MCP Getting Hot

[vinootje]

Dear Hardware fans 😛

Lets first start with my specs:
AMD X4 640 Stock Processor
Antec High Current Gamer 400W Powersupply
Xfx Double Dissipation 7770 Graphics card
Asrock n68 vs3 ucc
4GB DDR3 1600mhz
Aerocool Xpredator X1 Mid tower Case


My Problem :
While gameing my systems is skipping frames. Like when i play world of tanks i Press W to accelerate my Screen freezes and 1-2 secs later my tank is somewhere else Like a FPS Drop. it went from 30 to 2 fps than to 30. Also Loading in to game takes a while.

My Guesses :
At Everest my MCP Temperature reaches up to 90 degrees in idle mode. If that isnt the problem Than should i replace my CPU Thermal paste since it has been for 1.5 years i bought it and running avarage 12 hours + a day non stop. Also my graphics card has 1.5 years not replaced the Thermal Paste. but i cant take it apart since that will void the Warranty whice i dont want to void right now with those problems

Thanks in advance

 

[saint19]

Hi and welcome to Tom's forum.

I suggest you apply new TIM to your CPU and if is possible for you test the rig with another GPU or test the GPU in another rig, do it.

 

[Wisecracker]

If your MCP is reaching 90C you likely need to 'finger-test' the chipset sink at system load. If you pull back a smoking nub you should carefully remove the sink and replace the paste.

If heat continues to be an issue you could point a fan at it, or even purchase a small 40mm chipset fan to attach to the sink.

 

[vinootje]

where is the MCP located actually on the motherboard or is it my GPU ? since this is reaching in idle 60-70 degrees. i personally think the GPU is the problem. if i bring it back to the store since i got 4 months more of warranty they will not find the problem. because it games normally but there are moments when my pc skips frames. and i think they will not find those in 2 hours of benchmarking.

But can my CPU be my problem of those laggy frames skipping ? or is it my GPU

 

[Wisecracker]

'MCP' is the nVidia chipset or old-school northbridge chip attacked to the motherboard, and is typically located between the CPU socket and PCIe slot. There is likely a heat sink on top which is held down by push-pins.

If it's been running hot for some time, which would not be uncommon, the paste is likely cooked. Some OEMs were bad to put on too much paste, anyway, or the sink itself would be poorly affixed and a little loose.

 

[vinootje]

Ohkay i will take a look in my case i will check it on a cold system if the pase needs to be replaced. i wouldnt wonder if it has to. but cant the MPC affect pc performance ? like when i right press my desktop and go to catalyst control center it takes like 10-20 sec to open the program also games are skipping frames and while they are skipping frames the sound also skippes like the graphics

BTW do i need normal Thermal paste or do i need any "Special" thermal paste ?

 

[Wisecracker]

Any typical paste is okay.

With an issue like you are describing it certainly sounds like something else is going on --- in the nVidia arch everything runs through the *northbridge* so if it is overheating it could be an issue.

Also -- the MCP includes nVidia's integrated graphics for the motherboard. You could be having a driver conflict. Be sure to disable the on-board graphics in the BIOS and remove any nVidia graphics drivers from your system.

 

[vinootje]

The problem is this problems didnt happend when i had a 32 bit. when i changed to 64 bit the problems slowly occured. on idle the MCP had 88-90 degrees. now i added some thermal paste on it and on a 5 minute run its 59 degrees. im very happy with that but used some old Thermal paste since the thermal paste on the MCP was completely fryed out. the only left behinds was on the sides of the MCP.

ill update it later over 1-2 hours how hot my mcp than is.

i will reboot now and put my onboard graphics off in the BIOS

 

[Wisecracker]

Yowsa ... that's a nice drop for using some old stanky paste. It must have really been baked.

I don't want to skeer yah, but that chipset design is really, really old. MCP68 is 7 or 8 years old, with the actual roots of the design going back even a few more years to MCP51/nForce 430 --- which was hot stuff in 2004/2005. Not a great deal of consideration given to 64-bit drivers back then.

Uninstalling the chipset drivers, and reinstalling the 64-bit varieties might help if the heat-fix did not cure all your ills. Sometimes it takes multiple attempts to make new drivers stick. Windows is great for that