GL504GS+GM useful thread [Troubleshooting & Guide]

[McCoy]

Please join thread LETTER TO ASUS FOR ADDRESSING GL504 SERIES PROBLEMS [PLEASE SIGN]

So, here is my GL504GM/GS guide I profound myself while using it extensively in different configurations.
This thread is INTENDED TO GAIN ATTENTION FROM ASUS ENGINEERS! GUYS, PLEASE HELP US GET THIS BEAUTY TO WORK!

DISCLAIMER! DO IT ON YOUR OWN RISK! IT IS NOT SAFE! IT CAN (AND IT WILL) VOID YOUR WARRANTY!

Basic information:
ASUS GL504GS Downloads page
Current (23/11/2018) is BIOS 305!

The microstuttering, lags and freezes

Let’s get it point-by-point, because there is a single problem which is consist of different cases.

The CPU

So, our 8750H is a hot one (relatively to similar mobile solutions), let’s analyze its role in our headaches :

Throttling: understanding Thermal (THER) and Power Limit (PM) throttling

So the basic approach is to check whenever it takes place on your laptop. The best tool is Intel XTU, please do the following:

• Install Intel XTU
  
• Add graphs for all available throttling (Power Limit, Temp)
  
• Go and play
  
• Periodically check what is up with graph
  

See? If it’s not PMed, then it is TEMPed. What to do?
[EASY SOLUTION]

Change your power plan, by modifying power to CPU from 100% to 99% and totally lock Turbo Boost. It’s a solid solution which will sacrifice raw power in matter of better (way better Temps), and way lower noise.

[MEDIJM SOLUTION]

Use XTU to downvolt CPU, by lowering core voltage.

[HEAVY DUTY SOLUTION]

Disassemble and repast ALL thermals in your laptop. Check this video for guidance:


[ULTIMATE SOLUTION]

Do all above (except easy one), and...

... download the shell.efi, and modify some variables by loading shell in disabled secured boot in UEFI.

The Nahimic solution

Do fresh windows install, and DO NOT INSTALL NAHIMIC and Sonic Studio.

Liquid metal repasting guide (by myself!)

FAQ:

: Cooling Pad or unflat position leads to significant FPS drops and/or stuttering
Mentioned here: https://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?105890-Strix-Scar-II-Cooling-Pad-Causes-FPS-Drop-Terribly
: Reason is interconnected with adaptable cooling algorithms which ASUS itself realized by using leveraged way. So until SOME temp is reached (ex. 80c), fans are not kicking in – on border temp 79c system struggles with power limit and/or temperature throttling. Additional cooling distort variables on which such algorhytms are based, and significantly affects fans workaround. So it’s ok, if GL504 ran faster on higher temps.

Shortly: Cooling pad is distorting pre-defined cooling algorithms (also known as FAN CURVES). It won't help you with temps, they WILL stood the same, but you will reduce noise.

: What is GRUB? And what's it for? And how to GRUB?
: GRUB is external EFI shell, that gives you an ability to change variables of settings in UEFI-BIOS of our GL504GS/GM, without modifying BIOS itself.
ASUS GL504GS BIOS unlock thread, and GRUBing guide


: I can't install basic touchpad drivers after windows fresh install!
: Please install basic Intel Serial I/O driver from ASUS download page.

: I just bought my laptop 2 weeks ago, and i playing every games the gpu/cpu temp around 85-90°. Is that normal for this laptop?
: There are two types of answers ...
The short one - YES, that is probably fine, make sure Overboost is on, so heat dissipation is on its maximum.
The long one ...
Current thermal management of Intel processors is really complicated things. Especially in terms of Turbo Boost and adaptive cooling. Intel have done a great work making their processor as cool is possible under low load, and as powerful as possible in high load under. Unfortunately, ASUS engineers didn't spend enough time to get it cooling system (very well designed, though!) to correctly. If you're not experiencing significant performance drops - please switch Maximum Processor State to 99%, so you will be able to SIGNIFICANTLY reduce temperatures and noise level.


: Cann't find any info about different models...Does this model actually have 144Hz display or not?
: All GL504GS/GM are equiped with 144Hz screen.

[McCoy]

dalladirosa wrote:
I will keep in 1803, Less temperature will better

Please keep up with 1803 - 1809 works insanely bad on Alt-Tab

[Fullrom]

Oh boy, how sad i feel virtually sitting here along you guys sharing our despair... My experience with my GL504GS has nothing to envy to any of yours, here are my 2 cents
Hopefuly it will make us feel united and will help you process your frustration like I did reading about how you had to deal with yours and the total lack of attention from Asus while we chose to trust them and support them by buying a ROG scar...

I ordered mine end of September and at that time i had no complains, my fan set up through the ROG gaming center was properly kicking off when selecting overboost and i never had any throttling nor temperatures higher than 85°C while playing Overwatch at a steady 130-140fps in epic settings, for honor at 130 fps in high settings, WoW at an average of 120 fps (144 in open zones, dungeons, only 90 in raids or capitals) Although i don't play it anymore, Destiny 2 at 144fps
all those games except the last one for houuuurs even lying in bed with just a basic notebook pad on my lap and my scar on it. i never had any throttling or came close to it

Well that sure was before...

A month ago approximatively, i started to see new temps in the 90°C and some throttling when pushing games like Total war warhammer 2 or kingdom come deliverance without Vertical sync, that quickly deteriorated in the last two weeks leaving me with no choices but to try everything.

Being unable to play any game past 5 min without having some 90°c temps and throttling I looked for any help i could find while waiting to get back home for the holidays to find a good thermal repaste service provider (im currently working in Italy where I moved recently and no one wants to do it here, even a huge retailler and service provider officialy partnered with Asus). Being reasonably implicated, like most of you i believe, by the amount of money i invested in this desktop replacement and thus its longevity my only concern for the last two weeks has been to do anything i could to minimize the temps and this is what i've been through and I wouldn't share this with anyone else than fellow owners because its so shameful having to play like im playing with what I have payed for and the time I spent analyzing the market before getting the GL504GS because it did hit the bull-eye for me !(a full 1070 in a relatively portable and thin design while being cheaper than any other models having a full 1070, please note that i live in Belgium so i dont have access to any of your amazing assemblers for those of you who live in the US).

-- > Before updating the BIOS, so the last two weeks until yesterday and with the 103 version that is
First i started with changing the power settings mode and created my own by specifying a maximum range of 99% for the cpu usage; which makes the cpu stay under 85°c, YES IT STILL REACHES THAT) you also are getting 2.09Ghz instead of the 3.9Ghz you payed for as a consequence your gpu doesnt go past 90°C because as one isnt reaching higher temps the other isn't influenced by the other one's heat from it communicating in the heat sink BUT for some reason if you play any game in full screen or even windowed fullscreen, that power setting is being by passed and i could see from XTU that my cpu was going to 3.9ghz while i was playing in and immediately throttle and i mean THROTTLE.

That wasn't enough boys because the game i play at the moment Path of Exile doesn't have a setting for screen refreshment rate and playing it at 144hz was making my GPU scream; So, in order to ****ING PLAY without feeling constantly anxious about temps and hitting gpu throttling of 95°C I then had to create a personalised display setting through the ndvidia config panel to set my screen refreshment rate to 100hz (still was hitting throttling after a few hours, so brought it down to 90hz) THIS IS GREAT I'M LOVING THIS. yeah, no.

I then spent 3 days online looking for the best and most powerful cooling pad i couldnt find; Not being able to order the Kootek chillmat 5 (which has been widely reviewed has being able to bring internal temps down by even 20°c) I ordered the cooling master notepal XL, that thing has a fan airflow of 89.8 CFM, one of the highest on the market. Well that didn't help jack **** because as most of you know by now you can't elevate the rog scar without the internal cooling system being disturbed and now I believe that having the cooling stand under it actually made the internal system even more ****ed.

While i was then looking to undervolt the CPU with XTU i also came accross people undervolting their GPU through the voltage curve in MSI but you had to go in trial and errors with every dot of the curve for hours before reaching anything convenient, the results of that seem great as it clearly enables to you get stable fps after prolonged hours of gameplay but i didn't go into it because something in me knew this wasn't the issue and i wanted to know what the hell was happening; I'll eventually document the process of undervolting the gpu when i go through it in january.

While i was undervolting the CPU with XTU, something happened that i'm going to try to document as much as possible although my only explanation of it is not factual but personal, I do think i found the issue though! : Not being able to go past an UV of -0.080V i had a few crashed while testing -0.095V and around it. When it would reboot, ROG gaming center wouldnt open anymore no matter what i tried so I had to go on asus support and download the set up file again.
I was then going around changing what i could possibly change in the rog gaming center and thats when the MAGIC HAPPENED :

---> While under load, with path of exile open in windowed mode and gpu flirting with the 90°C and cpu around 85°C (remember i turned off max usage of cpu under the power settings and capped it to 99% while plugged in, it was also UV by -0.085V so those two things kept the cpu around 85°C) Fans set up at this precise moment was overboost (like its always been when im gaming). I then created a profile in the 3 free slots you have in the rog gaming center and selected the fan mode to overboost, saved the profile, closed it and as i cliked on it while on the main page the fans who were already on overboost started to pick up a new volume and speed i had not felt in a loooooong time, placing my hand on the right GPU vent i could clearly feel a different and increased air flow coming of it, the sound was exactly what ive known to be accustomed with back in the first days of my notebook and nothing comparable to the general fan speed i had the last month even with both gpu and cpu throttling and fan mode constantly on overboost. But that lasted 20 sec... after that i went back to what was already a noisy and intense fan speed but clearly less powerful.

Being so ****ing mad with the rog gaming center i uninstalled it and then the magic happened for good (well for 2hours but i was like a kid), with xtu opened and msi afterburner and nothing to adjust fan speed, rog center being uninstalled, i opened path of exile and I felt a completely different behaviour in the cooling system, fans would start to increase their speed way earlier and would reach the same level i experienced while manually activating the profile previously (but which only lasted 10-20 sec then) I noticed completely different performances as i was playing, my gpu wasn't going past 70°c in MSI while i had it flirting at 90°c before that; I then set the screen refreshment rate back to 144hz and continued playing, **** ME it was working like before, fans were noisy af but i didnt care i agreed to that in the first place, i had my headset on and could play at 144hz with a crips and perfect result, I went back to fullscreen... IT was working, **** me!!! and my gpu was only reaching 85°C+ in rare occasions (monitoring through msi) I played like that for a few hours being so ecstatic of rekindling what seemed like long gone but then i got greedy... changed the voltage offset in xtu and my laptop crashed. I wasnt able to get the same experience after but at least I felt like i discovered something.

Beind depressed again and looking for solutions, i updated the bios with the last 105 version yesterday evening and the results are nothing but more depressing.
fan behave the same as before but I can now play in 144hz but in windowed mode with the cpu still limited to 99% in the power settings.
The difference since the bios update is that now my CPU goes up to 98°C sometimes in XTU and there is no throttling.... WHAT THE ACTUAL **** ASUS.

This is my non factual and personal conclusion : some owners seem to have issue with the fan speed being constantly in overboost while on idle and no matter the fan speed mode, in my case its the actual behaviour of the internal cooling system who has gone A wire not picking up when the temp rises and not reaching proper max speed when temps are in the 90°C leaving me with no choice but to downgrade my screen refreshment, limit and uv my cpu while playing in windowed mode only (and having micro stutters and flickers yes i forgot to mention) this was confirmed by my "back to normal" personal experience i mentioned earlier uninstalling rog center altough i haven't been able to reproduce the same results by uninstalling it a number of times after.

My next goal is to get a KLIM vaccuum but only after doing proper grizzly taikonaut liquid metal repaste and doing a cleaning of the heat sink and the vents to see if the internal cooling system (im using big words i know but im not the most knowledgeable person in this field) picks up again like it was working the first 2 months, if not the repaste should at least tame it down a bit and if not the KLIM vaccuum is my last resort.

If you took the time to read all this you're probably as aggrieved as I am and I wish i was able to make you feel less alone
If i took the time to write all this is because I love this laptop
I would like to apologize for my lack of IT knowledge and my funky writing as english isn't my first language

[McCoy]

Fullrom wrote:
Oh boy, how sad i feel virtually sitting here along you guys sharing our despair... My experience with my GL504GS has nothing to envy to any of yours, here are my 2 cents
Hopefuly it will make us feel united and will help you process your frustration like I did reading about how you had to deal with yours and the total lack of attention from Asus while we chose to trust them and support them by buying a ROG scar...

HELL FREAKIN YEAHHHH!!!!! Please follow -> my repasting guide - DRASTICALLY IMPROVES PERFOMANCE!!!

Feel free to contact me -> i will eager to consult you on "how things should be done"

[Fullrom]

My man! I already read it !!! :)) hehehe

but didnt you forget in the end to plug the CPU fan back on when reassembling XD??

I'm going to try to look for a professional and ask him if i can sit next to him when he does it to learn, i would consider doing it myself with normal high end paste but I read that liquid metal is even more of a sensitive case? Also did i hallucinate or is my memory playing tricks on me because i'm almost sure i read somewhere that you can't transport your laptop upside down or even flip it with liquid metal repaste??

In the end do you believe that, how soon and how much the fans overboost activate is linked to the BIOS? I've read that people who the opposite issue (fans in constant boost while in silent mode on idle) couldnt get rid of the issue even booting in safe mode, which would indicated its the motherboard no?
I know there is a software called notebook fan control i was so hyped to install it yesterday only to realise that you need a proper config set up and unique to the GL504GS or GM set up by someone knowledgeable and i'm the furthest from that :D.

I mean my experience of yesterday clearly shows that if working properly this laptop has great thermals and heat dissipation, it does have some of the most powerful fans on the market, noisy but effective.... so sad it does not work as intented and that a manual speed control would fix that issue like in msi or acer 😞

[Fullrom]

Fellas,

Apparently for the GL504GM (Hero 2 version of our scar 2) there is an unofficial vbios 307 lying around on a google drive and being shared by owners. This is seemingly solving the issues 😮

[McCoy]

Fullrom wrote:
My man! I already read it !!! :)) hehehe

but didnt you forget in the end to plug the CPU fan back on when reassembling XD??

I'm going to try to look for a professional and ask him if i can sit next to him when he does it to learn, i would consider doing it myself with normal high end paste but I read that liquid metal is even more of a sensitive case? Also did i hallucinate or is my memory playing tricks on me because i'm almost sure i read somewhere that you can't transport your laptop upside down or even flip it with liquid metal repaste??

In the end do you believe that, how soon and how much the fans overboost activate is linked to the BIOS? I've read that people who the opposite issue (fans in constant boost while in silent mode on idle) couldnt get rid of the issue even booting in safe mode, which would indicated its the motherboard no?
I know there is a software called notebook fan control i was so hyped to install it yesterday only to realise that you need a proper config set up and unique to the GL504GS or GM set up by someone knowledgeable and i'm the furthest from that :D.

I mean my experience of yesterday clearly shows that if working properly this laptop has great thermals and heat dissipation, it does have some of the most powerful fans on the market, noisy but effective.... so sad it does not work as intented and that a manual speed control would fix that issue like in msi or acer 😞

There is no problem in transportation, because Liquid Metall is actually dries-out - i did a lot of transportation in different position - and don't had any problems.
There is no control of fans in BIOS.
SpeedFan doesn't work, unfortunately.

[McCoy]

Hey guys, it's been a while -> my GF bought a HERO II with same problem: lag, freezes & micro stuttering. I've some time digging in the case: as i still regularly encounter this problem even after liquid paste + thermal pad replacement.

I did some research, executed experiments and now i'm ready to present a reason:
- thing that is the root of lag, freezes & micro stuttering is throttling, but the cause of this is a bit different.
- the thing that i would like to tell you about is called BD PROCHOT (Bi-directional processor hot), it's function that signals CPU if other components (GPU) are heating heavily.

DISCLAIMER: DO IT ON YOUR OWN RISK - IT MIGHT LEAD TO LOSE WARRANTY!

So, how to fix this:
- Install ThrottleStop
- Remove tick form BD Prochot at left side of the ThrottleStop panel

(!) It might be great if you apply additional undervolt in FIVR Menu

I tested this approach on my friends SCAR II, HERO II - and it seems it works flawless. But keep an yey on the temperatures, and watch the fan mode.

If it works -> please PM so i can put this into FAQ on first page.

[Fullrom]

McCoy wrote:
Hey guys, it's been a while -> my GF bought a HERO II with same problem: lag, freezes & micro stuttering. I've some time digging in the case: as i still regularly encounter this problem even after liquid paste + thermal pad replacement.

I did some research, executed experiments and now i'm ready to present a reason:
- thing that is the root of lag, freezes & micro stuttering is throttling, but the cause of this is a bit different.
- the thing that i would like to tell you about is called BD PROCHOT (Bi-directional processor hot), it's function that signals CPU if other components (GPU) are heating heavily.

DISCLAIMER: DO IT ON YOUR OWN RISK - IT MIGHT LEAD TO LOSE WARRANTY!

So, how to fix this:
- Install ThrottleStop
- Remove tick form BD Prochot at left side of the ThrottleStop panel

(!) It might be great if you apply additional undervolt in FIVR Menu

I tested this approach on my friends SCAR II, HERO II - and it seems it works flawless. But keep an yey on the temperatures, and watch the fan mode.

If it works -> please PM so i can put this into FAQ on first page.

I own a faulty GL504GS, will test that out in a few hours when im home will let you know!

[McCoy]

Fullrom wrote:
I own a faulty GL504GS, will test that out in a few hours when im home will let you know!

Long journey back home - may i help if you got lost?

[Fullrom]

ahahaha to be completely honnest i didn't give it much hope... My GL504GS has shown the worst internal cooling system for the last two months, to be able to play in the most simple way i need to : Remove turbo boost so my CPU doesnt go past 2.9ghz, lower my screen refreshment rate to 80/90 hz, undervolt my cpu and my gpu and even then i get throttling every and then. From all the test i conducted i know by now that my fans are not picking up as intended although they are on turbo boost all the time. As a result i reach high temps fast no matter what and while playing near throttling temps, my fans never speed up and by the sound of it they stay at a balanced speed. Like i explained in a previous post i had the opposite happen once while playing around XTU and uninstalling rog center, my fans then started picking up like crazy to a speed and noise i had known in the first month i had it and i coud play with no downgrades of my system with a perfect 144fps and no throttling.

I suspect that my first month of usage playing on an uneven plane constantly or using a cooling pad has made the heat sensors or something similar bug completely.

So i tried your advice yesterday night, and it didnt do much at all quiet the opposite my fans were even quieter than before and thermal throttling even more frequent.
I'm patiently waiting for the official bios 307. Ive read people reporting no more issues after that (which is mind blowing to think its not hardware related and can be fixed with a new bios) but since its the bios for the 504GM, hero version, i dont want to take any risk and wait for the official one

Thanks for your input though, i had a few seconds of hope thanks to you 😉