Volcano VII in - temps hrmph ;-)

[Puti]

Hey all...

First of all I need to say I am no overclocker, I am content with what my system gives me at optimal settings without additional tweaking BUT I sure want the system to run smoothly, and as my XP 1600+ temps were at around 60° with the case closed and 54° open (Celsius, that is) I decided to get myself the Volcano VII to have better temps and a quieter fan.
Now I got the quieter fan (put on the CPU with the thermal patch and no paste whatsoever) and am quite please with it - under full load it is running at around 4400 rpm and IS a bit quieter than my old Coolermaster - but the temps are still at around 54° C - except it is with the case closed, this time.

This still seems rather high compared to other peeps temps around here, so I wonder if my system will be okay or if these temps are "dangerously" high.

- Puti

[Darrenct]

If you want to have your system last several years you will probably want to cool it a little more. I ran my 1 Ghz at a constant 60+ degrees for six months and never had a problem. I've since upgraded, I have no Idea how the thing runs now, sold it to some guy.
How it is, you should be fine. By the time your CPU fails from running at those temps, you will be able to buy a new one for $20.
I decided I wanted better cooling without much noise so I upgraded to an 80mm Heatsink. That would be your other option(Just remember I paid almost $40 just for my HS... Then I had to buy a fan)

[Puti]

Hey there...

Thanks for your reply.
I do not get it, after half an hour of full load running the temp is now at 57°, which is about as high as it has been with the standard coolermaster fan. :(

Both the heatsink as well as the fan are 80mm, there is barely more space to fit anything bigger on the motherboard.

Oh, well... I did not buy the system for a decade-lifetime, I am getting at least a new board and CPU every two years or so - but even if my CPU goes up in smoke in a year, a new CPU won't kill me. ;)

I guess the "problem" here might just be my mini-tower (that thing is tighly packed) and / or (which I kind of hope) my ASUS A7V-266E board, as I have read in several other threads on this board, Asus mobos usually report a higher temperature than there actually is...

- Puti

[Darrenct]

Yah, my POS generic minitower really heats up my system. MY temps go down about 5 or 6 degrees when I take the cover off. If your not going to do any serious Overclocking, I wouldn't bother trying anything else.

[Puti]

Hey there...

Thanks again for your reassurance.

Nope, overclocking is not really worth it, considering all I need the speed for is MP3 encoding and Seti. ;)

I was just worried because everybody here seems to be scared of everything above 50°... still strange the Volcano did not make any big difference in the end.

Anyway, system is running, I can type this message and can read your replies on my screen - what more do I want?! ;)

- Puti

[diehrd]

I suggest you install case fans and go to comp usa and buy there silver performance grease.{Please dont flame me guys LOL I am giving advice he can act on today}And get 2-80mm case fans.Use 1 fan for intake of air and use 1 fan to exhaust air.NEXT

Remove the heat sink and processor and with rubbing alcohol clean the processor and heat sink.Get that thermal pad crap off of there.

Now take the new thermal grease,{Comp grease LMAO}
Put moms plastic wrap on 1 finger and take some grease and rub it on the heat sink in the area that contacts the processor.Lightly remove any excess grease from sink.

Install a paper thin coating of the grease EVENLY over the core of the processor.{The core is the small squar in the center of the processor about as big as a fingernail}Install the processor and fan.Run The system.

Usually anything with silver in it wil perform better tommrow than today so wait a day before ya get discourged.But if you follow these instructions I am sure temps will drop several c .

[Sonny]

The thermal pad that you did not remove & having the thermistor on the fan to regulate fan speed is what I think your problem is.

1. Remove the thermal pad with a stiff plastic card & use themal grease. ASII or AS3 would be your best choices.

2. Remove the thermisor on the fan of the Volcano7 & have the 80mm fan spin at full speed. There are some instructions how to do this on the Overclockers.com review (http://www.overclockers.com/articles479/).

3. Improve on your case airflow. No use having a HSF that is in a hot case.

Let us know how it turns out:beer:

[Puti]

Hey there...

Thanks for your additional supplies, but what Darrenct told me was all I needed to know, if my current temps do not burn my CPU within a week I do not really worry... or care. ;)

The system already is loud as sh*t, so I surely do not want to add any more fans if it is not absolutely necessary and/or improves my system's stability...

Oh... Fan is running at max speed, even with the sensor in place - the inner case temp is hot enough for letting the Volcano run at max...

Anyway, I might take a look at the thermal grease option in the future anyway, for trying something new. :)

- Puti