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15" MacBook Pro i9 Cooling Solutions?

thepixelpusher

thepixelpusher

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jan 2, 2015
346
178
Dimension C-137
Looking for any suggestions for cooling the 15" MacBook Pro i9. I've seen stands with fans under them and pads to place under it with multiple fans on Amazon. Are there any superior chilling solutions short of carrying a fridge along?

I want cooling solutions past redoing the thermal paste on the heat sink and running an app to have internal fans speed up.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
 
I was recommended this video on Youtube yesterday. Can't judge the quality and I don't know if it helps you but it's about these cooling solutions and shows some results, so it might be worth a watch:
 
I think with MacBooks this is quite dangerous for the hardware. the aluminium body will cool down fast, yes, but then you have hot air in the macbook that based on the humidity of the environment contains more water gas than before. if you cool down the backplate then there is a risk of condensation inside the macbook. so it's actually crucial that the bottom plate heats up to prevent condensation. laptops with all plastic at the bottom don't suffer from that problem I guess.
 
Very much a "canned" response from the days when the 15" MBP ran extremely hot and unfortunately does once again, equally some points remain to be of use:

Being an owner & user of the 15" MacBook Pro since forever; Over the years the 15" has frequently struggled with it`s thermals, especially when an external display is connected as the dGPU engages by default, internal temperatures soar, equally there are some steps that can be taken to reduce the systems temperature;
  • Elevate the rear 2cm - 3cm, aluminium passive coolers generally work best (I use RainDesign`s mStand & iLap), even small portable risers such as ORICO's Creative Laptop Stand can make a difference, very handy for those on the "go".
  • Limit the CPU's power with Volta
  • Increase base fan RPM to 3K or as much as you are comfortable with (MacsFanControl)
  • Limit the dGPU`s usage with gfxCardStatus
  • Swap out Chrome for Chrome Canary as it "can" be more optimised for OS X and may extend battery run time, reduce thermals etc.
  • Swap out VLC for Movist as again it`s a reduced load on CPU/GPU
  • Uninstall or block Flash
  • Install an ad blocker Wipr or AdGuard works well
  • Powered coolers are very much a "mixed bag" when it comes to Mac portables, you need one that has a high capacity (100 CFM minimum) and preferably a large single fan, this can help to keep the 15" internal fans below 4K which for many is good enough as often it`s this point and beyond where the fans become intrusive and annoying. Don't expect a powered cooler impact internal temperatures, beyond a couple of degrees
  • Older notebooks can benefit from cleaning of the cooling system
  • Retina`s can benefit from cleaning of the cooling system, as the heat syncs are far smaller and loose efficiency faster, due to build up of dust/debris etc.
  • Replacing the thermal paste has been hit & miss, some with very positive results, some with no improvement over stock. Personally I would only do this on a Mac that was either very old, or one that I can confirm was definitely running a lot hotter than stock.
  • If your MBP has a discrete GPU, it will fire up when an external display is connected as default, temperatures will rise rapidly.
  • Consider a specific vertical stand when using a MPB in "Clamshell" mode allowing for greater circulation of air. Some recommend inverting the MBP in the stand with the exhaust at the top & intake at the bottom (Retina)
  • Another option for static setups is a USB powered fan strategically placed so it blows across the MBP keyboard deck (air flow L-R above & below the keyboard)
The key to a quieter/cooler life with a 15" MacBook Pro is several incremental changes that can and do add up to reduce thermals. From my experience over the years if your going to push a 15" MBP hard the fans are going to max out fast, with associated temperature & noise. If your using it with a moderate load, life can be made quieter. For the most part your MBP runs hot as that`s how Apple designed it, this is the trade off for being thin & light...

Like it or loath it, there's good reason why the majority of Windows MBP counterparts have significantly more cooling & vents, nor is it due to their design teams being inept. Apple simply places form over function first in many circumstance. My own primary notebook can hold maximum Turbo of 3.9GHz, equally it's larger & heavier with a far more robust cooling solution.

The old adage still applies; it`s easier to keep a system cool, than cool-down an already overly hot machine. This being said it`s not strictly necessary unless as in this case performance is being compromised, equally it`s nice to know that there are some options for reducing temperature out there, and a quieter life.

As for throttling some answers to that question may lie here, although don't expect too much for the 2016/2017 and now the 2018:

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...al-throttling-and-overheating-github.1731178/


Q-6
 
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maflynn said:
Incorrect, I was hitting near 100c doing mundane stuff. These coffee lake processors run hot, and its quite easy for the temps to creep right up near the threshold temps.
Click to expand...

Sorry maflynn but if you are hitting near 100c doing mundane stuff either you are incorrect or your room is damn hot.

I beat the hell out of my Macs. I have the 2.6 and absolutely destroy it in Photoshop etc. It runs only slightly warm in an AC environment. In a non AC enviromeny it gets noisy but never 100c.
 
CreeptoLoser said:
Sorry maflynn but if you are hitting near 100c doing mundane stuff either you are incorrect or your room is damn hot.
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Sorry CreeptoLoser, you're wrong and I'm going to leave at that. I have my own experience, you have yours and I'd rather not get sucked into an argument.
 
maflynn said:
I'm not sold that a cooler (fans) will cause condensation.
Click to expand...
100% correct. The best a fan can ever do is to get an object to the temperature of the air it is blowing, i.e. room temperature. Condensation is caused by the air being too cold for the amount of moisture it contains. So unless you are using your MBP in a sauna, or some other environment where water is spontaneously condensing on the walls, your desk, and yourself, no amount of fan blowing is going to cause condensation. (In fact, if anything, fans make condensation less likely as they will warm the air going through them slightly.) You'd need real active cooling, like a refrigeration unit, to have that happen. Or, I guess having large amounts of extra moisture added to the air, although I can't think of any sources which would cause that, which wouldn't damage your computer even without using fans (like a sauna).

EDIT: One caveat to that is a fan in a pull-configuration would work like a refrigeration unit, and has the potential to cause condensation. However, I doubt any cooling pads would use this, and even if the did, the chances of it happening to a noticeable extent I'm sure would be minimal. /EDIT

My first observation on the original point would be that almost all the heat from the CPU is going straight into the air via the radiators, which is how the cooling system is designed. Only a small amount of heat goes through the bottom of the case, and it moves slowly, evidenced by the time it takes to heat up the case, and the time it takes to cool down afterward. This small amount of heat is unlikely to be noticeable compared to the heat doing what it is supposed to, and being blown out by the internal fans.

Instead of investing in a fan powered cooling pad, I'd suggest doing as others have said, and raising the computer a little above the desk, especially the back. That way if the base does get extremely hot, it will generate it's own air current to cool down. This would work best if air can get in under the front.

My other suggestion would be to ensure that the hot air being blown out from the fans cannot be recirculated back to the intake vents. Probably the best way to make sure this won't happen is to have a fan somewhere in the room, which stops air stagnating.

-End of wall of badly explained science.
 
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Queen6 said:
Powered cooler's don't work well with Mac's and are unlikely to reduce CPU/GPU temperature, elevating the rear is as good as anything else out there....
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While I haven't used a fan powered cooler in many years, I recollect that it really didn't do much to cool it, and it only increased the ambient noise level. I prefer a more quieter office.
 
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