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Reducing CPU temps in preparation for 1st overclock!

jamesgoss

jamesgoss

jamesgoss

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Joined
6 Jan 2009
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425
Hi guys! I'm hoping you can help me out here.

I've got an Intel 6850 Core 2 Duo on a generic case with the stock Intel HSF. It's not overclocked in any way, but using CoreTemp the cores are reading 58 Celcius at idle and 89 Celcius at load, which seems rather high. The ambient temp according to my desk thermometer is 26 Celcius (though I admit it might not be the most sensitive pirce of equipemtn in the world!).

I was wondering what you guys think of these readings and what one/two upgrades could help me out in reducing the temps? I don't want to spend too much money on the highest end products though, say £30 on a new HSF. How much would I need to spend on a new case to substantially affect CPU temps?

I'm keen to attempt to get my CPU to around 3.8GHz so I want to get these temps down :D

Thanks in advance!
 
Thats far too high! even on the stock cooler you shouldn't be hitting those idle temps at full load @ stock. first thing would be to reseat the existing cooler, before you do any damage, loads of guides out there just do a quick search.

As for a replcement cooler, this is always highly recommended, providing it will fit in your case, its quite a bit more than you've suggested but is very good.
 
I've been hearing a lot of good things on the interwebs about the sunbeam, I think it may be the way to go.

Will a new case make a significant difference?

Oh, and I've left the side panel off my pc for about half an hour and the temps have only budged by a degree. Oh dear!
 
jamesgoss said:
I've been hearing a lot of good things on the interwebs about the sunbeam, I think it may be the way to go.

Will a new case make a significant difference?

Oh, and I've left the side panel off my pc for about half an hour and the temps have only budged by a degree. Oh dear!
Click to expand...

Ive still got the case that came with my pc in 2006, ive left it off for a few days and just cant be bothered to put it back on but it hasnt really done anything to temperatures, maybe 1/2 degrees if that.

I was hitting 65 degrees on idle so i cleaned the stock HSF of the tiny amount of thermal paste it had on, cleaned the cpu, replaced with a nice layer of new decent thermal paste, remounted the heatsink and presto, idle at 40-43 degrees, on load it tends to stay below 52. I also whacked my cpu fan on full speed (4000rpm ish) in bios and thats keeping it cool. The noise doesnt bother me because ive got big headphones on while im at the pc either with music or game audio :)

Also check that your heatsink doesnt look like the inside of a hoover bag, dust tends to make temps worse...nearly choked when i took my heatsink out
 
Have read good things about the sunbeam, I'm using a freezer 7 pro atm & it's also quite good.

For a start those temps are high even for a stock cooler, take off the cooler, clean off the gunk, apply some MX-2 (or similar) & make sure the hsf is seated correctly. I'm only guessing but to me it seems like you only have 3 of the 4 pins in....or worse lol.

Taking the side off the case won't matter too much, if the heatsink isn't right the chip will still cook.

GL with the overclock :)
 
Well thanks everyone, looks like the consensus is reseat the hsf which I shall duly attempt. And if that fails then get a new HSF, the sunbeam.

Do you guys bother removing the motherboard from the pc to redo the thermal paste? Are Mx-2 or AS5 the best compunds to use?

Oh, and all the pins are in so it seems to be physcially seated ok!
 
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With the standard intel heatsink theres no need to remove the board, regarding thermal paste, theres not much difference between mx2 or as5 temp wise, perhaps 1-2'c, mx2 though, doesnt have a curing time, unlike as5 which takes a few days to settle in properly.
 
you dont need to take the motherboard out, just the heatsink off and the cpu out of its socket, clean it up nice, i use cotton buds or Q-Tips depending on what half of the world youre from, dipped in isopropyl which removes paste nice. Only takes about 5 minutes to completely evaporate then reapply a nice thin but even layer of paste pop it back in the socket mount the heatsink and off you go
 
I've been watching a couple of tutorials on youtube and they suggest spreading out a thin layer, but the manufacturer's website for mx-2 says to apply a small amount, NOT to spread it, just install the heatsink and rotate it a couple of times to spread tha paste.

Do the two methods make much difference? Because I'd prefer the latter, far less hassle and mess it seems!
 
splatting a blob in the middle of the chip is what some people do but all it does is bulk up under the heatsink and spread unevenly around the chip, maybe not giving complete coverage.

it isnt any hassle and its not messy if you spread it with a cardboard business card or old credit card or something, or even use a thin rubber glove, apply a bit at a time and spread with your finger.

but dont go silly and empty a full 3.5 gram tube of the stuff and expect a thin layer ;)

its really simple, put a small blob on, spread round and add as necessary but try not to make it too thick, when they say less is more, they mean it for paste, but dont put too little on either, metal to metal contact can be just as ineffective as too much paste and certainly wont help temperatures
 
I read a review teh other day saying that MX-2 worked better with a pea sized blob instead of spreading it out. Only buy 1C or something.
 
I know some people swear by arctic silver, but others favour MX-2 because it doesnt have a cure time, itl be good off the bat. AS5 takes time to set in with a few thermal cycles thats all.

Application method is just personal preference, i spread it round from working on xbox 360s and needing a decent layer, so i apply it the same way with PC CPUs thats all ;)

In total it took me about 2 minutes to get it out have it cleaned and refitted but it shouldnt take that much longer if you havent done it before, just make sure you put it back and secure it properly otherwise youl have pressure from the heatsink crushing the cpu unevenly, but to be fair if you havent sat the cpu down properly the socket wont lock anyway so as long as you arent getting the cpu out with a pickaxe you wont have any breakages :)
 
well I'll take your collective word on this one! I'll order myself some mx-2 and get reseating when it arrives. I'll let you know how it goes, especially if it all goes wrong! :D
 
jamesgoss said:
Intel 6850 Core 2 Duo
not overclocked
stock Intel HSF
generic case
58 Celcius at idle and 89 Celcius at load
The ambient temp . . . . . 26 Celcius
Click to expand...
You will get a much better result with a decent Thermally-Advantaged chassis and one of the 3rd party coolers the guys recommended!

I get twitchy if any of my overclocked chips reach 58°C full load let alone at idle (and stock heh!).

Have fun . . . and take some screenies to compare once you get it sorted! :)
 
A third-party cooler will give you lower temps, but the stock cooler is perfectly capable of cooling the 6850 with a moderate OC. That cooler is almost certainly not fitted properly - the temps are so bad that I doubt it's the paste unless it's been applied seriously awfully, and I can't see how that could happen since the stock cooler has paste pre-applied!

Are all four of the pins definitely pushed in until they click home on the other side of the motherboard?

Does the heatsink actually get warm?
 
What kind of case cooling do you have? It doesn't matter how effective your CPU HSF is if the heat it dispels just hangs around in your case.

How many of what sized fans will give us a rough idea of how good it is.

Best,

E-I
 
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