I7 4770k (non overclocked), 86c in P95

[Trae Barlow]

I'm wondering if that's bad, good, normal, for the intel stock cooler. I've not installed an intel cooler for a long time, and I'm anxious that I might have installed the heatsink wrong.

I'm sure I got it snapped on right, I remember being able to slightly lift the motherboard by pulling on each of the 4 pins, but is it possible to line it up and put it in a wrong way? I'm hoping that the thermal-paste didn't get placed off-center (all the temps seem the same except for the middle cores being a tad higher). I haven't done an Intel build since the 300A, I'm more used to fan clips and such (while I can see Intel's method is far superior).

Idle it runs at about 41-42c, going up to 55 in mediocre tasks like flash/java-script web pages.

I'm not running the fan in "turbo" mode, but thinking about it. 85c seems hot, and I do my share of VC++ builds so it will max out often. Still, I'm not planning to overclock unless I get a new cooler and better thermal compound, the only overclocking it does is it's built in turbo feature. It gets up to 3.68ghz with prime95 chugging away, I should add, it is stable.

PS: The airflow in my case is bar-none. I have the side of the case open and a room-fan blowing air into it. There is no way that is the issue. What I'm wondering is, is this fine? I know it's not the 60-65c some people are getting with some aftermarket cooelrs, but as long as it doesn't crash and burn-out or become unstable during normal non-overclocked use i'm fine.

 

[sunder25]

Intel stock coolers are notoriously shoddy, but 86c non-overclocked is a bit too high.
I suggest just getting an aftermarket cooler like Coolermaster Hyper 212 evo.
It is cheap and effective.
Even if the system is stable, keeping temperatures and temperature variation low will greatly increase the lifespan.

 

[Trae Barlow]

I like the evo. If my temps don't get better over the next few days I'm going to get it. What is a good thermal compound? MX4? I'm thinking i'll use the "grain of rice" method, but using two grains of rice. I don't like the line method, I've lost a CPU with it (old arctic silver is conductive enough).

 

[sunder25]

I like the evo. If my temps don't get better over the next few days I'm going to get it. What is a good thermal compound? MX4? I'm thinking i'll use the "grain of rice" method, but using two grains of rice. I don't like the line method, I've lost a CPU with it (old arctic silver is conductive enough).

Not quite sure what thermal paste you should get, just look at some reviews. I've been using an old batch of TX-2 that came with the Sunbeam CCTF i used on my old PC. Works great.
I i usually put a drop of paste then twist the heatsink on the cpu just a bit in order to spread it on there. Make sure you don't put the heatsink on from an angle, since the paste will just flow to the opposite side of the cpu and leave half of it bare.
Good luck!

 

[rds1220]

DO NOT stress test your CPU with the stock cooler. It doesn't matter if it is overclocked or not it will still cause the CPU to overheat. Prime 95 will max out the CPU causing a ton of heat output that the crappy stock cooler can't dissipate. If you want to stress test the CPU (overclocked or not) you will need to get a decent air cooler at the very least. What are your temps at normally? My guess is they are probably fine.

 

[Trae Barlow]

Temps are fine normally, during gaming (UE4), while compiling a large project usually or rendering something in Blender, almost always (well) under 70c, measured by internal core sensors via HWMonitor. I should also add that I was using HWMonitor for my previous measurement, HWMonitor uses the chip's internal sensors for it's measurement. The CPU temp reported by the motherboard (the one the fan uses) is actually pretty good, usually around 60-65c under a "full" (real world) load. I heard the temperature Intel cites for max operation is taken from the sensor underneath the socket, not the sensors inside the individual cores. If that is the case it's operating at about 75c in prime95, which I'm fine with.

I also noticed that the shutoff level for the internal cores is like 130c, while the under-the-socket temperature is the default 105. I guess that makes sense within the scope of information I just mentioned.

Lets say I do get the EVO though, I wonder what type of thermal paste application works well with socket 1150. I was thinking using the "grain of rice" method but with two grains, not quite the "pea size" but a little more than the standard "rice-grain". I guess it depends on the size and position of the CPU die.

I must say I looked up some EVO install methods on youtube, and coming from someone who has been building PCs since the original MMX cpus launched, it does look a little bit intimidating. CPU installs, specifically heat-sinks, have always been the most anxious part of any of my builds, although Intel's latest socket mechanism does seem to make things easier/put me at ease. While the youtube vids on it are great, the fact that I'd have to remove the Intel stock TIM from an almost 400$ CPU with alcohol doesn't provide much comfort. I don't like holding babies for the same reason o.0

I'd rather not do the "operation" if these temps are normal. I mean, if I should be reading the socket-temperature that my motherboard (Asus) software is reporting, those temps seem pretty good. But if Intel cites operating temperature instead by measurement of the internal core-sensors, it seems hot.