Is my cpu running too hot?

exampasser

I just received my new computer (had to rma my other one due to a bad card reader) that comes with an Phenom II 955. I performed a stress test on it and it averaged 63 c(core temperature in occt). It also idles at 38 c. It was around 78 F in my house when I tested it which may have contributed to the higher temperature under max load.

When I had the computer that I rma'ed (945) it ran at 58 c max load.

alan2308

According to this the max temperature for that chip is 68 c. Most modern procs will throttle down when they reach a certain temperature, but the processor's life may be shortened if you play too close to the edge.

But FWIW, I run Folding@Home and my E6400 and BE2400 run 24/7 with a mild overclock, and my temps are way above those chips rated max. The E6400 is well over 3 years old now with no issues.

exampasser

Thanks for the info. With normal use I usually never exceed 33% cpu usage.

exampasser

Well I re-ran OCCT this morning and my max temp ranged from 58-60C and my idle temp is now 33C.

DevilWAH

Idealy I would say 50-60c is the max you want to run at for extended periods, and idling at 30-40 is good.

However saying that back in the day when I was in the over clocking club, if you read around you hear this thing about running hot shortens the life of the processor. But having said that if you carry on reading you find that running a chip at 80c for extended periods shortens the life from about 10 years down to about 5. So its not like it will fail over night..

If you are worried about the heat I suggest getting a new heat sink. Or even just buying some new thermal past and reseating the one you have. I have seen cases were simple removing the heat sink, cleaning of the paste, replying a "thin" layer and reseating it can knock 10C of.

alan2308

DevilWAH wrote: »

If you are worried about the heat I suggest getting a new heat sink. Or even just buying some new thermal past and reseating the one you have. I have seen cases were simple removing the heat sink, cleaning of the paste, replying a "thin" layer and reseating it can knock 10C of.

Exactly. The paste doesn't last forever, you really should redo it every once in a while. Thats something a lot of people don't think about. And spend the extra couple bucks and get good paste, it can mean knocking a few extra degrees off your processor.

exampasser

Thanks for the replies. It does not sound like it's a big enough issue to need to RMA the machine. It's an OEM machine so I guess that the thermal paste was pre-applied on the heat sink when they install them.

earweed

True. I've done this a few times.

A quick noobie question what are you guys using to monitor your CPU temp?

exampasser

earweed wrote: »

True. I've done this a few times.

A quick noobie question what are you guys using to monitor your CPU temp?

I use hardware monitor by CPUID:
CPUID

earweed

Just dl'd it pretty neat device. Do you guys overclock for gaming or more technical motives?

exampasser

earweed wrote: »

Just dl'd it pretty neat device. Do you guys overclock for gaming or more technical motives?

I don't have mine overclocked as I have not exceeded 33% CPU usage and I can't overclock through the BIOS as it's an OEM machine.

earweed

Same here. I did that sites diagnostic and it tried to say that my computer "needed" their product as I have slow boots and my windows crashes. I have slow boot ups because of the pause where I can pick my Linux OS on other HD (dual boot) and I have a lot of services/programs which run at startup by choice. My present windows has never crashed (knock on wood)
What is something good to run as a stress test to test max temp? The only really taxing things I do on my PC is run VM's and my memory pegs out while CPU never gets above 50% ( I use the vista gadget)

exampasser

earweed wrote: »

Same here. I did that sites diagnostic and it tried to say that my computer "needed" their product as I have slow boots and my windows crashes. I have slow boot ups because of the pause where I can pick my Linux OS on other HD (dual boot) and I have a lot of services/programs which run at startup by choice. My present windows has never crashed (knock on wood)
What is something good to run as a stress test to test max temp? The only really taxing things I do on my PC is run VM's and my memory pegs out while CPU never gets above 50% ( I use the vista gadget)

I've used OCCT to perform a stress test.

Download - OCCT Website english

Reseven

I've always used prime95 for stress testing. I use Everest for temp monitoring. Actually Everest has it's own stress test and it's very detailed but I'm so used to using prime95.
I have a Q9550 stock 2.83ghz - OC'd to 3.41. Idle low 30s between the cores, low-mid 50s under load. Using Arctic Silver 5 and a ZEROtherm BTF90 heatsink.

earweed

Mine did pretty good for an old PC. All I've ever had to do to it is replace a HD and the CD/DVD player once and perform the occasional dusting/cleaning. Averaged 53C under load. It's just a HP Pavillion with a Pentium D all original OEM.

mrmcmint

Hmmm don't get it, it says each core is approx 31° but at the top it says 49°?

exampasser

mrmcmint wrote: »

Hmmm don't get it, it says each core is approx 31° but at the top it says 49°?

That does look odd.

EDIT: I just ran the tool again and for me I don't get an overall CPU temp just the temperature of each core.

Devilsbane

My old laptop could get to 90c while gaming and not using a chill pad. That was in part due to the heatsink having dust and dog hair in it.

Like others have said, consider cleaning the heatsink and reapplying thermal paste. (Even if it is brand new, some manufactures use crap because it is easier). Always consider where the computer is kept. For example, setting a laptop on top of blankets is a bad idea. Placing a computer in that convenient box built into your desk, also a bad idea.