ASUS ROG GA401I

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This page contains instructions and tips for configuring Arch Linux on the ASUS Zephyrus G14 and ASUS ROG Studio Pro 14 (GA401I).

ASUS Linux

The ASUS Linux stack provides users of this laptop with a great many ASUS specific functions, to name a few:

  • Battery Charge Limit,
  • Multiplexer (GPU) Controls,
  • Panel Overdrive,
  • Much more.

It is highly recommended to install these tools for the optimal experience on these laptops.

High battery usage/low runtime on battery

The G14 can be tweaked to have far better battery live and performance on windows [1]. A few optimizations can be taken to reach a similar battery live on Arch (you can monitor your current power usage using powertop - note that only the reported battery discharge seems to be fully accurate).

NVIDIA driver optimization

When using the official NVIDIA driver, the power usage can be reduced by putting the following line in /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia.conf: 

options nvidia "NVreg_DynamicPowerManagement=0x02"

This has also shown to reduce fan noise and overall heat.

Disabling turbo boost

While not necessarily saving power, some user prefer to disable turbo boost for smoother power delivery and less heat. To temporarily disable boost, execute the following: 

# echo 0 > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpufreq/boost

Or use the power profiles from asusctl to handle this automatically.

General Tips

To maximize the battery life, follow the general tips at power management.

Troubleshooting

Using external display through the USB-C port

While the dedicated HDMI port works out of the box, the display output through the USB-C port does not appear to be connected to the integrated graphics controller. Using an external display through this port requires to switch to the dedicated NVIDIA graphics card. See asusctl for more details.

Volume adjustment

When using built-in speakers, volume adjustment will not work for PulseAudio. Download this patch and apply it: 

# patch -p1 -d /usr/share/alsa-card-profile/mixer/paths/ -i /path/to/patch

Then restart the pulseaudio.service user unit.

Pacman hook

To apply the patch automatically after a pulseaudio upgrade, you can use a pacman hook: 

/etc/pacman.d/hooks/pulseaudio-volume-adj.hook
[Trigger]
Type = Path
Operation = Install
Operation = Upgrade
Target = usr/share/alsa-card-profile/mixer/paths/analog-output-speaker.conf

[Action]
Description = Fixing pulseaudio volume adjustment...
When = PostTransaction
Exec = /usr/bin/patch -p1 -d /usr/share/alsa-card-profile/mixer/paths/ -i /path/to/patch