AMD 3700+ San Diego running WAY HOT!

[SirFelixCat]

Just got a phone call from the wife and she told me that, yet again, whenever she plays WoW, the game keeps crashing and rebooting my custom made computer. Now, keep in mind that it ONLY seems to happen when she plays WoW, not when I'm playing, say, Oblivion, which is very graphics intensive.

I asked her what the temp. reading was when it rebooted and she told me 114 degrees Celcius. That would be why it's shutting down I'm assuming?

Stock cooling and heatsink. Thoughts? Ideas? Help? Please?



eta: 2 more things: the heat sink was incredibly difficult going on originally, but it finally did, after almost an hour of fighting with it. Secondly, it normally runs at @ 44 degrees when doing minor things such as surfing the net etc. etc. I have not confirmed the temp. as I am at work, but just in case. TIA.

 

[Crescent13]

Ouch! Did you put a THIN layer of AS5 on?

 

[SirFelixCat]

Now, before I get lynched, no I didn't, but following the directions that came with the cooler, it already had a layer of it on it, when I opened it up, so I didn't think it was necessary.

Keep in mind that this ONLY happens while running WoW....

 

[JPH1121]

No way in hell is it running at 114 degrees.

44 degrees seems pretty hot to me though as well... my comp only idles or with minor load at 41 degrees and is overclocked 500 mhz (3700+). Granted, I have a kick ass cooler, but still, those numbers look high for even a stock cooler... (I have a Zalman 9500 w/AS5) I run 35 degrees case temp...what is your case temp?

 

[A554SS1N]

Maybe the 114 degrees is actually fahrenhiet - would sound more realistic then?

 

[imported_Finny]

Yeah, that's definitely farenheit... Even then, though, it's still over 50C, which is still a bit high for an athlon, and would explain the issues. I'd suggest trying to find a bit of a better coolor or something, and maybe use a different thermal paste. (I've heard that alcohol can be used to dissolve old applications of thermal paste, but I'd confirm with someone else to make sure)

It seems odd that it's only messing up in WoW, though... Dunno, maybe it's somehow more intensive on the processor? I can only guess...

 

[yuchai]

If it's stable running Oblivion then it's not likely to be a hardware issue. I'd look into re-installing WoW and see if that helps.

 

[Aluvus]

Originally posted by: yuchai
If it's stable running Oblivion then it's not likely to be a hardware issue. I'd look into re-installing WoW and see if that helps.

I would also look at video drivers.

 

[m1ldslide1]

Originally posted by: Aluvus

Originally posted by: yuchai
If it's stable running Oblivion then it's not likely to be a hardware issue. I'd look into re-installing WoW and see if that helps.

I would also look at video drivers.

I agree with these guys. I would personally use prime95 and 3dmark to verify ability to function under heavy load and maximum temps. After verifying system stability and temps, verify drivers and reinstall WoW if need be.

114 is definately Fahrenheit, or you would have a plume of smoke coming out of your case. That said, you are idling pretty hot even for having used the stock thermal compound. How is your case ventillation? Exhaust fan in the rear, intake in the front, and so forth? My OC'd 3700+ idles at 30C and peaks around 40C. Even before I got the zalman I was idling around 32C overclocked with stock HS/F (and arctic silver).

 

[SirFelixCat]

Yes, I got home and verified that it's Fahrenheit. That being said, I have tried reinstalling the game and get this...


It installs A-OK, but when it tries to patch itself, it crashes at @ 61% w/o fail. Really odd and frustrating.

Gotta be the drivers, right?

I'll try them tonight....other ideas? And thanks all!

 

[Kromis]

45º Celcius...not bad...although you can run cooler than that.

ONLY happens with WoW? That's weird...maybe you should try lowering the video settings.

Anyways, definite weird, since it only affects WoW. Can you confirm that?

 

[madsauce tech]

i'd also try running prime95 or some other program to also test your memory. I've noticed that some programs push your computer (whether it be ram, graphics or processor) to the point of error and can cause crashes.

if its power/videocard related and not memory try this for me (just curious) try enabling v-sync if it isn't already enabled for WoW(force it or otherwise) i'm just curious since i'm assuming your computer is going to run in the 100+fps in WoW versus very low in oblivion(relatively) and see if that stops the restarting/crash.


Good luck