advice for 8KNXP

[jon_west_uk]

My system:

mb - 8knxp
cpu - 3.06ghz 800fsb
GC - ATI 9800 pro
RAM - 1gig corsair 3700
DVD - Sony DVD writer
DVD2- Sony DVD player
Hd - 120gb SATA Seagate barracuda 7200rpm
HD2 - 120gb IDE Western digital 7200rpm
Case - Thermaltake Xaser III
Screen - Samsung 19' Xiod flat screen
Thermal compound - arctic silver III
CPU cooler - Aquarius II

As you can see i have spent a lot of time and cash on my machine that i want to use for video editing and high end graphics. I will be getting a matrox video capture card from work to give me some real time video editing effects.

I am however having trouble with my set up. The pc currently runs at 38-42 celcius when idle (is this not a little on the high side?) When running games like Soldier of Fortune 2 i am getting temps of up to 60 Celcius. I say "up to" because i freek out at 60 when the alarms on my PC start buzzing and i close all the programs to bring the temp down.

Before i start asking questions let me tell you what i have done to combat the heat. I run all 7 fans in the case at max. I have tried putting the Radiator outside the case (little difference). I have tried different positions of the heatsink (there is a lack of room in the 8knxp so the heatsink cannot sit with the cpu in the centre). I use distilled water mixed with coolant.

I am now thinking that the aquarius cooling system may not have the capacity to cool my chip when at full capacity.

My questions to you:

Am i being over cautious with the temps?
Have i done anything critically wrong in the way i have set up my machine?
If i deceide to ditch the water cooling then what air cooling set up should i put in max $50-$100(what coolers will fit my mb)?
If you have an 8knxp mb then what cooling do you have and how good is it?

If you are reading this then please just write a quick note with a few ideas so that i can get a wide perspective on what to do.

Thanks for all your help guys. I know that you all must know what it is like when you spend months planning your first custom PC, fork out more than you can afford and build it only to find that it does not quite live up to expectations.

Please help me out,

Jon

Someone please unwire me...the gadgets are taking over!

 

[LtBlue14]

question 1: how do you have a 3.06 with an 800mhz FSB? is it a 3.0C, or a 3.06 (which has a 533mhz fsb)
second, what's the ambient temperature where you are?
third, on watercooling, all of those case fans shouldn't make a huge difference, if any at all. where's your radiator set up? are the fans on the case set up such that they would help flow through the radiator?
In any case, it sounds to me more like the waterblock isn't seated well, or that it needs to be lapped, because i saw a review of the aquarius II block, and the bottom wasn't pretty. this is something you may want to try
what's more - the setup supposedly has a C/W of .36 (as tested <A HREF="http://www.overclockers.com/articles731/index02.asp" target="_new">here</A>), which means at 81.9 watts (load wattage for a 3.0C and also 3.06), your processor is going to be (81.9W)(.36C/W)= 30C above ambient temperature, or 30C above the temperature of the air going through the radiator. If you say ambient temp is 25C, then your load temps are about right, if maybe a little high.

In the end, the aquarius kit is not a great one, and for $50-100 i would definitely recommend a thermalright SLK-947U from the bottom of <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=manufactory&manufactory=1444&catalog=62&DEPA=1&sortby=14&order=1" target="_new">this page</A> and a 92mm vantec stealth from <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?submit=manufactory&manufactory=1453&catalog=62&DEPA=1&sortby=14&order=1" target="_new">here</A>. then i'd put all of your case fans on low, especially with SEVEN of them
that's a bunch of suggestions, see what you think, you may still be able to get the watercooling kit to work with some tweaking

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this signature area is too dern short, no space to put your system specs

 

[jon_west_uk]

1. You are of course absolutely correct. I do have a 3.0c with 800mhz fsb not a 3.06!

2. I live in the UK so the temperature where i am is room temp 25C.

3. The radiator is in the bottom of the PC blowing towards the back of the PC. the other fans compliment this direction of airflow.

4. I think you are probably correct in saying that the waterblock is not seated properly. However, i have tried all possible positions and none are satisfactory!

5. I have taken your advice and bought myself a Thermalright SLK-947U and 92mm vantec stealth. I am also thinking about buying a Ventec tornado 92mm for the times that i want to start playing with overclocking the machine as i have heard that this fan is very good interms of air flow.

Thanks very much for your advice. It is a great help to be able to chat about this sort of thing with experts like yourself.

Jon

Someone please unwire me...the gadgets are taking over!