Possible cpu problem - PC hanging?

Raider · 16 Mar 2006 at 09:50

OK i've just received my new Asus A8N-E, upgrading from an Asus A8V board.

I removed the stock heatsink from the old board, cleaned off all the old thermal grease, then applied some new AS5 to my cpu (A64 3500+), plugged everything into the new mobo and booted up and re-installed windows.

However I had a few strange hangs initially (during boot up), and when I managed to get 3dMark 05 running it hung around 1 minute in. Temperatures in the bios reported the cpu as being at around 52C after I rebooted.

I'm not too keen on the AS5, so I think I might remove the HS, clean it and reseat it with AS2 which I find much easier to apply properly. If this doesn't solve the problem then I suspect it could be due to the voltage. From memory I had to run my cpu at 1.55V rather than 1.5V in my old board, even at stock voltage. So maybe I need to run it at this higher voltage here as well.. This morning when I cranked up to 1.55V it ran through 3dMark fine.

Any ideas?

Defcon5 · 16 Mar 2006 at 10:15

if its not overclocked then those temps are too high, try reseating the hs

Dutch Guy · 16 Mar 2006 at 11:44

52C in the BIOS is too high.

Make sure all the old stuff is cleaned form the CPU and heatsink and then apply AS as specified in this AS guide

Do not use too much AS as that has a big influence on the heat transfer.

Raider · 16 Mar 2006 at 12:15

Yeah I think it's the AS5. It's really thick stuff and I hate using it. I'm going back to good ol' AS2. May not be as good, but it's a LOT easier to apply!

Will try tonight.

Raider · 16 Mar 2006 at 23:11

Ok AS2 now in place.
Idleing in windows at 42C, with a case temp of 36C.

It crashed again at stock 1.50V, but at 1.525V it seems ok! If you overclock for a few months of a cpu's life at a higher voltage, when you go back to stock will it still require the higher voltage? :confused:

speeduk · 17 Mar 2006 at 00:16

Raider said:
Ok AS2 now in place.
Idleing in windows at 42C, with a case temp of 36C.

It crashed again at stock 1.50V, but at 1.525V it seems ok! If you overclock for a few months of a cpu's life at a higher voltage, when you go back to stock will it still require the higher voltage?

If the cpu has been running hot at that voltage then it will suffer electronic migration (IIR) so the quality of the chip suffers and it needs more voltage.

I suggest running prime95 to determine the absolute stability of the cpu.

Raider · 17 Mar 2006 at 08:20

Prime95 fails at 1.525V and 1.55V atm.. shall I try it higher? 1.575V say?

EDIT: Just realised my memory was at stock voltage, and if I recall correctly I always needed to run it at 2.7V or 2.8V to get it stable! Trying Prime95 again now!

Raider · 17 Mar 2006 at 18:34

Just completed 10 hours of Prime95, no errors.

Putting the DDR voltage upto 2.80V seemed to have helped. I seem to remember now that my Corsair 3200XL Pro has to run at 2.75V anyway.
Cpu is at 1.525V so i'll leave that there.

Peak temperature at absolute load was around 61C. Idling in windows now at around 45C. My case temp is 39C so that explains the slightly high temperatures. My exhaust fan and 2x intake fans are both 7V. Hence i'm going to spoff £45 on 3 silent AcousticFan Dust-Proof 80mm jobbies.