Macbook Pro Ventilation Physical Mod

[maflynn]

Apple engineers spend a lot of time on airflow ensuring the maximum amount of air goes across the circuitry. Cutting a hole will impact that, the question is, is the impact good or bad.

I do believe they could improve the heat dissipation but at a cost of the look of the MBP which they may not be willing to do, i.e., looks too good to cut holes into it

Personally, I'd not do what the OP did to his MBP.

 

[SarcasticJoe]

I'm having my doubts about this really helping that much.

Why? Because I noticed that the thread stater was blasting the fans at closte to maximum power (6020 RPM when the maxium they'll go is 6200 RPM), which is what I do for about a minute every time before I run Cinebench and get pretty much the same temperatures.

 

[wongburglar]

Apple engineers spend a lot of time on airflow ensuring the maximum amount of air goes across the circuitry. Cutting a hole will impact that, the question is, is the impact good or bad.

I do believe they could improve the heat dissipation but at a cost of the look of the MBP which they may not be willing to do, i.e., looks too good to cut holes into it

Personally, I'd not do what the OP did to his MBP.

Putting the hole directly under the fan would greatly increase airflow through the fan (and heat sink) but since the inlet is downstream from the CPU it would probably just short the flow over the CPU. essentially making that air stagnant.

The hole is a good idea but it's in the wrong spot

 

[Prodo123]

Wow, what an old post! (and how arrogant I sounded back then)

After building my fair share of PCs and hackintoshes, as well as modding the heck out of my own MacBook Pro, I've come to understand the airflow design of the unibody pretty darn well.

The air is drawn in by negative pressure created by the squirrel fans. This means anywhere that air can seep through, the MBP uses to blow through the heatsink. The big sources therefore are the input ports on the left side (you'll notice them accumulating a TON of dust, especially the ethernet, FireWire and SD card slot), ODD slot on the right and a very small amount through the keyboard (though arn would disagree). This air is sucked into the fan and blown out the back by the hinges.

If you noticed where the air comes in, it's through the sides. The cool air effectively covers all the internal components in the process of reaching the main fans, cooling the entire motherboard in the process. The a-little-bit-warmer air is then pushed out the exhaust, cooling the CPU and GPU. This maintains a die temperature of both CPU and GPU below the Tjunc while providing as much cooling to the motherboard as the two fans can provide.

By putting intake vents directly below the fans, you direct all of that negative pressure to those vents. The result is cooler temperature on CPU and GPU, but stagnant air in the rest of the chassis. This is, on the long run, way worse for the motherboard and its electrolytic capacitors which tend to degrade with higher operating temperatures. Also, the RAM modules will generate a fair amount of heat themselves and the vent will take away this cooling.

This is reminiscent of the disadvantages of using a closed liquid loop cooler (e.g. H100i) in a desktop PC. While it provides an extremely large headroom in temperature by moving the fans to radiators, the CLLCs also rob the desktop of the airflow that would, with a traditional fan and heatsink, cool the motherboard as well as the CPU.

TL;DR: By putting vents below the fans, you concentrate all cooling to the CPU and GPU, lowering die temperature, but rob the MBP of cooling for all other critical components such as RAM and motherboard. The default design economizes the thermal potential of the fans, and putting vents will inevitably put wear on the rest of the components.

 

[2984839]

Bottom line, is this improving upon who knows how many millions of dollars spent on the design and analysis by Intel, Nvidia, and Apple's engineering teams?

My guess is no.

The problem with this assumption is that it doesn't take into account what Apple engineers are trying to accomplish.

The accounting department wants the laptop to be as cheap as possible.

The legal department wants it to be as safe and reliable as possible.

The marketing department wants it to be as thin and stylish as possible.

The software department wants it to have as much performance as possible.

The upper level management wants it to be all of these extremes simultaneously and wants the project completed quickly, which is not possible.

Thus, the engineers have to strike a balance between all of this which includes making compromises. An individual user is not under any of these constraints. If you don't care about aesthetics and want a laptop that runs cooler and thus has better battery life, it's quite possible that you can improve the design for your needs.

 

[EstebanLGJ]

I think this was a good try to engineer your own cooling system. I think I would have order a bottom cover online and have some vents cut onto it instead of doing what you did. The I could keep the original to swap If I need to use warranty on my computer. I think its smart

 

[ibuyufo]

Ignore all the other people. They're more into looks than functionality like any apple fan boy. Seriously, this man wants to use his computer without the thing overheating and if apple actually cared about functionality they would have given the MacBook pro better ventilation.

 

[Prodo123]

Ignore all the other people. They're more into looks than functionality like any apple fan boy. Seriously, this man wants to use his computer without the thing overheating and if apple actually cared about functionality they would have given the MacBook pro better ventilation.

I think this was a good try to engineer your own cooling system. I think I would have order a bottom cover online and have some vents cut onto it instead of doing what you did. The I could keep the original to swap If I need to use warranty on my computer. I think its smart

The problem with this assumption is that it doesn't take into account what Apple engineers are trying to accomplish.

The accounting department wants the laptop to be as cheap as possible.

The legal department wants it to be as safe and reliable as possible.

The marketing department wants it to be as thin and stylish as possible.

The software department wants it to have as much performance as possible.

The upper level management wants it to be all of these extremes simultaneously and wants the project completed quickly, which is not possible.

Thus, the engineers have to strike a balance between all of this which includes making compromises. An individual user is not under any of these constraints. If you don't care about aesthetics and want a laptop that runs cooler and thus has better battery life, it's quite possible that you can improve the design for your needs.

The issue I take with the mod is that he takes away ALL cooling and puts it on the CPU and GPU. The rest of the computer is free to overheat/degrade due to excess heat. I could care less about aesthetics (unlike before); what he did is simply risk ruining his computer.

If you're going to put vents, put them on the sides. At least that way you have air cooling the motherboard. Apple realized this issue and put vents where they would be most effective on the retina MBPs: the sides, not below the CPU fans.

Also of note: your laptop will never overheat. Temperatures will always stay under 100°C, the maximum temperature for the CPU and GPU. Bit uncomfortable, maybe, but by no standards overheating. This is an example of the point 556fmjoe brings up: the default design of the uMBP has just enough cooling for maximum performance & cost efficiency for the CPU while keeping the motherboard temperature low, which reduces the chance of component failure. You're free as all consumers are to shift this balance around, but keep in mind that it's a give-and-take. Give the hotter components more cooling, and you take away cooling from cooler (and in this case, much more temperature sensitive) components.

 

[Staggeredsix]

I just bought a used (2011) 15.4" MBP with the i7 and Hi-Res display. I know these have a horrific overheating problem and Apple has decided to discontinue notebooks that are.... well useful to me. This used notebook had the only configuration I wanted. The new line of MBP skimp out on essential hardware for my line of work. Anyway - I'm going to do something extremely similar to this. Instead of a large hole I'm going to dremel out slots to assist in airflow.

As far as the theory of airflow over the chipset? Well, that is rather preposterous. I hate to have my first post (on this Mac forum) slinging rocks but as an experienced builder and modder I have to say the idea of airflow over the logic board isn't why it was designed this way... nor is there any real airflow over the logic board. Air in pulled in from the back of the laptop right where... wait for it.... the exhaust air is!

The MBP line is famous for having thermal issues. Remember, just because the CPU is at 95% of the TDP and it's in the "safe zone" - that doesn't mean it's okay to consistently be there. That's like putting lobsters in a pot and just barely keeping the water from boiling. Eventually the lobsters will be cooked, just much more slowly.

The MBP is designed to be as sealed as possible to help ward off the threat of spills and dust... not that it does. The logic board in all Apple notebooks are FAR too small to have a noticeable thermal difference from airflow over the chipset. No matter what the claims are, even if it was from an Apple engineer.

The heatsinks are designed to cool the bits that create the most heat. If the rest of the logic board needed anything more than passive cooling the parts would have a solution to that. By removing the heat created by the CPU and GPU you will actually cool the entire logic board by eliminating heat soak.

WITH THAT SAID... This mod, although effective at cooling the GPU and CPU, is overkill. IMHO this type of mod is best executed by having a few slotted intakes near the fans to help with airflow through the heat exchangers.. about the width of a dremel cut-off wheel. Also, there should be at least one long thin intake. You want the intakes to be thin, to create a light vacuum. This will allow cool air to be pulled from the front case and draw out warm are created by the chipset. This is not something that has to be done for the logic board chipset, it's for personal comfort.

The best way to help your out of warranty Apple products last longer? Pull the guts out and perform some maintenance to it. If you've never pulled the fans out? DO IT. There's a 90% chance you're carrying around a few comfy beds of lint on the heat exchangers. Replace the thermal compound! Apple has a "more is better" idea when it comes to thermal compound. I mean... it's globbed on there. Clean the CPU and GPU of this low-grade gunk and replace it with AC5. A little dab will do.

If you mod the bottom of your out of warranty Macbook pro with some slotted vents and perform some real maintenance you'll have the notebook for a long, long time.

 

[poiihy]

It would be better if you just drill holes right into the case instead of cutting a hole and putting a mesh in it.
The only difficulty is getting the holes lined up perfectly but you can use a template.

 

[MacInTO]

What I did was I got my local metal shop to cut out a rectangle out of the bottom of my aluminum cover. This rectangle resides directly under my fan.

I also had pieces of perforated steel to fit( The aluminum that they had which I preferred was too thick). Everything was eyeballed to fit. Afterwards I used a cement bonding agent to bond together the piece of steel and aluminum cover together. ( Look below for pictures).

This thread has a new life!

This is a good mod. The only thing different that I would have done is to drill holes in the bottom instead, then there wouldn't be a separate piece of metal required and it would still have integrity and look not too out of place.

 

[poiihy]

This thread has a new life!

This is a good mod. The only thing different that I would have done is to drill holes in the bottom instead, then there wouldn't be a separate piece of metal required and it would still have integrity and look not too out of place.

Ditto... right above your post

 

[MacInTO]

Ditto... right above your post

LOL, great minds think alike! I didn't even bother to read the rest of the posts!

I'd use a piece of wood with a drill guide of some sort to ensure even spacing of the holes!

However, I now have a rMBP and this isn't necessary, thankfully!

 

[mixmax]

what if make a long holes on both sides (left and right)

 

[bdesign5104]

I am aware of the existence of software that enables the adjustment of the RPM for the fans. So before I get criticism for this, I'd like to inform you all . Also I didn't purchase a warranty, nor did this void it with this project because I already broke my optical drive by prying it out with mini-shears to put in my optibay.

This is my first post as well. In my opinion, it's quite alright.

Macbooks tend to overheat when enduring large programs or games. My macbook especially overheats even though I set the fan to run faster then stock (Istat menu pro)

So I decided to modify my macbook, physically it isn't as impressive as the guy who decided to put a biometric finger print scanner into his, but this mod is better then the Cooool apple logo mods or the panda keyboard =_=.

What I did was I got my local metal shop to cut out a rectangle out of the bottom of my aluminum cover. This rectangle resides directly under my fan.
I also had pieces of perforated steel to fit( The aluminum that they had which I preferred was too thick). Everything was eyeballed to fit. Afterwards I used a cement bonding agent to bond together the piece of steel and aluminum cover together. ( Look below for pictures).

The final pieces which were a spontaneous addition were the pieces of plastic mesh and metal mesh. The plastic mesh was superglued onto the steel and then the metal mesh followed. The mesh is to hopefully prevent any intruding objects that may wish to make it's way into my motherboard. Enjoy

[doublepost=1521875362][/doublepost]Late 2011 Macbook Pro overheating... those vents on the back are just a "joke" so custom made ventilation at the bottom is a great idea , Due to overheating I experience a big problem now : my GPU stops working from time to time ( streak and lines and picture deformation on the screen) and I read on many forums, this is the main cause because of overheating ... In this scenario, I have to ( every 2-3 months ! ) rebailing the motherboard in oven or using heat gun ! means I have to disassemble into part , reapply thermal paste etc.. ... I own this macbook since brand new , paid over $2 K that time, always taking care and not abusing with any graphical apps or games... as i was convinced this is awesome machine...and what I can say now only this: Thank you Mac....

 

[serr]

As already mentioned multiple times: DO NOT DO THIS MOD!
This is either cruel trolling or very misguided.

This mod would reduce the airflow through the fans and heat sink fins.

If you want to improve the cooling:
1. Better heat sink paste (eg. Arctic silver)
2. Couple the heat sink fins to the bottom case with 'poor mans' heat sink padding. (Comes in a pad 1 or 2mm thick. Used in place of paste to reduce manufacturing costs and found in the cheap Windows computers and gaming systems. Still works, just not as well as paste. Perfect for this job though.) Cut some pieces to bridge the gap between the fins and the bottom case. Con: Hotter computer bottom side. Pro: Better a hotter bottom than a hotter CPU!

The better heat sink paste will get you 10 - 20 deg C cooler. You might get as much as another 10 with the heat sink pad trick.
After that, I suggest ramping the fans up to 6200rpm manually when doing heavy work. (And you'd rather replace fans once or twice every few years than melt your CPU down!)

You can get a lot out of one of these machines and it will last a long time with some care here. But let it get too hot too often and things WILL go south. Whatever you do, DO NOT DO THIS DRILLING HOLES MOD! This is trolling to get you to destroy your $2800 computer!

 

[MichaelDT]

As already mentioned multiple times: DO NOT DO THIS MOD!
This is either cruel trolling or very misguided.

This mod would reduce the airflow through the fans and heat sink fins.

If you want to improve the cooling:
1. Better heat sink paste (eg. Arctic silver)
2. Couple the heat sink fins to the bottom case with 'poor mans' heat sink padding. (Comes in a pad 1 or 2mm thick. Used in place of paste to reduce manufacturing costs and found in the cheap Windows computers and gaming systems. Still works, just not as well as paste. Perfect for this job though.) Cut some pieces to bridge the gap between the fins and the bottom case. Con: Hotter computer bottom side. Pro: Better a hotter bottom than a hotter CPU!

The better heat sink paste will get you 10 - 20 deg C cooler. You might get as much as another 10 with the heat sink pad trick.
After that, I suggest ramping the fans up to 6200rpm manually when doing heavy work. (And you'd rather replace fans once or twice every few years than melt your CPU down!)

You can get a lot out of one of these machines and it will last a long time with some care here. But let it get too hot too often and things WILL go south. Whatever you do, DO NOT DO THIS DRILLING HOLES MOD! This is trolling to get you to destroy your $2800 computer!

Just a sanity check, this is a 7ish year old thread. Also no 2011 MBP is worth 2800 dollars, even on eBay the price has collapsed as it is now 2 designs behind the times.

 

[iMacC2D]

Removed.

 

[Ovedius]

I For one actually think it looks good! Nice job!

I think so to.
When I first saw that hole in the bottom I thought this was going to be some awful Frankenstein chop job.
But the grill and the filters elevate this to a competent mod.

If this actually helped with dissipating heat from the system without excessively clogging it with dust, I'd say this is a good mod.

EDIT:
Speaking og Frankenstein, who the hell resurrected this thread? It's ancient!

 

[Auralmenace]

Did you try first removing the existing thermal paste on the CPU and GPU and replacing with arctic silver? Given how thick Apple seem to apply the thermal paste usually and the better properties of arctic silver, this can actually make a big difference to temperatures and doesn't require any external mods. I've not tried this on a MBP myself, but have done on desktop PCs with good results and know others have tried this with MBPs.

There's various guides about this online...

I have and new paste helped (minimally) according to the Intel power tool. I tried the experiment of ronning Geekbench with an without the bottom cover. Obviously there was an significant difference at idle - 70c with the cover on, 60c with the cover off. The core temps were similar while running the benchmark, but the major difference was the recovery time, which was almost twice as fast with the cover off.

So adding ventilation makes sense. As others have said, dust is the real problem here and putting in a better screen for filtration is crucial.

 

[macpex]

I have a MBP15 (9,1) which I am modding by placing ventilation holes in the bottom... I plan to see what has the best effect on cooling.

 

[CjPhan]

9 years later. I completely and randomly stumble upon this thread. Just to give some context to all of the people who have viewed this modification.

For sure at the time I was a bored 20 year old trying to make something happen. In terms of studying the design layout, I didn't have a complete understanding of what the overall airflow design concept was. I just understood that there was a need to introduce a vent to reduce resistance, but as some of the other members of stated, perhaps it was a double edged sword.

In terms of the design and aesthetics, I felt like the industrial look and feel was unique at the time. All though I was very deeply in love with the Apple design language, I needed a differentiated look and feel and didn't quite mind how rough and beat up it looked or felt.

I've since moved on to building my own PC, but now someone in my late late 20's I rock a Lenovo Carbon X1.

Don't know if I'll run into this thread again, but i'll check in 10 years from now.

It's been nice guys, hope everyone is safe during this COVID Pandemic.

To everyone that has contributed to the discussion, I commend you and thank you for your time. Understand that it was just a very bored, and lost 20 year old trying to ignore society's expectations of where to go and what to do next in life.

Cheers.

 

[ricardo.felix]

I just ordered a spare bottom case to do this mod on a 2019 i9 mbp...

i game on bootcamp so my goal is to reduce temps of course...

i know that building a PC is way better but tbh i am just a casual gamer and I am tryng to avoid that. Plus i just invested in a eGPU enclosure so I will try to use it for now.

I am thinking that If I do this mod I would drill holes on the sides and not directly on the fans.
If anybody has a good suggestion I am open ears... just don’t tell me to build a PC please. I am trying to avoid that for now.

 

[poiihy]

I just ordered a spare bottom case to do this mod on a 2019 i9 mbp...

i game on bootcamp so my goal is to reduce temps of course...

i know that building a PC is way better but tbh i am just a casual gamer and I am tryng to avoid that. Plus i just invested in a eGPU enclosure so I will try to use it for now.

I am thinking that If I do this mod I would drill holes on the sides and not directly on the fans.
If anybody has a good suggestion I am open ears... just don’t tell me to build a PC please. I am trying to avoid that for now.

how bout add some thermal pads to conduct heat to the bottom cover?

 

[ricardo.felix]

how bout add some thermal pads to conduct heat to the bottom cover?

Any recommendations or guides/tutorials?