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M4Pro MBP Temps during gaming

Superrenz

Superrenz

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Dec 2, 2018
493
227
Wiesbaden, Germany
While playing Frostpunk 2 on my 14'' M4Pro MBP the average CPU temp was around 91 Celsius while the GPU ran at 83C. Fans spin around 2500 rpm. Is this within limits or will temperatures like this harm the hardware over time? I remember reading something like this somewhere (can't remember where and when 🤪). THX for your expertise.
 
I can’t answer for your gaming, but I’m often using LLMs and playing with image/video generation on my MacBook Pro (unbinned M4Pro) and, when I’m using them, the temperature is up at 91C and the fans are around 5,000RPM (as it is right now). It gets really quite hot when on my lap, and the battery doesn’t last long at all.

I don’t know if this is good or bad for the MBP, but I didn’t buy this machine to NOT use its power. That said, I’m am waiting on the new Studio if it ever gets released. Until then, the MBP is just going to have to handle it.
 
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JSRinUK said:
I can’t answer for your gaming, but I’m often using LLMs and playing with image/video generation on my MacBook Pro (unbinned M4Pro) and, when I’m using them, the temperature is up at 91C and the fans are around 5,000RPM (as it is right now). It gets really quite hot when on my lap, and the battery doesn’t last long at all.

I don’t know if this is good or bad for the MBP, but I didn’t buy this machine to NOT use its power. That said, I’m am waiting on the new Studio if it ever gets released. Until then, the MBP is just going to have to handle it.
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It is labeled a Pro machine so it should be able to handle Pro tasks and these can create high temperatures…
 
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Pretty much any modern laptop out there, including Apple's M-series Macs, will throttle when they begin approaching a temperature that can cause damage. There's advanced firmware that knows the systems thermal limits and will make sure it doesn't hit it. The advantage of Apple silicon of course is that you get a lot of power without a lot of heat compared to x86 laptops. Short answer: you're fine.
 
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Superrenz said:
While playing Frostpunk 2 on my 14'' M4Pro MBP the average CPU temp was around 91 Celsius while the GPU ran at 83C. Fans spin around 2500 rpm. Is this within limits or will temperatures like this harm the hardware over time? I remember reading something like this somewhere (can't remember where and when 🤪). THX for your expertise.
Click to expand...

Within spec, my intel MacBooks used to sit on over 95-100C under heavy load with fans screaming at maximum RPM.

If it worries you, set power profile to "low power" and it will run cooler and quieter by a lot.
 
bradman83 said:
Pretty much any modern laptop out there, including Apple's M-series Macs, will throttle when they begin approaching a temperature that can cause damage. There's advanced firmware that knows the systems thermal limits and will make sure it doesn't hit it. The advantage of Apple silicon of course is that you get a lot of power without a lot of heat compared to x86 laptops. Short answer: you're fine.
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Is 91 CPU temp and 83C GPU close to throttling? Where are the limits on the M4Pro?
 
throAU said:
Within spec, my intel MacBooks used to sit on over 95-100C under heavy load with fans screaming at maximum RPM.

If it worries you, set power profile to "low power" and it will run cooler and quieter by a lot.
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And? Any wear and tear on the hardware due to the heat?
 
Superrenz said:
Is 91 CPU temp and 83C close to throttling? Where are the limits on the M4Pro?
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Pretty much all modern portables will throttle - they run as fast as they can until they throttle for better interactive performance which tends to be mostly idle with brief periods of load.

Sustained load clock speeds will be slightly slower.
 
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I have stress tested my 14” M3 Pro numerous time, for up to 12 hours at a time, to see if I could get it to throttle. Even in a warm room, the fans just spin faster, and the clock speed remain unchanged. I’ve used Cinebench and 3DMark for the stress testing, I don’t know if there’s anything that can push my system harder.

I don’t like Apple’s default fan rules, so I use iStat Menu to make my own rules, so that fans will modulate to keep temps around the mid 80° range. It hasn’t changed the performance of my MacBook, but it makes me happier.
 
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Superrenz said:
And? Any wear and tear on the hardware due to the heat?
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Of course heat by definition always puts wear and tear on electronics. But the Mac hardware is designed for it. Fuggedaboutit.

FYI old Powerbooks (G3s in particular IIRC) ran so hot when they were worked really hard that one could burn skin using them in lap mode with shorts on. But they still ran.
 
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CPUs and GPUs can handle temperatures well above that. Motherboards can flex due to prolonged heating, but that happens also really rarely.
When I game I use an App called Stats to manually adjust fan speed. A little louder for temps around 70-80 degrees C? Yes please.
 
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DFBwin said:
CPUs and GPUs can handle temperatures well above that. Motherboards can flex due to prolonged heating, but that happens also really rarely.
When I game I use an App called Stats to manually adjust fan speed. A little louder for temps around 70-80 degrees C? Yes please.
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IStats? What are your fan settings?
 
Bungaree.Chubbins said:
I have stress tested my 14” M3 Pro numerous time, for up to 12 hours at a time, to see if I could get it to throttle. Even in a warm room, the fans just spin faster, and the clock speed remain unchanged. I’ve used Cinebench and 3DMark for the stress testing, I don’t know if there’s anything that can push my system harder.

I don’t like Apple’s default fan rules, so I use iStat Menu to make my own rules, so that fans will modulate to keep temps around the mid 80° range. It hasn’t changed the performance of my MacBook, but it makes me happier.
Click to expand...
What do your default fan rules look like?
 
Superrenz said:
What do your default fan rules look like?
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This works nicely for me. Super quiet when things get a bit warm, but if they're getting hot, it won't let it get too hot. Nor does it make more noise than it needs to to keep things ok. I rarely see temps reach the high 80ºC range now.


Screenshot 2025-03-04 at 23.23.55.png
 
Bungaree.Chubbins said:
This works nicely for me. Super quiet when things get a bit warm, but if they're getting hot, it won't let it get too hot. Nor does it make more noise than it needs to to keep things ok. I rarely see temps reach the high 80ºC range now.


View attachment 2488189
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Thx so much! Does this put a lot of pressure on the fans? Istats doesn’t let you lower the fans under the basic settings defined by Apple in the SMC so there no way to screw things up … right?
 
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Those temps (CPU 91°C, GPU 83°C) are on the high side but not dangerous right now, since modern Macs can handle up to 100°C. That said, running at those temps regularly might affect the hardware over time. Keep an eye on the temps, make sure your Mac is well-ventilated, and maybe use a cooling pad or tweak settings if it's getting hot during long sessions.
 
penelope_bk said:
Those temps (CPU 91°C, GPU 83°C) are on the high side but not dangerous right now, since modern Macs can handle up to 100°C. That said, running at those temps regularly might affect the hardware over time. Keep an eye on the temps, make sure your Mac is well-ventilated, and maybe use a cooling pad or tweak settings if it's getting hot during long sessions.
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Thinking about changing the fan settings like Bungaree recommended. Seems the standard SMC settings by Apple are a little bit low. What do you think?
 
Superrenz said:
Thx so much! Does this put a lot of pressure on the fans? Istats doesn’t let you lower the fans under the basic settings defined by Apple in the SMC so there no way to screw things up … right?
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You’re welcome. The control of iStat Menu isn’t unlimited, Apple’s firmware does limit what it can do, and I’ve designed my fan speed curve around that. So often the fan doesn’t kick in until it is into the 80°s, so the fans start fast, and then settle. I don’t foresee any problem with this.
brofkand said:
No, you don't need to. You can if you are OK with a cooler chassis, at the expense of more fan noise however.
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This is the truth. I adjust my fan speed because I want to, not because I need to. That was the exact compromise I wanted to make.
 
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