CPU starts throttling. The log file will help clear up a few things.

Easwar · April 2022

Hi @ZaRe4p3r,

You can avoid CPU speed drops while gaming by ensuring your CPU stays cool and gets sufficient power. Dusting your computer and upgrading to an aftermarket cooler allows your CPU to get higher clock speeds. Disabling power-saving settings and using a good motherboard also prevents CPU speed drops.