Worrying temperatures with Core i7-920

Discussion in 'Processors and motherboards Intel' started by Darren Hodgson, Jan 1, 2009.

  1. i7guy

    i7guy New Member

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    I have a new i7 920 build with an Antec 900 case with a lot of air movement. I have the same issue as other posters have detailed. I just opened the case, removed the stock heatsink and applied Dynex thermal compound and closed the case.

    Running prime95 with realtemp monitoring, core temps are between 99 and 105. When prime95 is stopped, core temps drop very quickly. Idle temps are between 42 and 47 for all cores. I last ran prime95 for an hour, which I know isn't very long, but I want to use the computer for it's intended purpose.

    System does not exhibit any strange behavior meaning no random lockups, BSOD, etc.

    I am past the 30 day return policy for microcenter, but am debating whether to ignore this issue or contact Intel and attempt to RMA it. I don't overclock and run all stock settings, if the CPU dies, Intel should replace.
     
  2. Aegis

    Aegis Member Guru

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    Yow! That's way too hot - I've got an old (classic :)) Coolermaster case with 80mm fans (plus the Kama Bay/NF-P12 I've just fitted) so my airflow isn't great, even so my temps are way better than yours - I'd try re-seating the cooler again and then if that doesn't work RMA the i7 ASAP - don't wait for it to burn out!
     
  3. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    @i7guy - The big deal with the CPU hitting 100 C is that throttling kicks in, i.e. it is downclocked to the lowest speed, typically around 1.9 GHz, so you lose performance. I monitored the throttling using Everest and sure enough when the temps hit 100 C with Prime95 my CPU's speed dropped below 2 GHz. You can, of course, disable the throttling in the BIOS but I really wouldn't recommend it as it is the only thing stopping our CPUs from burning out.

    I've filled in an RMA form for my PC and it is going back sometime early next week to be refitted with a new cooler and CPU.
     
  4. i7guy

    i7guy New Member

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    You are correct about the throttling, except the throttle is slight, 134 * 18 for about 2500 mhz. I downloaded real temp 2.90. With this version it shows about 5c lower. Has anybody RMA'd a processor directly to Intel?
     

  5. JagerBombsAway

    JagerBombsAway New Member

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    Well, I installed my new Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme Heatsink. My I7 920 is now oc'd to 3.9 ghz idling @ 38-41 degrees. While running Prime95 my temps are now staying below 70 degrees.

    Looks like the new heatsink and case made a huge difference (of course, the whole new rig made a dent in the wallet).

    Damn our expensive hobby!!!

    Oh well, the framerates are oh so sweet. . .
     
  6. CPC_RedDawn

    CPC_RedDawn Ancient Guru

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    My mate has an i7 920 and he is using stock HSF and is getting around 45-50*C at idle. Then around 75-80*C at full load. He has excellent case cooling (antec 1200).

    He brought a Noctua HSF, and it helped a lot. Dropping idle temps to around 30-35*C at idle and around 50-55*C and full load. He is yet to overclock it though. But he should get around 3.2GHz easily.

    I went with water cooling and I have my 965 at 4.2GHz (had it at 4.5GHz but it was not stable). Im getting around 35-40*C on idle and around 60-65*C full load (12hr Prime95 stable).

    i7's really do need a new type of air cooler design as they do run very hot indeed. But they love water cooling.
     
  7. CPC_RedDawn

    CPC_RedDawn Ancient Guru

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    What case do you have?
     
  8. JagerBombsAway

    JagerBombsAway New Member

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    I have the Antec nine-hundred. My heatsink just barely fits. Actually I had to saw-off the corner of the side intake fan so I could put the side panel on with the fan in place.

    I was seriously considering water cooling but I wasn't ready to take that jump yet. Actually, this is my very first experience with overclocking so I'm taking it one step at a time.

    Reading all of these posts has helped quite a bit. Thanks to all.
     
  9. Aegis

    Aegis Member Guru

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    Glad to see people getting their temps down! I've been investigating my rig a little further and did a bit of cable management yesterday which brought the temps down a further 1 degree (hey - it helps!) - I also noticed that from a cold start, it takes a while (5 mins or so) for the i7 to reach 41/42 from initial temps in the 35-37 degree range which would indicate that venting is an issue in my case (hot air not escaping fast enough) - I'm short on choices 'cause I want cool and quiet so I've ordered another 80mm Noctua fan which has a better airflow rate than the CoolerMaster one that's in the back of my PC.

    Lastly, I'm gonna reapply some AS5 in a vertical stripe (can't believe this info isn't in the AS5 instructions .PDF yet) to see if I can get some minor gains there - it's slowly getting cooler :D

    *EDIT* Well I'm pleased to say that the re-applying of the AS5 and a little bit of final cable tidying brought my temps down even further - I'm now idling at 40/34/38/32 which is a big improvement from when I started trying to cool this sucker down (50's) - the only thing I've got left to do is fit a better exhaust fan when it arrives and hopefully the AS5 will also drop my temps a degree or two when it settles in. :)

    *EDIT* Since my temps are a bit more under control now I decided to run my memory at the 1600Mhz it's designed for (rather than the default 1333) and it's bumped my idles up 3 degrees to 42/37/41/35 which I'm pretty happy with - once the AS5 sets and the new fan's fitted I should be under 40 across all cores - that'll do for me :D
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2009
  10. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    Enabling C-STATE helps lower idle temps as I believe cores are switched on and off as they are needed. You'll be able to trim a few degrees C off those temps easily.
     

  11. i7guy

    i7guy New Member

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    Wanted to post a follow-up. Contacted MicroCenter, they will not RMA 920 as it is past 30 days. Contact Intel via live web-chat, excrutiating experience as it took a long time in the middle of the work day.

    First talked to generalist, explained problem who sent me to tech support. I explained to tech support the 100C readings I was seeing. Tech support wanted to know if cooler was stock, how temperature was measured, what mobo was being used and what power supply, etc. Tech support couldn't provide any guidelines on overheading cpus. After a while I finally said, I wish to RMA this chip, is it possible? They said yes. So I'm send the chip back to Intel. Since Intel does not have a credit card paid swap program, I decided I am going to buy a 965, install the 965 and then send the 920 back to Intel. When I get the return RMAed chip from Intel, I'll sell the unopened 920.

    In the meantime I removed the 920 from the crade once and reinstalled the HSF 4 times, in an attempt to get the temperatures down.

     
  12. Thisisashan

    Thisisashan Member Guru

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    Wow, whats the ambient on a I7 at stock anyways? I have yet to check it out... but i'm guessing its really high.

    Some tips.
    Tim tech thermal compound is the best, second best is mx-2. Both are about 1-2c cooler then Artic silver 5 (in the reviews i read a while back, it depends on ambient, the higher the ambient the better the gain, so maybe more here?). They are both less picky about how they are applied as well, and set quicker.

    Check your processor to see if its flat, check your heatsink to see if its flat. If the heatsink isn't flat, lap it (sand it down). If the processor isn't flat, you can either lap it (this will void warranty) or you can sand the heatsink down to fit its shape (this is a pain).

    no matter how many times you seat your heatsink/processor... if they don't fit plush, it will not help.

    I've seen people achieve as much as a 15 degree difference after lapping their processors. From what i hear, newer processors are flatter, but i haven't heard anything about I7's in this regard.

    Blowing cool air onto warm fins is better then sucking hot air off them, make sure your fans are set this way. If you have exposed fins without fans hitting them, change it.. mod fans onto them if you have to.

    Having air flow on your case is important, both pushing hot air out, and pulling cool air in.

    If all else fails. Watercool! :)

    Hopefully these things aren't overheating monsters... I was actually looking forward to getting one. I will follow this thread to see how things go. If i read anything I will report it... good luck guys.
     
  13. HeavyHemi

    HeavyHemi Guest

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    I gotta tell you that IMHO, that case of yours doesn't look good for the heat you're generating. One 80mm and one 120mm fan isn't squat for moving air.
     
  14. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    I have extra fans fitted though... there's a 120mm side fan (level with the GTX 280 graphics card), one at the front blowing air across my hard drive, one at the back and two at the top of the case venting air off the CPU (ideal since warm air rises). The PSU is at the bottom of the case.

    I know there is absolutely nothing wrong with the cooling in the case because it feels like opening a fridge door when I remove the side panel and the motherboard temp is less than 40 C even after a full day's use and the graphics card tends to be at 35 C when idle. The PSU is 18 C and the HDDs never exceed 30 C even during heavy use like a full defrag. Everything is running cool...

    ... except for the damn CPU. CyberPower reckon the cooler isn't seated properly and I'm inclined to agree with them. My PC has been picked up today by a courier so they'll be able to take a look at it early next week and sort it out for me. Hopefully.
     
  15. Datagg3

    Datagg3 Ancient Guru

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    Idle im around 38-40

    Running Everest now, all cores maxed out, for over 20 minutes now and havent broke 60C. Ranges from 51-55.

    This using Real Temp 2.70

    No OC at this point, as i just got this board in last night. My Previous board, UD5 had a issue where it would not power up at times and lost cmos each shutdown. Ive been messing with it for a few weeks now and has gotten progressively worse...... Codes show a bad board.. So it went back for replacement.

    Anyways, the p6T Deluxe is far superior anyways, so im glad the other board took a dump.....

    EDIT - I just OC system to 3.8 Vcore at 1.3 - Under full load (everest) all cores 100% - 20 minutes in all stable, yet temps are between 69-73c - idle temps 42-44C.

    I'm now using Real Temp 2.90 for results.

    Not sure If I like them temps or not. Running Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 on it. Perhaps i will try to reseat, but im unsure if that will be just going through the motions again.

    What ya think?
     
    Last edited: Jan 18, 2009

  16. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    The Core i7 CPUs run hotter than the Core 2 Quads from what I've read so temps of high 60s to mid 70s C are perfectly fine under high load. The shut off temp is 100 C and, for me, my PC is very unlikely to be stressed for long periods anyway. Even with the high temps I was getting before I sent my PC back everything was running 100% stable. CyberPower say the load temps should be under 75 C*** though, which is why I sent the machine back.

    *** Edited from 100 C! Oops!
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2009
  17. Datagg3

    Datagg3 Ancient Guru

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    Hmmm, then i could probably easily hit 4.0 then without worries.... i shall try that after awhile. BIOS auto set VCORE to 1.42.... which i have successfully backed down to 1.3 and all stable still.....
     
  18. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    Sorry I meant to say that "CyberPower said the load temps should be under 75 C" not 100 C as I incorrectly wrote as 100 C is obviously the danger point and should ideally never be reached!
     
  19. Darren Hodgson

    Darren Hodgson Ancient Guru

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    I got an email from CyberPower yesterday saying that they've identified the cause of my high CPU temps... it was a snapped screw on the Cooler Master V8 cooler which meant it wasn't seating properly on the CPU. My PC was working fine at idle and in low stress situations but overheated during stress tests causing it to downclock.

    They've replaced the motherboard, CPU and cooler and were running a stress test at the time I got the email. Temps were 36 C idle and 72 C max. during high stress with a 3.3 GHz overclock. That sounds much better to me. They left the PC running overnight though to check stability and, hopefully, I should get a phone call today to confirm it is being sent back to me tonight.

    I just hope that the screw didn't snap because of a clumsy courier because otherwise the same thing could happen again... it doesn't help that Core i7 coolers are so big and heavy really, and that the motherboards are mounted vertically...
     
  20. Datagg3

    Datagg3 Ancient Guru

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    Sounds much better...

    On my end, i decided to re-seat my noctua and see what happens.... Positive results thankfully....

    Im O/C to 3.8 and getting 34-36C idle and 68-70C full load. Vcore at 1.3
     
    Last edited: Jan 22, 2009

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