GTX260 + Q6600 overheating issues?

[philpem]

Hi guys,
I've just finished putting together my new system, specs are:
Intel Q6600 CPU running at stock (2.4GHz)
ASUS P5N72-T Premium motherboard
4GB RAM (two Corsair Dominator 1066MHz kits)
2x 500GB HDDs (a Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 and a 7200.11)
EVGA GTX260 graphics card (the 896MB thing, standard version, not SC/SSC/FTW or anything like that)
PSU is a 650W Akasa "performance series" thing. Bought because most of the PSU calculator tools said 550-600W, and I figured an extra 50 to 100W wouldn't hurt. Surge load on the PSU is 710W according to the label.

There's a big Zalman copper flower-cooler on the CPU (CNPS9500AT if anyone wants to look it up) mainly because I don't trust stock coolers. Arctic Silver 5 TIM on the heatsink too (because it works). Even gave the heatsink and CPU a wipe down with a cloth dampened with >90% IPA (as the instructions suggest).

The machine itself works fine. Idle CPU core temperatures are around the 40C mark (or about 32-35C with the case panel removed). I have two Noctua 8cm fans, one in the front and one in the back (front pulls in cool air, rear forces out hot air). The PSU and graphics also have their own fans, both blowing air out the back panel.

What I'm seeing are considerably high temperatures during and after gameplay (currently playing TimeShift with all the graphics quality settings at their highest, except texture smoothing which is at 2x at the moment). Cores 1 and 3 are showing 55C, with cores 2 and 4 typically showing 54C (they're usually about 1C lower even at idle). My GPU is showing 61C core and 56 ambient, and the motherboard sensors are showing around 40C (though I don't know if SpeedFan is reading those correctly).

Once the machine starts getting loaded down, the fans kick up and really start getting noisy (which I expected). I've only got Q-Fan enabled for the CPU fan (and tied to CPU temperature); the chassis fans are set to duty cycle control, 100% (i.e. always at full power). I figure as they're Noctuas, they're not exactly going to make much noise.

My question is, are these much higher than they should be? What sort of load temperatures should I be aiming for on a Core2Quad with this kind of graphics power?

Sorry if this seems like a bit of a silly question, my last machine was an AMD 3200+ box with a 128MB AGP Geforce 6600GT, so this is "just a bit" of a step up, not to mention my first Intel box in about eight years... I'd rather like to avoid frying my new toy until the shine has had a chance to wear off a little

The rule I've heard banded about a lot in regards to CPU temperature is "over 50C and you have a problem" -- I'm seeing that when Timeshift is running... From what I can gather, the limit on nVidia GPUs in general is similar, but 80C as opposed to 50C. Are GPUs really built to survive that kind of abuse? That seems awfully high for any computer component.

Last question - am I getting worried about nothing, or should I try and cool this thing down a bit more? (more fans, huge block of dry ice, liquid nitrogen supply... )

Thanks,
Phil.

[teachmech]

I built my quad core last month Q6600 running at 3.2 its at 33, 30, 31, 31 as I'm typing this.
At full load 100% on all cores the temps are 49, 47, 48, 48 running at 1.4 volts.
Now my case has a 36 cm side fan and 12 cm at back and front both blowing out.
Cooler is ZEROtherm Nirvana NV-120 tim is artic MX2.

So your temps do seem on the high side but well within limits for core2quad.

[richieuk]

Well if theres 5-8 degrees difference between the side of the case being off at idle, I would probably say you could do with better airflow through your case...

Obviously, the normal questions will be asked, is the CPU cooler seated properly, did you use too much AS5 etc.

Out of interest, what case are you using? I ask this as I was wondering if there is any reason why your using 80mm fans?

IIRC The Zalman, although it is copper is a small half moon sized thing, could it be its not able to dissipate enough heat?

Overall I'd say the Q6600 is a little high but not urgently OTT, but the 260 doesn't sound too bad, again though would probably still beenfit from better airflow.

[Webby]

If temperatures change dramatically when idle with the case side removed then you are in dire need of some case air extraction and since you are using only 1 80mm fan for extraction that kind of explains it, oh and you should never rely on GPU or PSU fans for extraction as they only speed up when the components need them to. If you can fit larger fans (ideally 120mm) then do that.

As to your temperatures idle seem a bit high with the case side on but would expect that to be due to poor ventilation more than badly seated cooler. If you run something standard like Orthos/Prime 95/Intel Burn Test we can get a better idea of your CPU load temps (be aware IBT gets your CPU really hot!). Equally run Furmark on your graphics card in stability mode to see how hot your GPU will get.

But to reiterate you really need some bigger fans or faster spinning small ones noisy yes but will keep your temps down.

[richieuk]

Just to give you an example of a decent but cheap airflow, I'll be running 2x 120mm fans in the front as intake, and a 140mm and 120mm outflow based above and behind the CPU, the lot cost me £42 quid, including the case, then another £15 if you include the CPU cooler.

[philpem]

As to your temperatures idle seem a bit high with the case side on but would expect that to be due to poor ventilation more than badly seated cooler. If you run something standard like Orthos/Prime 95/Intel Burn Test we can get a better idea of your CPU load temps (be aware IBT gets your CPU really hot!). Equally run Furmark on your graphics card in stability mode to see how hot your GPU will get.

But to reiterate you really need some bigger fans or faster spinning small ones noisy yes but will keep your temps down.

OK then, here's a proper scientific test...


Case side panel off:
Idle -- cores 0-3 36/32/36/31, GPU core+ambient 47/42 respectively
After 15 minutes of Prime95 Blend testing -- cores 0-3 47/42/47/42, GPU 47/42

Case side panel on, another 15 minutes of blending -- cores 0-3 65/60/65/60, GPU 56/50
Immediately after removing the side panel -- 57/53/57/53, 55/49
Within a few seconds -- 55/49/55/49, 55/49

Note: 5 minutes after starting the test, the fans hit full speed. There also seems to be an almost complete lack of airflow around the intake side of the CPU cooler, but plenty of movement on the exhaust side.

Does anyone have any info on the airflow for the Zalman flower coolers? It most certainly isn't in the manual -- that only contains a quick note on how you need to make sure the rear case fan is blowing in the same direction as the CPU fan...

I've dug into the case again and it looks like the positioning of the graphics card and hard drives might be causing a lack of airflow in the upper section of the case. Apparently the graphics card needs to be in PCIEx16 #1 (the top slot), and my hard drives are on either side of the graphics card. I'll see if I can get them moved into the bottom of the case, but then they'll be blocking the 80mm front fan.

What bugs me is the way the graphics card is up against the front of the HDD mounting cage, blocking two bays in the process. I think I might need a bigger case.

Adding a 120mm fan in place of the three 5.25" blanking plates might be an option, but that would involve finding a new home for the massive bundles of PSU cabling...

So the next plan is to move the HDDs and see how that goes... in the meantime that case panel is staying off...

EDIT: I suppose the other option would be to cut holes in the side panel and add fans to the outside of the case... but that's going to be seriously ugly...

[Webby]

Yeah I would say your coolers are all fine its really just a cool air intake and hot air extraction problem. If the case doesn't have mounts for 120mm fans then I would suggest its time to get a new case. Doesn't need to be anything fancy £35 will get you something which should sort the temp issue right away

Antec 300 would be my choice if cost is an issue available here or your favourite etailer http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=811571

[philpem]

Yeah I would say your coolers are all fine its really just a cool air intake and hot air extraction problem. If the case doesn't have mounts for 120mm fans then I would suggest its time to get a new case. Doesn't need to be anything fancy £35 will get you something which should sort the temp issue right away

Antec 300 would be my choice if cost is an issue available here or your favourite etailer http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=811571

Urgh, more money...

I'll see if moving the HDDs makes any difference, if not then I'll swap the case. The 300 looks quite nice, actually, but might be a little too big for the shelf my PC is currently sitting on...

Thanks.

[richieuk]

I'm getting the 300 myself because soley I have the airflow management propblem sorted...

All in all, the Antec 300 would benefit you. I'll give you a side by side example here...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Firstly, I'll have two intakes (120mm) bring cool air through the front with a fair amount of force through the filter and grill. The hard-drives aren't a problem as I picked up a sharkoon vibe-fixer to mount my HD in a 5" slot so there wont be any obstructions. The heat from the PSU first of all itself rises with an extra push from its 120mm fan which due to being bottom mounted will face and push upwards to/around my graphics card. My graphics card has an open air cooler and fan (Dual Slot size from Sapphire) which will dissipate further heat from the GFX card. The CPU cooler is massive, with its own 120mm fan, with this cooling the fins and northbridge (with the supplied fin) the hot air from this then goes directly, along with the hot air rising from the GFX and PSU into the 2 outtake fans at 120mm and 140mm

In comparison, it sounds like your front single intake is being dissipated almost immediately into the HDs as a ''brick wall'', also, the air stuck underneath your GFX card isn't being moved by any fans, as the fan from the PSU is facing toward the Zalman isn't it? Ideally, the Antec 300 will move the air from underneath much better, and if you put your existing 80mm fans in the front if they can be mounted there you should have better inflow. The outflow will be pulled vigourously from the Zalman by the supplied 120mm and 140mm fans.

Now, for £35 its one of the cheapest cases around, and will cool your computer a beauty. The only other thing I would suggest is maybe the recently reviewed Akasa CPU cooler for about £11 which won that Hexus award.

[philpem]

I've just recabled the thing and now I'm seeing 45/39 core temps on idle, GPU showing 56 core, 49 ambient. Ugh.

I'm done playing games with fans, and I don't feel like doing any case modding this week to fix the case. I've just ordered an Antec 300 and a couple of 120mm Noctua fans, so with a bit of luck I'll be able to play TimeShift properly ooh... some time Sunday night?

The power supply pulls air through front-to-back, it doesn't have a 120mm on the base (just an 80 on the back panel and another 80 inside the case).

I'm leaving the Zalman cooler alone -- as far as I'm concerned, it's doing the job (as evidenced by it pulling the CPU down to 30-ish degrees with the side panel removed) and it's fairly quiet. It cost enough...

I'm not sure what good the 140mm on top is going to do -- the PSU cover is solid metal. The 120 on the back should give the Zalman a helping hand though, and I'll probably put one of the two Noctuas on the side panel (to help out the GPU heatsink) and another on the front (those Barracudas run rather hot!)

I wish I'd known all this before I bought the thing.. I'd have at least been able to save another £8.odd in P&P :-/

Thanks,
Phil.

[Webby]

The 140mm on the top will be good because the PSU will be at the bottom of the case

[philpem]

The 140mm on the top will be good because the PSU will be at the bottom of the case

PSU.. bottom.. case...

*reads the destructions on Antec's site

Nice. Air from the HDDs comes in the front and out of the PSU, and the motherboard gets a nearly clean air feed from the top few bays (assuming they're empty)...

The hour-and-a-half disassembly/reassembly cycle doesn't seem quite as bad now I've had a good look at the 300.

[Webby]

Yeah it really is a good case especially for the price, you should be very happy with it

[philpem]

Yeah it really is a good case especially for the price, you should be very happy with it

Yeah, I just wish I was as happy with the OS!

It's gone from booting fine, to an INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE BSOD. Died half way through playing a video, machine locked when I tried to exit full-screen with lots of misplaced chunks of video... Looks like either the RAM's packed in (unlikely unless it was half-dead to begin with) or something's attacked the nForce drivers.

Blummin' Windows. Looks like I'm staring at the bad end of a wipe-the-C-drive-and-start-over class reinstall

[philpem]

Yeah it really is a good case especially for the price, you should be very happy with it

Yeah, I just wish I was as happy with the OS!

It's gone from booting fine, to an INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE BSOD. Died half way through playing a video, machine locked when I tried to exit full-screen with lots of misplaced chunks of video... Looks like either the RAM's packed in (unlikely unless it was half-dead to begin with) or something's attacked the nForce drivers.

Blummin' Windows. Looks like I'm staring at the bad end of a wipe-the-C-drive-and-start-over class reinstall

EDIT: But if I unplug my USB card reader, it boots fine?! WTF?!
EDIT2: Plugged the card reader back in. It's fine now. Eh?!

[moogle]

Inaccessible boot device means you've turned AHCI on in the BIOS. If you wanna turn it on without reinstalling set msahci.sys to load on start up and then it will be fine.