overheating problem

[bonesaw]

ok heres what i got http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...927242&CatId=0 with an 120mm exhaust and a 80mm intake and its idles at 55 or 56 but when i play a newer game like batllefield or fear it beeps because of an overheating core. it also has one of those tunnel things from the side door to the processor for controlled air flow or something. i think i put the thermal gel on right i got all the wire tide back round ide cables the case itself is out in the open. any suggestions would be helpful

[JimF]

I'm using a case fan mounted near the back end of of the graphics card to push air toward the back of the case, this appears to improve both GPU and CPU temps by a few degrees - I also leave blanking plates near the GPU card off.

In the hot old Athlon XP days I used a fan mounted on a zalman bracket to 'help out' the CPU and chipset coolers - even without cutting the side of the case this did improve temps and stability by 4-5 degrees.

[dsio]

You have a 3.0Ghz, is it a Prescott core? If its an early model Prescott, it is going to boil anything you put on it.

If its a Northwood, it should be fine with a new fan.

[Pitch]

He has an 820, there's the problem >.>

[dsio]

Yea, if theres one thing thats hotter than a Prescott, its two Prescotts glued together. As they say, "Thar's yer problim'"

[bonesaw]

its not a prescott its something that starts with an h i believe but how do i cool the thing? could i have put the thermal gel on bad? the heat sink is huge and the fan on it is powerful. i guess i could buy an army of fans to go to work in there.

[robbie]

How much thermal goop did you put on? Did you use Artic Silver?

[bonesaw]

i made a box sort of thing with an x going thu it with the gel. idk know if it was artic silver? is there anything like drivers or bios configurations or something like that to help out?

[danrok]

With most thermal pastes, you need to put a very thin layer over the whole CPU heat spreader.

They way you've done may be causing overheating.

[bonesaw]

i'll check it out. so your saying to spread it like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich

[Favu]

Here are some instructions for Artic Silver, but they apply to all types of thermal paste.

[xmetrix]

get an amd setup , they run cooler than the competition. My dual opterons idle at 22c and 26c full load bf2 max settings and im using crappy all aluminum coolermaster $14.99 heatsinks and fans spinning at 1500rpm. Also, too much thermal grease is counter productive, make sure you've got the proper amount on.

[bonesaw]

is there anything else to do besides the gel to help?

[JimF]

Googling the processor I can see the problem - the 820 runs hot but can't tolerate too much heat (max case temp 63).

Does the funnel on the side of the case fit over the fan ? - if so you may be stuck with that design, if not I suggest you Google a few reviews for better options.

You could check if the exhaust fan expels hot air and if you get hot air in your face when you open the side panel - this should indicate if you have an airflow problem. If you're going to stay with air cooling then I'm afraid the only answer is fans - more/better/faster. The PSU outlet fan probably isn't helping much as I believe thats a quiet (slow) version.

[bonesaw]

the air flow is going good and my friend just reput the thermal gel on and the temp permantly dropped a few degrees. i am debating the best place to put another fan. i got a roof mount coming up soon on my comp so maybe i'll try that.

[Pitch]

Originally Posted by bonesaw

its not a prescott its something that starts with an h i believe but how do i cool the thing?

The 820, aka Smithfield is no more than two Prescotts glued together.

Cooling it is either going to be very loud or very expensive.

[bonesaw]

whats the average temp on those processors? in idile and with a load? because im getting something like high 40's low 50's

[Pitch]

Load? anything up to 70c.

[bonesaw]

load, like playing a new game (quake4, battlefield2, doom3, ect) with everything on high. 70c is safe?

[Pitch]

It's quite normal for Prescotts to go even higher. It's safetly is slightly subjective though