Heat problems and advice please!!! I BEG YOU!!!

[bakkaNekko]

So I bought a 2.4C p4 a while back with the specific intention of o/cing it once I'd read up on the matter (this is my first o/c!).

Case specs:
1x90mm fan (removed off an old Dell) rear exhaust
1x60mm fan on the side panel blowing air OUT of case near cpu (came with the case)
Case itself is a POS. :P

At any rate, my CPU on idle is 39C and on load (i.e Prime95) will sometimes hit a whopping 65C!! :(

The O/c is currently at 2.8Ghz. The CPU uses stock HSF.

So I thinks to myself, it's time to get some serious cooling down here. I am thinking of getting the Antec 3700 BQE for a new case for one thing.

But I am also wondering if I need some sort of additional cooling solution. Maybe a HSF like ThermalTake's X-Dreams SE.

Or do you think I should go for a Peltier system like the subzero4g?

Curious thing is that according to the reviews of both systems on this site, the X-Dream SE manages to keep the processor cooler than the subzero!!!! Can that be possible? I guess the whole point of the subzero was to maintain a constant temperature.....at a very quiet decible level
but the price you pay for it is SO much higher than just the plain old HSF solution.......so do you think it's worth it?

My other major concern with the SubZero is that it's rated at 73W.....do you think that will be enough to take care of an overclocked p4? I know the article was done on an Athalon...but P4s are notorious for being heat generators....so if anyone can shed some light on these issues, i would really appreciate it!

I am deseprate for some help here!!!!

[minibubba]

Case specs:
1x90mm fan rear exhaust
1x60mm fan on the side panel blowing air OUT of case near cpu
Case itself is a POS.

you can start by turning that 60mm fan around so it it blowing into the case. I also certainly hope that is not the only case fans you have atm. If so, look to see if you have a mount for a fan on the front of the case. If not, then that is your biggest issue; you don't have anything bringing cooler air into the case. Without that, any CPU would over heat. Also, knowing the ambient temp in the room the PC is housed in would be very useful.

You should take a closer look at the basics before you go wasting money on exotic cooling solutins.

[bakkaNekko]

No believe me, the fan placing for the 60mm was not random. Initially the 60mm was at the back of the case, blowing air out of it as normal. It was also the ONLY fan in the case.

So I ripped an 80mm off of an old PC of mine and put it at the back and put the 60mm at the front sucking air in. Just by feeling the airflow with my hand, I guessed that it wasn't going to do much except make a lot of noise.

Ran Motherboard Monitor, and came results were as expected. No significant cooling achieved.

Next I removed the plastic vent that use to be on the side of the case directly over the CPU and installed the 60mm there blowing air INTO the case. That actually INCREASED the max temperature the CPU was hitting and so out of desperation I flipped it around and had air blowing OUT of the case and boom, I registered the lowest temperatures yet.

So this is definitely the optimum setting for me, given the constraints i am dealing with. I haven't tried changing the postion of the 80mm though.

Ambient temperature was around 70F...i mean it was normal room temperature and that reading really shouldn't matter. I have no control over ambient so that temerpature is not going to fluctuate much until summer hits. Ambient is going to be irrelavant in my case....CPU is what will matter.

I know my case air flow SUCKS big time at the moment. That's why I am going for another case. Probably the Antec 3700 BQE or a Sonata.

But my original questions still stand....

[Wiggo]

Yes a better HSF will help once ya have ya new case (the best HSF ain't goin' to work if it can't get enough air to work with). I've got an Antec 1080AMG for my 2.4C to sit in and with the standard Intel HSF I got to 3.24GHz but once I get time to swap a Volcano 7+ in I'll see how much further it'll go.

[Longhorn]

my temporary solution to my heat problems is taking the side of the case off untill i get a new case

[bakkaNekko]

I tried taking the side of the case off too...but it doesn't really help all that much frankly speaking. Don't get me wrong, it does keep the temps down....but well :P

Alright if i am to get a better HSF solution, what would you recommend as the better HSF around ? I don't want to get something that's really noisy....i am not too thrilled at the prospect of listening to a B-52 making a bombing run every time i come home to use my comp :(

Recommendations?

[Longhorn]

for amd This
for intel This

[bakkaNekko]

What do you think of the Zalman CNPS-7000 Al-Cu as a possible HSF? Or would a Volcano or X-Dream SE be better?

[Wiggo]

Any of these HSF's should do ya;
Cooler Master JET 4(ICB-V83)
Cooler Master Aero 4(ISB-V73)
Scythe Kamakaze
Spire SP420B8 CopperStream
Thermaltake Spark 7
Thermaltake Spark 7+
Thermaltake Volcano 7+
Vantec Aeroflow
Vantec Copper X - CCK-7025
CNPS-7000 Al-Cu
Zalman CNPS7000A-Cu

and the expensive jobs;
Alpha PAL8942
Swiftech MCX462
Thermalright SLK947U
Thermalright SP-94

the Cooler Master X-Dream SE is an AthlonXP HSF.

[bakkaNekko]

Well in the end, I decided to go with a Zalman Cu7000 HSF and the Antec P160WF for a case. It seemed pretty decent according to silentcases reviews....hopefully that'll take care of my heating problems (and cut down on some of the noise too!)

[Mista K6]

Very nice choices :thumb:

[440Magnum]

I'm guessing here but I suspect that your heat sink fan blows air towards the side panel. So when you placed the 60 on the side as an intake the 60 would not let the hsf get rid of the hot air.