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Pentium D supposedly running very hot

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  • CPUs
  • Cases
Last response: in CPUs
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May 21, 2009 7:47:10 PM

Lately my case fans have been running all the time, so I downloaded Speedfan to check my temperatures, and it seemed to reveal why the fans are on.

My CPU and GPU temperatures are at 60C regardless of what I'm doing, my computer could idle all day and they'd still be between 59 and 61C. This worried me quite a bit, so I decided to open of the case and see what was up. Upon removing the side and leaving it that way, the CPU & GPU now average 58-59C again regardless of what activity I am doing.

My HDD and the Ambient temperatures are quite low however, using around 45C right where I expect them to be at.

The air going into the case is relatively cool, and the air coming out and still relatively cool, with the case open I felt the air coming through the CPU heatsink and it is very cool, the same with the GPU fan.

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So I'm beginning to think there may be a problem the with sensors, or some BIOS error causing the it to register as being very hot and running the fans.

My other thought is that perhaps the thermal grease on the CPU may have worn out or something causing very little of the CPU heat to transfer to the heatsink. (I have never touched the CPU or removed the heatsink) Although its seems very strange that the CPU and GPU temperatures are always identical.

More about : pentium supposedly running hot

May 21, 2009 10:59:33 PM

Check to see if you have any dust cloggin up the fans, and use a compressed can of air to blow it out if there is. Pentium D's actually run pretty hot, so you need a good cooler for them. Try replacing the thermal compound, how long has it been since it was installed or freshly replaced?
May 21, 2009 11:43:03 PM

You should vacuum the whole computers. The case, CPU, and GPU fans probably have lots of dust around them. If you make a better path for the air to follow, your computer will be quieter and get better airflow. If it hasn't been cleaned since it was built, you should see a huge difference.
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May 22, 2009 1:22:58 AM

I regularly clean my case, so I'm almost certain its not a dust problem.

It's got the factory thermal compound from Dell, like I said I haven't touched the CPU or heatsink at all.

I just think its really weird how the GPU and CPU temps are always identical, whether watching videos, playing games, or any other task thats more CPU or GPU heavy.
May 22, 2009 4:16:20 AM

What GPU do you have? Is it integrated or a dedicated GPU? You could try CoreTemp to measure your temperatures.
May 22, 2009 5:22:09 AM

Looks a big my bad on my part. It appears the CPU reading its giving me is actually another sensor on the GPU (Nvidia 8800GS) which is known to run hot. In fact it seems like the only reading not from the GPU is the HD.

It's strange that it wont read my CPU
!