MacBook 16-inch Fan Noise

TailsDog wrote:

The point is that the Apple blurb is telling us all about new thermal design and increased efficiencies, so people have expectations that follow this and its not something we are experiencing here.

New thermal design to handle all the extra heat the new processor and GPU release while doing normal things.

"At that time it was impossible to run a display as large as the 4K displays we now take for granted."

Grant Bennet-Alder, you Sir are also giving misinformation. The monitor I used way back then was a Dell 27 UltraSharp Ultra HD 5K Monitor - UP2715K - this was a 5k display running on my 2014 Macbook Pro using dual mini display port - I had less thermal issues than I am having right now and I never noticed throttling when doing normal tasks such as web browsing watching video etc.

Throttling occurs when your CPU is under stress and is producing too much heat. When contacting support the first thing they say is to check the activity monitor because when there is heat and the fans spin up usually there is a process which is causing that and you can see what it is by checking the load stats. A lot of people are experiencing the heat and fans however there are no processes causing high load and that is what this issue here is.

When I called Apple support running the computer in safe mode was one of the first things they asked me to do and the fans were still running at 3000 RPM without doing anything, just by having the external monitor connected.

My monitor is not 4K, I was using it with an HDMI cable but I bought a USB-C cable to see if that was the issue

, I'm still having the same problem with both cables. So I wasted $35 on a cable (plus $10 on the iStat app).

I totally agree with you.

I also have a MacBook Pro 15-inch 2019 (the one that was only available for sale for a few months) with a i9 2.4GHz, and a Pro Vega 20 and the MacBook Pro 16-inch has a i9 2.4 GHz and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M 8 GB (so very similar specs), and the 15-inch can handle an external monitor without any problem, the fans never go over 1900 RPM and the machine stays really cool, so if the 16-inch is a better and more powerful machine it should be able to handle a simple task like being connected to an external monitor even better than the 15-inch because like our friend William says, it's a more powerful machine so it should be easier for the machine to handle this task and it shouldn't generate that much heat.

William Kucharski wrote:

ahmedfromreservoir wrote:

There are other thin and light laptops with i9 9980hks and better than 5500m GPUs in them which don't turn their fans to max blast when connected to a couple of external dispalys.

Which ones?

This isn't being argumentative, rather I have been consistent in saying throughout this thread that I'd like to know what the results are on other systems using the same or very similar processors and GPUs.

That would help determine whether this issue is hardware, firmware or software or a combination thereof.

In particular, I'd like to know what "better" GPUs are in use; to be a good comparison they'd have to be from the AMD Radeon Pro 5000 family rather than a GPU from another manufacturer as there have been issues in the past with power consumption that have been isolated to a particular GPU vendor and so capabilities often cannot be directly compared.

Gigabyte Aero 15 to name one, only because I can personally verify.

I just have sincere doubts the midtier and lower TDP Radeon 5500M that Apple chooses to use can be that much hotter than an RTX 2070.

iTech23 wrote:

I already mentioned like 10 times THAT I DON'T HAVE A 4K OR 5K MONITOR

Oh and by the way the TDP on the Radeon Pro Vega 20 is 100w and the Radeon Pro 5500 is 50.

One more time your comments don't make sense and are not helpful AT ALL.

If you are not experiencing any problem with your computer I don't understand why you keep posting here.

Because complaints like "it's too loud" or "it's too warm" are completely subjective issues that have nothing to do with what the machine was specified as capable of.

For example, to use a quote from Apple's description, if "layering dozens of tracks and effects, rendering 3D models, or compiling and testing code, you’ll be doing it in no time flat (MacBook Pro 16-inch - Apple)" caused the machine to go into thermal shutdown, that would be a definite problem of it not meeting the capabilities it was advertised as having.

If it does it but runs the fans at maximum while doing so - that's not an issue as Apple didn't state the MBP 16 would run without audible fans while doing so.

Even the statement:

More advanced thermal architecture enables faster processing. The thermal architecture in MacBook Pro has been completely redesigned, featuring larger impellers with improved fan blades for optimal airflow and more heat-dispersing fins for more effective cooling. The resulting gain in cooling capacity allows MacBook Pro to deliver up to 12 watts more maximum sustained power.

does not state that it will do so silently, it simply states it will be possible.

That distinction is why I post here.

I get some are disappointed with their purchase, and I urge those disappointed to take advantage of the 14 day return policy if possible and purchase something else if need be.

There are others like myself who wouldn't trade the power and performance of the MBP 16 even if the fans ran at full speed whenever the machine was booted; believe me I know what that would be like, I had an Acer Ferrari 3400 that did exactly that and the processor drew so much power it had a battery life of well under two hours.

I've had mine delivered mid-December, for the first couple of days I had noticed some fan noise.

It was some adobe related problem, I fixed that, and it all went well.

Mine is connected to two monitors both 27", full hd.

My stats are around this while browsing having 6 tabs + one tab with a youtube video playing:

Note: my lid is always closed as I prefer to have it standing on a stand to save some spaces on my desk.

So I said before that I don't have this issue. It is no longer the truth. I just connected my MacBook to external display I got in my job (FULL HD) and the fans went crazy (5200RPM). So I disconnected the display - fans went down to 1800RPM, then I connected the display again and so far it is ok (5 minutes). I don't get it.

Having this same exact issue when connected to an external LG Ultrafine Display. The fans kick on almost immediately and are super loud with nearly nothing open. There is also some really strange lag when dragging windows around on the LG display.

Just updated the OS today. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I read here that someone had said it wasn't observed with two connected external displays, but I am not sure if that was in clamshell mode or with the lid open. I haven't personally tried it myself, but if it is the case, I would be tempted to pick up another monitor. I like to use the keyboard on the MacBook since it is a pain adjusting back and forth to the keyboard.

Once again, if anyone does NOT experience this problem, please STAY AWAY (especially those, who not uses external displays, yes you)!

The product is defective, I returned my machine because this EXACT ISSUE, one of my friends as well (same issue, fans 100% once plugged to an external display).

The issue is REAL.

Good summary @fmorga!

talked to apple today.. another data extraction test, with screens connected/not connected.. with/without dock .. they will send it to the "engineers" again... seems rather pointless..

If you mention or show them istat on remote session they just ignore you and say 3rd party apps are ignored by the engineers...............

Several responses all included in one reply:

@ Marpies

If I remember right it was still at the 7 watts but I'll try and confirm that if I can tomorrow.

@iTech 23

>>do you use the CalDigit TS3+ dock to power your Mac?<<

yes I do. The last update to the firmware bumped the power up to 87 watts. I have never had a problem with not keeping it fully charged and using the computer at the same time. Using it in clamshell mode doesn't use as much power so it's not an issue.

@alekseykurylev

>>Using a power supply for mbp 16 with less power can negatively affect the battery life!!! There is also a drop in the power of the device when powered with less power!!! You must use the original charger with the power 96W!!!<<

Though off topic I'll respond, what you say is not completely true. How you use it makes more of a difference. The 96w power brick is not big enough to power and charge the 16" MBP if you are using it to it's max. I've experienced it myself when exporting multiple 4k videos and the screen at full brightness, exporting batches of photos from CaptureOne, and loading massive picture files in Affinity, and keep your screen at full brightness.

The battery will drain as it just cannot keep up even with the included charger. This kind of work is few and far between but it still is real and if this is a regular condition then a laptop is not for the person.

However, if you are using the computer in clamshell mode, you don't need as much power because you are not powering the 16" screen. In that case, especially under regular use, it will handle everything just fine without using the battery. If I was using it with the screen on and at full brightness, it might struggle in FCPx and using the other apps all at the same time.

This is why Apple sells the CalDigit TS3+ dock as a recommended accessory for the 16" MBP. If it was bad, would Apple have in their own store?

I have watched reviews that claim the 96W adapter is required to get the maximum performance. I've also seen others that said that's not true and you will get the same performance even on battery. I myself have not experienced a difference in performance but the MBP does run cooler using the Apple adapter (87W) vs the TS3+.

It's great that Apple is using USB C connector for charging because you can use anything to charge if you have to get by.

1. temperatures are NOT the main problem, they are merly the result/ side effect of another issue.
2. Temperatures while the crash where 70c yes, with fans on 100%, and cpu workload 25% - editing image sequence - can i actually do some realy work with this machine?
3. its GT pro not iStat
4. in the call today again been just repeated everything over and over again: do a full restore, smc reset, pram reset, add and test each app separatly etc - what i ve been doing for a month now. So dissapointed, i am not a tester, bought this to work not to setup my machine from scratch every week.

Ive a 2018 6 core macbook pro and I too have tons of fan noise, both in MacOS and Windows 10 via bootcamp. Its loud enough and annoying enough that people wonder what is "wrong" with my laptop. In windows, the CPU load is low- ~25% and definitely happens during the first boot in a while windows anti malware scan. Or it just happens while visual studio is open at varying(~2%-50%) CPU loads. It is slightly less often in MacOs, but similar CPU loads and symptoms. Its annoying to say the least, and combined with the atrocious keyboard, I am struggling with whether or not I want to keep it.