New PB 15" Fans, SMS, Temps, Gfx and other related questions!!

Question

Hi All,
Apologies if this is a long one - I have a few points to raise.
As a new 15" PB user I have spent the last week or so scouring these boards for information on my new baby. Much of it has been interesting, and I'd like to address a few of the issues raised.
Fan Noise
Some folks have mentioned a constant but quiet noise from a fan on the unit. i too am aware of this, but it is not the cooling fan, but the HARD DRIVE. I recently upgraded my whisper quiet iBook with a Seagate Momentus 5400rpm 80 GB drive, and the sound on my new PB is exactly the same as that which began after this HD upgrade -these hard drives are slightly noisier than slower models, but i'm happy to live with it as it is non-intrusive.
As to the fan/s themselves on the powerbook - when do they actually turn on? I'm used to the iBook fan kicking in after 20 minutes or so of World of Warcraft, but I have still yet to hear my Powerbook fan outside of running the Apple Hardware Test. How hard do you need to push the machine before they come on?
Temperatures
I can see that there is an issue with most temperature readers in that they don't update on the PB properly. I'm using the latest version of Temperature monitor which seems to update, however the readings seem weird to me:
Graphics Processor 100C, Power Supply Bottom 48C, Processor Bottomside 40.8, Processor /Controller Bottomside 41.5C, Hard Drive 36C, Trackpad 32.5C.
Are these in line with evryone else's? I am concerned specifically about the graphics processor reading, which is odd, as I am simply sitting here typing this with no other apps open. initially thought the program may have picked up on the battery charge rate, as it varied from 97-100, but sometimes it will change erratically for no apparent reason.
Ticking in 3D apps
This may or may not be a new one. When I'm playing 3D intensive games with the sound muted I notice a ticking noise coming from the centre of the unit under the keyboard - it's not hard drive related. The ticking changes in speed depending on the scene shown on the screen, and seems to be consistent with the frame rate, i.e the ticking slows down as the framerate does. Anyone else notice this really weird behaviour?
Apple Hardware Test
When I received the unit a few days ago i ran the Apple Hardware test and was surprised that when we got to the video memory part the screen suddenly went allpatchwork coloured for about 15 seconds. The screen then returned to normal and the test was 'passed'. Is this normal?
Sudden Motion Sensor
The AMS tracker tool at kernalthread.com didn't work on my SMS equipped iBook - I really wanted to try out the little toys the author made where you rotate your machine and the display rotates to suit - a bit like a £1400 version of Warioware Twisted...
Anyway, it doesn't work on my new PB, even though it was specifically designed to do so. I have noticed some issues on here about SMS, so does anyone else with a new Hi res powerbook have the same problem?
Well that's about the total of my observations for the moment - any comments/suggestions would be most gratefully received!
15"PB HiRes, 1.5GB Ram etc   Mac OS X (10.4.3)  
15"PB HiRes, 1.5GB Ram etc   Mac OS X (10.4.3)  
15"PB HiRes, 1.5GB Ram etc   Mac OS X (10.4.3)  

Answer 1

Hi David --
I have comments that might help with regard to a few points in your post.
Re fan noise: I have a Seagate Momentus 100 GB 5400 rpm factory installed and it's whisper quiet. I can't hear it over the noise of my typing even in a quiet room.
Re temps. I, too, have Temperature Monitor v. 3.1 installed. It was the first temp monitor (credit to Ned Snowing for turning me on to it) that appears to update its temperature readings on my PB. I have six temp readings, like you, but none of them are marked graphics processor. Where you have graphics processor, I have "Battery Temperautre." Maybe it's because you have the October 2005 revision PB and I have the February 2005 revision, i don't know.
My temps, starting with "battery" and then following the same ones as you outlined in your post, are: 31, 41.4, 40, 43, 35, 33 all º C. That 100º C reading you have has to be wrong, because it would surely well exceed the outer limits for the machine -- I don't see any category with a specified outer limit temp higher than 82º C.
Can't help on 3D gaming, not really what I use the PB for.
As for the AHT, I haven't run it in a while, but if I remember correctly, the patchwork graphics for 15 minutes thing that you describe is just the AHT doing its thing and testing your PB's graphics capabilities as part of its diagnostic process.
Finally, as far as the Sudden Motion Sensor issue goes, you might find the following (I warn you, very long) thread regarding the effect that upgrading to 10.4.3 (which I see you are running) had on people's SMS. Here's the thread: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=228309&tstart=50 the long and short of things appears to be that on many people's PB's (mine included), upgrading to 10.4.3 appears to have messed with System Profiler's ability to report accurately the status of the SMS. It also effects the AMS and the ability of the programs you described to tap into the SMS. You need to read the entire thread carefully to get all the subtleties of what's going on, and no one seems certain as to whether the problem is just a reporting one or whether the issue goes deeper and actually implicates the functionality of the SMS itself. I'm done with it, frankly, until Apple comes out with either a statement (unlikely) or a new update (likely) that hopefully fixes the situation. It's bee reported to death through proper channels.
-- JDee