Support Got a new laptop (and then got overwhelmed) - Need tips/advice

[MegaApple]

Hey MC, I got a new gaming laptop!



It's an ASUS TUF FX505DT

• Ryzen 5-3550H
• 8GB RAM DDR4
• NVIDIA GTX 1650 GDDR5 4GB
• 1 TB + 256GB SSD
• 120 Hertz Display

But when I booted it up, I was a little overwhelmed with things to do
So I need advice

• What all pre-installed softwares are useful? I currently see Armoury Crate (how should I use this?), MyAsus, GameVisual, DTS Headphone and Realtek Audio.
• How do I maximize (and analyze) gaming performance? I don't know about overclocking and stuff. Another other tips/tricks or softwares that I should know?
• How do I maximize the laptop's life (and battery) as much as possible? I've heard about underclocking and undervolting and that it's good when doing light work like Office and Chrome.
• Any must-have softwares/tools that you recommend installing? Any tips and tricks to make the usage easier?
• Do I need to install AMD drivers (for Ryzen 5 processor)? Will it cause GPU detection issues?

and I've been thinking of how to partition it. I'll store game, game related stuff (mods, softwares, pdfs etc.) and other media (movies, shows, books).

Should I...

• Make one drive and put all the stuff in there?; or
• Make separate drives?

And that if it'll affect my PC's gaming performance.

Thank you for any advice or tips in advance. Love you, MC

 

[Pixieking]

Ahhhhh... There's quite a bit of stuff, so I'll go through what I can remember now, and then maybe post again later if I remember other stuff.

In no order:

Must-Have Software: HWMonitor is good for checking temps and CPU/GPU load. Easy to run in the background of games with min/max markers for temperatures, so you can see if you need to undervolt to prevent thermal throttling. I really like MPC-HC as an all-purpose video player.

Undervolting is both very easy, and very stressful the first time you do it. There's one or two applications that let you do it, but I only have experience with Intel CPUs (and the Intel app), so the best I can say is Google guides on how to do it, and make sure you follow them precisely. It'll most-likely help lengthen the life of your laptop, but depending upon temps, you might not need to do it.

Realtek Audio will be the basic audio driver system, so keep that around. Everything else I usually just leave installed for a week or two and play around with it. I see no reason to keep DTS Headphone for instance, but you may feel differently. Basically, poke everything once or twice, and then uninstall if you won't use it.

Turn off Disk Optimisation for the SSD (Windows Administrative Tools > Defragment and Optimise Drives > Scheduled Optimisation OFF). I don't see much point in defragging my mechanical drives, but it's easy enough to run that manually. Watch out for Windows updates (usually major ones) turning this setting back on without telling you.

I don't see any point partitioning but I do have a backup of everything important on an external drive, so if I have to reinstall Windows it doesn't matter. I suppose it depends on what you're going to have on the SSD? Absolutely no point in partitioning the 1tb mechanical drive.

I don't overclock my laptop, since the CPU already hits 80c+ when gaming, and I don't want higher GPU temps adding to the internal temp generally. You may want to, but again it comes down to what temps you're already getting.

Hope this helps. Will try and think of other stuff.

 

[Tizoc]

Yeah never overclock a laptop. Ur rig seems to be 4 cores going by the 5 next to the ryzen?

 

[JMTHEFOX]

• As Tizoc said, do not overclock your laptop. However, you CAN undervolt your laptop's CPU.
• Turn on battery saver.
• Ninite is extremely usefull if you want some of the important software. With Ninite, you can choose which programs you want to install and create your custom installer. The installer will add the chosen software on your laptop and can be run again to update any software to its latest version. PatchMyPC is also a good alternative. Another honorable mention is BatteryCare, which is a more detailed version of a battery meter that includes battery status, total discharges and current battery health.

 

[MegaApple]

Pixieking Amazing Answer

Must-Have Software: HWMonitor is good for checking temps and CPU/GPU load. Easy to run in the background of games with min/max markers for temperatures, so you can see if you need to undervolt to prevent thermal throttling.

Doesn't MSI Afterburner already do that?

Undervolting

I read somewhere that Undervolting isn't required for Ryzen APUs as they are low voltage.

Turn off Disk Optimisation for the SSD (Windows Administrative Tools > Defragment and Optimise Drives > Scheduled Optimisation OFF). I don't see much point in defragging my mechanical drives, but it's easy enough to run that manually.

So should I turn off Disk Optimisation/scheduled defragging for mechanical drive as well?

I don't see any point partitioning but I do have a backup of everything important on an external drive, so if I have to reinstall Windows it doesn't matter. I suppose it depends on what you're going to have on the SSD? Absolutely no point in partitioning the 1tb mechanical drive.

Windows came pre-installed on SSD, and I plan to put all software installations there. Mechanical drive is for Games and other media.

 

[MegaApple]

Ninite is extremely usefull if you want some of the important software. With Ninite, you can choose which programs you want to install and create your custom installer. The installer will add the chosen software on your laptop and can be run again to update any software to its latest version. PatchMyPC is also a good alternative. Another honorable mention is BatteryCare, which is a more detailed version of a battery meter that includes battery status, total discharges and current battery health.

I've looked into Ninite and I've already installed most softwares that it supports. Still, this is very handy thing.
BatteryCare looks great. Thanks!

 

[Pixieking]

Apologies for the delay - feeling a bit under the weather today.

Pixieking Amazing Answer

Doesn't MSI Afterburner already do that?

Yeah, I think MSI Afterburner does already do that, but I've read occasional reports about overlays and games conflicting with Afterburner. Probably a good bet to keep Afterburner as the go-to app, but if soemthing's a bit glitchy and you need to check temps then to go to HWMonitor as a backup.

I read somewhere that Undervolting isn't required for Ryzen APUs as they are low voltage.

Ohhh... Maybe. You'll have to dig into that as I'm an Intel user myself so wouldn't know for sure.

So should I turn off Disk Optimisation/scheduled defragging for mechanical drive as well?

I do because then it doesn't run unexpectdly whilst I'm playing a game. But you don't have to turn it off for them.

Windows came pre-installed on SSD, and I plan to put all software installations there. Mechanical drive is for Games and other media.

Then I don't see much point in partitioning the SSD. Especially if you're willing to use Ninite to speed-up a fresh install.

 

[MegaApple]

Apologies for the delay - feeling a bit under the weather today.

Thanks man.
Hope you feel better.

BBy the way, have you heard of IObit's Advanced System Care? I used it on my old PC and it used to clean up files junk and registry and keep it alright. Didn't touch the adware CCLEANER

 

[JMTHEFOX]

Thanks man.
Hope you feel better.

BBy the way, have you heard of IObit's Advanced System Care? I used it on my old PC and it used to clean up files junk and registry and keep it alright. Didn't touch the adware CCLEANER

You did the right thing, CCleaner is very suspicious since it can mess up your registry files.

 

[Tizoc]

Ccleaner that bad huh? I only used it once and that was it. Uninstalling it when i get home.