semi-newbie with overheated 955BE....help me please

Hello to all
Built a new system recently, but I've been plagued with overheating issues. I even had AMD send me a replacement CPU after several tests and no drop down in temp. I replaced the stock fan with a Thermaltake OrbII, and I continue to boot up to 41C and shoot up to 55C after only running Firefox.
My case is a thermaltake lanbox lite, so my room is limited; the PSU sits above the cpu, thus the selection of the Orb (it is funnel shaped). I do not have the luxury of a tall heat sync.

My bios settings:
CPU: 200 x 17, 1.323v
CPU-NB: 200 x 12, 1.374
DRAM: 1:3.33, 1.71v, 8-8-8-24
HT link speed: 2400 (200 x 12).
Cool and quiet: disabled
c1e disabled

Specs:
win7x64
4gb OCZ 1600 ram
CoolerMaster 700w PSU

I am about to write newegg and thermaltake to see if I can exchange this case somehow, but I doubt I will get success as I passed the 30 days. I have moved fans around and closer to the CPU to cool it, but I sit at 57C as I type this in Firefox. I have reapplied the thermal paste to make sure I didnt add too much, and I have a noisy external USB fan sitting outside the case to extract hot air out.

I was stubborn and I wanted a smaller/pretty case. I am trying to determine if my settings are causing the overheating, or my case/fans, but I haven't been able to pinpoint with my limited knowledge. I have looked through forums, and DOlk's guide, but my limited space doesnt allow a bigger heatsync. So perhaps I have a crappy case. Pretty, but crappy perhaps.

Do my settings look acceptable? Or am I trying to go 60mph in second gear? As you can see I didnt OC too much, as 3.2 is the stock speed of this cpu.

Thanks

You're settings are fine.

I think you've come to the correct conclusion, unfortunately.

I see a lot of AMD PII from 940 and 955 running up to 1.475 that don't exhibit this behavior. You've got a very modest overclock (3.4) and that should have all but no noticeable rise in temp on that CPU, IMO.

I have a 955BE at 3.8G at 1.4375 (though the board shows it brushing up toward 1.5 on monitors), which is similar silicon to yours, not exactly the same curves, but while I idle at 40c, I only brush up against 57 after a long running stress, and then it returns to 40c in about 30 seconds.

Now, I'm using a Xigmatek 983s, a good but not top end, tall, finned HSF that got some good reviews.

You'll have to stop the machine if it exceeds 62c for any length of time, and I would probably stop at 60 myself. 57 at high stress is ok but not great.

You may be a candidate for the Corsair H50. It might fit in a tight spot like you've mentioned, and would be better than my Xigmatek, at around, what, $70 or less.

You might like your case a lot more after that.

thank you Jason

I am trying to avoid more returns because each means 15% restocking and shipping. I will take a look at the heat sync you suggest.

Mine only spins at 1700 rpm's which might be too low. What do yours spin at?

As Jason said, The Corsair H50 may be your best option, I'm not sure what the cfm is on your fans, However another option to consider is replacing your fans with some that will move more air, Of course the trade off is it may lead to more noise from your rig. Jab-tech is a pretty good source for fans IMO.

http://www.jab-tech.com/60mm-Fans-c-78.html

My fan is usually at 3000 rpm.

to OCF!


While the CPU and cpuNB speeds are part of the CPU temp the other part is vCore and cpuNB voltage. Your cpuNB is cranked up into the 2400 MHz range and 1.375v is extremely high for any cpuNB voltage. Also, even though you have a very mild overclock CPU-Z shows you running 1.40 vCore. All of that, combined with the mid-range (at best) performance of your heatsink will lead to bad CPU temps.

I suggest you lower your cpuNB back down to 2000 MHz and lower it's voltage down to 1.20v. That by itself will make a big difference in temps. If you have 1.323 vCore set in BIOS but the board is feeding 1.40v then you should lower the BIOS setting down to at least 1.30v if not lower and you should still be able to keep your mild 3.4 GHz overclock with that. Many of these CPUs will run fine with 1.25v at stock or very mild OC's like yours.

Give those settings a shot and let us know how things turned out ...

thanks Quiet Ice for your clear and concise instructions.

I brought NB down to 2000 and left its voltage (CPU-NB) at Auto, as the lowest setting is 1.323v.
I set the CPU voltage at the lowest available voltage, 1.323V, and as you can see from cpuz screen, I am still hitting 1.392v. Upon bootup I was at 47C, but quickly rose to 50C after just opening Firefox.

I have other voltage options in the BIOS.
CPU-VDD
CPU-NB VDD
NB
HT LINK
SB

As you can see, I have NB and CPU_NB voltage options under 2 separate settings.
1) Should i be playing with NB or CPU_NB?
2) SHould I touch any other voltages?

You had mentioned bring the v down to 1.323 and even 1.2. WHich setting would that be?

Thanks a lot

You have a cpuNB, which has a multiplier and a "stock" voltage of 1.20v±. You should set your cpuNB voltage to 1.20v.

You also have a NB (chipset) voltage, which varies depending on the chipset. NB (chipset) voltage should be left on Auto.

If you have the vCore (CPU voltage) set to 1.323 (that's what you said in your first post) then you should set it to 1.30v.

Hope that's a little more clear ...

How were your cpu temps with the stock cooler? Or did it not fit in your case?

quiet ice---thanks for the clarification. As i scroll through the voltage options for cpu-nb, the first "safe one" (according to the bios color codes) is 1.30. If I go below that, they appear as red (unsafe--according to bios). Should I go down to 1.2 anyway even though red?

squirly--love that name. Temps were a tad higher/about the same with stock cooler? I cant say the Orb II made a difference. However, I've had wrong voltage settings from day 1 causing things to heat up. At this point, I am not sure what else to change or add.

EDIT---I forced cpu voltage to 1.217 even though it was red, and it booted and worked. Pheww. CPUZ, still shows vcore at 1.29. So it's obvious that something else causes it to rise. So do I need to take it down even further? Say 1.1?

Are you sure you're not looking at the NB (chipset) voltage? Depending on the chipset (I don't know what your chipset is - no motherboard information) 1.30v could be default voltage for the chipset.

cpuNB should be 1.175-1.25v for safe voltages.


I'd leave the vCore where it is. 1.30-1.35v is standard vCore and undervolting, especially at stock speeds, won't hurt a thing. My 940BE ran stable at 1.15v at stock speeds ...

quiet ice--my mobo is 785gm-e51. I am looking at cpu-nb voltage in bios.

RIght now I have cpu_nb voltage in bios at 1.21, rest are at auto. CPuz shows my core voltage at 1.256.
At bootup it stayed around 47c. I opened foresaken firefox and jumped to 49. DEfinitely cooler than before.

Stock NB (chipset) voltage for that should be 1.30v (I think) - and usually the changes are in 0.05v increments.

I don't know why your BIOS would have the cpuNB voltage so high. 1.175-1.25v is the published "safe" range for Phenom II X4 CPUs. Some people go as high as 1.30v in extreme cases ...

ok, so i will change cpu-nb voltage to 1.17 or something slightly higher, despite it being in red when I choose it in the BIOS. Working fine at the moment set at 1.217.

My temps remain high-ish, so I will add a couple of fans. 51C from just running Firefox. I dont think thats correct.

thanks a lot.

http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/
try this and see if you get different temp readings....
ive seen speed fan report wrong values before....

thanks boucher. Core temp shows 2 or 3 degrees cooler than Smartfan.

Well, I reduced voltage on cpu, and now I bootup to 39-40C. So a little better. I will try to improve air circulation in the case. The Orb II (cpu fan) can only spin up to 1700 rpm's, which seems low. I am thinking about buying a higher rpm fan to place on top of the Orb. I will disconnect the Orb, and connect the faster fan to the mobo.

much like bad garlic bread, I keep coming back. Damn it.

I continue to battle the heating issues. After a cold boot, is it normal to be at 37C right away? No, right? I have attached cpuz shot and schematic pic of my case. I cannot lower the CPU v as it caused BSOD.

Existing fans in case:
Front: 90mm, 1500rpm, 4pin molex
Rear: 60mm X 2, 1800rpm

As you can see, those 11 inches from front to CPU render the front fan useless. Thermaltake used it to cool the HDD as the cage sits in front of it. I removed the cage to allow the air to flow towards the back, but those 11 inches is too far. When I put my hand, I barely feel the breeze. So, at this point the only fan to the cpu is the Blue Ord you see in the pic; but its max rpm is 1700, which is probably not much.

So, what do i do? I added a fan to the left side that had speed control. To get a lot of air flowing it had to be turned up to high and it was unbearably loud, and intolerable. While I want to cool, I also want bearable noise, and I would like to connect it to the sysfan connection so that the mobo controls it. Does a powerful enough fan exist that has a 3 pin connection? I can place it standing on the bottom panel of the case below the front blue arrow in the pic.

Again. 37c at bootup doesnt sound right. Maybe I should downgrade to 32bit Win7? Or 64bit Winxp.

Thanks

I see on line where some people, with your same case have modified the side panel to increase air flow

Those case fans may not be moving enough air. Maybe best to buy a Rosewill case with 3 120 mm fans. Two 60 mm fans and one 90 mm fan are just not enough.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147120

$60 well spent on ventilation and has an option for two more side fans.

You've got to create some type of good airflow through that case. Twin 60's is nowhere near enough for a standard processor and even though there are vents in the side there's still no moving air other than what those 60's are trying to pull through the case. Get one of these and mount it on the left side of the case as close to in-line with the CPU as possible. Also, block off the rest of the vent on that side and also block off the vent on the back panel next to the PSU. That should force all the air from the new fan across the CPU and either out the twin-60's or out the opposite vent. The HDD air should also go out the right-side vent and (from your description of it's airflow) won't interfere with the CPU cross-flow ...