[SOLVED] Ryzen 5 3600 on Stock Cooler - Running Hot?

[ISAIDPEWPEW]

I upgraded from an overclocked AMD FX-6300 to a Ryzen 5 3600 last May and I've been noticing considerably hotter CPU temps compared to my old setup. I've heard that FX processors reported their temps differently (not sure how though) so maybe the comparison is moot.

My FX was cooled by a CoolerMaster Nepton 140XL and that system is still running as my parents home PC. CPU temps at idle are currently about 20-30C and 50-55C under load which seems suspiciously low since the thermal paste has not been changed since installation ~6.5 years ago. I've never had to check the pump or anything.

Now my Ryzen 5 3600 is cooled with the stock cooler. After installation, CPU temp hovered around 50C at idle and in the past couple of months has been creeping up until I saw 95C under load early last month. That scared me so I first tried adding a fan to the case flowing out right above the CPU. No change in temps. Yesterday, I decided to change the thermal paste from the pre-applied stock thermal paste to Arctic MX-4. I got maybe a 3-5C change in idle and barely any change in load temps, so I reapplied the thermal paste thinking I did it wrong and saw no further changes. Then I went into the BIOS (Gigabyte B450M DS3H) and adjusted the CPU fan curve to run at 100% all the time. The stock CPU cooler fan is not very loud at all so that doesn't bother me. Now idle is about 40C and under load it goes up to 88C. This feels too hot to be "normal" even with the stock cooler. I don't want to spend $80-$120 on a new cooler if I can avoid it right now, but it could be a little Christmas gift to myself if it's necessary. Given my luck with my FX CPU temps, I'm inclined to go water cooling to reduce noise and temps, and if the temps are considerably cooler, I could overclock to bring them back up 😉

So the questions: is 88C under load (I've tried minecraft and prime95) acceptable/normal with the stock cooler? Would getting a hefty air cooler or water cooler be worth the cost? Is my CPUs life at stake here? Thank you!!

 

[Furzumz]

Most other people with the stock cooler are reporting similar temperatures; 50-60c idle, 88 to 90c heavy load temps, It's nothing abnormal.

The issue is stock coolers are typically designed to be just "good enough" and not much more for cost cutting reasons. Some CPU's don't even come with coolers.

Those temps won't kill your CPU but it can possibly reduce its lifespan over time. I doubt it would die on you within the next 6 or 7 years but a new cooler would probably be quieter and allow it to last longer

If you're on a budget you can usually pick up the Wraith Prism cooler used for about $20 off Ebay, its the stock cooler that comes with more powerful AMD chips like the ryzen 9 3900x. It's a bit beefier with copper pipes and more heatsink while still maintaining a fairly small size. Also has some RGB if you're into that sort of thing

It may run your processor on the warm side still but should bring your temperatures down.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

The FX6300 max temp is around 60c. 60c on a FX CPU would be bad, however it would be good for a Ryzen CPU which have a max temp around 95c.

95c is not good, that's throttle point for Ryzen. It could cause issues over time.

One thing I have seen is that the stock coolers are more of an issue in restrictive cases. Not a 3600, however I ran a 2600 with stock cooler in a case with very good airflow and the CPU hovered in the mix 60s in AIDA 64, and I was even able to overclock it without temps above 85c. However, many people with a 2600 have higher temps, which leads me to think it could be case airflow related.

You don't need to spend much to get a capable cooler. Something like a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo or the similar (but cheaper) DeepCool Gammaxx 400 would be sufficient.
Deepcool GAMMAXX 400 V2 64.5 CFM CPU Cooler (DP-MCH4-GMX400V2-RD) - PCPartPicker
I ran a Hyper 212 EVO on a Ryzen 5 3600 and it settled around 75c in aida, running much cooler in games. I also got higher boost clocks than one would on a stock cooler.