e8400 Idle Temps too high? Help!

[kustomizedstang]

Hi, I just built my new rig and am wondering what you guys think about my temps. I am running an Artic Cooling Freezer Pro 7 with Artic Silver 5 thermal paste.

I let the computer "break in" for about 5 days and then started working on overclocking. The Idle temps at both cores at stock speeds was 38°C and right above 54°C at full load. I overclocked the e8400 to 4.0Ghz at a vCore of 1.38v and I cant seem to get the Idle temp below 42°C and Load temp of 58°C.

The CPU fan is running at 2800 Rpms which I wasnt sure if that was average for this cooler or not. I have seen some people getting these new chips as low as 24°C Idle and 46°C Load. Also, I know my case has ample air flow, I have a Coolermaster rc690 with a 120mm front fan, 140mm bottom fan, 2 140 mm top fans, 2 140mm side fans, and a rear 120mm fan......

I'm not an expert in putting thermal paste on a chip and think it might be the thermal paste that is causing the problem. If anyone has any input please help. Thanks ahead of time.

 

[beurling]

Those temps aren't devastatingly high... mine are 36C idle 55C load at 4ghz with the TRUE 120. I wouldn't worry. Some people just got a chip that was cooler than average. Pushing a processor 1ghz is bound to heat things up abit, but unless you're pushing 70+ Celcius, I wouldn't worry.

If you're willing.. you might try to reapply the thermal paste as it seems you were fairly new to it. Most new builders put WAY too much on because they think it will help, when in reality, only a very very small amount is needed (very thin line down the centre).

That fan speed is also very fast considering most case fans are about 1200 to 1600RPM.

Hope that helped.

 

[kustomizedstang]

Im just wanting to get the full potential out of my new build I looked around for information on applying new thermal paste and placed a couple small dots on the chip, then scraped it with a credit card until the entire cpu was covered. Is there a chance scraping it caused not enough thermal paste?

Oh and the fan speed is automatic, I made the cpu_fan in the bios to performance.

Thanks for your help

 

[CompuTronix]

Your temperatures are quite normal. Check out the Core 2 Quad and duo Temperature Guide: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/221745-29-core-quad-temperature-guide

Although I haven't yet completed evaluating 45 nanometer processors for an update to the Guide, the thermal characteristics are similar to the 65 nanometer G0 Stepping processors, as shown in the following:


Section 6: Scale

Scale 2: Duo
E6x50: Tcase Max 72c, G0 Stepping, Tjunction Max 100c, Vcore Default 1.350, TDP 65w, Delta 10c
E6540: Tcase Max 72c, G0 Stepping, Tjunction Max 100c, Vcore Default 1.350, TDP 65w, Delta 10c

-Tcase/Tjunction-
--70--/--80--80-- Hot
--65--/--75--75-- Warm
--60--/--70--70-- Safe
--25--/--35--35-- Cool



Comp

 

[kustomizedstang]

Thanks alot, I think I figured it out, sort of. I have a 42 inch plasma about 4 inches away from the PC. Whenever I turn the tv off, the case temps goes down about 4C. Didnt realize plasmas run that hot.

 

[Dunkel]

They run a lot hotter and take more energy than LCDs.

 

[Serj]

I've been tinkering with my wolfdale and it seems like it is spectacularly easy to get an extra 600-800MHz out of these chips. I also noted, that even at reference clocks, that the temps tended to trickle up to a higher level even at idle. Mind you, I'm using Intel OEM cooling, but I swapped in a Copper-Cored HSF from a D-series while i was doing this. What I have found, is these chips don't need a ton of extra voltage. I actually managed to drop my Full Load Temps by 5-8C through undervoltage. I know stock isnt a TRUE determination of the thermal power, but I managed to get the core down as low as 1.024v before i lost stability. I'm almost willing to bet that depending on your motherboard, a BIOS update and dropping your Vcore voltage will decrease your temps and retain stability.

 

[Moondrinker]

Temps vary from chip to chip, everything under 60 degrees is considered to be safe. Some people even has their running as high as 65+ for a 4ghz overclock.

Your idle temps and temps in load are normal with that kind of cooler. I would strongly recommend that you buy another cooler if you want to overclock your E8400 to 4ghz (i even made a thread asking the very same question, if it's respectable to overclock a E8400 to 4ghz with your cooler - it is not (in some cases maybe)). I must admit though that the Artic cooling freezer pro 7 is the most effective cooler with regards to it's price but you can get much much better with some more cash.

To sum up things, temps are fine, get a new cooler if you want lower temps on your CPU @ 4ghz.

About the Thermal paste, do not overdo it! as little as possible ( i see too often that people juse grease it all up, this is not the intention with thermal paste, it will just have the reverse effect).

Best regards!

 

[hughyhunter]

I have mine o'c to 3.6 and am idle at around 32. If I leave computer on for more than a few hours I find that it eventually gets to 38. I havent touched the voltages even. It never goes above 48 under prime95.

I was wondering: Has anyone messed with GTLVREF lane voltages in bios on 780i (EVGA) mobo? I did and it raised my voltages in cpu-z. Should I keep these settings at zero?

 

[Serj]

hey CompuTronix;

I'm back up to 3.6 on the E8400. My listed values in CPU-Z and Core Temp are as follows:

3.6GHz (400fsb) 1600
Tcase: 54-56C; Tjunc1: 65-66C Tjunc2: 62C (core temp just dropped a little more, as low as 64C)
Vcore: 1.200-1.216v (per CPU-Z 1.44)

Mind you this is cooling from an Intel OEM HSF from a D-series (copper core). I think i can go slightly lower on Voltage, but setting it any lower than 1.264v in the mobo leads to boot/login file problems and won't let me get back into windows. I'm trying like crazy to keep the Vcore as low as possibly stable as i go to keep it in the E6x50 safe range, but I'm thinking that with OEM cooling i may wind up pushing it into the warm range if i go any higher.

 

[CompuTronix]

What is your ambient?

 

[Serj]

my ambient is somewhat inconsistent in this room, as the insulation isn't terribly good, but there's also a space heater on the other side of the room. my best guess would be around 22C.

I just upped my speed some more, and I'm torture testing on Prime95. I had to keep bumping the voltage to get Prime95 stability back, so far so good as follows:

3.737Ghz @ 415fsb (1660)
1.248-1.264v
Tcase = 57-59C (have warning set for 60 and it has yet to sound)
Tjunc1: 70-73C (i know I'm in the warm range now, not much thermal room left)
Tjunc2: 69-72C

I think I'm just going to stop once i reach ~3.8, as i don't want to go over 1.3v, and I'm already running hotter than i am personally comfortable with. Not bad for an OEM sink huh?

Note; I'm doing this on a Gigabyte X38-DQ6 (F7 BIOS)

 

[CompuTronix]

Well done! It looks like 3.8 will be your max without upgrading the cooler.

 

[Serj]

Update:

Thermals and Voltage kept climbing for me with no further increase in speed to get stability @ 3.73. I actually peaked my Tjunc1 at around 77C. It was random which core would generate an error, but i did go over an hour without a thread error with 1.312v. for stock cooling, the voltage input was no longer worth the gains, and since it wasn't 100%, im backing it down to 3.7@ 1.264v. not the best, but it doesnt peak higher than 70C, and pending a few hours, I should know for sure about the stability.

 

[CompuTronix]

So hopefully 3.7 on your ACF7Pro should remain within 70c hottest Core and be Prime95 Small FFT's stabel for at least 8 hours. Have you checked the CPU and cooler for flatness? Many ACF7Pro's have a course surface, are somewhat less than flat, and may benefit significantly from lapping, such as 2c to 6c.

 

[Serj]

ACF7Pro? the intel D-series HSF? (sorry, wasnt aware of the model)

As far as I'm aware it seemed flat, unfortunately i put some small surface scratches in the copper when i removed the pad. I guess once i cement in and verify my settings, i could pop it off, try finding my AS Ceramique, lapping it good, then reseating it. Is there any brackets to which i could fit a 92-120mm fan to it? I bet strapping a noctura w/ 133cfm to it would help.

Right now, I'm 2hours into a Large FFT run doing the 3.7@1.264v. I think this may be where i stay.

 

[banger]

Dont want to butt in on this thread but I'm concerned about my E8400 on load temps using Intel Burn Test 1.6. I'm getting a TJ Temperature of 80 degrees C using real temp and my MSI Dual Core Centre is indicating 90 degrees C. Idle temps are 46 and 50 deg. C respectively - no overclocking with Stock HSF.

These temps too high?

Tim

 

[yetyhunter]

I have 31 idle and 43 max with OCZ vendetta cooler @ 3600

 

[randomizer]

Dont want to butt in on this thread but I'm concerned about my E8400 on load temps using Intel Burn Test 1.6. I'm getting a TJ Temperature of 80 degrees C using real temp and my MSI Dual Core Centre is indicating 90 degrees C. Idle temps are 46 and 50 deg. C respectively - no overclocking with Stock HSF.

These temps too high?

Tim

Intel Burn Test is a prettied version of Linpack which pretty much stresses your CPU beyond any possible real-world load. 80C using the stock cooler isn't unusual. The idle temps are high but unfortunately aren't abnormal since it's quite likely that the sensors are getting "stuck" at a higher than actual temperature. Download Real Temp 2.88 and run the Sensor Test; post a pic of the results. Make sure you have Speedstep and C1E enabled in the BIOS too. Close any programs which might steal CPU time and skew the results (like browser and virus scanner if it is going to run a scan). The test goes for 7-10 mins I think, but it will determine if it is possible for you to read accurate idle temps at all. It will require you to have Prime95 for heating the CPU up as well.

 

[banger]

Difficult to get Prime95 but eventually I found it, temps maxed out at around 65 degrees using the Real Temp Beta but Idle temps are about 45. Be interested to know your opinions. Are my sensors getting stuck?

 

[randomizer]

They're not getting stuck at these temps, it looks like you'll need to be running cooler to see where they stick. So your temps probably aren't being reported abnormally high, you are idling fairly warm. Most sensors get stuck when >62C distance to Tjuntion max (throttling temp); you only reached 51.7. The good news is that your sensors are moving at about the same rate as each other and it is not uncommon for the sensors in 45nm C2Ds to deviate alot from each other as the chip cools.

I'd suggest reseating the cooler to see if you drop your temps.

 

[banger]

Thanks for all the help. I've ordered an after market cooler see if I can get those idle temps down as I'm not entirely happy at the fit of the Intel one after looking at it.

 

[banger]

Been playing with Real Temp 2.88 and I notice my idle temps are about 5 degrees higher, is this because of the new 100 degree TJ max?

 

[randomizer]

Yes, it got changed to 100C. All of your temps will be reported 5C higher. 100C is what Intel tells us TjMax is for the E8x00 chips, but technically it is different for every individual core due to calibrations accounting for inaccuracies. It will be greater than or equal to 100C in any case.

 

[banger]

Just for balance I fitted my Arctic Cooler Freezer 7 Pro today and above is the sensor test. Temperatures are down 15 degrees with idle about 35-40 degrees and full load a max of 50 degrees. I'm pleased with the cooler. Comments?