[Dave N]

I will soon be upgrading my iBook for something that can run Garageband and has an audio in jack, so I'm looking at either a PB or an iMac.

If I get a PB it will be the 12" model, and I would like to add an external display later on. I was reading through some old posts and it seems that some people are having problems with the 12" PBs heating up when using an external display.

I just wanted to get some feedback from 12" PB owners who use external displays. Does it make the PB run hot? Do the fans come on more often? I would be using a 17" LCD display. Thanks

[TiUser]

Dave N,
I have the new ACD 20" hooked up to my Rev. C PB 12" in clam shell mode. The heat doesn't seem to be much of a problem. I have the PB on a stand. The fan however, comes on almost constantly even during light work like email and surfing the net. It is not terribly loud, but can be annoying if you are used to silent working space.

[iREZ]

I have my 12" Rev B connected to a 17" Samsung LCD (thanks again Icruise), and when running it clamshell mode while working on Photoshop and Illustrator, my temp is at a constand 128� - 132�F. Hope this helps some.

[Dave N]

Thanks for the replies. I guess I should be more specific -- I would be using the PB for mostly email, web surfing, garageband, and office apps, and very infrequent photoshop elements (no gaming or anything else extreme).

I am mainly concerned about the fans kicking in all the time with an external monitor, because I want a quiet system like my iBook is now. My monitor will most likely be a non-Apple 17" DVI or maybe an Apple 17" if I could find a good deal on one used.

iREZ, do your fans run a lot at that temp? I thought I read in another thread that the fans come on around 142 or so...

[escher]

Originally posted by TiUser:
The fan however, comes on almost constantly even during light work like email and surfing the net. It is not terribly loud, but can be annoying if you are used to silent working space.

I've had the same experience. Heat is not an issue, but fan noise is. I've been forced to mide my 12-inch under my desk -- I use it with a 17" ViewSonic ThinEdge and Apple Wireless Mouse and Keyboard. And I can still hear the fan! However, I love everything else about this little PowerBook.

If you'll be doing stationary audio work, I would seriously consider one of the new 1.8Ghz single processor PowerMac G5s. They'll be the quietest by far. All of the 'Books and the iMacs have smaller diameter fans that will run at higher RPM and make higher-pitched noise. Of course, both a 12-inch PB and iMac G5 will still be quieter than most PCs.

Escher

[Fiete5401]

I'm using a rev. a 12"-PB in closed-lid-mode with a 19"-CRT and the fans are running all the time.

[Hanul]

I connect my Rev. A 12" to a 17" TFT (LG 1710B) and the fan is constantly running. I even open the lid a little bit for better airflow. I don't mind the noise, but if you like a quiet working environment another kind of computer like the iMac or PowerMac is better suited to your needs.

The iMac or new single-CPU PowerMac will run GarageBand far better than any PB. My G4 with 867MHz and 640MB RAM will complain about insufficient power after I add 4-5 tracks to a song (when I don't convert the loops to "real instruments"). The current 12" with 1.33GHz and a 1GB RAM may do better, but never as good as the G5 1.8GHz. And the screen size of 1024x768 is a little bit to small for GarageBand. If you add the external display later, you have to live with the small screen for a while.

If you don't need the portability get an iMac. You may keep your iBook, because even the low-end iMac will be much more powerful than the PowerBook and cost $300 less.

[Dave N]

Ok, based on all those responses I guess the PB is ruled out. I don't want to listen to the fan run the whole time the display is hooked up. Thanks to all who responded.

[iREZ]

My fan only comes on after an hour or so. Even with it on, why not just throw on a song in iTunes, I do this and hardly hear the thing. If you wanna hear the fan just go to your local Apple store and check out the 12" connected to a cinema (some have this and some dont), you could hardly hear it in the store. I don't think this should rull out your purchase for what is my favorite Mac to date.

[Simon]

If you want to run a PowerBook in closed-lid mode and don't want to hear any fan noise (even when doing nothing, just the Finder running), get the 15" or 17" but don't even think of getting a 12".

My rev B 12" is running in closed-lid mode attached to a 20" ACD. I couldn't care less about the heat (although I'm wondering if that could be the reason my internal HD died after just 11 months of use), but the fan noise drives me crazy. In an office it's no problem because you won't hear it with all the other noise, but at home in a quiet room it is well audible and there is nothing you can do about it apart from cooling your room down to a temperature around 12C/54F which of course sucks because you would need to wear a winter coat just to use your PowerBook. And don't think it will just turn on while you're playing MOH or CoD (which wouldn't matter that much next to all the machine gun fire and mortar explosions). This fan will be running the moment your CPU temp reaches 48C/118F which it does within 10 minutes after booting and logging in no matter what you do. You can log in, let the Finder idle and do NOTHING at all, but still you'll get the fan.

I absolutely love my 12" PowerBook. It's awesome. But my next PowerBook will probably be a 15" (shucks, I'll miss all the ports being on one side) just because I'm not ready to put up with the fan noise due to an ACD and closed-lid operation.

I'm somewhat mad at Apple for this design 'flaw'. They include DVI in the 12" PowerBook, they mention closed-lid operation in their manuals, they recommend their ACDs for this kind of use and nevertheless they expect people to put up with fan noise. Loyal Mac users that buy this kind of hardware and pay Apple this load of cash just don't deserve to have to put up with such baloney. Roaring fans on notebooks should be something we leave to the cheap 10lb PC notebook world.

The 15" and 17" seem to work perfectly fine w/o any fan when they're attached to an ACD and closed. The 12" should as well or Apple should openly warn people that closed-lid mode on the 12" only works if you are willing to listen to the fan. But this is just my own POV, sorry for the minor rant.

[cc_foo]

Just a note.

It's hot summer here in Australia. I connected a Rev C PowerBook 12" to a old 17" CRT that I had lying around. I have it set at 1024x768 only, because at anything higher the screen refresh rate falls to 60Hz (or MHz or whatever).

The PowerBook sits closed lid (clamshell mode) on an iCurve. Also connected are wireless USB keyboard, mouse.

The fan doesn't come on.

I'm happy with the setup. I thought of replacing the CRT with a LCD. But having seen the posts here, I probably won't. I'd save the $ too. The larger screen lets me avoid squinting at the 12" screen when it is at a distance.

I wonder if the fan comes on because of the resolution of the output, as opposed to the size of the external monitor.

[iREZ]

Well there are two fans, one low sounding and the other much louder. If you use Garageband, your book will heat up fast but my Rev B sticks to around 130�F after fiddling for about 20 minutes and looping tracks. I don't ever hear my louder fan unless I'm compressing DVD's to my HD, or if I'm Halo-ing. To each their own, I love my 12".

[psk-ele]

I was wondering if anyone had any information on this topic in regards to the closed-lid operation of the 12" Powerbook...Will running in closed-lid operation affect the Powerbook's screen at all?? I have heard varying reports that the excess heat build-up causes discoloration and/or damage to the screen.

[crazeazn]

rev B with 21inch crt, fan on ALWAYS

[Simon]

Originally posted by iREZ:
Well there are two fans, one low sounding and the other much louder.

I have a rev B 12" too. There is only one fan. If you hear a very faint noise, it's the HD, not a fan. The loud guy is the fan.

Check Apple's assembly guide here and you'll see there is only a single fan, not two. Its part number is 922-6242.

[Simon]

Originally posted by crazeazn:
rev B with 21inch crt, fan on ALWAYS

My rev B 12" runs in clamshell mode with a 20" ACD (1680x1050). What's interesting is that at the office I run it with a 21" Eizo TFT (1600x1200). It seems that the PowerBook is cooler there. Now it could just be that my office temp is lower than my home room temp, but I'm wondering if the external display's resolution has any influence on the PowerBook's temp...

For the rev B the fan threshold is 48C/118F. Even when completely idle the PowerBook runs at roughly 50C/122F and therefore the fan is always on. However, it's running at a lower speed and thus the noise isn't terrible. If you get the CPU or GPU to do hard work the fan will quickly speed up to its max. The max temperature I've seen is about 62C/144F. At that temp the fan really roars.

[brettcamp]

I've been using my Rev. C 12" with a 17" Samsung (DVI connection) with the lid closed for months now, and the fan rarely -- almost never, really -- kicks on. Of course, I don't use GarageBand or anything else as processor intensive, and I do keep the computer on one of those old wooden in-boxes, so that air can circulate underneath and maybe cool it a bit.

BTW if you're looking for a mid sized monitor, this article may help. After reading it, I got the Samsung and have been very happy.

[skyslushy]

If you have a cooling pad will the fan still come on? PC laptops also have a fan problem, am I right? So I guess, the fan issue is something that has to be dealt with.

[iREZ]

I guess it's the one fan that runs at a low speed then kicks in even more when pushed harder. I know there are two different fan noises though, and I know it's not the HD.