R7 1700 high idle temp and stock cooler upgrades

Crimmy · 14 May 2020 at 20:58

Hi everyone!

I'm trying to solve a bit of a problem. quite a bit of the time my R7 1700 (with stock wraith stealth cooler) is idling at 10% usage (if I'm browsing the internet etc) but the cooler fan is often at 1600-2000rpm to keep the CPU at 45-55 degrees. I don't know if I'm just getting fussier, but this seems high, and is the loudest fan in my PC, I think. is this about normal behaviour for the R7 1700, and I'm only just noticing after 3 years?

And I'm thinking of upgrading to a Pure Rock 2 when it comes in stock - this seems like a good upgrade in terms of thermals, acoustics and value. Are there any other coolers I should be looking at? Acoustics are going to be important; when I eventually upgrade in a few years this CPU, cooler and case (Define R4) are going to be repurposed as a homemade NAS, I think, and being able to be always on and run quietly are going to be important factors.

Crimmy · 15 May 2020 at 07:07

Thanks @merlin6r ! Yeah, perhaps it is the paste getting a little old. I have a feeling I'm going to need to repaste an old powercolour r9 390 in another rig too, so maybe I will do that while changing this cpu cooler - how long do you expect stock paste to last?

I will have a look. That arctic freezer seems to be reviewed as a better cooler overall, but I'm very unlikely to be overclocking this, and sound profile will be more important, which apparently edges the Pure rock ahead with ita silent wings 2 fan. But more heatsink = lower fan speeds required, so it might have an edge overall.

Crimmy · 15 May 2020 at 08:13

Thinking about it, by the time I'm looking at a £40 Pure Rock 2, the Scythe Fuma 2 is within shouting distance (£48), which seems to give better and quieter performance overall...

Crimmy · 16 May 2020 at 08:54

merlin6r said:
Hard to say really, I stripped the cooler off my PS4 to re-goop it when it was about 3 years old and the paste was dry and bitty, but god knows what it is that they use. But after a few years of getting hot even the best pastes must deteriorate a little. Besides, don't we feel better after cleaning and re-gooping a cpu/gpu? That alone makes it worth it for me!

I have to admit I haven't re-gooped a GPU before, so I'm a little nervous! But excited to try

Or re-done a CPU come to that...