Brand new gem-cut Spectre x360 15" - Fans won't ever shut off

[Markran]

Got my new x360 last week and the fans turn on within a minute or two of starting up at full or near full speed and never turn off regardless of how idle the machine is. Looking for any ideas to try. Basically, it appears that once they go on, they seem stuck on despite being at very low temp & full idle. Only system sleep or shutting down stops the fans. System specs: Spectre x360 15t-df000 CTO, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD.

• It's not heat or speed because it doesn't matter if the cores are all below 38C and 897Mhz (lowest speed) and the processor is doing nothing in safe mode. I've even tried setting the max processor speed to 40%. Still never shuts the fans off. (checked temps with both CPUID HWMonitor and Intel Extreme Tuning utility).

• Doesn't matter if it's on battery or wall power, charging or not.

• Tried all Power Options and "Best Battery Life".

• Tried Passive and Active cooling settings and setting everything in the power plan to "minimal", "best battery life" and lowest performance.

• Checked to make sure the "always run fans" BIOS options is off (and even tried it on).

• Updated to the latest firmware (.09) and installed latest updates and drivers from HP site and MSFT. Tried HP diagnostics.

• Updated Windows 10 Pro to 1809. Tried a System File Check.

• I tried undervolting with ThrottleStop.

• I've done a lot of internet searching and tried every suggestion I could find short of opening it and repasting the CPU (which I don't think will matter because the issue is NOT the temps (system, cores, or GPU).

• Tried booting in safe mode and then killing everything I could via Task Manager just in case some rogue process is locking the fan shut-off.

I'd also be curious to know from anyone with the gem-cut 15" at what temps your fans turn on and, most importantly, at what temp they turn off.

My last resort before sending it back will be a full Windows reinstall. Can anyone think of anything else to try?

[Echo_Lake]

@Markran

Welcome to HP Forums,  

This is a great place to get support, find answers and tips,
Thank you for posting your query, I'll be more than glad to help you out 🙂

I see that the laptop fan does not shut down, I appreciate your efforts to try and resolve the issue.

Don't worry as I'll be glad to help, however, to provide an accurate resolution, I need a few more details:

• What is the product number of your device? Use this link to find it: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c03754824 (Ensure you do not share any of your personal information such as serial, phone number, email ID, etc...).
• Have you tried changing the power plan?

While you respond to that, I recommend you to perform the following steps to isolate the issue and arrive at a fix:

Let's update the system bios: 

To find the correct BIOS update, obtain the original computer’s product number, BIOS version, and the processor type.

1. Turn on the original computer with the issue, and then immediately press the Esc key repeatedly until the Startup Menu opens.

   

2. Press the F1 key to open System Information.

   

3. Write down the Product Number, BIOS Version number, and Processor Type.

Step 2: Set up the BIOS update on a USB flash drive

Use a second computer with Internet access to create a BIOS recovery USB flash drive.

1. Insert a blank USB flash drive into an available port on the second computer.

2. Go to HP Software & Driver Downloads and enter the product number of the original computer.

3. Look through the available software for BIOS, click it, and then confirm it is a higher version number and it is for your processor type.

   • If the update is correct, click Download, and then click Run.

   • If the update is not correct, view details of other BIOS updates in the list. If there are no other updates, the computer does not require a BIOS update.

   • If BIOS is not in the list of available software, an update is currently unavailable.

4. In the InstallShield Wizard window, click Next.

   

5. Select I accept the terms in the license agreement, and then click Next.

6. In the License to Save Files window, click Change, select the USB flash drive, click OK, and then click Next. The HP System BIOS Update Utility opens.

7. Click Next, select Create Recovery USB flash drive, and then click Next.

   

8. Select your USB flash drive, and then click Next.

9. Wait while the BIOS files copy to the drive.

10. When 'The recovery flash drive was created successfully' displays, click Finish.

11. Click Cancel to close the update utility.

Step 3: Get the System Board ID

Get the System Board ID on the original computer to identify the correct BIOS file to install.

1. Turn on the original computer, and then immediately press the F10 key repeatedly until the BIOS settings menu opens.

   NOTE: For some computers, press the F2 or F6 key to open the menu.

2. Click the Main tab, and then write down the System Board ID.

   

3. Press the F10 key to exit BIOS, and then shut down the computer.

Step 4: Update the BIOS

Use the Hardware Diagnostics UEFI on the original computer to update the BIOS.

1. Turn on the original computer, and then immediately press the Esc key repeatedly, about once every second, until the Startup Menu opens.

   

2. Press the F2 key to open the Hardware Diagnostics UEFI menu.

3. Make sure the power cord is connected to the notebook. Keep it connected during the BIOS update process.

4. Insert the USB flash drive that contains the BIOS update into an available USB port on the notebook.

5. Click Firmware Management or BIOS Management.

6. Click BIOS Update.

   

7. Click Select BIOS Image To Apply.

   

8. Click HP_TOOLS, and then click HEWLETT_PACKARD.

9. Browse to the BIOS image. The file is in the BIOSUpdate, CURRENT, NEW, or PREVIOUS folder.

10. Select the BIOS update file that matches the System Board ID. The ID has a "0" before the board ID (Example: 02291.bin).

    

11. Click Apply Update Now. Type the administrator password if prompted.

Hope this helps! Keep me posted for further assistance.

If I have helped you resolve the issue, feel free to give me a virtual high-five by clicking the 'Thumbs Up' icon below,

Followed by clicking on "Accept as solution" from the drop-down menu on the upper right corner,

Thank you for posting in the HP Support Forum.  Have a great day!