Heat problem?

[tunatuk]

Alright, so here is my quandry...

I have an Antec SLK-2650 Case, built an Intel machine (my first, I'm normally an AMD guy) off of a retail bundle I got for cheap direct from Intel.

So I build it, and I have my 120mm rear case fan sucking in cool air. I have a 80mm case fan in the front sucking in cool air. The 120 is quite a bit higher (right under PSU) and the 80 is at the bottom of the front.

Now, I also have one of those sleeve things that extends and goes to the heatsink fan, which I put another fan to keep sucking the air to keep it going out faster, as well as to pull some more of the hot air out of the case. As I type this, my CPU temp is around 65C...which I would think is running too hot. Full load gets it to between 70-75C. It has only restarted or frozen up on me a few times when I built it (not enough thermal compound), but I don't like the thing running too hot.

I have the stock Intel Heatsink/fan on a Pentium D 820, 2GB PC4200, 4HDD(Which are probably generating most of my heat, and only have a fan below them, nowhere else) and 2 optical drives, and a Radeon 1300Pro.

Anyone got any clues as to if this is too hot, and if so, what I should do to get the temp lower?

 

[chuckshissle]

There's a "rule of thumb" regarding with cpu temps. If it's over 60 at full load then it is not good. However cpu like intel can go well up to 80c and runs fine but demished the performance due to heat. As for your cpu the temp is not that extreme for a stock cooling. You should be looking at aftermarket cooling like Zalman 9500 or Tt Big Typhoon to cool that cpu to a much lower temp, preferably around 40-50 full load. This coolers are great but are huge so make sure to check your case dimensions and see that it would fit. Also using Artic Sivler 5 thermal compound can improve the cooling as well.

 

[phreejak]

Your setup has me a little confused, I see where you have fans drawing cool air in but what fans are you using to blow the heated air out of the case?

 

[tunatuk]

Your setup has me a little confused, I see where you have fans drawing cool air in but what fans are you using to blow the heated air out of the case?

I removed the sleeve a little while ago, so I have a fan on the side sucking air out. I am debating on whether or not to switch out the small 80mm fan in the front to act as an exhaust.

 

[blue68f100]

Generally you will exhaust the heat from the back and supply fresh air from the front. I think you have to many fans blowing in.

 

[phreejak]

Since we know that the hotter air will rise, I doubt that your 80mm fan will prove to be that efficient at expelling it. Also, you will be exhausting the cooler air (which would reside at the lower portions of the case) before you would move the hot air.

I agree with Blue68F100. Use the front fan as the intake fan and the rear fan as an exhaust. The side fan can also be used as an intake fan as well.

 

[tunatuk]

OK, so I switched up the fan configuration a bit.

What I now have is 120mm fan as exhaust in the back. 80mm in front as intake and 80mm on the side as an intake. Idle temps as I type this are right around 62C so it appears to have dropped a few degrees, but still is in the hot zone. I guess I just need to get a new HS/Fan combo.

 

[DaveUK]

You might even want to try removing the side fan and blocking the vent, sometimes a side fan can just disrupt the airflow and make things worse...

Maybe give this a try and see if it makes a difference.

Regardless, make sure that you have cable tied everything towards the sides of the case and away from hotter components to maximise airflow. If possible ensure you are using round IDE cables.

Try and cut down your number of drives... do you really need FOUR?

And yes, you would do well to get a decent aftermarket cooler.

However, in the meantime it is probably worth taking off your existing heatsink/fan combo, cleaning both the contact surface of the cooler and the CPU die with Isopropyl Alcohol and a lint-free cloth, and then reseating your heatsink with a 'grain of rice-sized' blob of Arctic Silver 5 compound.

Leave it for a couple of days to bed in, and then see how your temps are doing.