Wanted to share an experience and lesson learned.

[CyanVT]

Recently I rebuilt my computer and was experiencing some frustrations as the machine would reboot/crash itself after a certain period of time.

After swapping many of the devices. I finally discovered that the processor was overheating and shutting down the machine. Apparently the stock HSF with the socket 775 processors (in this case a Core 2 Duo E6400), are difficult to install. I had to REALLY press hard on the pins to finally get the HSF to make the proper contact with the processor. I had to press so hard that the motherboard looked like it might snap and never really heard the 'clicks' that intel stated to listen for in the installation instructions.

Just figured this might save someone a headache (like I experienced over the recent weeks). I would suggest closely monitoring the CPU temps in the bios during the initial setup and I would probably suggest using an aftermarket HSF as you may get a better contact off the bat.

Hope this helps someone

 

[insan3]

Yes, those things can be a pain :x . It's normal for them to be tough to put on.

 

[haywood]

Mine was a pain too. Recently reinstalled with AC5 turned the heatsink 90 degrees and it basically fell into place. A little light pressure, pop, pop, pop, pop.

 

[4745454b]

I find it easiest to install the heatsink outside of the case. I use my pocket knife to help guide the retension "hooks" into place. I first tried brute force to install my heatsink into place with my S939 system, but noticed that as I applied pressure, things weren't lining up correctly. I used my knife to push everything into place.

 

[scorch]

I had the same problem, there was one of those push and twist things that wouldn't catch. Bought one that screwed into standoffs under the mainboard.

 

[caamsa]

I do the same thing.......that is put the heatsink on while the mother board is outside of the case.

 

[Zergler]

This just happened to me too! I built my system with a C2D E6400 Conroe, and in the BIOS, the CPU temp climbed to 67C!!!!!

I switched the fan setting to performance mode (constant) - on reboot, the BIOS reported the CPU temp down to 57, not catastrophic but still very very high.

Has this ever happened to anyone? It could be:

1. Too much thermal grease on the heat sink. I took "thin layer" quite seriously, but I think I put too much on.

2. Not enough case airflow. Too many cables.

3. Something else?????

 

[CyanVT]

Well now that I have my HSF correctly seated on the processor with some Arctic Silver 5, I haven't seen the cpu temp go over 35 degrees C. One way I played with is was to leave my case open and physically press down on the HSF while it was running (and watching the temp). I would immediately see the temperature begin to drop. Worth a shot since we are running the same processor.

 

[NewbieTechGodII]

Same story here, but I installed it correctly the first time, and when I reattached it the second time, one of the plastic tabs bent 90 degrees (which happens to be the snap I heard!). I saw my temps sky-rocket to 70C! Took it apart and that's when I noticed the bent tab, which also caused the HSF to come loose.

BTW, the stock HSF/Thermal Pad combination works pretty damned good. No need to get a different cooler/thermal paste unless you are concerned about looks.

I am happy to see this thread; too bad that 4ryan6 seems to think that only idiots have this kind of trouble.

 

[nevesis]

I wasnt having any temperature issues, but recently I just installed a zalman 9700 but what I noticed was that 1 of the pins had popped out of place, this is a major issue... I would advise anyone using the stock HSF to go aftermarket with one that screws in, 'f the retention clip bs!! lga 775..

 

[mrreality13]

i had a simlar problem wityh an amd x2 s939

 

[Grizely1]

Definately need to install the stock HSF when the motherboard IS NOT INSTALLED IN THE CASE.

 

[harty23690]

definately get an aftermarket cooler.

 

[dean7]

BTW, the stock HSF/Thermal Pad combination works pretty damned good. No need to get a different cooler/thermal paste unless you are concerned about looks.

Or if you care about over clocking or noise...

 

[NewbieTechGodII]

Well, before my MB went tits-up, my E6300 was up to 3.3GHz (settled on 3.15GHz), with the stock HSF, and I could not hear it run even though I had manually set the fan to run at 100% all of the time.

One probably would have to replace the stock stuff if one wanted to get a higher speed, but I have not seen any E6300s OC'd much higher.

 

[NewbieTechGodII]

I wasnt having any temperature issues, but recently I just installed a zalman 9700 but what I noticed was that 1 of the pins had popped out of place, this is a major issue... I would advise anyone using the stock HSF to go aftermarket with one that screws in, 'f the retention clip bs!! lga 775..

Very good point. Though I have had succes with the stock unit, I am thinking about doing something different now that my MB is RMA'd.

Still, I think mine popped out because I didn't set the pins right.

 

[dean7]

Well, before my MB went tits-up, my E6300 was up to 3.3GHz (settled on 3.15GHz), with the stock HSF, and I could not hear it run even though I had manually set the fan to run at 100% all of the time.

One probably would have to replace the stock stuff if one wanted to get a higher speed, but I have not seen any E6300s OC'd much higher.

Well, THG got their 6300 to 3,395 MHz stable. Maybe you have a loud case or something so you can't hear it. The point is: there is a reason for aftermarket solutions. The heatsink/fan on a C2D is nice, but it can't compare to a Tuniq Tower 120. Plus, perhaps the fact that your mobo blew up is indicative of the fact that your system was running a bit hot with stock cooler.

 

[NewbieTechGodII]

The 900 is the case I have. Very nice (once the build is done).

I dunno about the tower. If it's the one I am thinking about, it looked butt-ugly.

What I'd like to get is a water block for my 8800GTS and then just go ahead and WC the CPU/GPU. I am wondering if the GTX version will fit or not, but it's odd that I haven't seen one yet.

 

[cronjob]

It could have been worse. I had an Asus board a couple years ago that was poorly designed. You couldn't fit the heatsink and fan on top of the CPU in the socket without putting big gashes in the transistors lined up about an eight of an inch away. Not to mention, it's always fun to take the risk of jamming that arm clip down with a flathead screw driver and praying that it doesn't slip and bore a wide slit through your entire motherboard. Good times!