Why is my CPU dropping to 1.6ghz even though high perf mode is enabled?

[futurefields]

Windows 7 x64, for the BIOS update i used Instant Flash from usb stick

i just cleared my cmos using the jumper method on my motherboard, now CPUZ wont tell me what my GPU is, weird. tried reinstalling CPUZ and its the same -

 

[Burpo]

But what is the speed now? Same issue?

 

[futurefields]

Yeah, the CPU is still throttling to 1.6ghz in "High Performance Mode" even during benchmarks.

 

[Ketchup]

How do I disable it?

When googling, the only answer I get is "if you have a dGPU enabled, the iGPU will disable automatically" yet I clearly have a dGPU enabled, but there is still shared memory which alludes to an iGPU being enabled. But I don't know where to confirm any of this in Windows.

I think others beat me to it, but you are clearing the BIOS anyway, I just don't know what it would change at the point, as IIRC you have already reset it at least once.

 

[Ketchup]

Just saw your last update. Out of curiosity, might try putting the video card in the other pci-express slot, or taking it out completely, and seeing what happens.

 

[Burpo]

I would re-flash with 1.80 from within Windows.. If that fails, prolly time to look for a mobo..

 

[ShintaiDK]

Was it tested with a secondary OS? As far as I see all 3rd party wasnt even removed.

 

[crashtech]

Yeah, I asked way back for the OP to boot to an alternate OS. I'd just boot to Parted Magic and look at speed and usage from there.

 

[Morgoth780]

Yeah, I asked way back for the OP to boot to an alternate OS. I'd just boot to Parted Magic and look at speed and usage from there.

I agree, try a different OS or a fresh Windows install so we can completelyi eliminate software problems.

It does seem possible it's a mobo problem, it's, what, 4 years old? I wouldn't expect something to die that quickly but I suppose it's possible.

 

[futurefields]

no i built the PC in June 2012 with all brand new parts, motherboard is less than 3 yearsold

i am reinstalling windows 7, its the only OS i have

 

[Abwx]

In the different CPUZ shots we can see that the frequency is allegedly 1.6 but what is not logical is that CPU voltages are quite different, in principle the CPU shouldnt use different voltage for a same frequency, so either it s just a wrong frequency value that is displayed or the CPU effectively try to increase frequency since it increase voltage to do so, but for some reason the multiplicator would be stuck to 16, anyway a quite curious case.

Unless your CPU was overclocked you should eventualy contact Intel, these kind of problems are generaly trivial for thoses people who work on the field.

 

[OlyAR15]

Has it occurred to you that maybe it is CPU-Z that is the issue? Are these programs you are running single-threaded? I had similar issues with games that were only pushing one or two cores near 100%, but CPUZ still claiming processor was at idle speeds. Try a different monitoring program that shows per core speeds, such as hwinfo.

 

[BSim500]

Has it occurred to you that maybe it is CPU-Z that is the issue? Are these programs you are running single-threaded? I had similar issues with games that were only pushing one or two cores near 100%, but CPUZ still claiming processor was at idle speeds. Try a different monitoring program that shows per core speeds, such as hwinfo.

Agreed. That's why I suggested TMonitor earlier on (which shows each separate core's multiplier / frequency 20x times per second rather than the CPU average as a whole). Not sure if Futurefields tested it though.

 

[futurefields]

When High Performance Mode is enabled the CPU is supposed to run at the max designated frequency, regardless if it's idle or being stressed CPU-Z should be showing clockspeed of 4,000mhz (or 3999.98 it can fluctuate a little)

This is what CPU-Z has showed for me, since I built the rig in 2012. You can do google searches "High Performance Mode vs Balanced" and you will see people corroborating this.

If CPU-Z is showing 1600mhz at all under High Performance Mode it indicates something isn't working correctly.

 

[KaRLiToS]

Maybe you should run prime95 and check the CPU clock and load.

In my opinion, you have EIST enabled (Enhanced Intel Speedstep technology)

Today I was playing Dishonored at 8040x1440 and I saw my CPU was sitting most of the time at 1200Mhz with a load of 4% on it.

This means the CPU is downclocking for power consumption efficiency

 

[futurefields]

You do understand that CPU-Z should be showing 4000mhz, regardless of what is running on the PC, when High Performance Mode is enabled, correct?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Has it occurred to you that maybe it is CPU-Z that is the issue? Are these programs you are running single-threaded? I had similar issues with games that were only pushing one or two cores near 100%, but CPUZ still claiming processor was at idle speeds. Try a different monitoring program that shows per core speeds, such as hwinfo.

This. I seem to recall something about certain versions of CPU-Z having this exact bug.

 

[crashtech]

The ST test in Passmark Performance Test should have run the core at max turbo, theoretically.

I haven't seen the CPU-Z bug, but I'll defer to those that have. All core loading would seem prudent for testing.

 

[KaRLiToS]

This. I seem to recall something about certain versions of CPU-Z having this exact bug.

Yes, this is fairly true. I remember it happen to me and to some other. http://www.overclock.net/t/1375065/3570k-stuck-at-44x-4400mhz/0_30#post_19600436

I think you should try aida64, latest version.

http://www.aida64.com/downloads/NjE4OWZjYjA=

 

[futurefields]

My computer just made a weird straining sound when I turned it on, and then it powered itself off, and then powered back on again and started normally.

 

[BSim500]

You do understand that CPU-Z should be showing 4000mhz, regardless of what is running on the PC, when High Performance Mode is enabled, correct?

It's still important to actually load the CPU 100% (ideally all cores) with Prime or an x264 encode when testing load CPU freqs as there are other factors that kick in when idle such as C3/C6 states / cores "parking" / gating down (in addition to SpeedStep). It's also good practice when experiencing problems to test in several measuring apps (TMonitor / HWInfo, etc) just to rule out any compatibility issues / obscure version specific bugs with any one single monitoring software. There's also no real measurable performance advantage of "High Perf" over "Balanced" (it won't run games, etc, measurably faster). There used to be a case for disabling Speedstep (and AMD's "Cool & Quiet") years ago when it was in its infancy and the frequency switching latency was high (the mobile P3 / P4 era), but these days on modern chips it's pointless.

Just a quick question - have you tried creating your own custom power profile (Control Panel -> Power Options -> Create a Power Plan) based on the default Balanced mode and make sure Max Processor State is 100% then run Prime in the background and simultaneously see what the freq is (ideally in 2 or 3 monitoring apps, eg, Coretemp, TMonitor, HWInfo, etc)? Just to rule out corrupted powercfg registry presets?

Likewise have you tested CPU freq outside of your current Windows environment (eg, booting a Live diagnostic CD or installing Win 7 on a spare HDD with minimal chipset & GFX drivers)? If it shows the same problem outside of your current Windows environment / on a reinstalled Windows, then it sounds more like a recently developed hardware issue than software.

My computer just made a weird straining sound when I turned it on, and then it powered itself off, and then powered back on again and started normally.

Edit : How often does that happen? That sounds like a PSU / motherboard issue. May well be hardware related.

 

[futurefields]

First time it ever happened.

Also a screw might have just fallen out of my power supply. I think the fan sucked it up, maybe thats what caused the straining noise.

 

[KaRLiToS]

First time it ever happened.

Also a screw might have just fallen out of my power supply. I think the fan sucked it up, maybe thats what caused the straining noise.

Have you tried another monitoring program such as aida64 yet?

 

[futurefields]

No, I haven't.

As I said before CPU-Z should be showing 4000mhz at all times when High Performance Mode is enabled.

This is the behavior I had on my PC up until yesterday when the problems started (like I said I noticed it in a game, the fps was dropping randomly like this 130....97...130....97) when I wasnt even touching anything, and it was a single player game, so I alt tabbed out and noticed this in CPU-Z, it was showing 1600mhz...4000mhz...1600mhz....4000mhz

 

[KaRLiToS]

ALT Tabing out doesn't mean anything. You would have to monitor with OSD (On screen display) while in the game.

If you want to diagnose this issue, do it correctly, try another monitoring program.

And also, start by disabling Intel Speedstep technology in the BIOS in the CPU section. This is very important since it is the option to downclock the CPU multiplier when doing some light load

(that allow the clock speed of the processor to be dynamically changed (to different P-states) by software. This allows the processor to meet the instantaneous performance needs of the operation being performed, while minimizing power draw and heat generation. Enhanced Intel SpeedStep is sometimes abbreviated as EIST.)