Question CPU in Acer Nitro 5 refuses to go above 1.5ghz when gaming ?

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Aug 16, 2022
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So I've been using this laptop for a while and it's been great, high fps on all the games I play, it's running a I7-9750H, RTX 2060, 16GB RAM and a 1TB SSD and it was working fine until I decided to disassemble it, and take a peek at the cooling. One of the screws for the CPU was broken so I couldnt fully so I lifted it up a little to see most of the cooling system and a lil of the GPU. I also removed the SSD and RAM sticks to check them out, and then put them back. When everything was reassembled, Windows was corrupted (still booted though, a bunch of random BSODs though) and there were a bunch of other problems. Reinstalling Windows fixed all of these problems, except one. The CPU refuses to go above 1.5Ghz when gaming. The temperatures were as normal (around 90-92), but the laptop could still boost and run fine before all of this. One thing I noticed is that it likes to boost to around 3-4Ghz when not focused on the game (aka alt-tabbed), it also boosts when it's not running anything intensive. As soon as i alt tab out of the game, it goes straight up to its normal speeds, aka 3-4ghz

Another thing I noticed is that games only take up about 15-20% of the CPU. (only checked CSGO so far)
CSGO used to run at about 200-300 FPS, now it only runs at around 90fps, sometimes going up to 120.
Another thing I did before this was undervolt it using throttlestop, but now that I have reinstalled Windows (and reset the CMOS) I assume it is not related to this issue.
 
Temps are decently low (around 70 to low 90s) at idle 4ghz, and then when I do the TS Bench in ThrottleStop, speeds go down to around 1.5ghz, and temps go up to around 92c, sometimes going up to 96-98 for a split second.

Image of it can be seen here

EDIT Idle speeds and temps can be seen here (temps sometimes jumps to around 90-92)
You need new thermal paste as I state previously these are not normal temps the cooler itself may also need replaced
 
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Aug 16, 2022
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You need new thermal paste as I state previously these are not normal temps the cooler itself may also need replaced
Okay, so if I want to replace the thermal paste, which one do I go for? I've been looking into thermal grizzly's options but I've heard some of them dry out, and google seems to have little info about it. I'd like to have thermal paste that doesn't go bad in a year and has good performance.
 
@fastflop
ThrottleStop Limit Reasons clearly shows that the CPU Core is THERMAL throttling. Acer has low balled the thermal throttling temperature. Intel recommends 100°C but Acer set the throttling temperature to 92°C. That is what PROCHOT 92°C means in ThrottleStop. Your CPU will slow down as much as necessary so it does not exceed 92°C. The harder you try to work your CPU, the more it will throttle and slow down.

Fix the cooling problem. Noctua NT-H2 works well.
 
Yeah, think you'll have to fully strip it apart and re-apply paste on both CPU and GPU. Also make sure to give the fans a good clean with compressed air and get any dust/residue out. You can use isopropyl alcohol to clean away the old paste and the fan edges.

When re-tightening the screws, do it in a criss-cross fashion (diagonal), this will ensure an even spread of paste as the cooler is tightened. A simple pea size blob on the middle of each of the CPU/GPU, should be fine.

I use Noctua NT-H1, and it has my max all core temps about 80-83c,
 
Direct dye you can't cheap on saddly it takes some of the more pricey thermal pastes

Funnily enough, cost was not a consideration, as both NT-H1 and H2 were the same price for 3.5grm (IIRC).

With that said, I've had NT H1 running for the last year, and my temps under TS bench reach about 83-85c. I will dissemble to see if it's pumped out. As for now, functioning as expected.
 
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