CPU mysterious overheat of doom (tried lots to fix)

thefadedlinethefadedline Manchester, England
edited April 2011 in Hardware
Hi guys.

So my problem is a long-time one. My CPU is overheating on a major scale. It happens mainly when gaming. After around a half hour the computer will shut down and it'll need a good 5 mins to cool before it'll even boot. Checking temp logs I see that it gets to around 120°c (!!!) before shutting down.

I've had the CPU fan/heatsink out and thoroughly cleaned them, more than once. It was a little dusty first time around but it's spotless now and still doing the same. I reapplied thermal paste onto the heat-sink. I've upgraded my case fans to more efficient ones. I even replaced my old video cards. I'm unaware of all the possible causes so I'm pretty much stumped here.

After the first clean-out I got the CPU idling at an unbelievable (for me) 23°c. This only lasted a couple weeks and it slowly crept up to an idle temp of roughly 33°c. Where's that extra 10°c coming from?

I use a third-party app to monitor temp (Core Temp). I know these figures aren't going to be 100% accurate but I don't think it should be reporting figures of anywhere near 100°c. That's hotter than boiling water.

Can this be a problem with the actual processor? Or is it likely to be purely cooling-related?

Had lots of issues resolved here in the past, thought I'd give it another go. So looking forward to hearing from some of you.

Thanks in advance!

Comments

  • RyderRyder Kalamazoo, Mi Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    More info please. What fan/heatsink, what CPU, are you adjusting voltage in the bios?
  • TushonTushon I'm scared, Coach Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    You should also be thinking about how the airflow is flowing through the case, does it have "cool" input and room to exhaust, etc while getting the info Ryder requested.
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    It could be the heatsink surface; perhaps, despite the re-application of thermal compound, you don't have a good seal. Maybe the heatspreader on the CPU or the heatsink surface is concave or convex.

    I suspect bad contact between CPU and heatsink.
  • TushonTushon I'm scared, Coach Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    primesuspect wrote:
    I suspect bad contact between CPU and heatsink.
    This would also explain an initially good result. The compound sets over time, and (I imagine) "shrinks" some in the process. So, where it worked well initially, as it set, may have pulled away from the surface of the heatsink
  • thefadedlinethefadedline Manchester, England
    edited April 2011
    Thanks all. Sorry I wasn't back sooner. Had a harddrive die on me last light and had a whole lot of messing about this morning just to get back up and running. But we're here now.

    Bad contact between CPU and heatsink was indeed the cause. I took it out to have another look and noticed it went back in a lot easier and seemed more 'snug' than previous times. I find the clips so awkward. Previously when gaming it would reach around 80°c after 5 mins; now it's reaching no more than 60°c after a half hour, so I think that was it?
  • TushonTushon I'm scared, Coach Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    Sounds good. Mine run between 42-50C so you should be in the clear.
  • shwaipshwaip bluffin' with my muffin Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    How does removing the side of your case affect temps? If taking it off drops them significantly, your problem is most likely due to poor in-case airflow.
  • TushonTushon I'm scared, Coach Alexandria, VA Icrontian
    edited April 2011
    Which I had mentioned up there. He said that it looks okay now and doesn't mentioned keeping case open :confused2
  • thefadedlinethefadedline Manchester, England
    edited April 2011
    Sorry, when I take the case off the temperature doesn't really change. There's a pretty good air-flow in there.
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