If You Think Your Temps Are Too High, Please Read This

[Klondikekit]

I have posted this many times and since it seems to be a subject that gets revisited at least 4 times a week I decided to stick it to the top of the forum list.

Don't beat your brains out trying to cool your computer down and forget the temperature of Asus Probe, MBM or any other monitoring program you are using unless...

1. The system crashes and/or shuts down while playing games or using intense software such as video editing, etc.

2. When the above happens, if you open the tower and place a desk fan blowing into the tower the problem stops, IT IS a heat problem and you need to find out if:

*A: The HSF (defective, improperly installed or the fan not connected to the right motherboard fan header)
*B: The video card overheating
*C: The chipset overheating
*D: The memory sticks overheating (very rare, but does happen)
*E: All or a combination of the above.

3. Use the process of elimination by checking the heat sinks and fans on each of the mentioned items. Also check and make sure:

*A: The tower has at least 2 extra fans running in it (1 intake in the front and 1 exhaust fan in the back, not including the PSU fan).

*B: The grills are not blocking airflow. Cut the perforated tower grills out and buy wire grills if you are in a hot climate... this will increase airflow by as much as 50% or more.

*C: The wires from the PSU, devices and IDE cables are sitting all over the inside of the tower covering the motherboard. Use rubber bands to retain them into a spare HDD or CDRom slot in the tower and keep the face of the motherboard open so airflow can reach the surface of it. Also, a cheap, low watt PSU can cause the system to run warm.

4. The system will not boot at all, or boots then shuts down right away OR in the BIOS it reads VERY HIGH such as 70-75+c, use the fan method of testing described in #3 above and if the system becomes bootable and stable then it is a heat issue and you need to check the list of items in #2 & 3.

5. Even if you do not crash or have any indication of a heat issue, if simply opening the tower, without a fan blowing into it, nets a temp drop of 5c or more in the BIOS... you have a temp issue that is probably related to how well your tower allows air to flow OR the tower is simply being kept in a hot location in the room. Revist #2 and 3 above to fix it.

For those of you who think their processor will die in a year or 2 if run @ 65c... please note:

Temperature

Next, let’s look at the system temps in the hardware monitor section of the BIOS. If the CPU is running warm, such as 60c+ in the BIOS without any processes running, this could be an indication of a problem with the HSF (processor heat sink / fan). Now before you go changing anything, the proper temp or safe operating temperature is something that comes with experience and a bit of research. Some newer BIOS’s are calibrated for the XP processor and will display temps 10c higher if an Athlon or Duron is in the system so you need to look into the different possibilities before ripping the HSF off.


This can be a tough one to figure out, even for an experienced person since the BIOS may not be reading the temp correctly however as a rule of thumb, unless I know the BIOS is reading 10c higher by researching in the forums, then I say 63c+ may be a problem (but probably not) and the HSF may need to be properly reinstalled. ALWAYS remove the thermal pad off of a new heat sink with an old credit card and alcohol, so not to scratch it, then apply a VERY thin layer of thermal compound such as from Radio Shack brand on the die of the processor. DO NOT get ANY compound on the processor wafer because some compounds have conductive properties. AS2 or 3 (Artic Silver), which I think is a joke for better thermal conductivity, is conductive and has been known to short a processor out. Use VERY little and make sure none contacts the wafer. You should be able to just barely see the text on the processor die through the compound if it is installed in the correct amount.

BIOS and motherboard thermal probes are not accurate and can be off as much as 7-10c + or – the actual temperature of the processor. Do not drive yourself crazy trying to cool down a processor. If it is within 65c or less, runs stable in 3D intense applications and opening the tower does not cause a significant drop (4-5c or more) in temperature, its fine and enjoy your system. Forget all the hype. You will waste more time worrying about it that it is worth and you will fix any heat problems as you go along.

Look at it like this.. Your processor has a life expectancy of about 10 years, raise the temp 15-20c and that ‘could’ possibly drop that to 5. OK… so do you use a system or processor you used 5 years ago, now? Common, use your head. The issue is ridiculous to even worry about unless it’s running at 65c+ and / or you’re crashing from heat related problems. I have an old Duron 800 in one of my A7V’s that would crash from heat at 55c+, I just fixed the HSF and tower fan problem made sure I kept it 10c less. The BIOS was obviously out of calibration by 10c since thermal shutdown of the Duron starts around 65c. No damage, just fixed the cooling issue and it still runs 24/7 at the same temp today. That was a year and a half ago.

EDIT: Make that 2 years ago

and finally... in case your not aware:

To Resolve Any Questions About The AMD 90-95c Max Temperature Specification

Do not let anyone tell you the processor is fine up to 90c or 95c because AMD specifies that. The specification is an engineering spec for the catastrophic failure of the processor. It was placed in the specifications for engineers and designers to know the POINT OF NO RETURN, NOT THE RUNNING TEMPERATURE.

Personally, I would never run a processor over a “TRUE” 65c for any long period of time. "TRUE 65c MEANS That the temps would be measured using the method AMD describes in their white papers which involves installing a lab calibrated external electronic thermal probe into the base of a heat sink that has been machine shop drilled and prepared to exact specification so the probe sits inside the heat sink base directly over the center of the processor die, and NOT from a hobby-engineered spec motherboard circuit well known for being +/- 10c off in calibration.

In Conclusion…
The newer BIOS thermal shutdown settings start at 70c. AMD and Asus are well aware of the variance in the temp monitoring systems of the hardware. You are not working with Hewlett Packard thermal test equipment designed for NASA labs. In that, the minimum 70c shutdown setting should indicate to you how hot that puppy can actually get before any problems with damage would possibly start to occur. The BIOS setting starts at 70c because most systems are calibrated to display around 55-65c in normal operation with absolutely no life shortening heat factors to the core at all.


If your system is not crashing or malfunctioning and your displaying 65c or below, you have checked the HSF, tower airflow components and simply opening the tower does not cause a 5c+ drop in temp, please... forget the hype and enjoy your system.


Last, but not least...
When the heat removing components of the system are functioning fine it is the ambient temp of the room the system is in that has the most influence over the temperature of the the processor and motherboard. It that...

DO NOT COMPARE YOUR TEMP TO SOMEONE ELSE UNLESS YOU KNOW THE PERSON YOU ARE COMPARING TO IS IN THE SAME CLIMATE AS YOU AND THE TOWER IS KEPT IN THE EXACT SAME TYPE OF ENVIRONMENT AS WELL.

Comparing will drive you crazy and unless you are both in the same room you cannot compare temps over the net... its silly.