How hot does nForce2 Ultra 400 northbridge get?

[galt]

I have a Shuttle AN35N (nF2 Ultra 400) in single channel mode. I recently figured out that the NB doesn't make full contact with heatsink. Its passive cooled. I ran prime95 for 45 minutes, and the nb heatsink was just warm to touch. Right now the system is running at 9x213mhz. I want to try 220mhz, but I'm not sure if I need better cooling on the nb. So... is my nb heatsink running cool because it isn't making contact, or do the nForce2 boards run really cool?

 

[Nickel020]

The NB cooler on my MSI K7N2-L does get hot but not as hot as my CPU heatsink. It shouldn't damage your NB if you run a FSB of 220 and even if it does it should be covered by warranty as it wasn't you who installed the heatsink that way (with the heatsink installed properly 220 is no problem).

 

[galt]

Thats the thing. Its not even "hot". Its mildly warm. Like touching my desk (made of wood) in my room where the temp on the air conditioner is 70 degrees farenheit. Which is what makes me worry that the nb is silently burning up, while the nb heatsink is not making contact and giving me the wrong impression.

 

[imported_Phil]

Gently push the heatsink down for a minute or two and see if the apparent temperature changes. If so, remove and apply decent thermal paste & possibly a new heatsink (Zalman?).

Of course, you might just have a northbridge that is that temperature

 

[Mike99Pgh]

Get yourself a Zalman ZM-NB47J heatsink and forget about it. $9 shipped from newegg.

On my Abit NF7-S mobo it's barely warm to the touch.