CPU Temperature guide

[Fall_guy 1]

Hi Guys,Having installed my CPU, Heatsink and ALL the other components required for our beloved FSX, I began to wonder if I'd applied the CPU thermal paste correctly?So is there any guidelines as to what the NORMAL operating temperature should be? I know it will vary because people are using different Heatsinks and Cooling equipment, but is there,......... for example a MAX danger level Temperature or MIN temperature guidline.At the moment my temperature is 46 degrees C (after 1 hour running time)based on a 2600K cpu (NOT overclocked)Does this appear HIGH or LOW?Hope you can understand this waffle......RegardsJohn

[ryanbatc 13,127]

I'd say a little high... but it depends on what cooler you're using... Stock or aftermarket? And with the 1 hour temp is that a stress test program like P95 or OCCT? Or just idle temp? If it's idle it's too high.

[Fall_guy 1]

I'd say a little high... but it depends on what cooler you're using... Stock or aftermarket? And with the 1 hour temp is that a stress test program like P95 or OCCT? Or just idle temp? If it's idle it's too high.

Hi there,Yes that is at Idle, I thought it may have been a bit to high. As regarding the cooler its an after market (Antec 920) but Ive only just installed it so Ill look to see if I can raise the Fan speeds. What TEMP should I be looking for at IDLE?Many ThanksJohn

[ZachLW 37]

Hi there,Yes that is at Idle, I thought it may have been a bit to high. As regarding the cooler its an after market (Antec 920) but Ive only just installed it so Ill look to see if I can raise the Fan speeds. What TEMP should I be looking for at IDLE?Many ThanksJohn

It'd be helpful to know what cooler you're using. If it's stock, that seems about right.Lower the better. With a quality cooler I would be aiming for a stock voltage/clock temperature of no more than 65C under load with Prime95. The load temp is the most important, though some speculate that's going to be the more inaccurate temp. But that's another topic.My personal max is 80C, though I've never seen over 75C under Prime95 load with any voltages. I aim for 75C MAX UNDER LOAD after the overclock. Please excuse all of the italics, I'm trying to iterate those points.

[cmeeks 8]

Check your BIOS and make sure whichever fan header your pump is plugged into is not set to throttle based on CPU temperature. You want it to run at max speed all the time.

[Kosta 122]

Hi there,Yes that is at Idle, I thought it may have been a bit to high. As regarding the cooler its an after market (Antec 920) but Ive only just installed it so Ill look to see if I can raise the Fan speeds. What TEMP should I be looking for at IDLE?Many ThanksJohn

It's way too high on idle. My guess with that cooler it should run about 30-35c on idle. I am running 35c idle with watercooling, but I am overclocked to 5Ghz with idle voltage of around 1.25 (clocked 1.52).Either too much or not enough paste.I don't really know Antec 920, but did you follow the installation guide exactly?I'd also suggest you turn off Q-fan or whatever fan management routines there are in BIOS. Let it spin at max. And also if there is a CPU fan connector, connect it to the corresponding connector on the board.The fan IS turning, right?

[Fall_guy 1]

It's way too high on idle. My guess with that cooler it should run about 30-35c on idle. I am running 35c idle with watercooling, but I am overclocked to 5Ghz with idle voltage of around 1.25 (clocked 1.52).Either too much or not enough paste.I don't really know Antec 920, but did you follow the installation guide exactly?I'd also suggest you turn off Q-fan or whatever fan management routines there are in BIOS. Let it spin at max. And also if there is a CPU fan connector, connect it to the corresponding connector on the board.The fan IS turning, right?

Hi everyone,It appears when Ive checked the BIOS that the CPU fan was only running at 400rpm. Now Ive changed the CPU fan settings to HIGH (2300rmp)................the CPU temperature is at a steady 41C (this is at idle i.e. just booted-up and entered the BIOS) ................ IS THIS TEMP STILL TO HIGH?Before I pull my system to pieces and re-apply the PASTE is their any programs/sofware you can recomend that will enable me to put my system under LOAD to order to obtain a LOAD Temp.Many Thanks for your HelpRegardsJohnP.S. just incase it may HELP you my Motherboard TEMP is 27C, and my CPU voltage is 1.208V (Intel 2600K - the system is NOT overclocked)

[wanabflyer 53]

Before I pull my system to pieces and re-apply the PASTE is their any programs/sofware you can recomend that will enable me to put my system under LOAD to order to obtain a LOAD Temp.

Here you go. This will get you started:http://www.mediafire.com/?n99nq4kn95u6i6aWindows 64-bitWindows 32-bit,I'm a nube at overclocking and this is what was recommended to me. Regards,

[kjjj11223344 48]

Hi everyone,It appears when Ive checked the BIOS that the CPU fan was only running at 400rpm. Now Ive changed the CPU fan settings to HIGH (2300rmp)................the CPU temperature is at a steady 41C (this is at idle i.e. just booted-up and entered the BIOS) ................ IS THIS TEMP STILL TO HIGH?Before I pull my system to pieces and re-apply the PASTE is their any programs/sofware you can recomend that will enable me to put my system under LOAD to order to obtain a LOAD Temp.Many Thanks for your HelpRegardsJohnP.S. just incase it may HELP you my Motherboard TEMP is 27C, and my CPU voltage is 1.208V (Intel 2600K - the system is NOT overclocked)

You can use prime95, intel burn test, linx, folding at home, or occt to stress the CPU. I've only used prime95 and intel burn test, but be careful with intel burn test because it drives my temps much higher than prime.

[Fall_guy 1]

You can use prime95, intel burn test, linx, folding at home, or occt to stress the CPU. I've only used prime95 and intel burn test, but be careful with intel burn test because it drives my temps much higher than prime.

Hi guys,Been running my System at Idle for an hour now! ....and the CPU Temp has remained at a steady 41C (according to the ASUS BIOS CPUtemp indicator), However having consulted the ASUS BIOS Installation disc I decided to install ASUS Thermal Armour Software to see if the TEMPS on that particular Software agree with ASUS BIOS indication...........THEY DONT.The ASUS Thermal Armour sensors are indicating my CPU Temperature at 22C (Huge difference). In conclusion if I split the difference at say 31C is that TEMP more in line as to what you guys are seeing on your systems?RegardsJohn

[kjjj11223344 48]

Hi guys,Been running my System at Idle for an hour now! ....and the CPU Temp has remained at a steady 41C (according to the ASUS BIOS CPUtemp indicator), However having consulted the ASUS BIOS Installation disc I decided to install ASUS Thermal Armour Software to see if the TEMPS on that particular Software agree with ASUS BIOS indication...........THEY DONT.The ASUS Thermal Armour sensors are indicating my CPU Temperature at 22C (Huge difference). In conclusion if I split the difference at say 31C is that TEMP more in line as to what you guys are seeing on your systems?RegardsJohn

As wannabflyer said, download realtemp, coretemp, hwmonitor, or speedfan, and tell us what idle temps you see. If you are at stock, you should see temps in high 20's, low 30's. Also what heatsink are you using. One last thing, the difference in temperature might be that one program measures the CPU temperature and another measures the temperature of the cores. For example, gigabyte boards have a program called easytune 6 which measures CPU temps, while realtemp and the other programs measure core temperatures. Speedfan measures both temps (the CPU temps are lower than the actual core temps by a couple of degrees as you observed).

[Fall_guy 1]

As wannabflyer said, download realtemp, coretemp, hwmonitor, or speedfan, and tell us what idle temps you see. If you are at stock, you should see temps in high 20's, low 30's. Also what heatsink are you using. One last thing, the difference in temperature might be that one program measures the CPU temperature and another measures the temperature of the cores. For example, gigabyte boards have a program called easytune 6 which measures CPU temps, while realtemp and the other programs measure core temperatures. Speedfan measures both temps (the CPU temps are lower than the actual core temps by a couple of degrees as you observed).

Right Then,Installed the programs you recommended and here are the results of a 1 hr TEST:ASUS Thermal Radar: IDLE: 21C FULL LOAD: 34CREALtemp IDLE: 22C FULL LOAD: 37C max - 21C minCOREtemp IDLE: 23C FULL LOAD: Core0 = 37C high - 28C lowCOREtemp IDLE: 23C FULL LOAD: Core1 = 38C high - 30C lowCOREtemp IDLE: 23C FULL LOAD: Core2 = 36C high - 25C lowCOREtemp IDLE: 23C FULL LOAD: Core3 = 35C high - 28C lowThe SPEEDfan test had my SSD's, HHD, and CPU ALL at 128C (?) which I don't quite understand, however given these results would you say these are relatively normal. Oh the REALtemp also indicated that my Thermal Status was ALL OK (if that means anything)Just for reference: my Heatsink is Antec 920 as statedMany thanks for ALL your helpJohn

[Kosta 122]

If Coretemp shows 23c idle, and load temp 38c, then you are ready for some serious overclocking. Those are great temps. What is your ambient temperature? Coretemp usually shows correct temperature, 23C seems VERY low, but it's possible if your ambient temperature is below 23c.BIOS usually doesn't show idle temps.Forget any ASUS programs, they all suck.Programs you want to use: CPU-Z to monitor Vcore, Linx/Prime95 to load it, Coretemp/Realtemp to monitor your temperatures.Now go ahead and start overclocking :Big Grin: Good guide:http://www.overclock.net/intel-general/910467-ultimate-sandy-bridge-oc-guide-p67a.html

[Fall_guy 1]

Hi Word Not Allowed,I'll re-run Coretemp and double check those temps for you (and also see if I can track down a ambient temp aswell).Bye the way the last time I run this load test was for 1 hr, is this long enough to achieve accurate temp results?Thanks for getting back to me.regardsJohn

[Kosta 122]

Hi Word Not Allowed,I'll re-run Coretemp and double check those temps for you (and also see if I can track down a ambient temp aswell).Bye the way the last time I run this load test was for 1 hr, is this long enough to achieve accurate temp results?Thanks for getting back to me.regardsJohn

For ambient temp, just put a thermometer in the room.Depends: if there is water getting warmed up in this system, then it depends how long it needs to warm up the water. But if you see no real temperature change between the CPU temperatur in beginning and the end of 1 hour, then it's safe to say it's gonna be fairly same after 10 hours too.