CPU over heating and instantly failing Prime95 stress test

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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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For a while I've been dealing with my PC randomly rebooting, and I've finally narrowed it down to my CPU heat spiking from 20-30C to 80C+ when under any load above 30%. The heats spikes can be guaranteed whenever a loading screen in something like Killer is Dead occurs, and when trying to stress test the CPU with Prime95, the computer instantly reboots.

I've reapplied the thermal paste 4 times, checked the back plate, and have tried two different heat sinks (h80i and h100i.) None of this has changed anything. I'm at a loss as to what I should do next. If anyone can offer me any help, it would be appreciated.

Specs:
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i 77.0 CFM Liquid
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD5H ATX LGA1150
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB Superclocked ACX x2
Power Supply: SeaSonic 1050W ATX12V / EPS12V
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 64bit
 
Solution
fkr
I have done some reading. Is your bios up to date on your motherboard, this is the first thing that may resolve your issue. please read through the rest of this post and read the link I found as this may diagnose your issue for you

at this point all i can really think of is that the CPU is a defect or your CPU is getting to much voltage from the motherboard (this would be set in the bios). under that metal shield on the top of the CPU there is a layer of thermal paste between the actual CPU die and the CPU cover. that may be the issue.

please read through this link (I have been scouring the interwebs for an answer) as it may help you with your issue.

https://communities.intel.com/thread/54032

you can contact Intel for a return...
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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I had that issue, but solved it with rubber washers. Now the backplate is no longer loose.
 
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fkr

fkr

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May 24, 2009
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there is not much that can really go wrong.

does the pump work.

if so is the iquid flowing.

are the fans spinning on the rad

then is there contact between the heat sink and the CPU.

it is one of those things.
 
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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I doubt two brand new heat sinks had failing pumps.

Fans are spinning and running fine.

I reapplied thermal paste far too many times for there not to be. Pea in the center, clean cpu and heat sink, and properly attached to back plate which is no longer loose.
 
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fkr

fkr

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May 24, 2009
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i agree that the odds of this occurring are pretty slim. it is just that nothing else can really go wrong. unless you have a heavy overclock going or something which can be seen in the bios.
 
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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Haven't overclocked anything. The only possibility I can think of is that I used too much thermal paste, but I don't feel I put down enough to warrant such extreme repeated problems.
 
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fkr

fkr

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May 24, 2009
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when you take off that cooler you will know by looking at thermal paste imprint that is left. also when looking at that imprint if it is not smoothed out and really thin you will also know that the cooler does not have enough tension on it.

if you know that it is tight against the CPU then maybe you do not have enough power going to the pump or something and it is running at low speeds.

i believe that there is software for that cooler that will tell you things like that.
 
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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I did notice small ripples in the paste a few times. Again, I am thinking I may I have used too much.

I will trying connecting the pump power cable to it's own SATA cable instead of off the cable powering a few other components. I'll also reapply the thermal paste in a much smaller amount.

As for software that can monitor the pump, I can only think of Corsair Link, and that only tells me the pump is running at full.

Edit: Reapplied less thermal paste, put the heat sink down as even as I could, and connected pump to it's own SATA cable. Killer is Dead still spikes to 80C+, and Prime95 still crashes almost immediately after clicking to start the test. I say almost because this time it looked to hang for about half a second.
 
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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Switched over to a different heat sink that is air cooled and am running into the same problem. Killer is Dead no longer causes a reboot, but does spike the temperatures to almost 80C.

I have tried both prime95 and aida64. Both cause an immediate reboot of my pc upon clicking to start the test.
 
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fkr

fkr

Splendid
May 24, 2009
2,646
0
21,460
I have done some reading. Is your bios up to date on your motherboard, this is the first thing that may resolve your issue. please read through the rest of this post and read the link I found as this may diagnose your issue for you

at this point all i can really think of is that the CPU is a defect or your CPU is getting to much voltage from the motherboard (this would be set in the bios). under that metal shield on the top of the CPU there is a layer of thermal paste between the actual CPU die and the CPU cover. that may be the issue.

please read through this link (I have been scouring the interwebs for an answer) as it may help you with your issue.

https://communities.intel.com/thread/54032

you can contact Intel for a return or the place you purchased it from and the same would go for your motherboard.
 
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Solution
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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I've been hesitant to update my bios after having a few people tell me not to, however, if that has chance of fixing the issue I will attempt it tonight as well as see if I need to correct my wattage. I am confident paste under the cover isn't an issue since I've have gone through 3 heat sinks and several reissuings of thermal paste. I cleaned the cover thoroughly in each of these.

Thank you for giving me all the help you have. I've been racking my brain for 3 months trying to resolve this issue.
 
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fkr

fkr

Splendid
May 24, 2009
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first thing to do before doing the bios update is to reference that link and to make sure that the voltage settings are corect for your CPU. you should be able to manually change them to the correct voltages if needed.

If you can fix the voltage settings and everything is stable then you can update your bios after if you wanted to.

I would also contact your motherboard manufacturer and get a little guidance if needed.
 
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Nigellee

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Jul 25, 2014
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Altered my settings to the settings in the thread you linked me and it worked wonders. Max temp at 100% cpu usage is 51C, and both Aida64 and Prime95 can run stress tests without crashes.

Seriously, thank you. I would have ended up RMA'ing parts for nothing if you didn't help
 
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