I7-930 Voltage of 1.524

[mrtl321]

I've got an i7-930 on a Dell Studio XPS 9100 which is running core voltage of 1.524 (From CPU Z). To me this seems a little high. Is there a way to somehow adjust this as it's getting warm again.

Current Setup:

PSU - Corsair RM 850
CPU - I7- 930 2.8 ghz (No Overclocking)
Ram - 9 Gb Triple Channel (Stock Dell)
GFX - AMD RX 480 (8 Gb)
CPU Fan- Cooler Master Hyper T4
System Fans - Cooler Master 92 and 120mm
OS- Windows 7 Ultimate 64 Bit

I remember when I first got it that it was warm but thought that after adding the T4 it would keep it cooler.

So in short is there something I can do about the voltage being high? Which then with that adjusted the temps should go down.

Core Temp avg is around 45-52 with 16% cpu usage.

Just putting up all of the info I can think of below. Maybe a little bit much but better too much than not enough.

CPUZ

Temps

Full Layout

 

[1LiquidPC]

I highly suspect a false reading on voltage. 1.524 would degrade the CPU quickly, and would have burned it out years ago. Your temps are high though, especially on idle unless your ambient room temp is higher. What are your temps in gaming like? Years back in my X58 system(still running), I was running my i7 920 OC'd @ 3.8Ghz with around 1.35v. This CPU was sold and still runs fine today though back at stock.

 

[hiyabusared]

I have that exact CPU and the 9100xps. The readings are very false. After several tests the voltage is reading incorrectly. If your using the 9100xps case it has terrible air flow management. So that temp is normal. Also the first gen i7 run hot regardless. I ended up replacing the thermal paste with AS5 and doing a CPU cooler upgrade too. Also replace those junk stock case fans. The case on the front is very is to remove since there's a fan there too. I do have to remove dust frequently from it weekly. I use it for a server.

 

[mrtl321]

Before replacing psu a couple days ago would generally hit high 50s to 60. Once new psu was delivering adequate power again was hitting all the way up to 70c on at lest 1 core.

Before psu switch mid 50's to 65.
New psu 58 - 69/70.

With new cooler and fans in stock location applied last night still hitting in mid 60's.

All of these tests were using coretemp app and running day of defeat source (steam).

If I had readjusted the heat sink by having to take it off would I have to reapply a whole new coating of thermal paste?

Also would totally agree on the case having horrible air management.

 

[hiyabusared]

If you took off the CPU cooler from the CPU then yes you would want to replace the thermal paste. Also if you replaced your PSU and it's now supplying adequate power that will raise temps. In a way if your old PSU wasn't giving enough power it was basically running under clocked. Also did you make sure your CPU cooler isn't getting resistance from your case fan? I know there's a case fan directly beside the CPU if your fight air flow this will also cause higher temps

 

[mrtl321]

I got curious and went ahead and removed some of the thermal paste which I applied last night. Looks like I might have applied a little too much. I did a 10 minute CPU stress test with MSI Kombustor's CPU Burner running at 7 threads for 10 minutes. The temps for now were stable around the 60 - 65 mark for core 0, and high 50's and low 60's everywhere else.

Ambient air 70F or 21.11C

After 5 minutes

After 10 minutes

I would like to say the airflow management of this case is and the voltage must be reading wrong somewhere like previously mentioned.

Since I've got everyone here, are there any further/other tweaks I can do the system since it wont allow OC'ing?

Thank you all for your help with this so far!!

 

[hiyabusared]

http://www.overclock.net/t/538439/guide-to-overclocking-the-core-i7-920-or-930-to-4-0ghz

It's a good guide to OC the 930.

 

[mrtl321]

Thank You All!! This place is an awesome resource.

Just wish I could be like the cool kids and do some OC'ing.

 

[1LiquidPC]

What kinds of options are in the BIOS? Maybe RAM timings could be adjusted a bit if your lucky. If not, its unlikely you can any OCing with your CPU. There are stories of unlocking the BIOS on the 9100 with a modded BIOS, but I'm not sure if it works. May be worth looking into if your willing to risk it.