e7200 overclock on X38 with Xingmatek HDT-S1283

[NarwhaleAu]

Hi,

I have an e7200 and a Gigabyte X38 board. I run a Xingmatek HDT-S1283 heatsink with the large fan attached (spinning at from 1000 to 1200 RPM according to HWMonitor). My default settings (9.5 x 266) gave me around 2.5GHz.

Using CoreTemp 0.99.1, I was reading as follows:
VID: 1.1625V
Core0: 47 C
Core1: 47 C

HWMonitor was giving similar readings (VCORE: 1.12V and 48 C for both cores)

I overclocked the FSB to 400MHz, dropped the multiplier to 8x, to give me 3.2GHz. I tightened the RAM timings to 4-4-4-12 and leaving the voltage controls to auto, I got the following:

1.392V CPU VCORE
2.13V DDR
58 C at idle for both cores (under the tab 'Intel Core 2 Duo E7200')

The CPU temperature listed under the tab 'Temperatures' is 35 C, with system at 38 C.

I changed the settings to manual and set VCORE at 1.35V, which gives me core temperatures of 54/55 C at idle. I also reduced the DDR voltage to +0.1V (giving me 1.94V according to HWMonitor - my RAM is rated at those timings for 2.0 - 2.1V).

My system seems stable but I am worried that I am running it too hot. The inside temp of our house is set to 78 F (just over 25 C). I have two system fans running and just installed a HD4850 with the fan hack so that it is spinning at 42% with a current temp of 40 C.

The 54/55 C temps are those listed for each core under the 'Intel Core 2 Duo E7200' tab. CPU temp under 'Temperatures' tab is right on 35 C.

We recently moved and when I opened the case the heatsink had come loose (one of the pushpins was out). I took it off and then reattached it - the grey goo I had applied (I think I used Arctic Silver) was still wet (computer had only been assembled a few days before), so I didn't wipe and reapply.


Questions:
- do these temps seem hot to you?
If yes - do you think the 48 C for the stock settings is about right (with the HD4850, two system fans, large case etc)? I hear people quoting temps in the 30s - is that what I should be expecting or are they just quoting from the 'Temperatures' tab?
- should I be speeding up the heatsink fan?
- should I keep backing off the voltage to try and get it lower? If the auto setting at stock is 1.1625, does the auto overclock setting of 1.392V seem way over the top? Is my 1.35V still way too high?

Cheers!

 

[NarwhaleAu]

If this helps, Core Temp 0.99.1 says my VID is: 1.1625 V

Just dropped CPU VCORE to 1.25V, temps dropped to 49 C at idle, hitting mid 50s under load...

 

[Lupiron]

Uhh, the Xiggies do hit 20s and 30s as far as idle temps go.

A huge amount of people have problems with mounting this type of heat sink.

First off, it has push pins, so good luck getting those to work.

Second, the cooler can only be aligned with the middle heat pipe going along this line!!

http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j298/ericeod/sidebysidecomp.jpg

And last, clean both your heat sink, and the processor! Then re apply paste by drawing a tiny line down each of the three heat pipes only.

Assemble and hope the push pins work!

Enjoy your now low 30 idles!

(You may get them after 10 tries with the push pins. I had to remove the push pins and make my own mount before i got my good temps!)

As far as your VID goes, its a mid range one, and shouldn't need all that much to reach 3.2 Ghz. 1.2000 would prolly do it dependent on your mother boards vdrop and droop!

--Lupi

 

[bobbknight]

58c is a bit warm for idle, but that depends on your ambient temp too.
I would recommend that you redo the AC5 and make sure that the sink is properly seated.
I would relax the overclock a bit, lower voltages and recheck everything.
You should be able to get the CPU temps down to a more reasonable 10c over ambient, especially with the Xingmatek HDT-S1283. I would use the screw and nut bracket for the S1283 if I were using it.

 

[iluvgillgill]

reseat the xiggy just in case. because the idle tempo is very higher even for a stock intel cooler.

 

[NarwhaleAu]

Looks like its time to redo the heatsink.

Bobbknight - what is the screw and nut bracket you are talking about?

Thanks for the help guys.

Cheers

 

[NarwhaleAu]

Reset the Xing - took me about 2 hours to get everything done. The top push pin is still playing games.

:|

However, I am almost certain it is in tight and the amount of paste on the sink is minimal (scraped it with a ruler to make sure it was smooth and largely clean over the copper pipes).

Idle temp doesn't seem to have gone down (maybe 1 C) - it may run cooler if I drop the CPU voltage down again and try for something closer to 1.2V.

 

[Lupiron]

Yeah, that sounds good, if you were at a high voltage, or even close.

When I mentioned idles in the low 30s and high 20s, I meant it for higher over clocks with higher voltage than yours! And hell, even on the older chips that draw more power and put out more heat!

For instance, I am currently at 3510 Mhz with a q6600, 1.36 idle, 1.34 loaded. My max temps during prime 95 small ffts are 55c when fan is on high, and 58ish when its on low.

My Idles are 35/35/30/30 on a warm day. (I have the heat on now and its at 36/35/31/31.)

So believe me, it's not the voltage or the over clock you had upon it, as they were both minor when compared with most others.

Don't worry! You are having the same problems as everyone else, including me! Took me at least 10 tries to get it on right! (And about 4 tries each time I remove it, without push pins! Since you are using them, your performance is subject to them working!)

BTW, I took a pair of wire cutters, snipped off my push pins, and just used 4 almost inch long screws with 4 tiny bolts for the back end of the Mobo, to attach said screws, and things worked like a charm!

If you use the push pins, all your work is subject to them working!!

So good luck!

And scraped the paste off with a ruler??? Then you must not have applied it how I mentioned you should. So that wont help.

One thin line down the area of each heat pipe that contacts with the IHS of the processor only! None on the Chip! No touching the paste, a line down the middle of each heat pipe only!

--Lupi

 

[Lupiron]

Like this!

And then make that middle pipe go down this line!

--Lupi

 

[Witt78]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure there is a retention bracket that you can purchase separately for the Xiggy HSF.

It's a plate that goes on the under side of your motherboard. You will need to remove your motherboard from the case to install it, but the upside is you no longer need to worry about push pins popping.

I use a Zalman 9700 LED heatsink. it's not as good as the Xiggy but it came with a retention bracket. There is NO chance of it popping off, in fact... I If I wanted to remove the heatsink without a screwdriver, I'd have to use a hammer!!

- Witt

 

[NarwhaleAu]

The screw idea sounds like a good one - I may try that.

I'm now at 1.2125V, gives me 48 C at idle (still!) and 60 C at load with prime.

 

[NarwhaleAu]

Thanks Lupi - I added the paste in the three lines like that, but then scraped it smooth with a ruler edge to get the excess off (I wiped the chip and base clean before reapplying).

I might look into your screw idea and then when I reattach I will reapply the paste as you mentioned.

I checked the orientation before reattaching and it is aligned so the middle heat pipe runs directly through the center, as your image shows.

Cheers

 

[Lupiron]

Then it more than likely is the push pins.

Honestly, I couldn't get it on correctly at all with them.

Then I cut them off, and all was well!