[SOLVED] 8700k running hot with Dark Rock 4

Jul 15, 2020
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Hey guys,

This is the second PC I've ever built so I'm still fairly new to all of this. My current build is:

CPU: i7 8700k
GPU: Gigabyte Gaming OC 3080
RAM: 16gb Flare-x DDR4 (3200MHz in XMP)
PSU: Corsair RM 850x
Mobo: Asus Maximus X Code

Here is the inside of my PC for those curious



I've had the 8700k for a few years now , but I got lucky getting a 3080 last week and replaced my 1080ti with it and started noticing temps getting really high with the cpu. To be frank, it could have always ran hot in the past because I never really took an interest in temps, etc. until now.

I figured I'd try a simple overclock at 4.7GHz and followed this video here
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbRauc8gpQM

I pretty much followed his settings to a t but had my cores at 4.7 with a voltage of 1.3, but I planned on lowering that until it became unstable.

However, I noticed when playing the Cold War beta that temps would hit around 80-90c after an hour or so of playing and occasionally hit 95c. I then reverted back to the default bios settings just to check temps, and they were still getting around those temperatures when playing. Idle seems good though and is usually around 35-40c. I made sure to re-seat the Dark Rock 4 cooler (there's no sticker so please don't ask that lol), apply new thermal, and dust the fans. Everything still runs hot and I'm not sure what to do. Please go easy since I'm fairly new and any guidance and tips is very much appreciated.

Edit: Another thing I'll point out, it looks like the DR4 fan next to the ram doesn't run as fast as it could and just barely ramps up from idle to under load when gaming. I'm not totally sure how I can check what the rpm for that is or if I can even adjust it.

Edit 2: I tried using SpeedFan to see what the speeds were and this was what it showed when running the Cold War beta. Is that a normal RPM speed for the cpu? Also, why were my back and rear fans that are spinning not showing up here?
 
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Solution
Edit: Meant to add - If I did get a hybrid cooler, would it just go in the front of the case? The top only has one vent space for a single fan (same with the rear)?
The larger models, yes. Your S340 Elite supports 240 and 280mm sizes in the front.
The 120 and 140mm models really aren't worth the investment unless you need a cooler to fit in a SFF, or other tiny chassis.


Here's some of the most popular models in both 240 & 280mm sizes:
Arctic Liquid Freezer 2
Corsair H100i and H115i
NZXT Kraken X53 and X63
Fractal Design Celsius+ S24 and S28

Here's a few honorable mentions:
Alphacool Eisbaer
EK-AIO D-RGB
Lian Li Galahad

Looks like a lot of options, but the Corsair, NZXT, and Fractal models largely use the same pump...

punkncat

Champion
Ambassador
I was going to suggest something about proper cooler mounting and paste according to the title.

With what you have in that case, with what I see is two fans?
Does the front of that case have vent holes? Perhaps a couple more fans there, maybe one more in the top? Perhaps even an AIO?
Not because of the cooler being ineffective, but for the heat that is being dumped through it off that GPU, IMO.

Are your high temps CPU "following" GPU load/temps?
 
Jul 15, 2020
8
0
10
I was going to suggest something about proper cooler mounting and paste according to the title.

With what you have in that case, with what I see is two fans?
Does the front of that case have vent holes? Perhaps a couple more fans there, maybe one more in the top? Perhaps even an AIO?
Not because of the cooler being ineffective, but for the heat that is being dumped through it off that GPU, IMO.

Are your high temps CPU "following" GPU load/temps?

There are no fans at the front of the case, just a dust filter that covers the entire front. There are two 120mm fans that came with the case that I'm currently using (NZXT S340 Elite case). One is placed at the rear and one on top of the case. GPU temps are pretty solid imo, usually fluctuating around 60-70c when playing games like the Cold War beta, Control with RTX stuff on, Death Stranding, etc. The cpu will only be utilized by around 50-60% and will hit from 80-90c when playing.

Edit: My two stock fans are connected via SATA directly to the PSU so I guess that's why I'm not seeing them in HWMonitor and other programs.
 
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Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
I see a lack of airflow - no problem with the cpu and gpu coolers themselves.

Gpu thermals are fine, but the 3080 does pull more power than the old 1080Ti, and the heat from that extra power has to go somewhere - some goes right into the cpu cooler.
Dark Rock 4 is dealing with cooling the cpu and some of the gpu's exhaust. It's turning out to be a little much, and it needs help from you to get more fresh air fed to it to get things back under control.

Chassis is an NZXT S340 Elite huh? Hmm... simply adding fans may not be enough here.
Almost identical to NZXT's H500 series, thermal performance wasn't the focus of these models. You could end up having to replace the DR 4 with a hybrid cooler mounted in the front, or ditch the chassis if you don't want to replace the cooler.



While we don't know what the thermals were with the old 1080Ti - I don't suppose you mind putting it back in and seeing what thermals were like?
 
Jul 15, 2020
8
0
10
I see a lack of airflow - no problem with the cpu and gpu coolers themselves.

Gpu thermals are fine, but the 3080 does pull more power than the old 1080Ti, and the heat from that extra power has to go somewhere - some goes right into the cpu cooler.
Dark Rock 4 is dealing with cooling the cpu and some of the gpu's exhaust. It's turning out to be a little much, and it needs help from you to get more fresh air fed to it to get things back under control.

Chassis is an NZXT S340 Elite huh? Hmm... simply adding fans may not be enough here.
Almost identical to NZXT's H500 series, thermal performance wasn't the focus of these models. You could end up having to replace the DR 4 with a hybrid cooler mounted in the front, or ditch the chassis if you don't want to replace the cooler.



While we don't know what the thermals were with the old 1080Ti - I don't suppose you mind putting it back in and seeing what thermals were like?

Oh man, I think you're right. The Gigabyte 3080 has a special screen cooler on the backplate (right next to the cooler fan) that pushes the warm air up. So it does make sense that warm air is being pushed up out of the card, is going straight into the DR4 fan, and directly to the cpu. Do the temps I'm getting make sense with that? What's the best way to fix this problem you think (without having to get a new case)? As for the 1080ti, I gave that to my brother as a gift since he's just getting into PC gaming and I wanted him to have a strong start!
 

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
The Gigabyte 3080 has a special screen cooler on the backplate (right next to the cooler fan) that pushes the warm air up. So it does make sense that warm air is being pushed up out of the card, is going straight into the DR4 fan, and directly to the cpu.
It wasn't just that, but is a given with all the aftermarket models. Notice the orientation of the heatsink's fins at the sides. They are guides for air after the fans have already pushed it through.
It comes out the sides and does 2 things:
-circles downward back into the cooler.
-circles upward and out of the chassis. That some of it goes through the cpu cooler is just a means to an end; it eventually makes its way out of the chassis.

Another potential issue is the lack of exhausts the S340 has at just 2.
Once you've maxed those out, there's nothing else beyond replacing with stronger fans, and they have their own set of problems, mainly noise.


Do the temps I'm getting make sense with that?
No one can say for sure, because there's nothing to compare to. I'm just using some deductive reasoning.
That's why I mentioned the 1080Ti's thermals earlier. Nothing to be done about it though, so you'll have to work with what you've got.


What's the best way to fix this problem you think (without having to get a new case)?
Hands down, replace the DR 4 with a 240/280mm hybrid cooler. Orient the radiator's fans to pull air through.
 

Boris_yo

Distinguished
Feb 14, 2010
163
4
18,585
I wonder if taking motherboard, CPU, GPU, RAM and PSU out and testing outside of chassis would show different temperature so you would know if it's chassis airflow problem or hardware problem.
 
Jul 15, 2020
8
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10
@Phaaze88 If you think the solution would be a better cooler, I’ll get one (until I get a new case down the road). What’s one you’d recommend for my case?

Edit: Meant to add - If I did get a hybrid cooler, would it just go in the front of the case? The top only has one vent space for a single fan (same with the rear)?
 
Last edited:

Phaaze88

Titan
Ambassador
Edit: Meant to add - If I did get a hybrid cooler, would it just go in the front of the case? The top only has one vent space for a single fan (same with the rear)?
The larger models, yes. Your S340 Elite supports 240 and 280mm sizes in the front.
The 120 and 140mm models really aren't worth the investment unless you need a cooler to fit in a SFF, or other tiny chassis.


Here's some of the most popular models in both 240 & 280mm sizes:
Arctic Liquid Freezer 2
Corsair H100i and H115i
NZXT Kraken X53 and X63
Fractal Design Celsius+ S24 and S28

Here's a few honorable mentions:
Alphacool Eisbaer
EK-AIO D-RGB
Lian Li Galahad

Looks like a lot of options, but the Corsair, NZXT, and Fractal models largely use the same pump designs, so it's more a matter of aesthetics between those.
 
Solution
Oct 20, 2020
4
0
10
Hey guys,

This is the second PC I've ever built so I'm still fairly new to all of this. My current build is:

CPU: i7 8700k
GPU: Gigabyte Gaming OC 3080
RAM: 16gb Flare-x DDR4 (3200MHz in XMP)
PSU: Corsair RM 850x
Mobo: Asus Maximus X Code

Here is the inside of my PC for those curious



I've had the 8700k for a few years now , but I got lucky getting a 3080 last week and replaced my 1080ti with it and started noticing temps getting really high with the cpu. To be frank, it could have always ran hot in the past because I never really took an interest in temps, etc. until now.

I figured I'd try a simple overclock at 4.7GHz and followed this video here
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbRauc8gpQM

I pretty much followed his settings to a t but had my cores at 4.7 with a voltage of 1.3, but I planned on lowering that until it became unstable.

However, I noticed when playing the Cold War beta that temps would hit around 80-90c after an hour or so of playing and occasionally hit 95c. I then reverted back to the default bios settings just to check temps, and they were still getting around those temperatures when playing. Idle seems good though and is usually around 35-40c. I made sure to re-seat the Dark Rock 4 cooler (there's no sticker so please don't ask that lol), apply new thermal, and dust the fans. Everything still runs hot and I'm not sure what to do. Please go easy since I'm fairly new and any guidance and tips is very much appreciated.

Edit: Another thing I'll point out, it looks like the DR4 fan next to the ram doesn't run as fast as it could and just barely ramps up from idle to under load when gaming. I'm not totally sure how I can check what the rpm for that is or if I can even adjust it.

Edit 2: I tried using SpeedFan to see what the speeds were and this was what it showed when running the Cold War beta. Is that a normal RPM speed for the cpu? Also, why were my back and rear fans that are spinning not showing up here?

I think that your cpu is quite powerful with itself and doesn't need to be overclocked. I am not overclocking my cpu ( I core i 7700 ) I have even installed a water cooler and still run rainbow six at 60-67 MAX Celsius.. so try water-cooling your cpu..
 
Jul 15, 2020
8
0
10
I think that your cpu is quite powerful with itself and doesn't need to be overclocked. I am not overclocking my cpu ( I core i 7700 ) I have even installed a water cooler and still run rainbow six at 60-67 MAX Celsius.. so try water-cooling your cpu..

The problem is I’m hitting those high temps without overclocking at the moment. I do want to overclock a little as well since it’s a “k” series cpu and not doing that seems like a waste to me. I’m going ot see if I can borrow a friends 1080 for my case and see if it’s the more wattage the 3080 is pulling (thus giving off way more heat in the case) because then I can tell if it’s the DR4 not being powerful enough. And if that’s the case, I’ll invest in a 220/240mm hybrid cooler for the front of the case that’ll hopefully do a better job keeping the temps further down. I’ll report back here in the next day or so with an update!