Noise and high temperature when charging with 140W

Community Support
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I try to keep track of some of these threads. Just search “140w” and you’ll see all kinds of issues reported with charging. I have done extensive testing with 4 different USB-C 140W capable Chargers, including Apple’s own 140W Charger, as well as using not only the Framework 180W USB-C Power Cable, but also aftermarket ones like Anker’s 240W EPR Cable.

In all cases, there is audible noise when charging from 140W Sources. One of the key issues that occurs during this time is that clocks rapidly fluctuate on the GPU during this time. My laptop has the Dedicated GPU, but I also have the standard internal bay that I’ve swapped it with during testing.

One thing that stands out very obviously is that the GPU performance is abysmal while in this state. As in, you get more performance by running strictly off the battery than while plugged into a 140W Power Source. Even though the laptop is taking in that power, the rapid GPU clock fluctuations completely destroy any performance, and you’re left with a stuttering mess.

I tested for Framework Support and found the noise continued regardless of load when connected to 140W power sources and nothing else.

30W USB-PD Power Adapter - Just fine
45W USB-PD Power Adapter - Just fine
60W USB-PD Power Adapter - Just fine
100W USB-PD Power Adapter - Just fine
140W USB-PD Power Adapter(s) - Noisy chassis, GPU clocks and power consumption are all over the place.
180W USB-PD Power Adapter (Framework’s) - Just fine

Ultimately, Framework Support hand-waved and says it’s gotta be the adapter. I had 2 adapters at the time + the Framework Charger, and you can see their reply below and judge for yourself:

It seems there may be an incompatibility between your 140W charger and the Framework 16 laptop. A sufficient power supply is crucial to ensure all components, including the CPU, GPU, and peripherals, receive the necessary voltage and current to function optimally. Insufficient power can result in performance issues, system instability, or even hardware damage. Additionally, the laptop requires adequate power to charge its battery while in use.

It’s important to highlight that the Framework charger works seamlessly with your laptop, confirming there are no issues with either the Framework charger or the laptop itself. The problem only arises when using the Anker or UGREEN chargers with a 140W output.

The Framework Laptop 16 supports USB-C power adapters up to 240W. For optimal performance, we recommend the following:

  • A minimum of 180W power adapter if you are using a Graphics Module.
  • A minimum of 100W power adapter if the Graphics Module is not in use.

Ultimately, and unfortunately, the fact that the chassis is making noise with 140W Power Adapters, despite the video evidence using AMD’s own overlay tools to show the wildly fluctuating graphics clocks and GPU power consumption even though the laptop was consuming 130W, and even though literally no other device, including my 16" Macbook exhibit this behavior, Framework support feels the issue is with the Charger, and not with how these laptops deal with 28V, 140W Power Delivery.

You’re welcome to contact support. They’ll have you reset the UEFI, then jump through some hoops, and ultimately will probably come to the same conclusion. Here’s some other links to other folks who have already done the song and dance:

tacsist opened an issue about this on the Framework GitHub months ago:

Framework Support’s stance is simply that it is all the chargers, including Apple’s that are wrong. :melting_face: But I wish you luck!

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