Poor XP-90 results...(and other stuff)

A

Aardvarck

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 21, 2004
Messages
231
Hi all. I just bought a Thermalright XP90 w/ a 92 mm Panaflo Fan at 57cfm. I installed it onto my 3000 Winnie and MSI K8N Neo2 Plat combo. However, my temp results are no better than when I had the cheap $8.00 solution I bought from Monarch (in a combo). I applied Arctic Silver 5 via the "spot and spread" technique, but my temps are in the 40s (45 right now via MBM 5). I thought my temps would be down in the lower 30s after having installed this heatsink. what's going wrong? everything seems to be hooked up correctly, xp90 is on the processor firmly and all.

also, what is a better temperature monitoring program than MBM 5? MBM 5 only supports the MSI K8N Neo Platinum, not the Neo2, although it seems to work. but i want something different.

also, I'm only able to get my CPU up to 2.2 and keep it stable. it'll boot into windows at 2.4, but it fails prime95 immediately a torture test is started. I looked in cpu-z and apparently my processor is only getting 1.4 volts, as opposed to the 1.5 v i have set in the bios. 1.5 is the default right? I thought i was going to be able to push the speeds up even higher on stock cooling, and even higher with an xp90. but no go. what's the deal? do i need to apply more voltage? i thought I should be able to hit 2.5 w/ no voltage adjustments? now i know every processor is different, but i thought my results would be better.

Here are my system specs:

AMD Athlon 64 3000 Winchester @ 2.2
Thermal Right XP90 w/ Panaflo 92mm 57cfm fan
MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum w/ latest bios version (if forget what version #)
BFG 6800gt OC
1 gig (2x512) PC3200 Corsair Value Select @208 (via memory divider)
Audigy 2

also, in order to engage the pci/agp lock, i have to set agp frequency to 67, correct?

any input will be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance.
 
update bios to fix temp readings? Other then that i dont know do you have exhaust fans in your case that are powerful?
 
ditch that weak fan, and get a real one m8.

edit:
just saw you're in Arlington. been to Fort Worth a few times, nice area.
 
Aardvarck said:
also, what is a better temperature monitoring program than MBM 5? MBM 5 only supports the MSI K8N Neo Platinum, not the Neo2, although it seems to work. but i want something different.
Click to expand...
everest is awesome.

though the temps kinda just seem like mis-reporting. have you tried remounting the heatsink? (after cleaning the IHS and heatsink base thoroughly with 91 or 99% rubbing alcohol?)
 
fore1337 said:
ditch that weak fan, and get a real one m8.
Click to expand...

or one of these

or bend those fan clips and go for the kill with this


but seriously speaking, I would look into other factors, like if the AS5 has been given enough time to "burn-in" (I never liked that term. It reminds me of fire.)
 
reason why i went with the panaflo is because of the noise level. it's actually quiet compared to the other fans in my case.

and yes, i did try cleaning with rubbing alcohol thoroughly and remounting the heatsink.

however i haven't given the as5 enough time to burn in. i am aware of this process, but doesn't it drop the temp by only a few degrees? i was expecting about a 10 degree drop in temps.

also, if anyone can answer my overclocking concerns as well, that'd be great.

but thanks for all the input so far. i'm going to give Everest a try.
 
Whats your average room temp where your machine is? I live in Euless so I am right down the street from you, so we have the same weather but just curious if you have a/c on etc.
 
my average temperature is 45 degrees celcius at idle. my in room temperature is 75-78 degrees farenheit.

i did notice something when i took the heatsink off of my cpu the first time. I noticed there was a marking as if someone scraped the top of the cpu. i'll post pictures of what i'm talking about later. but i did have the cpu/mobo preassembled by monarchcomputer, and it is still under warranty. perhaps it's the "marking" on top of the cpu that's affecting my temperatures. when i get back from work i'll put the pictures up and get your opinions.

i'm running the cpu at stock and the temps are still high. i made sure the heatsink is on properly, right amount of as5, and all that good stuff.

on the plus side, that everest program is damn useful!
 
Holy cow! I could use 4 of those 12cm, 200CFM deltas in my WC rig.

Just thought I'd post these "mfg specs"
9.2cm Tornado 119CFM 56.4 dba
9.2cm Delta 127CFM 59.2dba
 
What is the difference between the system temp and CPU temp under load? Is it more than 6 or 7 degrees?
 
Well i JUST finished finally installing my xp-90.

Athlon 3000+ 939 @2.25ghz

Stock HSF

Idle-27C
Load-38C

XP-90 w/ 32 CFM 80mm fan (panaflo in the mail) and AS5

Idle 24C
Load-35C

So after the "burn-in" period and a actual 92mm fan, not just a 80mm case fan i had laying around, it should provide a nice boost.

So based on my own personal experiance, you should definetly be ganing a few degree;s.
 
there's about a 10-12 degree change from idle to load.

and why on earth am i not getting the same results as you mrmitch? my idle is 47 degrees! i don't understand!?

also, I'm only able to get my CPU up to 2.2 and keep it stable. it'll boot into windows at 2.4, but it fails prime95 immediately a torture test is started. I looked in cpu-z and apparently my processor is only getting 1.4 volts, as opposed to the 1.5 v i have set in the bios. 1.5 is the default right? I thought i was going to be able to push the speeds up even higher on stock cooling, and even higher with an xp90. but no go. what's the deal? do i need to apply more voltage? i thought I should be able to hit 2.5 w/ no voltage adjustments? now i know every processor is different, but i thought my results would be better.
 
a scratch can effect temperatures, but it would have to be pretty deep to get the temps your seeing.

you mentioned that you put a blob of thermal paste in the center of the heatspreader and placed the heatsink fan on it. this is the best way to do it.
however, how big was that drop you put on? i find that proper amount is about the size of a ball bearing (read: small. very small)
 
i used a very small amount, about the size of a grain of rice. would that really affect temperatures by that much? i mean i'm seeing people get like 33 Celcius from reviews on the web.

thanks to everyone for their help so far. i hope we can get to the bottom of this.

i'll make sure i post pics of the processor tomorrow.
 
Your overclocking results are nothing to be surprised about, many of the lower-speed Winnies have a ceiling at 2.2-2.3GHz- especially CBBID steppings, which is what I'm guessing you have. Also, default voltage for a Clawhammer or Newcastle is 1.5V- for a Winchester core, 1.4V is normal. As for temps, mid-40s actually isn't all that bad, although I admit it's a bit high for a .90(mu) A64, and even more so at such low speeds and volts. My 3400+ Newcastle hits 43C with an XP-90 with a Zalman Stealth fan at full speed, although it's heavily overclocked. Also, I'm using Alumina- not AS5 or Ceramique, which I may buy shortly.
 
I know all about weird temp issues. I use an XP-120. I idle at like 28-29C with C&Q on, then i load at 55-59C depending on the room temp.either my mobo reporting is screwed, or the IHS/core arent flat. Maybe this is your issue?
 
okay, here are some pics of my cpu. notice that line thing? it doesn't come off. should i be concerned about that? that's how i got the cpu which came preassembled by monarch. could that be the cause of my shitty temps?

CPU211.jpg
 
That could be it, if for no other reason than it's a poor contact point between the IHS and the HSF. There's no core damage obviously, but part of that line is right over the center of the proc, which is the hottest part.

Edit: I was right, yours is a CBBID. Don't be upset about the lack of overclocking, it's quite common with these.
 
Also, when posting pics of ur processor, blurr out that last line as it's your serial # which you use for warrenty info, etc. And damn that line is weird....you MIGHT be able to stand that down and try to get that off of there without demolishing your CPU's info on the top. MSI's program CoreCenter is a good way to read MSI's default temps....right now on my XP-120 and Panaflo my CG Claw is running at 34C idle (which depends alot on ambient temps) and loads somewhere in the 40s. Your winnie should be cooler, but also try updating your BIOS to the newest MSI as that might be throwing off your temps....my board first read REALLY DAMN HIGH when I got it.
 
Being a CBBID its not going to overclock, i got one and its 3Dmark stable a 2.4ghz 1.5v's but not prime, i run 2.25ghz since 250x9 is a nice number.

That line is weird, maybe its really really caked on thermal stuff, maybe try some of that artic clean, its supposed to turn all thermal goo in to a gel thats easy to wipe off.
 
so do you think i would be able to rma the part and get a new one instead? is there any reason why i wouldn't be able to rma it? it is under monarch's 90 warranty. thanks for all the input.

and no, it's definitely not cake on thermal paste, it's an abrasion on the cpu. i made sure of that.
 
you really can't RMA if it runs 1.8ghz stable. If your really brave you can lap the heatspreader and the heatsink see if that helps.
 
christ, that's gonna suck.

what grit of sand paper should i use.

and should i only sand down the center part of the damage?
 
I would say sand everything down to keep it even, but then you'd scrape off your ID numbers. I don't know, I guess just stick to the parts that need it- but don't go too far! I'm sure we've all ready about what happens with a concave IHS. :eek:
 
I had the XP-120 and it didnt do dick over my current Thermaltake SilentTower cooler.

talk about wasting $50 for nothing.
 
Man, if it was me i wouldn't sand down the cpu, I would contact Monarch and ask them for a RMA. I can't see that being unethical, the CPU is too hot which could be detrimental to its lifespan.

Shadow27
 
Actually, the processors are designed to run 63C and up. 45C, while unpleasant, isn't detrimental to anything. Overclocking and raising voltages is another story, but you void warranties by doing either. Also, getting three years out of a CPU is a piece of cake- after that, your warranty is done anyway.
 
how can he ask Monarch to RMA something thats technically not defective?

come on people...
 
Shadow27 said:
Man, if it was me i wouldn't sand down the cpu, I would contact Monarch and ask them for a RMA. I can't see that being unethical, the CPU is too hot which could be detrimental to its lifespan.

Shadow27
Click to expand...
n ur pretty damn funny. the dude is going to overclock it, which is detrimental, but u only mention the heat. also, not only is it UNETHICAL to rma it due to it being to hot, it is also illegal, yet people will continue to get away with doing it.
 
ozziegn said:
how can he ask Monarch to RMA something thats technically not defective?

come on people...
Click to expand...
thats just wrong. why must people do shady bullshit.
 
but hardforum is a real bitch about warez, yet they say nothing about all of the rest of countless bullshit that goes on here.
 
Ok fair enough, i stand corrected :) What i meant is if they caused the scratch. Would sanding the marking off the CPU be worth it if they caused it (assuming they did) and you stand a chance of buggering up your CPU? But if it can be done without concaving it and still leaving the numbers on the CPU then by all means give it a go. If sanding off the numbers is no worry to you, get really fine grit sandpaper.

And i don't stand for RMA if someone is overclocking. Don't get me wrong, i was saying a RMA because of the scratch.
Shadow27
 
well u cant rma it for the scratch either, because its fully functional. i really think it runs hot just because of the cbbid like others have said. if u can overclock it to 2.2 ghz, id be more than happy if i were u.
 
Oh ok, i hear what your saying. I've had trouble with a computer hardware store once when they sent me a scratched part and it was faulty (not saying this particular one is), and when i asked for a RMA because it was faulty they refused it because they said I made the scratch. Its just if he ever had troubles with the CPU later and wanted to RMA it he might have the same trouble that I did. This is taking into account that he isn't overclocking which i assume he will be.

Shadow27
 
Shadow27 said:
Oh ok, i hear what your saying. I've had trouble with a computer hardware store once when they sent me a scratched part and it was faulty (not saying this particular one is), and when i asked for a RMA because it was faulty they refused it because they said I made the scratch. Its just if he ever had troubles with the CPU later and wanted to RMA it he might have the same trouble that I did. This is taking into account that he isn't overclocking which i assume he will be.

Shadow27
Click to expand...
since he will and i am willing to bet my life that he has already overclocked it, he has no right to RMA it now anyway.
 
Aardvarck said:
Hi all. I just bought a Thermalright XP90 w/ a 92 mm Panaflo Fan at 57cfm. I installed it onto my 3000 Winnie and MSI K8N Neo2 Plat combo. However, my temp results are no better than when I had the cheap $8.00 solution I bought from Monarch (in a combo). I applied Arctic Silver 5 via the "spot and spread" technique, but my temps are in the 40s (45 right now via MBM 5). I thought my temps would be down in the lower 30s after having installed this heatsink. what's going wrong? everything seems to be hooked up correctly, xp90 is on the processor firmly and all.

also, what is a better temperature monitoring program than MBM 5? MBM 5 only supports the MSI K8N Neo Platinum, not the Neo2, although it seems to work. but i want something different.

also, I'm only able to get my CPU up to 2.2 and keep it stable. it'll boot into windows at 2.4, but it fails prime95 immediately a torture test is started. I looked in cpu-z and apparently my processor is only getting 1.4 volts, as opposed to the 1.5 v i have set in the bios. 1.5 is the default right? I thought i was going to be able to push the speeds up even higher on stock cooling, and even higher with an xp90. but no go. what's the deal? do i need to apply more voltage? i thought I should be able to hit 2.5 w/ no voltage adjustments? now i know every processor is different, but i thought my results would be better.

Here are my system specs:

AMD Athlon 64 3000 Winchester @ 2.2
Thermal Right XP90 w/ Panaflo 92mm 57cfm fan
MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum w/ latest bios version (if forget what version #)
BFG 6800gt OC
1 gig (2x512) PC3200 Corsair Value Select @208 (via memory divider)
Audigy 2

also, in order to engage the pci/agp lock, i have to set agp frequency to 67, correct?

any input will be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
he clearly stated that he overclocked it. he has no right to rma it now. so him trying to rma it would be wrong and illegal of him.
 
okay, so whats the lesson learned here?

do NOT start a thread with the words "RMA" and "overclocked" in the same subject. :p
 
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