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2018 i9 MacBook Pro throttling discussion [merged]
- Thread starter M.Rizk
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I didn't even think of this... i do music production for a living and use Ableton, i wonder if i can find any evidence of audio drop outs because of the i9 throttling, and if not i'll just have to see for myself when mine arrives!
You said that “those people should use a MacBook instead of a MacBook Pro.”
I could probably get away with a MacBook; however, the mbp is the only apple option with a 15” screen.
My conclusion(**CPU and GPU both under heavy load**):
It's all about temperature.
You just can't run this machine over 70C for a long time. I have verified that on Dota2.
When you turn on the Turbo Boost, it runs hot and the temperature goes up to 75 ~ 80 even if you limit the CPU power to 45w. CPU throttle(the ugly 800Mhz) will show up after a few mins.
So I tried this:
Turned off the Turbo Boost of the CPU and not limiting the CPU power, the temperature stays at 69C. The throttle never came.
It's i7 2.2 Ghz. I don't think this machine can keep temperature under 70C when the CPU runs at 2.6Ghz or 2.9Ghz.
So if anyone needs some gaming better choose i7 2.2Ghz and just turn off Turbo Boost using volta.
Maybe I am wrong...
Edit:
Tested with Fortnite, same result as Dota2
It's all about temperature.
You just can't run this machine over 70C for a long time. I have verified that on Dota2.
When you turn on the Turbo Boost, it runs hot and the temperature goes up to 75 ~ 80 even if you limit the CPU power to 45w. CPU throttle(the ugly 800Mhz) will show up after a few mins.
So I tried this:
Turned off the Turbo Boost of the CPU and not limiting the CPU power, the temperature stays at 69C. The throttle never came.
It's i7 2.2 Ghz. I don't think this machine can keep temperature under 70C when the CPU runs at 2.6Ghz or 2.9Ghz.
So if anyone needs some gaming better choose i7 2.2Ghz and just turn off Turbo Boost using volta.
Maybe I am wrong...
Edit:
Tested with Fortnite, same result as Dota2
Last edited:
No doubt, but the market has spoken. In general, notebooks are getting smaller and lighter, so Apple went there also.
If Apple really wanted a system that could support the i9 running for sustain periods it would look like a gaming laptop. Maybe apple buyers would buy it. They tend to buy anything with an Apple label.
That's reassuring, thanks
Would I have to worry about it heating up or making excessive noise for my short-burst tasks? My work-loaned 2017 Macbook Pro 13 i7 gets really noisy when on Chrome of all things (I know Chrome on macOS is poorly optimised but it's annoying for such a trivial case).
Nah they could have the heat sink span the width of the laptop, don't know if it would double the thermal capacity without more heat pipes but it would practically double the surface area available for heat to dissipate from. Might not be a true doubling if nothing else changes besides the vent sizes and surface area but I bet it would be enough to handle a 60W TDP thermal problem, assuming the heat sink is sized for a 50W TDP right now.
In response to someone stating people would be complaining about size. If size is the most important attribute in a laptop than the MacBook would be the logical choice for these people.
[doublepost=1532364967][/doublepost]
Which is why I recommended these people switch to the MacBook over the MacBook Pro. It's smaller and lighter. Exactly what you're arguing for.
It's your opinion there's nothing in between the current MBP form factor and the form factors of gaming laptops?
https://browser.geekbench.com/v4/cpu/search?dir=desc&q=8950HK&sort=created_at
dang, other i9 laptops score about 10% more.
wonder why apple didn't opt to use Xeon E 2186M instead? it has cTDP of 35W.
dang, other i9 laptops score about 10% more.
wonder why apple didn't opt to use Xeon E 2186M instead? it has cTDP of 35W.
Because then it would require ECC memory and Apple isn't going to change the memory architecture just to appease hard core Apple enthusiasts and separate the core i7 from the core i9 this radically.
It is not just the heat sink it is the airflow. That would require bigger fans and bigger vents to move the large volumes of cool air in and the hot air out Also, the case would have to be taller than fit the bigger heat sink. Starting to move more toward the cooling systems in gaming laptops.
It's a common misconception that Xeons require ECC memory. They do support it, but they don't require it.
Nah, pretty sure heat sink size is independent of fan size. It would not be unlike the current situation with apple putting a processor in a 50W TDP chassis even though it can pull 125W peak load. Except the results would be better I'm sure.
so yeah. "Xeon" would be a better selling point for a Pro machine (since most of their Pro machines use Xeons anyway), and it has cTDP of 35W like previous models. It's a tad more expensive tho (100-200$).
it also has the same socket FCBGA1440.
There's also a lower clocked 2176M, running at 2.7GHz.
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compar...n-E-2186M-vs-Intel-i9-8950HK/3242vs3232vs3246
I don't know, i guess it doesn't sound as fancy as "Core i9".
So I called Apple. I posted what they said about my order in the “Preparing for Shipping?” thread. Please see it here: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/preparing-for-shipping.2127740/page-15#post-26278872
So if i9 owners keep their MBP they not only get volatile spikes in their CPU speed but also risk the longevity of their machine.
Yeah I think there should be more concern about this. Those spiking frequencies cannot be good for the machine
I also can’t believe Apple has not released any press on the matter.
Ethically this company has hit all time lows.
I'd say not commenting on problems is standard operating procedure for them in last few years honestly