Ideal temp for AMD Athlons?

blacktankofhopelessness

Senior member
Feb 5, 2003
211
0
71
Today I decided to do something about my quite noisy PC so I bought some Acoustipack and applied it to the case as indicated on their webpage. I also switched my CPU fan from Auto to Manual speed. The fan is a Thermaltake Volcano 9, my CPU is an AMD Athlon XP+ 2000 o/b an ASUS A7V8X mb. Everything is mounted inside a Chieftec XT-10 (not sure about that one).

The CPU temp is now higher according to ASUS Pc Probe than it was before. Earlier the autofan function would have it running at about 4000 rpm which made it very noisy indeed. With manual I have it around 2000 when idle and turn it up to about 2500-3000 when gaming. The temp is 59C on 2000 rpm and idle. When the CPU is running at 100% (according to task manager) it goes to 64-67C at 2500 rpm.

My question then is this: Are these temps healthy for the Athlon XP? I read somewhere that Max temp is 85-90C for this type of CPU but surely this can't be acceptable for a longer duration, right?
 

amdskip

Lifer
Jan 6, 2001
22,530
13
81
IMHO, 60 is the cutoff temp for me and when something needs to be changed. What happens when it gets summertime and hot out?
 

Zepper

Elite Member
May 1, 2001
18,998
0
0
I like to keep my processors under 50 deg C if possible - the lower the better.
.bh.
 

WobbleWobble

Diamond Member
Jun 29, 2001
4,867
1
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Your CPU is ok. For me as well, 60C socket temp is about the cut off for me. That's because the CPU diode temp is usually 5C or so higher. Download AIDA32 and read your CPU diode temp as that's a more accurate measurement.
 

blacktankofhopelessness

Senior member
Feb 5, 2003
211
0
71
Thanks for helping me out!

I've raised my HSF rpm to 2500 in idle which lands the temp at 58C. I still feel, as most of you probably do, that it's too high but I don't want my noisy PC back! What HSF would you recommend if I want to get max heat dissipation at lowest noise levels?

Oh, would my CPU temp be affected at all if I installed one or two case-cooling fans?
 

WobbleWobble

Diamond Member
Jun 29, 2001
4,867
1
0
Try the Zalman CNPS7000A if it's compatible with your motherboard. It does help to have a rear case fan, but the front fan doesn't help as much.