Cpu Fan \overheating Issue

Hi -
I've been concerned lately about my pc frying.
I have a celeron 2.8ghz cpu and 256mb RAM
The issue is when I play games
like counterstrike and diablo 2 -
after a short while of play the extra fan turns on
and will not turn off until I abort the game and
allow the pc to cool.
My girlfriend says I am paranoid and that the turning
on of the fan is a good thing because it's protecting my
cpu from overheating.
I partly disagree- I feel that the fan turning on is OK
- obviously the cpu is getting hot...BUT shouldnt the fan turn
off after awhile???
Because it does not, this indicates to me that the fan is
not cooling the cpu like it should ; if it is ,it is not cooling
it to the point of temperature that it was before
I commenced the game.
I'm worried that I may shorten the life of my cpu
by continuing to use these games.
Is my worry worth sacrificing personal enjoyment?
Thank you for your suggestions!
-Paul

 

You're jousting with a phantom until you get more specific details.

I suggest that you run Everest or equal and get some idea of what the processor and MOBO temperatures are under normal circumstances.

As a test of the accuracy of those readings, open Everest to the screen that displays temperatures and then place the computer in the standby mode. Leave it for a couple hours. Then activate it and immediately read the temps. They should be reasonably close to the ambient reading. Record the difference and use it for a correcting factor on subsequent readings.

Just because your fan is unable to cool the processor down enough to cycle itself off isn't too much of a concern. Several factors enter into that among which would be the differential between on and off. Monitor the temps with Everest as you play the heat producing game so you can get some idea of what is actually happening.

Post back your finding for analysis and to help others.

 

No, listen to your honey for a couple of reasons. First of all, women are always right - particularly this one. Secondly, if you disregard her comments - you will be sacrificing personal enjoyment.

My take is that you have a variable speed fan with a heat sensor and its doing exactly the job it is supposed to be doing. As your girlfriend will tell you, once heated up, some things take a while to cool down.

 

Thanks all--

wow..Everest is great software!!!
here's the info I gathered:


Before Game play:

Field Value
Sensor Properties
Sensor Type Asus Mozart-2 (SMBus 77h)

Temperatures
Motherboard 61 °C (142 °F)
CPU 43 °C (109 °F)
WDC WD800EB-11DJF0 35 °C (95 °F)

Cooling Fans
CPU 1638 RPM

Voltage Values
CPU Core 1.55 V
+3.3 V 3.18 V
+5 V 4.95 V
+12 V 11.65 V

During Game Play:


Field Value
Sensor Properties
Sensor Type Asus Mozart-2 (SMBus 77h)

Temperatures
Motherboard 64 °C (147 °F)
CPU 57 °C (135 °F)
WDC WD800EB-11DJF0 35 °C (95 °F)

Cooling Fans
CPU 3552 RPM

Voltage Values
CPU Core 1.55 V
+3.3 V 3.18 V
+5 V 4.92 V
+12 V 11.58 V


After Fan runs for 15 minutes:
Field Value
Sensor Properties
Sensor Type Asus Mozart-2 (SMBus 77h)

Temperatures
Motherboard 63 °C (145 °F)
CPU 54 °C (129 °F)
WDC WD800EB-11DJF0 37 °C (99 °F)

Cooling Fans
CPU 3552 RPM

Voltage Values
CPU Core 1.55 V
+3.3 V 3.22 V
+5 V 4.95 V
+12 V 11.65 V


Thanks for suggestions
-Paul

 

Check the sensors accuracy as I outlined earlier. The reading for your MOBO is too high for my liking, IF the sensor is accurate. If that be true, you could benefit from some more ventilation of the cabinet. Perhaps you have it enclosed or otherwise in a poor air circulation area? Have you cleaned the dust and lint from the interior lately?

As a comparison, my mobo temp never got that high unless I inadvertantly closed the desk door on the compartment that it's located in and it had to breath its own expelled air. When it reached 148 I got a BSOD and that has caused me to remove the door so it won't happen again.

If your computer has adequate air exchange, the cabinet should only feel barely warm.

On the other hand, your sensor may be inaccurate and all may be fine. Test it and see.

Here are some comparative readings from my P4 running at 2.6 Gigs

 

On a more serious note, you are obviously running warm. If you don't already have them, I'd suggest an intake fan in the front of your case (most cases have a removable plastic cage in the bottom front) coupled with an exhaust fan (other than your PSU) mounted in the back. The key here is to "ventilate" your system as Surferdude referenced. Yes, your CPU fan is a variable speed sensor controlled fan, but it needs some help.

 

I would just add that while you are "gaming ", not only is the CPU getting hotter, also the video card chips, the memory chips, etc. They are all outputing heat into the case, the heated air is then used as cooling for other components so the whole system (everything inside the case) is at a higher temperature. Consider moving the airflow faster through the case, just as Surferdude and Rockster suggest. You can get a fan/temperature controller which installs into one of the 5 1/4" drive bays and could be used while you are gaming, but it may be more than you were considering (although you are considering giving up gaming).

Maybe also consider running the games at lower levels. Go to the "Options" and reduce the settings.

An afterthought...do you have adequate clearance behind the case for the heated air to "escape "?

Matt
PS Rockster...classic...

 

Thanks for the feedback.

I have 5 3/8" space between back of cpu and a wall, is this sufficient?

yes, it never feel hot.
sometimes a bit warm

I dont know what to say..it's a Compaq Presario S5100NX
I've heard horror stories about Compaq - I know first hand that
thier support ***** ..you get some underpayed , over skilled
guy in India who cant speak English but knows 7 Assemblers!

Oh yes , speaking of...anyone here skilled in Ix86 ASM?
It would be fun to learn how the fans are controlled ..so I
can turn them on\off when I want.
I have a good level of asm skillz from my early VX days
but I never got into any specific area of device I\O.

Well Thanks for advice.
Sounds like my pc is OK but running a bit hot.
I'll run some more tests under Knoppix STD
and post those here as well
l83r
-Paul

 

That sounds OK in my book. Serious gamers may make a hole through the wall though . As long as there are no other "restrictions "...eg, shelves, back of the desk, etc.

I was thinking...maybe check in the BIOS settings, you may be able to control at what temperature that fan stops. It will start again if the temperature gets to the on setting.

Matt

 

Another thought here. A lot of the older compaqs used passive CPU cooling with one big duct over the CPU heatsink leading to an exhaust fan on the back of the case. While I doubt that this is your setup, you may be well advised to invest in a better CPU heatsink/fan. The quaility of better CPU coolers can make a considerable difference in temperatures. At the same time, air circulation in your case is critically important and an easy inexpensive fix, so make Surferdude's "adequate ventilation" your first step.

 

hi .thanks for more advice.
I checked the hardware monitor in the BIOS
first thing this morning....so pc had like 16 hours to cool
anyway,

the cpu temp was at 113 F but then within 10 min jumped to 125 F
the fan had kept jumping back and forth between 1614 and 16122 RPM
then when the cpu temp reached 125 F the fan was hopping from
1622 to 1130 ....back and forth.

I dont know what to make of all this but I have to say my system runs
fine even when that fan is running.
I've never had a BSOD except for one time I had a driver conflict
Anyway,
gtg
thanks
-Paul

 

another handy tool...

Paul:

you can also try motherboard monitor 5, another handy tool to not only check the temperature of you cpu, but other components in your motherboard.

 

Hmmmm..........I have a P4 2.66 and a NVIDIA card, and the CPU stays around 95 normally and when more app intensive, 125 degrees. The mobo normally is around 85 and while gaming, it jumps too 105. I have two case fans (one that's aprt of the power supply and another huge one). I leave a 2ft space to the back and 4in. around the sides. Is this machine running warm?