I would really appreciate an advice for possible CPU overheating

[pcmasterrace001]

Hi guys, so somewhere in late 2011 I updated my old Intel configuration with the following components:

* Gigabyte GA-880HM-UD2H
* Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 5670, 1GB, DDR5
* AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition, 3.4GHz, 125W
* Arctic Cooling Freezer 13
* Corsair Enthusiast Series TX650 V2, 650W
* Corsair Vengeance 4GB DDR3 1600 MHz (Dual Channel)
* I kept the case and HDD's from my old configuration

So when I put my configuration together using the stock CPU cooler that came with the Phenom 965 BE I was rather disappointed with both temperatures and loudness. So immediately the next day I went and bought an aftermarket cooler (Arctic Cooling Freezer 13) that came with the pre-applied thermal paste and after installing it PC became rather quiet. The 92mm fan that came with it was spinning at about 1700-2000RPM on idle and maximum of almost 2400RPM on full load (still quiet tho) I had that cooler on ever since, but in the last 6 months or so I've noticed my CPU was getting "hot" ?

This winter with room temp. ~ 14-20*C
* Idle = ~ 37-39*C
* Load (100%) = tops out at 68*C

This summer with room temp. ~ 20-28*C
* Idle = ~ 44 - 46*C
* Full Load (100%) = tops out 74*C

I should point out that I take a good care of my computer. I take it all apart and clean it thoroughly every 4-6 months. I dust out everything, then wipe everything properly, I clean every fin of every fan and in some older configurations I would even lubricate the fans after cleaning them.. but back to the point.. however since I installed that aftermarket cooler I never changed the thermal paste and last night I took apart my HS and found that paste wasn't like ashy or anything but it wasn't "creamy" either. So normally I thoroughly cleaned both CPU and HS with isopropyl alcohol 70% and let it dry for a while. Then I applied a pea size of Cooler Master High Performance thermal paste in the middle and put everything back together. And then everything went nuts, CPU temperature reading in BIOS was 78*C and when windows loaded it got to 84*C so I immediately turned off the PC. I took apart the HS again, cleaned it again and re-applied the thermal paste using the rice grain method. The temperatures were "better", ~74*C in OS and then it dropped to steady ~60*C idle. So I figured I must be doing something wrong here because this isn't possible plus my CPU and HS aren't damaged. So I took apart HS again, cleaned it again, and re-applied the thermal paste again using the pea size method but I've put slightly less then a pea size. I carefully pressed down the cooler on the CPU so the thermal paste can spread evenly and I carefully screwed everything back together. After doing so I'm getting temperatures of ~44*C idle in OS and BIOS and it tops out at 78*C on full load (100%) after running OCCT for 10 minutes. I didn't want to push it further because I don't want to damage my CPU, but it was steady at 78*C.


Additional info:

* The temperature readings were done with latest version of CPUID HW Monitor, OCCT and BIOS and all temperatures were exactly alike except HW Monitor which usually shows 1*C more than the rest on my system.
* I'm running the CPU on default clock of 3.4GHz and default voltage of 1.350V just like it's states in the manual and no OC has been done whatsoever.
* RAM voltage is also default 1.5V as per manual.
* PSU is properly supplying everything with enough power.
* I recently got a new gaming case that is rather spacious. All my cables are neatly tied on the right side of the case behind the MB. The PSU is facing downwards to get the air from the bottom of the case. On the front of the case I have 2x120mm fans for the intake and 1x120mm fan on the back of the case for the exhaust. My overall case temperature dropped anywhere from 6-11*C (HDD, SSD, GPU, NB)
* I double checked if everything is plugged in correctly and if all fans are spinning properly.
* The temperatures are the same when I have the case with the panels on and off so air circulation is definitely not the issue.


So my questions are..

1. It's summer here currently and the room temperature can get up to 28*C, can that be the reason of high idle temperatures?

2. Could it be possible that CPU just worn of during the 4.5 years that I've been using it so it's not able to get lower temperatures compared to when it was new?

3. Can CPU be damaged if it's exposed to constant high temperatures, let's say this CPU has max. allowed operating temperature of 71*C, and if I constantly run it at let's say 80*C will that damage the CPU over time or are CPU's more tougher than that?

4. Is it possible that the thermal paste I'm using is no good? - I can get Arctic Cooling MX-4 thermal paste here and try with that one, but I'm reading that difference in the thermal paste is only +/- 5*C is that true?

5. Is there any other method of applying the thermal paste that I'm not aware of besides the pea size, half-pea size, rice grain size, vertical line method, x method, pressing down the cooler, not pressing down the cooler, getting the thermal paste with credit card, etc. ?

6. I read a couple of dozens threads on this forum about the same CPU and similar problems and I also read that some guys are even running OC up to 4.4GHz and cranking up the voltage on this same CPU with temperatures like 35*C idle and 55*C full load. What am I missing here?


I would really appreciate any thoughts, suggestions and advises you have guys, especially if you experienced anything similar yourself.

Hoping to hear some info from you and thank you in advance.

 

[MeanMachine41]

Hi pcmasterrace001 and nice to see you taking good care of your system.

You have been doing the correct method for applying TIM and less is best as, you only need to fill the tiniest of voids.
I use the Rice size then check see how it has spread. A good TIM like AS5 is best and if you want to be real pedantic you can also lap your CPU thermal surface, (with extreme care) if the grind is too coarse which I have done on occasions.
Your temps are OK and FYI;
Temps at idle and ideal, should be 10-15C above ambient room temp and 60-65C under full load.

Constantly running the CPU at temps around or above 80C will degrade the CPU over time.
The OC that you can achieve is dependent on how high you go with Core voltage and the OC you choose.
The more voltage you apply the more heat produced exponentially and so you then require a better cooling system.

Hope this helps.

 

[pcmasterrace001]

Hi, thank you for you fast reply!

However in the meantime I've been getting temperatures ~50-55*C idle and it topped out at 80*C on full load in OCCT. So I decided to mess some more with the whole HS situation and since I didn't want to re-apply the thermal paste for like 6th time only to get the same or worse results, I opted for releasing some tension of HS mounts.

I don't know if this is wrong way of doing it, but I usually tend to screw everything all the way just in case. (?)

So I unscrewed a bit more on the bottom side of the HS underneath the cooler than I did on the top side of the HS. The idea was that there was a slight sag of the HS therefore maybe HS wasn't fitting properly. So afterwards I turned the PC on and was getting again ~45*C idle and so I turned it off and unscrewed a bit more on the bottom side. Afterwards I turned it on again and now I'm getting ~36-39*C idle and it tops out on 72*C full load.

I know that's still very much on the hot side from experiences I've read here on the forum, but basically it's the middle of the summer now and I'm getting the same temperatures as I previously did only in the winter.

Also, I won't be doing any OC because it runs just great both in video editing and some not-so-recent games. I'm aware that I could push this processor much more but I'll consider it only with a new cooler like Cooler Master Hyper 212 X. Although, there's a greater chance of me going back to Intel in a year or so mostly because their significantly lower TDP.

Unfortunately, I didn't manage to try out the Arctic Cooling MX-4, but if Cooler Master High Performance thermal paste managed to get these results then I don't see how much of an improvement would MX-4 be. Looking forward to try it in the future though.

Again thank you for taking time to reply and providing me with your insight!