HOT i5-750

[TrevorRC]

Hey guys, it's been a while since I've overclocked anything so I figured it best to ask a few questions now (rather than after I've fried something.)

In any case, I've got an i5-750. Running at barebone stock with an open side the temperatures were ~40C idle and climbed to ~80C in under 30 seconds of Prime95. I pulled off the HSF, adhesion looked OK (but not perfect), re-seated it (with a razor-thin amount of AS5), then fired it back up.

Idle temps range from 30-36C (depending on the core--0 and 2 run hot, 1 and 4 are on the colder side.)

Is this normal? I know 78C is the maximum temperature Intel sets for continuous operation...so it seems excessively high.

I'd STRONGLY prefer not to buy another cooler--if I have to go that route I'll probably just end up buying a new waterblock (especialyl given the negligible price difference and the cries for water from my pump and radiator...)

Thanks.

 

[alyarb]

quad cores run hotter than dual cores, there is no way around that, and the stock intel cooler is a joke. the coolermaster TX3 is $15 with free shipping. if i were overclocking, i would rather have something bigger like a 120mm xigmatek, but your case is just about general chip health and you should do something to get those load temps down to the high 60s.

 

[Skott]

I have the i5 750 and if I remember correctly Intel's info said that max temp was like 71.7C or something like that. Basically 72C for all practical purposes. Going over that and you are above their reccomendations. So 78C or 80C is not good. Because I put mine in a SG03 SFF case I didn't use the stock hsf. I went with something better. If I were you I'd go with a after market hsf that does a better job of cooling. Just my opinion though.

 

[TrevorRC]

It just seems ludicrous to me that the stock cooler can't keep a STOCK processor from going beyond its maximum thermal spec. I was planning on overclocking, I just wanted to get the temps manageable first.

Looks like I'll be fabbing something to re-use my trusty old MW-6002! Thanks.

 

[Skott]

Well, it should but you may either not have seated the hsf correctly or might not have good case cooling. What case are you using? Also you said you had the case open? You should be looking at temps with case buttoned up. Sometimes a open side actually worsens case air flow.

 

[2March]

Times are changing.

I noticed how Clarkdale is being promoted as overclockable with a stock cooler but it's only a dual core... My i7-920 did 3.2GHz on a stock cooler but anything more and temps got over 80. I've seen sites testing 920's stock and reaching low 80's on stock coolers. Thankfully airflow in my "old english white" case is a bit better then that.
Nevertheless, Intel isn't having an easy time designing cheap and efficient coolers for their quads and I'm not surprised. It seems to me that a much larger part of the price of processors is going to be spend on a good stock cooler. Or Intel should stop pretending they supply a cooler with their processors at all.

 

[soccerballtux]

Times are changing.

I noticed how Clarkdale is being promoted as overclockable with a stock cooler but it's only a dual core... My i7-920 did 3.2GHz on a stock cooler but anything more and temps got over 80. I've seen sites testing 920's stock and reaching low 80's on stock coolers. Thankfully airflow in my "old english white" case is a bit better then that.
Nevertheless, Intel isn't having an easy time designing cheap and efficient coolers for their quads and I'm not surprised. It seems to me that a much larger part of the price of processors is going to be spend on a good stock cooler. Or Intel should stop pretending they supply a cooler with their processors at all.

They don't want people overclocking. AMD can't exactly keep up with their processors on the high end so letting people OC out of the box is giving away future revenue when people would otherwise upgrade.

 

[2March]

They don't want people overclocking. AMD can't exactly keep up with their processors on the high end so letting people OC out of the box is giving away future revenue when people would otherwise upgrade.

That may be a reason too but considering a 920 in a not so cool envirement may already hit the temperature threshold, I doubt it's entirely voluntairy. They are definately trying to save money aswell. Besides, regardless of how normal OC'ing is for us, there is a world out there that never even considered it. And they are a fast majority...

 

[mav451]

Is your Vcore on auto? I really can't think of any reason why a stock (2.66Ghz) i5 would hit 80C's at load, especially in only 30 seconds.

 

[MrK6]

You could run this CPU at 90C core temps nonstop every day for years and you'd have no problems. The 72C specification is the Tcase temp, which is different. The stock Intel cooler is a POS, but it's sufficient to cool the CPU at stock speeds and within operating parameters. If you want something quieter or you want to overclock higher, look at a different heatsink (water or air, whatever your setup and wallet demands).

EDIT:

Is your Vcore on auto? I really can't think of any reason why a stock (2.66Ghz) i5 would hit 80C's at load, especially in only 30 seconds.

That's a great point I forgot to mention. Standard VIDs on the i5 750 are in the 1.25V range, which is VERY excessive. I believe this is to ensure stability with Turbo functionality. That said, you can always drop the Vcore below stock. I know that if I turn off Turbo, my 750 will run 2.66GHz perfectly stable at only 1.00V.

 

[alyarb]

this kind of shit should be stickied anyway.