Ok what else can I do?

[MRD]

I have an asus a7a266 with a pally 2100+. I'm starting to get instability problems yet again on it, which I think is because of temperature.

I have a very good all copper heatsink with a high power fan. I have a vantec tornado blowing cool air from outside the case into the cpu fan which blows the air down onto the heat sink. I have a blow hole custom modded into the top with a vantec tornado exhausting hot air. I have a ys tech 50 cfm fan blowing cool air into the bottom of the case. I'm using premium silver thermal goop.

My cpu is still running at 58-59C with load (folding) and it's starting to crash again. I know it's partly the motherboard, the a7a266 motherboards kind of suck for heat purposes.

I have a sunbeam fan controller. When I lower the fan speed by 50%, there is no difference in temperature. Essentially, I think the air flow is good enough that I'm getting maximum cooling with the ambient temperature being what it is. (The ambient temp is pretty high in here, and is only likely to get worse over the summer).

So, if I can't change the ambient temp, and increasing air flow through the case isn't going to help any more, what else can I do to stabilize this system? It's really starting to crash a lot.

If I can't figure it out I may have to cut down on the folding and cap the cpu at 50% or something.

If I put a thoroughbred b 2600+ 266 in there instead, will it likely run cooler than the pally?

 

[The O.C]

what kind of ambient temperatures are we talking about? just wondering on the difference between ambient,case and cpu.

 

[magick_man]

well i would just say skip the whole air cooling thing and go straight to a mach 2
but really i wouldn't b/c i am a poor white guy
have you tried a duct instead of just having a fan blow across ur hsf
*scratches his head* all out of ideas

~Magick_Man~

 

[MRD]

I'd guess ambient temperatures in this room get up to 80F or higher. which makes it a lot harder to air cool. The mb temp is 32C.

I don't want to spend a ton of cash. It's my 2ndary rig, and it would be cheaper to buy a new motherboard than to upgrade to water cooling I think.

I tend to think a duct won't change much as the air is moving pretty well and the air inside and outside the case are about the same.

 

[sLk]

Sounds like your only option would be to reduce the clock.
I'm in the same situation you are...unable to go any further with my oc due to temps and watercooling is out of the financial picture.

 

[fac_29]

Try running with the sides off, that should give you an idea whether a duct will be beneficial or not.
Have you tried reseating your HSF? When was the last time you reseated it?
Have you cleaned all the dust out of your Heatsink, Fans and system?
Have you tried lapping your Heatsink?
Maybe Arctic Silver 5 could help drop your temps a couple of degrees.

Some Asus boards are known to report temps a little lower than what they are so yours could actually be higher and thats why your crashing at just 58-59°C. No way should it crash like that at those temps... Even when running in the 60's i used to only get the occasional crash.

Your case temps aint that bad imo for full load. Your problem is your Heatsink and working out ways of improving the airflow to that and the efficiency of it. Its entirely possible that you are getting good airflow to your cases temp sensor but not to your actual HSF and so that would throw you... What HSF is it btw? Just because its full copper it doesnt make it good. Maybe a new HS if all else fails?

EDIT: I'm not a 100% on this but i think the Thoroughbreds do run a little cooler than the Palaminos. Correct me if i'm wrong...

 

[MRD]

I've reseated and cleaned the hsf. Running with the case open has no effect on temperatures. I haven't tried lapping it because I don't want to ruin the finish. The bottom of my heat sink looks like a mirror from the manufacturer, nothing I do will make it smoother. I think it's a good heatsink, it took like 11C off my temperatures versus stock when I installed it. AS5 is a possibility, but most research I've seen on thermal goop says it doesn't matter much. I am using a "premium silver compound" by OCZ and I tend to think I won't see a lot of improvement with AS5.

http://www.dansdata.com/goop.htm

Maybe I should get some vegemite.

 

[fac_29]

Well imo that heatsink doesnt sound that good if your getting cpu load temps nearly 30degrees(more from the sounds of it with it crashing so much your sensors probably reporting too low) above your case temps. Theres something definitely wrong there.

Lol. Dont know whether i believe that review Maybe theres probably some truth in it. Its a bit out of date and doesnt compare Arctic Silver5. An interesting thing to think about though. Personally i prefer to go off personal experience and the experiences of others and use reviews just as a guide line.

 

[Jognt]

the fact that your temps dont change when you slow the fans down can mean two things:
1: Your cooling is so good that temps dont change much.
2: Your cooling is so bad, that lowering them wont influence temps because they werent influenced before either.

 

[fac_29]

the fact that your temps dont change when you slow the fans down can mean two things:
1: Your cooling is so good that temps dont change much.
2: Your cooling is so bad, that lowering them wont influence temps because they werent influenced before either.

Agreed. I have the latter problem with my setup and my bottleneck is this cheapo case...If i can get my case temps 10°C above ambient thats good for me. Thats why i've just ordered a new case...
I dont think this is exactly MRD's problem though because he says his case temps are at around his ambient temps anyway. His problem is either a shoddy heatsink, or bad airflow to his HSF but good airflow to his Case temp sensor...30°C above case temps at load is like stock cooling(or worse!).

 

[MRD]

For me it's case 1, as I don't lower temps by taking the case off and blowing a fan into it. It's just high ambient that's getting me.

Actually, that same heatsink performs quite well in several other pc's I have. The problem is more likely the motherboard. AMD has specifically warned customers that it causes chips to overheat and gives heat related instability problems. AliMagik chipset is crap.

I've purchased t-bred b hoping it will run cooler than my pally, and it's a 2600+ anyways, so it will be an upgrade in speed.

 

[sLk]

Take that fan and put it by an open window instead.

 

[fac_29]

Not got the Asus A7A266 have you? Yeah that chipset is said to be bad, unstable and prone to crashing with some heating issues.
My advice, get a new motherboard before CPU. Thats just my opinion...You'll probably still have the same instability problems with that chipset no matter what CPU you use.

 

[MRD]

It is indeed an a7a266. Terrible motherboard.

 

[fac_29]

Ah so you have, i've just read it in your first post. Sorry i must have missed that. I have a friend who had one of those, he had problems too. Upgrade it
He got a 2600 and had problems with that too Maybe it was a bad chip but i was warned against getting a 2600 when i got my system, i know a guy who builds em and he said some have stability issues so he stopped using them. Couldnt tell you much more though, thats all i was told. They may have just been one off bad experiences.

 

[MRD]

Well, too late since I bought it on ebay, I'll let you know how it turns out!

 

[fac_29]

Yeah i'd be interested in that. It may have just been a bad batch and to be honest i've never heard any stories like that here about the 2600+ XP. Plus i dont know whether he was referring to the Barton or the Thoroughbred B. Anyone here confirm this about 2600+ XP's???

I'd still get a new board though