Everyone who reads stuff in this forum has seen it over and over again. People always post their idle and load temperatures. But, temperatures are all relative. Of course, peak max load temperature is still very important, but my point is that your temperatures all depend on your room temperature.
Lets take this for example. Assume your room temperature, also known as ambient temperature, is 25C or 77F, and your CPU idle temperature is 35C. Also assume your max load temperature is 47C.
So in this instance, your idle temperature is 10C above room temperature (ambient). And, your load temperature is 22C above room temperature.
Now lets say its 68F in your room. 68F = 20C. We are still talking about the same computer with the same configuration, but suddenly your temperatures look much better. Now you have an idle temperature of 30C, and a maximum load of 42C.
So, why do people always post their temperatures when then are so relative? Doesn't it make more sense to say, "Idle temperature is room temperature (in Celcius) + 10C, and maximum load temperature is room temperature + 22C." So, if you do post your temperatures, make them mean something.
No ones house is a constant temperature controlled environment. Temperatures constantly fluctuate up and down, and sometimes significantly. Even the time of day affects the ambient temperatures and therefore your case and CPU temperatures. If you start watching your ambient temperatures compared to your PC temperatures, you can learn alot about what puts stress on your computer (i.e. gaming, video encoding, etc.)
Comparing ambient temperatures to case temperatures is very important. If you notice that your case temperatures are 8C - 10C or more above ambient, then you more than likely have an airflow issue (credit to mtb856.) With proper planning and air flow management (i.e. cable routing, fan placement) your case temperatures should hover just a few degrees C above ambient. Keep in mind that airflow is important with water cooled systems as well. Because waterblocks replace the fans used in air cooling, you can end up stagnant air, and therefore warmer case temperatures, which in turn raises CPU temperatures.
Motherboard Monitor 5 is a good all around PC health monitor, and can be found here: http://mbm.livewiredev.com/. MBM5 can be set to run as a system tray icon, so you can constantly monitor your temperatures.
If have a digital room temperature gauge that can be switched from F to C, it is easy to monitor ambient vs. CPU temperatures. If not, you can convert C to F, or F to C using Google. Just type "77F = ?C" (no quotes) and click search. This also works vice versa.
The formulas for converting between C and F are:
F = 1.8C +3200
C = (F - 32)/1.8
My idle temp is room temp + 12C, peak load is room temp + 28C with rig in sig with no case fans running.
Lets take this for example. Assume your room temperature, also known as ambient temperature, is 25C or 77F, and your CPU idle temperature is 35C. Also assume your max load temperature is 47C.
So in this instance, your idle temperature is 10C above room temperature (ambient). And, your load temperature is 22C above room temperature.
Now lets say its 68F in your room. 68F = 20C. We are still talking about the same computer with the same configuration, but suddenly your temperatures look much better. Now you have an idle temperature of 30C, and a maximum load of 42C.
So, why do people always post their temperatures when then are so relative? Doesn't it make more sense to say, "Idle temperature is room temperature (in Celcius) + 10C, and maximum load temperature is room temperature + 22C." So, if you do post your temperatures, make them mean something.
No ones house is a constant temperature controlled environment. Temperatures constantly fluctuate up and down, and sometimes significantly. Even the time of day affects the ambient temperatures and therefore your case and CPU temperatures. If you start watching your ambient temperatures compared to your PC temperatures, you can learn alot about what puts stress on your computer (i.e. gaming, video encoding, etc.)
Comparing ambient temperatures to case temperatures is very important. If you notice that your case temperatures are 8C - 10C or more above ambient, then you more than likely have an airflow issue (credit to mtb856.) With proper planning and air flow management (i.e. cable routing, fan placement) your case temperatures should hover just a few degrees C above ambient. Keep in mind that airflow is important with water cooled systems as well. Because waterblocks replace the fans used in air cooling, you can end up stagnant air, and therefore warmer case temperatures, which in turn raises CPU temperatures.
Motherboard Monitor 5 is a good all around PC health monitor, and can be found here: http://mbm.livewiredev.com/. MBM5 can be set to run as a system tray icon, so you can constantly monitor your temperatures.
If have a digital room temperature gauge that can be switched from F to C, it is easy to monitor ambient vs. CPU temperatures. If not, you can convert C to F, or F to C using Google. Just type "77F = ?C" (no quotes) and click search. This also works vice versa.
The formulas for converting between C and F are:
F = 1.8C +3200
C = (F - 32)/1.8
My idle temp is room temp + 12C, peak load is room temp + 28C with rig in sig with no case fans running.
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