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(2019) 16" is HOT & NOISY with an external monitor! :(
- Thread starter Appledoesnotlisten
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You can wait for Oct 13th. Maybe they release a refresh. Otherwise, the 5600M is less affected than the 5300M/5500M.
Apple (very likely) won't fix the issue on the current models. They had enough time and Big Sur also doesn't fix anything. They didn't even fixed the speaker popping or the kernel panics.
So don't buy the machine in the hope Apple will fix that, this will only drive you insane.
I had 1 kernel panic on my 16" when it was on 10.15.5 and there was a known bug that if you turned on Power nap, the Mac would kernel panic. But when it was fixed in 10.5.6, power nap worked without the Mac crashing.
Why Apple decided not to cool the VRM and TB3 chips is beyond me. Bad engineering by Apple, almost like they want it to fail in 2 years so that you will buy a new one when it does.
hmmm, almost as if they want u to buy the ARM Macs?
In all seriousness, the bad thermals are due to Intel CPUs, these CPUs are POWER HUNGRY.
Intel rates these chips at 45w, but really they up to 80+watts..
here's the proof and I am sure many 16" owners can check for themselves.
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Could you post a link of the thermal pads you used in this modification plz!
Hi, thanks for the info, that model not available in my region, but has anyone had experience with this similar (?) monitor please?: LG UltraFine Ergo Monitor LG 32UN88A 32-inch Monitor-IPS 4K 3840x2160, HDR10, DCI-P3
specifically the wattage draw with lid open?
I used these (thickness: 1.5mm). Needed two packs for the whole mod.
ARCTIC TP-2 (APT2560): Economic Thermal Pad, 50 x 50 x 1.5 mm (1 Piece) - Thermal pad, Excellent heat conduction, Low hardness, Ideal gap filler, Easy installation, thermal pads gpu, thermal pad cpu -
ARCTIC, a leading manufacturer of low-noise PC coolers and components, initiated and continues to shape the trend towards quiet cooling systems. In addition to an extensive range of CPU coolers and fans, ARCTIC produces high-quality monitor arms, wall mounts, thermal paste as well as thermal pads...
www.amazon.com
AFAIK, with an open lid every monitor will cause the GPU to draw 19W if you're using the 5300M/5500M. You can only reduce the wattage in clamshell by using SwitchResX or a monitor that (for whatever reason) doesn't trigger this issue. If you have the 5600M, it's not an issue anyway.
Apparently it has to do with both resolution and refresh rate (the true refresh rate). Some monitors sold as 60Hz are actually 59.94Hz or something like this by default.
Unless you want to roll the dice with an eGPU or trying different settings which has yielded mixed results, I would personally recommend a 16-inch with a 5600M or a 13-inch. The 16-inch is an exceptional computer. But this is not a small issue. More concerning, for someone using external displays almost all the time, the long-term implications are unclear. Further, considering the UI isn't nearly as smooth on the iGPU as it is on the dGPU, this is something also to factor in. The 5300M/5500M even without an external will generate more heat than the 5600M in both lighter and more intensive usage situations.
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I used these (thickness: 1.5mm). Needed two packs for the whole mod.
ARCTIC TP-2 (APT2560): Economic Thermal Pad, 50 x 50 x 1.5 mm (1 Piece) - Thermal pad, Excellent heat conduction, Low hardness, Ideal gap filler, Easy installation, thermal pads gpu, thermal pad cpu -
ARCTIC, a leading manufacturer of low-noise PC coolers and components, initiated and continues to shape the trend towards quiet cooling systems. In addition to an extensive range of CPU coolers and fans, ARCTIC produces high-quality monitor arms, wall mounts, thermal paste as well as thermal pads...www.amazon.com
Do you have tips for how you actually did this mod? I presume you need to have a few layers to connect with the bottom case? How many layers did you use?
I used two layers for the MOSFETs to make them level with the inductors, then one layer to cover both the pads on the MOSFETs and the inductors.
I used two layers for the TB3 chips. There's a catch though: the black stickers on all the chips. I first thought they're for design so the machine looks clean on the inside (it's Apple we're talking about
). But they're actually insulators. They keep the TB3 controllers from radiating heat to the bottom. So they will stay hot. The thermal pads still transfer the heat to the bottom plate, but the effect is limited by Apple's insulation stickers.The insulators also prevent the thermal pads from properly sticking to the TB3 controllers. So you have to be careful when closing the device again as you have to slide the bottom plate in.
I'm sure Apple did that so the bottom plate never becomes hotter than 47°C as that would mean human skin would burn. I can imagine someone in the US suing Apple for burnings on the thighs when rendering 4K video while using it as a "Laptop".
There is also some insulation foil right on the Bottom plate under the VRMs, CPU and GPU area.
I used two layers for the MOSFETs to make them level with the inductors, then one layer to cover both the pads on the MOSFETs and the inductors.
I used two layers for the TB3 chips. There's a catch though: the black stickers on all the chips. I first thought they're for design so the machine looks clean on the inside (it's Apple we're talking about
The insulators also prevent the thermal pads from properly sticking to the TB3 controllers. So you have to be careful when closing the device again as you have to slide the bottom plate in.
I'm sure Apple did that so the bottom plate never becomes hotter than 47°C as that would mean human skin would burn. I can imagine someone in the US suing Apple for burnings on the thighs when rendering 4K video while using it as a "Laptop".
There is also some insulation foil right on the Bottom plate under the VRMs, CPU and GPU area.
Hey, cool solution!, planning to use it too.
Which thickness have the pads you used?
Thanks
.I used pads with 1.5mm thickness. I ordered two packs of 50x50x1.5mm thermal pads from Arctic (I linked them a few posts above). Make sure they have a good thermal conductivity. (Mine had 6.0 W/mK).
If you want to do the mod, watch a video how to open the case before you do that. Apple made it much harder to open the case compared the the pre-2016 Retinas.
I'm using a refurbished baseline 16 inch with a 1080p Dell monitor over HDMI/Anker-USB-C Adapter and my fans rarely go over 2500rpm. I really have to throw work at it to make them spin up. A few opened programs, Photoshop and two browsers with 500+ tabs won't change that. Maybe the 10 year old Griffin Elevator stand is helping a bit.
Thanks
I used pads with 1.5mm thickness. I ordered two packs of 50x50x1.5mm thermal pads from Arctic (I linked them a few posts above). Make sure they have a good thermal conductivity. (Mine had 6.0 W/mK).
If you want to do the mod, watch a video how to open the case before you do that. Apple made it much harder to open the case compared the the pre-2016 Retinas.
thanks i've just bought the pads so im going to try this! Just found this video too
ThE LG 4K ultrafine 32 Ergo doesn’t pass 3,000 rpm and 65 C with full resolution Netflix and YouTube open as well as other apps. Don’t really notice fan noise
Yeah.. I also found that video. Do that and also put two layers on the TB3 controllers.
Combine this with a stand or anything that adds more clearance between the bottom plate and the surface below will give you enough cooling so the machine more or less never throttles.
Thanks, I already have a stand. Any tips for getting the back plate off? I have seen that there are clips on the right and left side and then its a case of pulling it forward away from the back, as to not dent the cover?
Yeah. After removing the screws, use some thin plastic things (I had some of these case openers from iFixit from my 2013 Battery replacement kit) to go between the plate and the chassis and move the slightly to where the clips are at the left and the right side until they pop off. then pull the plate forward, but don't lift it too much. Only enough so it can slide over the front. It needs some force to get that off but as long as you pull straight, you won't bent the bottom.
The clips of the plate are on above the two fan exhausts.
Look at this
You can see the clips at the rear of the plate left and right from the black insulation foil. There are a lot of them. Apple really doesn't want us to open the case.
BTW: When having the case open, also look between the fan and the heatsink. If dust collected there you might want to pull it out.
Just left my MacBook at the Apple store, Battery and ports apparently failed the health check.
Not expecting it to be fixed when I get it back to be honest but we'll see.
Hoping that the poor thermals of the laptop aren't what ruined the battery and ports.
Not expecting it to be fixed when I get it back to be honest but we'll see.
Hoping that the poor thermals of the laptop aren't what ruined the battery and ports.
It was obvious. In the long term we all gonna suffer from wear and tear on components that will not withstand loads due to the issue. Very sad!
Lol basically. I saw the list of all the costs and without the 1 year warranty or applecare I'd be slightly less than £1k out of pocket.
Hey @IceStormNG
Seems like the mod is helping a bit.
I used less pad on some areas like in the TB3 chips (I only applied one layer), with two was being difficult to close the case
Seems like the mod is helping a bit.
I used less pad on some areas like in the TB3 chips (I only applied one layer), with two was being difficult to close the case