G0 Q6600 temp. Oddly high despite many attempts.

[Sly Fox]

As the picture below will show, my Q6600 is only moderately OC'd (8 x 400) and yet the temps seem far too high. This is using a Zalman CNPS9700 cooler. I know it's not THE best, but it ranks up there.

I've already remounted the CPU 4 times. Twice with AS5, twice with Zalman product.

At this point the only thing I can think of is that perhaps the IHS on the CPU is very convex/concave and I simply am unable to notice with the naked eye.

As such, I got 260, 400, 600, and 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper and am currently planning on lapping the IHS and HSF, then remounting with MX-2.

Thoughts? Thanks!

[sesion]

As the picture below will show, my Q6600 is only moderately OC'd (8 x 400) and yet the temps seem far too high. This is using a Zalman CNPS9700 cooler. I know it's not THE best, but it ranks up there.

I've already remounted the CPU 4 times. Twice with AS5, twice with Zalman product.

At this point the only thing I can think of is that perhaps the IHS on the CPU is very convex/concave and I simply am unable to notice with the naked eye.

As such, I got 260, 400, 600, and 1500 grit wet/dry sandpaper and am currently planning on lapping the IHS and HSF, then remounting with MX-2.

Thoughts? Thanks!

Overvolted... for 3200 It shouldn't need that much, also your cooler is weak :P Get True

[Sly Fox]

I have a P5KC which has a massive vdroop. It's only ~1.30 volts under load. If I take it down one notch voltage wise it becomes unstable after long enough in Prime95.

As for why I don't get a new board, well, I simply don't have the money to throw down $150+ on a better one for nothing more than less vdroop.

As for the TRUE, if I was given one I'd use it, but I simply don't think it's a big enough jump over my CNPS 9700. I could be wrong, but nothing I've ever seen has led me to believe otherwise.

[[XC] 4X4N]

Those are fairly high, what's your ambient? Also, how about air flow in your case. And, load temps?

[AngryArtichoke]

Lapping made a huge difference on my e6600.

The remount should help eliminate the mounting as part of the problem as well.

[Sly Fox]

Ambient temp ranges from 72* F to 78* F.

My case is a mid tower Lian-Li and I would say has excellent airflow.

3 exhaust fans (1 being 5000 RPM)
3 intake fans (1 being 120mm)

Those are fairly high, what's your ambient? Also, how about air flow in your case. And, load temps?

[scottc19]

What motherboard? On my 680i, when I upgraded to the newest bios, my temps dropped 10C

[Sly Fox]

Asus P5KC

What motherboard? On my 680i, when I upgraded to the newest bios, my temps dropped 10C

[[XC] 4X4N]

Damn, your temps should not be that high. I am using a big typhoon on one of my quads, not as good as the zalman you have. It's at 3.2, 1.3v, about 70f ambient. Idle's around 33-35, load 52-55. Runs WCG 24/7.

[Sly Fox]

Well then I guess it's settled, tomorrow when my 3870x2 and MX-2 paste comes I'll get to lapping.

I've never lapped before, so I just a quick question here.

I have 200, 320, 400, and 600 grit paper (thought 1500 too, but no). It's the wet kind as I've been instructed to get.

I don't care about aesthetics, just performance, will 600 grit be fine enough for the IHS and HSF? Or will I need to go out again and get 800 - 1000?

Feeling the 600 grit it certainly appears to be very fine, so I'd imagine it will do the job sufficiently.

Thanks

[[XC] 4X4N]

I have lapped many and can tell you that above 600-800 is for looks only. When you have re-seated, has the contact been good? On some of the worst chips I've had, only the edges were making good contact, with a big dip in the middle.

The set-up I referred to on my other post, the big typhoon is lapped, but not the cpu.

[Hockster]

As for the TRUE, if I was given one I'd use it, but I simply don't think it's a big enough jump over my CNPS 9700. I could be wrong, but nothing I've ever seen has led me to believe otherwise.

I have a B3 quad on a Maximus Formula. I swapped by Zalman 9700 for a TRUE and a Scythe 1600RPM fan. Idle temps dropped by 5°C and load temps by 12°C.

[Sly Fox]

I'm not certain how I would tell if the contact was good. However the screws to the HSF were certainly fully tightened and it feels very snug.

I have lapped many and can tell you that above 600-800 is for looks only. When you have re-seated, has the contact been good? On some of the worst chips I've had, only the edges were making good contact, with a big dip in the middle.

The set-up I referred to on my other post, the big typhoon is lapped, but not the cpu.

[[XC] 4X4N]

You can tell by how the paste is. Nice and smooth, good contact. Rough and bumpy, bad contact. When you take it off again, put a razor blade on the ihs and a light shining behind it. Then you'll see how flat, or not, it is.

[Sly Fox]

Ah, well I recall it being fairly bumpy. Certainly not flat. I mean, it wasn't a rat's nest of twists and turns or anything, but it wasn't "flat."

I'll have to try that razor blade trick, thank you!

One other thing.

You don't apply any force downwards when lapping correct? You just "slide" the IHS/HSF across the surface, letting gravity do the work.

[[XC] 4X4N]

Yes, light pressure, and take your time. Here is pic of the last chip I did. I started with 220-400-600-800. I don't usually even bother with 800, but even at 600 this one was looking pretty good, so I just gave it about 5 minutes with 800. You can see some of the fine scratches, but it's still fairly shiny and very flat.



EDIT: Here is a shot of one of my TRUE's I lapped. They are a great cooler, but the base is terrible. And they are a to lap. This is also with 800 grit. I rounded the edges a bit, but it doesn't affect anything. Just to give you an idea that you can still get a good finish without going to 2000 grit

[Sly Fox]

Wow, that looks great, hopefully I can get mine at least near that finish.

I'm still fairly nervous about this, but I feel that I know what I'm doing. At least theoretically :P

**Edit**

Ah yes, almost forgot. I have a granite countertop in the kitchen. Should that be flat enough?

[[XC] 4X4N]

I use a piece of glass. Got it at home depot for a couple bucks. Its about 9x12 inches. I tape the glass to my workbench, then tape the sandpaper to the glass. I also use a drop of dishsoap with the water. Helps keep it from getting caught, especially with a big hsf.

[jonny_ftm]

The CNPS9700 has a backplate, so it will be hard to mount it wrong. Lapping the CPU can lead from 0-12°C improvement. In my case, 3 lapping sessions, the last one up to 1800 grift, didn't improve my temps by even 1°C, but you loose warranty and resell value on ebay

At 25°C ambiant, your CPU temp is 30°C at 3.2GHz and 1.43v (delta to ambiant 5°C) and your cores delta is 15°C to the CPU (45°C)

I don't see how people think you can improve it as you're in the normal limits for your vcore/speed

Now, the best test would be core temperatures when you full load with Prime 95 in small FFT. Your vcore will drop to 1.30v, and if you get load temperatures around 50°C, you'd be happy on the Zalman. I got that cooler, I know how it performs as I tested on one B3 and two G0 Q6600 CPUs

So, better not lap for now, just load with Prime95 and see what it gives you. Your idle temperatures are normal and you won't get below that unless you have a lower vcore on idle or change cooler (in that case, with a delta of 5°C to ambiant on the CPU, you won't improve by more than 2-3°C on idle, so useless). Really, you have to load it and tell us before digging further