Hyper 212+. Need advice. Help me?

[trancetunes]

Hi, I got a Cooler Master Hyper 212+ heatsink with IC Diamond 7 thermal compound.

My temps at idle were 50-55 C before installation and thermal compound.

My new temps are 39/40 - 44/45 C after installation and thermal compound.

This means I have gotten a 10 C drop.

Question: Is this normal? I know that is significant-ish, but I was really hoping for more. Is there a chance my compound didn't spread enough? I know when I was putting the heatsink on, I felt like the compound went more towards one direction rather than spreading equally from the center. However, I might just be paranoid!

Anyone/Everyone please give your opinion on if this is a normal amount of temperature drop, or if I was right on expecting more of a drop.

Thanks so much! Hope to hear soon.

 

[obsolete99]

I'd say it sounds normal. What's your CPU? Is it overclocked? Are you using one fan with the 212+ or two in a push/pull configuration? There are other factors as to why people get different amounts of temperature drops. So, if you have more ICD7 and are still unsure of the temps, try re-seating the 212+ again and see what happens.

 

[simon12]

10C at idle would be about normal except your temps are still high for idle, what processor do you have and is it overclocked. Load temps are more important what do they reach when you run Prime 95 or similar?

 

[trancetunes]

i7-920 D0 @ 3.8 GHz
ASRock X58 Extreme Mobo
Antec 300 Case w/ 2 120mm intake at front, 1 120mm rear exhaust, 1 140mm roof exhaust


Voltages:

I am using one fan which came with the Hyper 212+ (120mm Blademaster from Cooler Master). My room temperature is probably about 24-27 C (75-80 F) these days. I tried IntelBurn Test on Maximum setting really quick (that is, 1 pass) and my CPU hit 66-71 C (since there's always a 5 C difference from Core 4 to Core 1).


I look forward to hearing back! Thank you.

 

[needsumhelplol]

I literally just finished installing one of these on a PII x4 955.

I used the tube of coolermaster stuff that comes with the cooler.
used about 80% of what was in there, just went straight on the cooler, didn't bother putting any on my CPU

Somehow managed to lose one of the four bolt/spacer things that go in the cpu side of the mobo..

So all seems well despite the lost metal bit.. i'm sure it will turn up xD

havn't stress tested but it's definitely doing a pretty good job of cooling and is way quieter than the stock cooler which was running at 5000rpm ^^

Stock idle: 38c-41c
212+ idle: 30c-33c
Stock l4d2:55c-60c
212+ l4d2:44c
Stock rar*: 52
212+ rar* :

l4d2 = left 4 dead 2 @ 1280*1024

stock temps are ballpark as i can't remember exactly

*Gave the computer a task in winrar with best compression and recorded HI temp with CoreTemp; this is the only stock temp that isn't ballpark

 

[obsolete99]

trancetunes, those numbers look alright considering your setup and ambient temp. Adding a second fan to the 212+ may drop temps a few more degrees. Do you have Hyper-Threading enabled in your BIOS? Just a thought, but if you don't feel it needed, disabling it will make it run cooler, as well.

 

[COLGeek]

I wouldn't worry too much about the thermal goo, when you tighten down the HSF, using the cross tightening pattern indicated by the instructions, the downward pressure will "equalize" the goo across the CPU. You should be fine.

How do you have your PC positioned? Is it in some sort of enclosure, or does it sit in a more open setting (good clean airflow in front, top, and rear)?

Inside your system, do you have any ribbon cables that may be obstructing clean airflow? If so, re-route/re-position where possible.

What GPU are you using? How are its temps?

Keep in mind that any and all OCing will generate more heat.

 

[trancetunes]

Yea, I know OCing generates more heat, but my voltages are quite a bit lower than stock voltage. Either way I know more speed=more activity=more heat heh..

I don't want to disable hyper-threading because, well, that's one reason I bought this CPU! Windows does take advantage of it, so even though I barely notice it, just knowing it's that much faster is nice.

All the air is free flowing. I have the tower sitting on the top of my desk.

My graphics card is ATI 5770 by Sapphire and runs anywhere from 38 - 60 C depending on what is going on.. However, for some reason it is at 50 C right now even though I'm just browsing (which is the first time I've ever seen it this high when not doing much).

I just really hope the thermal paste is sitting evenly across all my cores and heatsink!

Let me know what you are all thinking! Thanks so much

 

[COLGeek]

Are you sure your Hyper 212+ fan is blowing towards your rear fan? I assume it is, but if it isn't it could be working against your normal fan flow. Just a thought.

 

[trancetunes]

Yea, it is hehehe. I put my hand in front of the fan and felt air coming from the back of my hand, and then i put my hand in between the HS and rear exhaust just to check and I definitely felt more wind.

IDK, something tells me I should just re-do it.. =/ I really feel like I should be seeing more of a temp difference. For instance, right now im at 41-46. With a new HS AND excellent thermal compound shouldn't I be seeing more than 9 degrees difference?

I have a feeling I am going to re-do it tomorrow afternoon and see if it helps. If not, I know it isn't me at least.


However, anyone/ever, please continue to give me any thoughts, experience, opinions, etc if you can!

 

[trancetunes]

Can anyone else give me their input?

If you are seeing this thread for first time, my question is:

My original temp was 50-55 C, now I have 40 - 45 C (sometimes I am seeing 42- 47 C though). This means I got about 10 C drop in temperature. Should I bother taking all the time to take out my motherboard and re-apply thermal compound + re-seat the heatsink? OR Is a 10 C drop all I should expect? I am using a new Hyper 212+ heatsink with IC Diamond 7 thermal compound.

The thing is, I really don't want to take all that time to re-apply + re-seat if I most people don't think I will get a different result.

Your experience/opinion/input is appreciated! Hope to hear back soon!

 

[JofaMang]

You shouldn't need to remove the motherboard to remount the 212+, just the first time you installed it to get the backplate on (someone correct me if I am wrong). Assuming you don't need to remove the motherboard, reseating the 212+ could take as little as 10minutes.

Use the DHT method: fill the gaps between the heatpipes/inserts and remove all excess with a razor blade or old credit card, then put one thin line down each heatpipe for about half of the length, centered. Direct Heatpipe Touch HSFs respond better to this method than the Pea sized drop in the center of the CPU in my experience. Also, ICD7 is a thicker TIM, so you have to be quick about filling the gaps, as it gums up quickly, which can cause it to ball up when trying to skim off the excess. Do not pressure twist when mounting if you value your warranty: ICD7 is an abrasive that when mounted and twisted with two much pressure pretty much sands away the surface of your heatspreader and heatsink.

On my Mobo, I was able to screw in the clamps all the way to their stops. More pressure = better heat transfer, but obviously not so much pressure as to break your hardware.

 

[trancetunes]

To properly screw the X bracket that holds the 212+ down I would need to have access to the back of the mobo, right? If I don't, then I will turn the screws and the nuts on the back of the plate (which is on back of mobo) will just turn together.. So I need to use the small hex socket they provide and hold the nut in place while I unscrew the X bracket thing.. heh

I'm still not sure if I should take all that time though because I don't want to use more thermal compound and take all the time to reseat it if I won't see a difference :X

Does anyone reading this have any experience with hyper 212+ and/or IC Diamond 7? What was your temp. drop?? Once again, mine went from 50-55 C to 40-45 C .. I got about 9-10 C drop. Is that all I should really expect?

 

[COLGeek]

Trancetunes, you may actually be on to your problem. If you mounted the backplate properly, then you should be able to remove and re-attach the HSF without removing the mobo. I have the same HSF on one of my systems so I know you can do safely without removing the mobo.

Second, earlier in the thread, JofaMang indicated that he was able to crank down his mounting screws to the stops. Mine are that way as well. Yours should be, too. If not, you may not have cranked down tight enough, thus creating poor mating of the HSF to the CPU. Poor mating means more heat.

Check it out. BTW, my 212+/Phenom II 965BE config never gets above 40C and I pound the stuff out of it for both gaming and video rendering. Nothing fancy in the config at all except for good airflow and no OC.

Good luck!!!

 

[JofaMang]

Hmm, my 212+ must be different then. The X-bracket on mine seccures to the top of the screws that are affixed to the backplate. The screws/x-bracket posts haven;t moved since I installed it the first time, and have reapplied my TIM at least 4 times since then. There has been a revision released, and I am unfamiliar with the differences between the original and the one I have.

 

[trancetunes]

Hehe, let me clarify...

I have screws that hold the back plate on by going through the motherboard, and being held secure with nuts. On the top of those screws, there are holes to screw the bracket. If I try to unscrew the bracket, the screw+nut that hold the backplate just spin with it! I have to hold the nut in place so that only the bracket screw turns. Get what I mean?

If you look at that pic.. What I am trying to say here is that if I turn the spring loaded screws that are on the bracket, they also end up turning the screw that they go into (the ones that go onto the front of mobo), and the nut on the back of mobo that holds that backplate screw (like i said, the ones that go onto the front of mobo).. That is why I have to get to the back.. So I can hold the nut in place while I turn the spring-loaded screw for the bracket.

Hope that made sense!..I'm starting to think that maybe I should just re-do this :X

 

[trancetunes]

UPDATE: I just took everything off, used rubbing alcohol to clean off the paste, re-seated the back-place, re-seated the heatsink after re-applying paste, and screwed the bracket back on. I double checked to make sure it was totally good to go.

After doing all of this, I got absolutely no difference so far. My temp on realtemp shows up as 40-45 C still (Core 1 is 45 and Core 4 is 40..there is always a 5 C difference). This time I know I didn't do anything wrong. I definitely have the HSF on firmly, and I used the right amount of paste..

I don't really know how people get idle temp's of 20 C or whatever, but it's just not happening for me. Right now my room temperature is about 21-24 C since it's summer. I guess that might be why my temp isn't as low as I want.

Any further experience/opinions/input is appreciated. Thanks everyone!

 

[simon12]

You are never going to get a temp lower than the room temp

 

[trancetunes]

I know..I don't necessarily want a lower temp than my room

I just expected more than I got..

Another update: Bad news. After re-applying/re-seating everything my temperature is 1-2 C higher than it was the first time..UGH I shouldn't have touched it at all... :/

 

[JofaMang]

Sounds to me like you are not tightening the nuts enough to hold the posts in place.

 

[trancetunes]

That makes a little sense, it definitely does, but I am not sure how much tighter I can possible get the nuts + stand-off screws.. I know I can tell you this: The stand-offs that hold the backplate with those nuts, they "line up" or "level out" when they are about to extend beyond the nut's width. Like this..

Get what I mean? Is that tight enough? Or should the screw being going past the level of the nut. Should it stick out a little bit? Hope you get what I mean.. I am going to be trying this one FINAL time tomorrow hehe.. Let me know! Thanks everyone.

 

[needsumhelplol]

Well if you're really out of ideas you could try your hand at lapping the cooler when you next go to reseat it.. get a metal engineering ruler or a razorblade and put it on the cooler base to see if it's flat (put it up to a light source)

If it's not flat, there's a guide here on the forums http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/259902-11-heat-sink-lapping-guide

(you will need some sandpaper and some time)

 

[trancetunes]

Well, I am not sure if I will have time to lap it..I know lapping can help a lot, but it also takes a bit of time for sure!

I take online courses so I need my computer. I really don't want to spend a lot of time on this :X

Anyone else let me know if you have any advice because I am going to try this one last time in 12-15 hours (2pm-5pm EST USA time July 16).

 

[needsumhelplol]

This might sound crazy but.. have you tried it with a different compound... i don't wannah get beat up for tarnishing IC Diamond 7's good name.. but it might be an idea to test it with different compound if the ic7 is all u tried with man

 

[trancetunes]

I would try that if I had a diff compound. All I have is the stock compound that came with cooler... I know without a doubt IC7 is better than what came with it haha

Any other suggestions?