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GL702ZC undervolt of Ryzen 1700 and RX 580

deksman2
Level 8
Hello everyone...
I just wanted to share some interesting undervolting results I got on my GL702ZC (Ryzen 1700) and RX 580.

I was able to undervolt the CPU using the Ryzen Master utility for Threadripper (For some reason, the one for regular Ryzen doesn't work in this laptop).
Undervolting results:
3.2GhZ across all cores works stable at 0.98125V
3.3Ghz seems to operate stable on 1.05V

I hadn't tested higher frequencies or voltages yet... but I suspect that 3.6GhZ boost across all cores can run on 1.175V stable (the question is would you want to considering the temperatures... - I would advise these settings only if/when you're using the CPU alone for rendering tasks).
Aside from that, I suspect we could drop temperatures on both the CPU and GPU further by simply repasting them with something like GeLid GC extreme or Conductonaut (though Conductonaut as you know is highly conductive and corrodes certain materials if it spills over), and also coating the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips with quality thermal pads (something like Alphacool or Fujipoly thermal pads of AT LEAST 11W/mK variety or better).

For the GPU, as some of you may already know, we don't have Wattman functionality in the Radeon drivers (why this is happening is unknown as of yet, but it might have something to do with the premise that Asus locked the BIOS in this machine - or it could simply be AMD's issue that they hadn't released yet proper drivers for mobile RX 580 - which would seem a bit superfluous considering that we do have a desktop grade GPU in our machines - only underclocked).

The RX 580 in this machine can now be undervolted using MSI Afterburner.
My stable undervolt was -93mV on the core.
For some games such as Mass Effect Andromeda, -100mV works too... which also worked several/multiple times in 3d Mark Timespy benchmark, but this setting also crashed my OS on two runs.

Obviously, your voltage mileage may vary depending on your silicon quality, but considering I got my GL702ZC on practically the first day it became available in UK, you might also look at mine as 'worst case scenario' or use it as a reference to set voltages to similar or slightly higher levels, and then run CPU and GPU stress benchmarks to see where you are at.

Cinebench for example will happily run on 0.975V and 3.2GhZ... but Prime95 for example will eventually crash the OS with those voltages.

The GPU is in desperate need of undervolting since Asus didn't exactly do this unit's cooling justice at all, and, this helps reducing the fan noise as well.

The temperatures did drop on the GPU and CPU under maximum stress.
Ryzen 1700 set to 3.2 GhZ and 0.98125V = 84 degrees C under maximum load
RX 580 set to 1077mhZ (cant affect the speeds as of yet) and -93mV (on the core of course - we could also use the VRAM voltage control btw as I think its too high there too) = 75 degrees C on maximum stress.

These temps are for when both the CPU and GPU are stressed to the maximum.

If I'm not mistaken, some early reviews of this machine stated that when both CPU and GPU are stressed simultaneously to the max, the CPU was at about 94 degrees C, and GPU was as 84 or 85 degrees C (possibly 88 degrees C?).
If that's the case, then I was able to drop temperatures by about 10 degrees Celsius on the CPU and 10 deg C on the GPU - which is not bad at all.


Bear in mind that I hadn't repasted my CPU or GPU, nor have I applied any thermal pads on the VRM's or GPU VRAM chips...
Asus confirmed that if we tried to repaste the CPU or GPU, we void the warranty.

I already had an issue with my Gl702ZC's fan auto regulator hardware failing after the first month of gaming on the laptop and having Asus replace the motherboard (but they were unable to tell me what caused the problem in the first place - I suspect it was the heat)... so I'm not exactly in a rush to do a repaste or apply thermal pads to the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips and void the warranty.

I do think however Asus made a serious mistake by not placing any thermal pads of 11W/mK variety on VRM's or GPU VRAM... they both need it.
And considering this machine costs £1600 in UK, I'd expect quality thermal paste like GeLid GC extreme on the CPU and GPU as well.
Other Asus ROG machines apparently had some thermal pads on VRM's and GPU chips... so I don't know why they went with a questionable thermal paste across all hardware in this instance.

When I RMA'd my unit to Asus I provided them with Gelid GC extreme and FujiPoly extreme 17w/mk thermal pads and requested they use the paste on the CPU/GPU and pads on VRM's/VRAM chips... but they said they have certain factory standards to which their jobs are done and couldn't do it (even though they initially said they might be able to do it if I supply them with the materials and specifically request it to be done - which I have).

Anyway, I hope this post helps you guys out... it's a simple and effective way of getting this desktop replacement machine running cooler and probably longer at the same time without repasting or applying thermal pads (which would otherwise void the warranty).
8,994 Views
8 REPLIES 8

Elizer0x0309
Level 8
Hey!

Thanks for the write up! Can you please run Cinebench r15 Multicore test (undervolt and without)?

Thank You!

AgentHunk
Level 8
deksman2 wrote:
Hello everyone...
I just wanted to share some interesting undervolting results I got on my GL702ZC (Ryzen 1700) and RX 580.

I was able to undervolt the CPU using the Ryzen Master utility for Threadripper (For some reason, the one for regular Ryzen doesn't work in this laptop).
Undervolting results:
3.2GhZ across all cores works stable at 0.98125V
3.3Ghz seems to operate stable on 1.05V

I hadn't tested higher frequencies or voltages yet... but I suspect that 3.6GhZ boost across all cores can run on 1.175V stable (the question is would you want to considering the temperatures... - I would advise these settings only if/when you're using the CPU alone for rendering tasks).
Aside from that, I suspect we could drop temperatures on both the CPU and GPU further by simply repasting them with something like GeLid GC extreme or Conductonaut (though Conductonaut as you know is highly conductive and corrodes certain materials if it spills over), and also coating the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips with quality thermal pads (something like Alphacool or Fujipoly thermal pads of AT LEAST 11W/mK variety or better).

For the GPU, as some of you may already know, we don't have Wattman functionality in the Radeon drivers (why this is happening is unknown as of yet, but it might have something to do with the premise that Asus locked the BIOS in this machine - or it could simply be AMD's issue that they hadn't released yet proper drivers for mobile RX 580 - which would seem a bit superfluous considering that we do have a desktop grade GPU in our machines - only underclocked).

The RX 580 in this machine can now be undervolted using MSI Afterburner.
My stable undervolt was -93mV on the core.
For some games such as Mass Effect Andromeda, -100mV works too... which also worked several/multiple times in 3d Mark Timespy benchmark, but this setting also crashed my OS on two runs.

Obviously, your voltage mileage may vary depending on your silicon quality, but considering I got my GL702ZC on practically the first day it became available in UK, you might also look at mine as 'worst case scenario' or use it as a reference to set voltages to similar or slightly higher levels, and then run CPU and GPU stress benchmarks to see where you are at.

Cinebench for example will happily run on 0.975V and 3.2GhZ... but Prime95 for example will eventually crash the OS with those voltages.

The GPU is in desperate need of undervolting since Asus didn't exactly do this unit's cooling justice at all, and, this helps reducing the fan noise as well.

The temperatures did drop on the GPU and CPU under maximum stress.
Ryzen 1700 set to 3.2 GhZ and 0.98125V = 84 degrees C under maximum load
RX 580 set to 1077mhZ (cant affect the speeds as of yet) and -93mV (on the core of course - we could also use the VRAM voltage control btw as I think its too high there too) = 75 degrees C on maximum stress.

These temps are for when both the CPU and GPU are stressed to the maximum.

If I'm not mistaken, some early reviews of this machine stated that when both CPU and GPU are stressed simultaneously to the max, the CPU was at about 94 degrees C, and GPU was as 84 or 85 degrees C (possibly 88 degrees C?).
If that's the case, then I was able to drop temperatures by about 10 degrees Celsius on the CPU and 10 deg C on the GPU - which is not bad at all.


Bear in mind that I hadn't repasted my CPU or GPU, nor have I applied any thermal pads on the VRM's or GPU VRAM chips...
Asus confirmed that if we tried to repaste the CPU or GPU, we void the warranty.

I already had an issue with my Gl702ZC's fan auto regulator hardware failing after the first month of gaming on the laptop and having Asus replace the motherboard (but they were unable to tell me what caused the problem in the first place - I suspect it was the heat)... so I'm not exactly in a rush to do a repaste or apply thermal pads to the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips and void the warranty.

I do think however Asus made a serious mistake by not placing any thermal pads of 11W/mK variety on VRM's or GPU VRAM... they both need it.
And considering this machine costs £1600 in UK, I'd expect quality thermal paste like GeLid GC extreme on the CPU and GPU as well.
Other Asus ROG machines apparently had some thermal pads on VRM's and GPU chips... so I don't know why they went with a questionable thermal paste across all hardware in this instance.

When I RMA'd my unit to Asus I provided them with Gelid GC extreme and FujiPoly extreme 17w/mk thermal pads and requested they use the paste on the CPU/GPU and pads on VRM's/VRAM chips... but they said they have certain factory standards to which their jobs are done and couldn't do it (even though they initially said they might be able to do it if I supply them with the materials and specifically request it to be done - which I have).

Anyway, I hope this post helps you guys out... it's a simple and effective way of getting this desktop replacement machine running cooler and probably longer at the same time without repasting or applying thermal pads (which would otherwise void the warranty).


ok,
Can you give me the maximum safe temp and speeds I can input into the msi afterburner?Or do I need ryzen master?

better yet,is it safe to OC this laptop?

AgentHunk wrote:
better yet,is it safe to OC this laptop?


Using Ryzen MAster, you can certainly overclock the CPU.
By how much depends on your silicon quality - after which, you'd need to test out the temperatures and stability of the overclock by using proper software.
I think the CPU can be overclocked to 3.6GhZ across all cores and stock voltage... maybe lower voltage if you have a good quality silicon.

The GPU however, no... at least not on a software level as far as I know because the BIOS is locked and you'd likely need to flash a different video bios with higher clocks etc. (but one that is still made for the RX 580 with 4GB VRAM)... and I wouldn't recommend it either.
I think you'd be better off just undervolting the GPU.

For gaming, play them at 'high' settings (as there's limited to not noticeable difference between that at 'Ultra') and use the drivers for Chill and FPS limit to 60 (since the panel is limited to 60Hz, anything above that would be literally wasted frames - no point in pushing the gpu needlessly with ultra or having it to render out frames the panel won't show anyway).

MGR83
Level 7
deksman2 wrote:
Hello everyone...
I just wanted to share some interesting undervolting results I got on my GL702ZC (Ryzen 1700) and RX 580.

I was able to undervolt the CPU using the Ryzen Master utility for Threadripper (For some reason, the one for regular Ryzen doesn't work in this laptop).
Undervolting results:
3.2GhZ across all cores works stable at 0.98125V
3.3Ghz seems to operate stable on 1.05V

I hadn't tested higher frequencies or voltages yet... but I suspect that 3.6GhZ boost across all cores can run on 1.175V stable (the question is would you want to considering the temperatures... - I would advise these settings only if/when you're using the CPU alone for rendering tasks).
Aside from that, I suspect we could drop temperatures on both the CPU and GPU further by simply repasting them with something like GeLid GC extreme or Conductonaut (though Conductonaut as you know is highly conductive and corrodes certain materials if it spills over), and also coating the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips with quality thermal pads (something like Alphacool or Fujipoly thermal pads of AT LEAST 11W/mK variety or better).

For the GPU, as some of you may already know, we don't have Wattman functionality in the Radeon drivers (why this is happening is unknown as of yet, but it might have something to do with the premise that Asus locked the BIOS in this machine - or it could simply be AMD's issue that they hadn't released yet proper drivers for mobile RX 580 - which would seem a bit superfluous considering that we do have a desktop grade GPU in our machines - only underclocked).

The RX 580 in this machine can now be undervolted using MSI Afterburner.
My stable undervolt was -93mV on the core.
For some games such as Mass Effect Andromeda, -100mV works too... which also worked several/multiple times in 3d Mark Timespy benchmark, but this setting also crashed my OS on two runs.

Obviously, your voltage mileage may vary depending on your silicon quality, but considering I got my GL702ZC on practically the first day it became available in UK, you might also look at mine as 'worst case scenario' or use it as a reference to set voltages to similar or slightly higher levels, and then run CPU and GPU stress benchmarks to see where you are at.

Cinebench for example will happily run on 0.975V and 3.2GhZ... but Prime95 for example will eventually crash the OS with those voltages.

The GPU is in desperate need of undervolting since Asus didn't exactly do this unit's cooling justice at all, and, this helps reducing the fan noise as well.

The temperatures did drop on the GPU and CPU under maximum stress.
Ryzen 1700 set to 3.2 GhZ and 0.98125V = 84 degrees C under maximum load
RX 580 set to 1077mhZ (cant affect the speeds as of yet) and -93mV (on the core of course - we could also use the VRAM voltage control btw as I think its too high there too) = 75 degrees C on maximum stress.

These temps are for when both the CPU and GPU are stressed to the maximum.

If I'm not mistaken, some early reviews of this machine stated that when both CPU and GPU are stressed simultaneously to the max, the CPU was at about 94 degrees C, and GPU was as 84 or 85 degrees C (possibly 88 degrees C?).
If that's the case, then I was able to drop temperatures by about 10 degrees Celsius on the CPU and 10 deg C on the GPU - which is not bad at all.


Bear in mind that I hadn't repasted my CPU or GPU, nor have I applied any thermal pads on the VRM's or GPU VRAM chips...
Asus confirmed that if we tried to repaste the CPU or GPU, we void the warranty.

I already had an issue with my Gl702ZC's fan auto regulator hardware failing after the first month of gaming on the laptop and having Asus replace the motherboard (but they were unable to tell me what caused the problem in the first place - I suspect it was the heat)... so I'm not exactly in a rush to do a repaste or apply thermal pads to the VRM's and GPU VRAM chips and void the warranty.

I do think however Asus made a serious mistake by not placing any thermal pads of 11W/mK variety on VRM's or GPU VRAM... they both need it.
And considering this machine costs £1600 in UK, I'd expect quality thermal paste like GeLid GC extreme on the CPU and GPU as well.
Other Asus ROG machines apparently had some thermal pads on VRM's and GPU chips... so I don't know why they went with a questionable thermal paste across all hardware in this instance.

When I RMA'd my unit to Asus I provided them with Gelid GC extreme and FujiPoly extreme 17w/mk thermal pads and requested they use the paste on the CPU/GPU and pads on VRM's/VRAM chips... but they said they have certain factory standards to which their jobs are done and couldn't do it (even though they initially said they might be able to do it if I supply them with the materials and specifically request it to be done - which I have).

Anyway, I hope this post helps you guys out... it's a simple and effective way of getting this desktop replacement machine running cooler and probably longer at the same time without repasting or applying thermal pads (which would otherwise void the warranty).


Hey Deksman2, I have picked up a cheap(er) end of run GL702ZC - but with the Ryzen 5 1600 instead. In my mind this seems to be a better fit for the downclocked RX580. I've seen you alot on the forums for this model so I thought I'd ask you a couple of questions if you don't mind.

I've already managed to undervolt the GPU at -100mv which has made a massive difference - no throttling within the 65w thermal envelope! But I'm struggling with the CPU as I can't find any suitable software. I have Ryzen Master but when I ender new voltages in a custom profile they do not take, even after a restart. Am I doing something wrong? Can you talk me through it? I've looked for Ryzen Master (Threadripper) but I can't find it, perhaps it's been withdrawn?

Finally my last question relates to memory. The stock 8GB 2400MHz single channel is rubbish! I'm looking to get hold of some 3200MHz in dual channel; however, I'm concerned BIOS won't recognise the memory and will default back to 2400MHz. I realise the official supported frequency is 2666MHz and there were initial problems with the 1st gen Ryzens on B350 boards. But recent BIOS update have supposedly sorted this. Without BIOS options on this board to manually change memory speeds I'm worried it will be a massive white (expensive) elephant. What are your thoughts please? Is there a way of changing memory speeds in a software package?

Thanks man

David

MGR83 wrote:
Hey Deksman2, I have picked up a cheap(er) end of run GL702ZC - but with the Ryzen 5 1600 instead. In my mind this seems to be a better fit for the downclocked RX580. I've seen you alot on the forums for this model so I thought I'd ask you a couple of questions if you don't mind.

I've already managed to undervolt the GPU at -100mv which has made a massive difference - no throttling within the 65w thermal envelope! But I'm struggling with the CPU as I can't find any suitable software. I have Ryzen Master but when I ender new voltages in a custom profile they do not take, even after a restart. Am I doing something wrong? Can you talk me through it? I've looked for Ryzen Master (Threadripper) but I can't find it, perhaps it's been withdrawn?

Finally my last question relates to memory. The stock 8GB 2400MHz single channel is rubbish! I'm looking to get hold of some 3200MHz in dual channel; however, I'm concerned BIOS won't recognise the memory and will default back to 2400MHz. I realise the official supported frequency is 2666MHz and there were initial problems with the 1st gen Ryzens on B350 boards. But recent BIOS update have supposedly sorted this. Without BIOS options on this board to manually change memory speeds I'm worried it will be a massive white (expensive) elephant. What are your thoughts please? Is there a way of changing memory speeds in a software package?

Thanks man

David


For the CPU, you need to go into Creator Mode tab. In the Creator Mode tab, you can drop the voltage under 'Voltage control'.
Once you have a desired voltage, just hit APPLY in the top left portion of Ryzen Master and keep it running in the background - at least, that's how I do it.

As for using higher frequency RAM... nope, you can't. GL702ZC will simply give you an error if you try.
Someone from Phoronix forums already tried using 2600 MhZ RAM in this unit and it was crashing the system.

Asus being a good little undermining company, they are decided in their 'infinite wisdom' (more like idiocy) to NOT release BIOS updates that would include support for higher frequency RAM, or Zen 2 for that matter (Ryzen refresh also isn't supported).

So, it looks like Asus did exactly what I feared... they dropped support on this (pretty good unit) pretty early on.

Unless someone from Phoronix forums or good experience can slipstream Zen 2 and higher frequency RAM support into existing BIOS (and it working properly), I'm afraid we're stuck with existing Ryzen 1 CPU's and 2400 MhZ RAM.

deksman2 wrote:
For the CPU, you need to go into Creator Mode tab. In the Creator Mode tab, you can drop the voltage under 'Voltage control'.
Once you have a desired voltage, just hit APPLY in the top left portion of Ryzen Master and keep it running in the background - at least, that's how I do it.

As for using higher frequency RAM... nope, you can't. GL702ZC will simply give you an error if you try.
Someone from Phoronix forums already tried using 2600 MhZ RAM in this unit and it was crashing the system.

Asus being a good little undermining company, they are decided in their 'infinite wisdom' (more like idiocy) to NOT release BIOS updates that would include support for higher frequency RAM, or Zen 2 for that matter (Ryzen refresh also isn't supported).

So, it looks like Asus did exactly what I feared... they dropped support on this (pretty good unit) pretty early on.

Unless someone from Phoronix forums or good experience can slipstream Zen 2 and higher frequency RAM support into existing BIOS (and it working properly), I'm afraid we're stuck with existing Ryzen 1 CPU's and 2400 MhZ RAM.


Hey man

Thanks for the reply!

Asus dropping support is really lousy. Granted this is a low volume product but they were eye wateringly expensive at launch. Those customers that did buy should be treated better. I can understand why Asus don't want to provide Ryzen + or 2 support - they want you to buy another laptop! But not being able to upgrade to Ryzen natively supported 2666MHz memory (as a minimum) is pathetic. My mum's Bristol Ridge (Bulldozer) APU is rocking 2400MHz memory!

I may just put in another 8GB module then. Don't support you know the memory brand so I can look for the same?

Anyways, I've had a play with Ryzen Master (the Threadripper 1 / Ryzen version)...
At stock CPUv 1.125 I'm getting a package power consumption (according to HWmonitor) of 46W under Prime-blend. Not bad for 65W TDP!
But RM will only recognise my voltage changes if I make a frequency change first, even if I then revert it back to stock - no idea what that is about.
CPU is stable at 0.9v @ 3.2GHz with a package consumption of just 34W. That pretty awesome!
CPU is stable at stock CPUv 1.125 @ 3.7GHz across all cores. Even better!

But... as soon as I make any changes turbo core and power saving tech is disabled. Voltage stays at the set level. Frankly 0.9v is only a tad more than idle 0.865v so no loss there but I would miss turbo core 😞

And... when I restart Windows my settings are again ignored and turbo core/power saving is back. So a waste of time really. Shame Asus didn't do a better job with the voltage management!

David

MGR83 wrote:
Hey man

Thanks for the reply!

Asus dropping support is really lousy. Granted this is a low volume product but they were eye wateringly expensive at launch. Those customers that did buy should be treated better. I can understand why Asus don't want to provide Ryzen + or 2 support - they want you to buy another laptop! But not being able to upgrade to Ryzen natively supported 2666MHz memory (as a minimum) is pathetic. My mum's Bristol Ridge (Bulldozer) APU is rocking 2400MHz memory!

I may just put in another 8GB module then. Don't support you know the memory brand so I can look for the same?

Anyways, I've had a play with Ryzen Master (the Threadripper 1 / Ryzen version)...
At stock CPUv 1.125 I'm getting a package power consumption (according to HWmonitor) of 46W under Prime-blend. Not bad for 65W TDP!
But RM will only recognise my voltage changes if I make a frequency change first, even if I then revert it back to stock - no idea what that is about.
CPU is stable at 0.9v @ 3.2GHz with a package consumption of just 34W. That pretty awesome!
CPU is stable at stock CPUv 1.125 @ 3.7GHz across all cores. Even better!

But... as soon as I make any changes turbo core and power saving tech is disabled. Voltage stays at the set level. Frankly 0.9v is only a tad more than idle 0.865v so no loss there but I would miss turbo core 😞

And... when I restart Windows my settings are again ignored and turbo core/power saving is back. So a waste of time really. Shame Asus didn't do a better job with the voltage management!

David


Not sure of the memory brand, but just make sure its 2400 MhZ 8GB DDR4 SO-DIMM and it should work fine in dual channel.

Yes, Asus dropping support for this laptop is lousy.
I don't care that its a low volume product. We paid good money for the thing, and the least they can do is continue releasing BIOS updates for it that would ensure longevity and stability of the unit.
These days its not exactly THAT expensive to do this... and Asus has responsibility towards consumers to provide us with a great experience considering the price.

As for undervolting and overclocking... I keep my 1700 at 3.2GhZ and 0.9812V
I can probably push that to 3.6GhZ across all cores and 1.125V, but somehow don't see it as necessary.

Settings to get reset after Windows restart, but they are memorised by Ryzen Master, and you can load that profile up as needed.
Not exactly ideal, but good considering that Asus completely locked the BIOS on us