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  1. #1
    Save the whales. Collect the whole set Grassmaster's Avatar
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    Default Running hotter at idle with new CPU Cooler

    So for various reasons I upgraded my motherboard, CPU cooler and added another hard drive. When it was all said and done I started taking note of the CPU temps and they seem to be higher with the aftermarket cooler than the stock (even with a crack across the middle of the block right where the CPU/Cooler interface is). When I look at the contact point, I can see that the cooler does not mount up perfectly on top of the CPU. There is about 1/8" of the CPU visible on two opposite sides of the cooler. Before you ask, yes I used plenty of Arctic Silver and got great coverage across the contact. Also, I'm confident there is solid contact across the surfaces. I felt like I was going to break the lock down mechanism when I put it on. Here are the specs-

    Cooler Master Hyper TX3

    AMD Phenom II X4

    Idle Temp - 38 degrees C (previously in the low 30's)

    Load Temp - 50 degrees C (under Prime95 Small FFT)

    The 50 degree load temp is a solid 12-15 degrees cooler than the stock cooler. Any ideas why the Cooler Master would run hotter at idle?

    Thanks for any insight.

    Grass

  2. #2
    Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue Makrilli's Avatar
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    What thermal paste are you using? Maybe try some different paste?
    Also you could reseat your cooler and see how much contact area is there between cpu and cooler.

  3. #3
    For Sale: Parachute. Only used once, never opened, small stain Otis's Avatar
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    Default Running hotter at idle with new CPU Cooler

    You should only use a pea size amount of artic silver. If it is to thick it will not let your cooler seat properly.

  4. #4
    Keep honking. I'm reloading Mokona512's Avatar
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    Some thermal paste takes a while to settle before they reach their full efficiency. In some cases, higher idle temperatures will be caused by failure to properly clean all of the old thermal compound off, or using too much thermal paste.

    PS also keep in mind that heat pipes are less effective at lower temperatures, so when the only connection to the cooling fins, is a couple of heat pipes, then idle temperatures will increase slightly (though they should still perform better than the stock cooler, especially if your stock cooler looked like this https://www.flickr.com/photos/razor5...44637/sizes/o/

    Also the hyper tx3, is not too much better than the AMD's foxconn cooler
    http://i.imgur.com/RMu4mk0.jpg

  5. #5
    Can I have your Tots mecra's Avatar
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    You have simply too much area uncovered by the heat sink. If I remember correctly with my Intel, the entire thing was covered by my Corsair cooler. I would reseat the cooler and buy some premium thermal paste. There are a number of ways to apply it though.

  6. #6
    Save the whales. Collect the whole set Grassmaster's Avatar
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    Thanks for all the input. I am positive all the old paste came off (scraped it off with a soft plastic wedge) and I don't know what would be classified as "premium" paste. With the amount of pressure I had to apply to get the cooler to lock down in place, I'm confident there is good contact there as well. The good news is that I run a full 10 degrees cooler when running BF4 which was the real goal. I'm going to keep an eye on things and see if there are any major temp fluctuations. We will see if things change when I swap out the CPU for something not 4 years old.

  7. #7
    Keep honking. I'm reloading Mokona512's Avatar
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    Scraping old paste off is not enough, you have to use a cleaning solution such as rubbing alcohol.

    For best results is is good to have the entire heat spreader covered with a thin layer of thermal compound.

  8. #8
    Boycott shampoo! Demand the REAL poo! ghost_03's Avatar
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    You said you changed the board and heatsink at the same time?

    Aside from the fact that different boards can read temperatures differently, you may also have inadvertently changed something else when changing the board, e.g., the fan speed/temperature curves.

    Tho as others have said, thermal paste can def make that much of a difference as well.

  9. #9
    Boycott shampoo! Demand the REAL poo! Symthic's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by AOD_Mokona512 View Post
    Scraping old paste off is not enough, you have to use a cleaning solution such as rubbing alcohol.

    For best results is is good to have the entire heat spreader covered with a thin layer of thermal compound.
    This. The simplest way to remove all of the thermal paste on the CPU and heatsink would be to get a lint-free cloth (coffee filters work great), and wet it with some isopropyl alcohol (the closer the 99% alcohol the better because that means there's less water in the solution). Then simply rub the coffee filters against both the CPU and heatsink until you are satisfied that all the thermal paste is gone (the way that I do it is that I rub until residue stops appearing on the coffee filter). Also, if you don't have any lint-free cloths, then most paper towels should work fine as they are very close to lint-free and I've personally used a paper towel to clean of thermal paste before and it works fine.

  10. #10
    If I'm not back in 5....wait longer! paxmiles's Avatar
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    Just in case not known, that thermal putty is super poisonous. Mercury and such. Be careful with handling.

  11. #11
    If I'm not back in 5....wait longer! Crazy_Mayes's Avatar
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    Arctic Silver Arcticlean Thermal paste Remover & Surface Purifier + Arctic Silver 5. I never build a machine without it. Has always produced nice cold temps for me.



  12. #12
    Keep honking. I'm reloading Mokona512's Avatar
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    Wanted to also add, if you ever used cheap compound that has become caked on and really annoying to remove, if the CPU heat spreader has no holes, you can get a pringles can lid or other thin container (which will not cause you to waste a lot of alcohol), and add a little bit of alcohol, and then place the CPU in heat spreader side down. it will not damage the heat spreader but after around 10 minutes, the thermal compound should wipe away extremely easily.

    If you do many computer repairs, then if possible see if you can get some broken motherboards for free, if so then get a few of different socket types, and remove the heatsink mount and other nearby components. you will then have a nice locking platform the the CPU where you can pull a CPU from another system, lock it into the broken board, and then have a holder that holds it in place really well while you give the heat spreader a really good cleaning.

  13. #13
    Keep honking. I'm reloading Damnation's Avatar
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    All this is probably right, but honestly? 30 vs 38C doesn't even matter, unless it's also louder than stock.

  14. #14
    Can I have your Tots mecra's Avatar
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    Yeah, at a certain point, cooling doesn't gain you anything aside from bragging rights. (Unless you are OCing)


 

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