Temperature too high?

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Jotun

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Oct 13, 2012
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Hello,

The temperatures on my i7 3770 (stock cooler for now) are way too high, I think. On idle they're about 50C, but sometimes they are very jerky. For exmaple, they will jump from 48 to 57 in a second. I stress tested with Prime95 and it got to 97C in less then a minute, so I turned it off for safety. I was using SpeedFan to test the temperatures.

It's quite worrying, so if anyone has any tips I'd be grateful.
 
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unknownofprob

unknownofprob

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Oct 3, 2013
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if your temps are 80+ degrees then i would be worried, 97 degree in such a short time even worse. I would strongly suggest getting a Cooler master Hyper 212 EVO CPU cooler to keep you CPU temps down. They cost around $40 and are the best in it's price range at cooling. Sounds like your current CPU cooler is doing a terrible job.
 
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GhislainG

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Jul 16, 2008
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If the CPU gets that hot running Prime95, then the HSF is not making full contact, the ambient temperature is significantly over 22°C or the case has poor ventilation. I can run Prime95 torture tests on mine for hours and it's fine according to SpeedFan, but I don't trust it much because other values that it reports are way off. Let the system run in the BIOS (hardware monitor) and check how hot it gets after 10 minutes. If the CPU gets too hot, it will throttle and you'll notice a performance decrease.
 
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J

Jotun

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Oct 13, 2012
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So, I've decided to take it apart and clean the dust off etc. I haven't really noticed how much dust there was built up. After doing that, the temperatures got somewhat better, but still too high, about 96-99C on 100% load, but not going over that (I ran it for about 15 minutes, not enough for a real test, I know, but I didn't want to risk it). Before the clean they reached 100C in less then a minute and would continue rising, so it is definitely an improvement. And idle seems to be better as well, (high 40s, while it was high 50s before).


I guess the best would be to get a new cooler, but I'm wondering, how risky is it to leave it like this for some time? I mean, I know 50$ isn't a lot, but currently for me it is. Would it be fine to leave it like this for a month or two? What are the risks?


When putting the HSF back, I've noticed that one of the pins doesn't make the "click" the other three do. It seems to be a bit loose, and doesn't lock in place. Might that be the issue? I've tried testing it through BIOS and it reports about the same results, and I've also tried HWMonitor, with again the same results.


well, I haven't really applied any thermal paste myself, it's still using the "stock" thermal paste that came on the heatsink.
 
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GhislainG

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Jul 16, 2008
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You wrote "When putting the HSF back, I've noticed that one of the pins doesn't make the "click" the other three do. It seems to be a bit loose, and doesn't lock in place. Might that be the issue? I've tried testing it through BIOS and it reports about the same results, and I've also tried HWMonitor, with again the same results." All 4 pins have to be securely locked in place; otherwise CPU cooling can be severely affected. Do you have access to the back of the motherboard to see if all 4 pins are fully inserted? To be honest the stock cooler works quite well for a non-overclocked CPU if it's installed in a well ventilated case and in a room where ambient temperature doesn't exceed 25°C.

If the HSF was removed, you need to clean the old heat paste and apply a very thin layer of new paste.
 
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J

Jotun

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Oct 13, 2012
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I think there's been a misunderstanding about the thermal paste. When I said I've been using "stock" paste, I meant that I've been using it before I've removed the heatsink for cleaning, so too much paste wasn't the problem. Up until yesterday, I haven't opened the thing at all since I've built it about a year ago, so it was still using the paste that came on. After I cleaned it, I put some new paste in, of course. However, it's not the best quality, not even branded, but that's the only one I could get my hands on. I've ordered some AS5, though, so I'll put that on when it comes.



I can't see the motherboard from the other side, no, but I guess that might be the problem, the broken pin.. Hopefully, is it safe to use until I get a new cooler in a few days, what do you think?



The temperatures now are 35-45 when idle, 90-98 on 100% load. Is that fine for now, until I get a better cooler?



I can't find that model in any of the computer shops here, at least not on their website catalogs. How about a Cooler Master Hyper TX3 EVO? Or maybe ThermalTake Contac 30?

Thank you everyone for the replies.
 
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J

Jotun

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Oct 13, 2012
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I bought a Contac 30 and the temperatures are down. Didn't seem to go above 70C on 100% load during an hour of testing.

So thanks everyone for the help!
 
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