An older CPU, and high temps

[Limberlost]

A friend of mine recently bought a new computer, and he's asked me to fix up his old one to give to his daughter. I'm concerned about the CPU temperature the BIOS is reporting, and I need to know whether I've got a problem here. I tried searching the forum beforehand, but I guess it only goes back in time so far.


motherboard: Asus A7V (KT133 chipset - lacks 133MHz FSB support)

CPU: Socket A (Socket 462) "Thunderbird" (model 4)
speed: 1333MHz
native FSB: 133MHz
native 10x multiplier, but the chip is unlocked
voltage: 1.75v
maximum temp: 95 celcius


I've got the chip running at 1300MHz (12.5 x 100Mhz = 1300MHz, thanks to a little tweak AMD implemented just for this particular chip for folks with older boards). At that speed the BIOS reports a CPU temperature of 66º celcius. In contrast, the temperature is 52º when running at 1000MHz. The hard drive is still blank... this is merely from fiddling around in the BIOS for a while. The core voltage is correct, at 1.75v.

Is this normal? I read recently that you should be able to hold your finger against the heatsink, at least for a little while. I can't... it's too hot. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[myocardia]

You need a better heatsink. You did use thermal paste, right?

 

[Limberlost]

Yep, I used thermal paste. However, after doing some more research since posting, it seems clear that the original owner of this computer (who sold it to my friend) must have swapped the larger heatsink that came with the 1333MHz chip for a smaller one that came with an 850Mhz chip (which I remember him purchasing years ago). What an ass.

So you're absolutely right... time to head to my local shop.

 

[Stumps]

66C is in the normal range for the old T-bird AMD's, they run pretty hot.

My old 1400C T-bird used to regularly run at 70ish all day long with out any hassles, using a big copper Thermaltake Volcano 9 HSF unit.

 

[Limberlost]

That's reassuring... and not too surprising given that your processor and my friends' were the two most power-hungry models from that family of CPUs.
I just wish the words "AMD ATHLON 850 MHz", which adorn the label on the cooling fan, weren't staring me in the face as I type this. Kind of embarrassing that I didn't detect that subtle hint right off the bat.

 

[Stumps]

IIRC the T-bird 1400C was rated at around 75 watts.

I remember never needing a heater during the winter in my small flat that I lived in back in 2001 when I had that PC...damn it used to generate some warmth.

 

[myocardia]

Originally posted by: Stumps
66C is in the normal range for the old T-bird AMD's, they run pretty hot.

My old 1400C T-bird used to regularly run at 70ish all day long with out any hassles, using a big copper Thermaltake Volcano 9 HSF unit.

But he said it was running 66C in the BIOS. That's a bit different than loading in the low 70's.

Originally posted by: Limberlost[/i]
I just wish the words "AMD ATHLON 850 MHz", which adorn the label on the cooling fan, weren't staring me in the face as I type this. Kind of embarrassing that I didn't detect that subtle hint right off the bat.

I rarely make any noise while reading forums, but you actually made me LOL.:laugh:

 

[Stumps]

Not really, when an Average 1400C would read around 65-70C in the BIOS (depending on the mobo) using the stock Taisol HSF unit that was supplied with them.

I remember seeing some of them running at full load close to 80C with those crap ass Taisol BS that was supplied with them (at least in Australia anyway)...the HSF unit used to get REALLY hot to touch.

But even with a decent HSF unit it was hard to cool a high end T-bird.

 

[weeber]

Yeah, as you've already heard, the old AMD Thunderbird cores just run warm. I still use a T-bird 1.4 GHz for my HTPC, and it idles at 60-65 in the BIOS. So much for that quiet HTPC

 

[Limberlost]

Just a quick follow up here. I was successful in finding a better heatsink yesterday. For $10 I snagged a used model that has about 3 times the overall volume (outer dimensions), a 6.5cm fan that runs nice and quiet, and keeps the idle temperature (as reported in the BIOS) down to a steady 46º. I feel much better about setting this thing up as an Xmas gift for his daughter now.