High Temp CPU

TheRezint

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Ive been using my I7 4790k for about a year now and it has been very hot forever, it hasn't changed since i first got it. I am using a H100i liquid cooler and usually sits at 60C idle but as of right now its 50. Last night i was gaming and the CPU went to 99C. Im using arctic thermal compound and re pasting it doesnt seem to do much. I have many fans blowing into the PC.
The CPU is running at 1.208 voltage.
 
Solution
The whole purpose of the washers is to increase the thickness of the motherboard, so when the backplate is attached to the mounting studs, the mobo/washer combo makes it so the studs actually tighten down to the motherboard surface. More than a few motherboards are relatively thin and what happens is the studs bottom out on the backplate screws leaving the studs loose to the surface. This means there's movement of the studs, never allowing the pump to get fully seated on the cpu. Aio pumps are more effective with higher pressure on the cpu, better thermal transfer.
So no, the washer thickness will not raise temps unless you put the washers on the front of the mobo. They should be on the back, sandwiched between the backplate and the...
Either the pump is not running, there is an airlock or the cold plate is not seating fully due to interference with something on the motherboard. If you are absolutely positive that you've used the correct backing plate and stand offs for the type of socket your CPU uses (Most kits come with multiple backing plates and stand offs) then there is either a pump or airlock issue or there is something not allowing the base of the water block to seat correctly.

Your temps are not normal and are far too high. Where is your pump plugged into? You want it plugged into something that allows it to run full speed at all times. You do not want it's rotational values to vary based on temperature. For fans, that's fine. For the pump, not so much.

Go into the bios and check the RPMs being reported for whichever header you have the pump attached to. Pretty sure something is not connected correctly or there is interference somewhere but it's equally possible that it simply has a bad pump. You can at least tell if the pump is running by putting a finger on the top of it to see if you can feel the vibration of the running pump.

Might be a good idea to strip it back down, look for any interference points around the CPU socket on your board that might not allow it to fully seat, look for any marks on the bottom of the hardware that might indicate it HAS been sitting on something and watch the following video to make absolutely certain you are connecting everything exactly the way it is supposed to be connected.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKGbu6ywCW8

It's also possible, but unlikely, that your fan configuration is wrong. Where do you have fans located and which of them are oriented for intake and which for exhaust. I doubt this is the problem, but it could be a contributor. I'm constantly seeing people here with two front intake fans, a top mounted radiator in intake configuration and only a single rear exhaust. That creates so much internal air pressure that the fan on the radiator are barely able to pass any air through it in order to function correctly. Again, that would only contribute, no cause the problem in full.
 

TheRezint

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Umm sooo, using the wrong studs for a year... is that bad... Idk if im using the right studs or not and just re did the thermal paste again now CPU is at 85 degrees idle.

 

TheRezint

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Now running around 39-50 idle... i did have the right studs i just tightened them a bit i think.
 
50°C is still high for an idle temp. Clearly though it's likely a mounting problem. Might not be a bad idea to make sure the backing plate to standoff fasteners are tightened correctly as well, since if they are not it doesn't matter how much you tighten the mounting bracket to standoff fasteners, it still won't achieve the correct mounting pressure.

Also, make sure you are not using too much or too little thermal paste. On this application I'd think that an amount equal to about half a #2 pencil eraser should be adequate. It would be less with a high end tower cooler since they tend to have a higher mounting pressure. Maybe similar but I don't think you are getting good mounting pressure in any case.

One thing you can do is lightly press down on the top of the pump/waterblock assembly and watch to see if there is a thermal change in the readable temps. Might not be though if the standoff to backing plate fasteners are not fully tightened. If your case gives you access to the back of the motherboard through a cutout (Meaning you didn't have to take the motherboard out of the case in order to install the cooler) you can, with the power off, gently grab the backing plate and lightly turn it to see if it has movement. If it does, it is not correctly fastened.

However, if it's ACTUALLY sitting at 35 degrees with nothing running, and pretty much stays there at idle, and your overall temps don't go over 70 degrees celcius, then it's probably ok.
 
If you had actually read my post, you wouldn't have had to go looking for the answer, because that's EXACTLY what I told you to look for.

If your case gives you access to the back of the motherboard through a cutout (Meaning you didn't have to take the motherboard out of the case in order to install the cooler) you can, with the power off, gently grab the backing plate and lightly turn it to see if it has movement. If it does, it is not correctly fastened.
 

TheRezint

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I didnt know you meant when the water block was off. Last night i was getting 30 degrees idle and 50 degrees gaming but now its 90 degrees gaming and 60 idle..
 
Shouldn't matter if the water block is on or off. That has no effect on whether or not the backing plate is clamped down correctly to the stand offs. The water block can be 100% tight to the tops of the standoffs while the backing plate is still loose, due to it's fasteners not being fully tightened into the bottom of the standoffs.

In order to fix it correctly though the water block needs to come off. Fully tighten the backing plate to standoff fasteners, full clean both the CPU lid and cold plate surfaces completely clean using isopropyl alcohol or thermal paste specific cleaner (Nothing else), repaste and then mount the water block making sure once again to fully seat that as well.

It MAY be necessary to not only tighten the tops of the water block fasteners but also HOLD the fasteners on the backside of the backing plate to make sure they do not turn when tightening the water block down. It does require some amount of judgement however, you do not want to crank down until something cracks, but you want the water block fully seated against the top of the CPU lid. As I mentioned earlier as well, you want to make sure that there is nothing, like the top of a capacitor or anything else on the board that might be causing the bottom of the water block to not fully seat.
 

Karadjgne

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Go to a local hardware store. Get 4x teflon/plastic washers, they'll be cheap. You want ones that are relatively small diameter and only @1/16th of an inch thick. Put those between the mobo and backplate, on the back side of the motherboard. During reassembly make sure all pins/screws are good and tight, not over-tight.

Some motherboards are thinner than others and Corsair in particular hasn't adjusted for this, so mounting pins can be loose to the backplate, which makes for very little pressure of the cold plate to cpu connection. This'll lead to high temps at both idle and loads no matter how much you tighten the pump down.
 
^^^Yes, IF there is slack, even after you've tightened the backing plate to standoff fasteners fully. If there is not slack, then not 100% necessary. Well, probably doesn't hurt to do it in either case, just to be sure. Might also help to provide some amount of cushion to allow slightly tighter tolerances. Probably good advice. I am definitely not against doing this.
 

TheRezint

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Nov 24, 2015
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Just switched out my CPU 17 4790k to a Pentium G3258 and its getting 37 degrees at idle. So im assuming its still the mounting or pump itself problem. 55 degrees when gaming
 

TheRezint

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I have a warranty on my cpu and cooler i think i should just send them both back and get new ones.
 
Very doubtful they will warrant the CPU. It is EXTREMELY rare that a CPU fails unless it has been damaged due to abuse or overheating. The cooler is a different story. If it is under warranty then they'll likely replace it without too much fuss. Probably not the worst idea, but don't be terribly surprised if you find you have the same problem with the replacement. IF you do, at least you'll know it's not actually the cooler itself though which helps to find the real problem somewhat easier.

I'd probably do as Karadjne recommended first though. Making sure the standoffs are pulled firmly against the board, by removing any possible slack on the backside, solves a lot of problems with mount jobs that don't want to cool properly due to lack of mounting pressure.
 

Karadjgne

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Unless ambient temps in the room are very high, that aio is more than capable of running an i7 at idle of @30-34°C and gaming temps should be in the middle 50's. So with everything in consideration, 37 and 55 are about where they should be. 60 and 90, most definitely not.

There's several things that can affect any cpu cooler, loose mount being a major concern, but there's extra things that also could stand looking at. You have a h100i. Correct installation should be pump directly to Sata power, 3pin to cpu_fan and USB to a USB2 header. The fans install to the pump. If you have other than that (which is common) it'll be fans on splitter to cpu_fan header, pump to Sata and forget the USB. The only reason for the USB is Corsair Link, which takes the cpu temp and adjusts the fans accordingly. If not using Corsair Link, you'll need to adjust the fans some other way but the pump needs to remain at full power always.
 

Karadjgne

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The whole purpose of the washers is to increase the thickness of the motherboard, so when the backplate is attached to the mounting studs, the mobo/washer combo makes it so the studs actually tighten down to the motherboard surface. More than a few motherboards are relatively thin and what happens is the studs bottom out on the backplate screws leaving the studs loose to the surface. This means there's movement of the studs, never allowing the pump to get fully seated on the cpu. Aio pumps are more effective with higher pressure on the cpu, better thermal transfer.
So no, the washer thickness will not raise temps unless you put the washers on the front of the mobo. They should be on the back, sandwiched between the backplate and the motherboard.
 
Solution

TheRezint

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Nov 24, 2015
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The washers are on and secure and i pop my i7 back in and 45 to 55 degree idle with 70 degrees gaming. Could it be the CPU malfunctioning or the pump.
 
After all of this, with different thermal ranges from one test to the next, and nothing else seeming to affect it, I think I'd just bite the bullet and either RMA the unit or buy a different one. Those temps are definitely not acceptable. Something is either wrong with the controls/motherboard or the cooler itself, and my money is on the cooler since I've seen so many of these have problems.