Notebook power supply.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 03:28 AM

So I currently have a pretty powerful notebook for gaming.

The problem is when ever I use the outlet that is also being used with an extension for my internet box and speaker system, my notebook says that I could connect using a higher battery adapter for better performance.

The problem is, I occasionally use another outlet in a different room and I get way better FPS in games.

Is there a way to find out if i'm using my notebook's MAX potential? This is because I think the notebook is dividing the performance by the amount of power it is getting and as a result, I have no idea if my notebook is performing what the hardware says it should.

Intel i7-2670QM @ 2.20 GHz
Windows 7 x64
8GB Ram
2GB AMD Radeon 7690mxt

**karamazovmm** · July 26, 2012, 09:47 AM

connect it to an outlet that aint dividing the power.

**DisgruntledGoat** · July 26, 2012, 12:04 PM

Originally Posted by Mr MM

connect it to an outlet that aint dividing the power.

Huh? That's not how electricity works. The circuit will provide the volts at the required amperage that is needed. If you have an outlet with 16 devices attached to it then the amps for that circuit will ramp up until the breaker trips/fuse blows back on the panel. The issue is likely that the power cord has an AC to DC adapter that is under powered for his laptop. IE its not providing the enough volts at the right amps (aka WATTS) to the battery. This actually happens A LOT because people don't pay attention when they replace power adapters. I've even seen companies provide STOCK adapters that were not enough (*cough*HP*cough*).

The fact that you said you changed outlets and got different performance is well... odd. As I said, electricity doesn't work like that. The only thing I can think of is that there is a fault in your extension cord, but it would need to be a short circuit or something which would be dangerous.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 12:30 PM

Originally Posted by DisgruntledGoat

Huh? That's not how electricity works. The circuit will provide the volts at the required amperage that is needed. If you have an outlet with 16 devices attached to it then the amps for that circuit will ramp up until the breaker trips/fuse blows back on the panel. The issue is likely that the power cord has an AC to DC adapter that is under powered for his laptop. IE its not providing the enough volts at the right amps (aka WATTS) to the battery. This actually happens A LOT because people don't pay attention when they replace power adapters. I've even seen companies provide STOCK adapters that were not enough (*cough*HP*cough*).

The fact that you said you changed outlets and got different performance is well... odd. As I said, electricity doesn't work like that. The only thing I can think of is that there is a fault in your extension cord, but it would need to be a short circuit or something which would be dangerous.

And It just so happens that I have an HP Laptop

The fact that I change outlets is really strange too and I have no idea why it is doing that.

Unfortunately I know jack-squat about Adapters, can you show me an example of an adapter for HP laptops that I could get for the monster power eater that I have for a Laptop?

EDIT: I think my laptop's adapter is 65w.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 01:14 PM

Would this 90W be enough?

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-pin-HP-3.../dp/B001NDKS32

**DisgruntledGoat** · July 26, 2012, 01:49 PM

Well the most important thing is to make sure the DC output voltage is the correct amount for your laptop's battery. So it depends on what voltage your battery is. If it is 14.8V for example you'll want an adapter that outputs more voltage than that (you can charge faster). I believe the minimum voltage you'll find on any adapter is 15.6V. If your adapter is 15.6V and your battery is 14.8V you won't charge very quickly. Amps doesn't matter the laptop will draw whatever amps it needs, so long as your power supply can accommodate said amperage. Which I believe is your problem. Your 65W AC adapter can't provide the amps your laptop is demanding so certain components are suffering.

Think of electricity like water pipes in your house. Pressure is voltage and gallons per minute is amperage. A battery is like a storage tank that you will use when you are not plugged in. It holds the pressure (voltages) and puts out a flow rate (amps) to respond to water requirements like a shower (watts). The AC adapter transforms the AC power in your house to DC power to be used by the battery and laptop. Rather than being a limited supply of volts like the battery is, it has a constant supply of voltage the an upper limit amperage. The higher the amperage on the output the more power (Volts x Amps = Watts) you have available for the laptop.

So is 90W okay... depends whats the voltage of your battery and what is the current amperage output of your AC adapter?

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 02:04 PM

output 18.5V
input 100-240v

HP also shows a message every now and then that I could use a better adapter for more performance.

**DisgruntledGoat** · July 26, 2012, 02:23 PM

Okay I looked up the specs of the 90W you linked to and its 19V/90W so it work fine and give almost 1.2Amps more capacity which should provide your laptop with a little more stability.

**karamazovmm** · July 26, 2012, 04:03 PM

the provided adapter from HP for that model is I think 120w. Otherwise its at least 85w, since the guts that you have is the same that comes in MBP 15 2011, thus 85w is barely cutting it, and that model suffered from the lack of power provided by the adapter. So no it aint 65w, and no you dont need to buy another adapter.

Im not saying that electricity works in any way, if the problem was corrected by using a different outlet that has nothing connected besides the laptop, use that one. Or contact HP and sort it out with them. you are probably still under warranty, since the 7690m in the dv6/7 and the envy 15 was only launched in december, being the card a simple rebrand of either the 6750m or the 6770m

**DisgruntledGoat** · July 26, 2012, 05:02 PM

Yes you did, you said "connect it to an outlet that aint dividing the power."

Outlets don't divide the power. They provide 120V or 240V up to 15Amps. If an outlet has too many devices on it, it will go over the 15Amps and the breaker/fuse will shut the circuit down. Changing outlets is in no way connected to this issues and was likely pure coincidence.

Plus he said his adapter is 65W, I think I'll trust that he can read his adapter better than you can. Yeesh, I dislike your advice in this forum more and more.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 06:42 PM

I am pretty sure that mine is 65W, no where does it say 120W on it

Besides that, I have located this adapter

http://www.amazon.com/HP-120W-Smart-...art+ac+adapter

Does it contain a powercord and would/could it be compatible with my HP DV7 Laptop?
If so, how compatible are HP power adapters with each other? Would my existing powercord work?

**karamazovmm** · July 26, 2012, 07:46 PM

its not 65w. Only notebooks with integrated gpus use those. There is not enough power provided even by a 85w apple adapter that goes up to 95w on load.

Contact HP and sort it out with their support, you still have warranty.

thank you for correcting me on what I pointed out regarding electricity, be humble once in a while.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 08:04 PM

Originally Posted by Mr MM

its not 65w. Only notebooks with integrated gpus use those. There is not enough power provided even by a 85w apple adapter that goes up to 95w on load.

Contact HP and sort it out with their support, you still have warranty.

thank you for correcting me on what I pointed out regarding electricity, be humble once in a while.

There's still the problem with HP notifying me now and then what I could use a better adapter for better performance. I'll see with tech support IF they even know how to help.

**karamazovmm** · July 26, 2012, 08:32 PM

Originally Posted by vinh834

There's still the problem with HP notifying me now and then what I could use a better adapter for better performance. I'll see with tech support IF they even know how to help.

I just checked, your model comes with a 120w adapter.

Contact HP support and explain the message that is appearing to you. they can sort it out. Usually I heard good things about HP support, but that was on the envy line (which is different) and their business line (their ACD and NBD is just short of awesome)

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 08:41 PM

Originally Posted by Mr MM

I just checked, your model comes with a 120w adapter.

Contact HP support and explain the message that is appearing to you. they can sort it out. Usually I heard good things about HP support, but that was on the envy line (which is different) and their business line (their ACD and NBD is just short of awesome)

Yup, post above.

**vinh834** · July 26, 2012, 08:30 PM

Alright here is what HP support said

-They said I had a 120W (I told them the adapter says 65W and the message that I could use a higher adapter appears)
- They choose to send me a 120W adapter. Let's hope they don't send the 65W again.

**DisgruntledGoat** · July 26, 2012, 08:46 PM

If it says 65W on your adapter thats what it is. HP probably sent you the wrong adapter with your laptop. Good that they are sending you the proper adapter.