Abnormal i7 920 temps!

[idata]

Hello People,

First off - I love intel (yes a typical "fanboi"). 2ndly, I never ever had any issues with intel proc. till now. Hence would deeply appreciate every word posted by anyone of you here to help me out with my problem.

Below is my config :

Intel Core i7 920 D0 stepping with stock cooler at stock speed.

Gigabyte GA EX-58 UD5

Gskill PC12800 1600mhz 2x3 GB

EVGA GTX 260

Tagan BZ-800w

500GB Seagate

The problem :

Ever since i got this processor, I have been plagued with issues of high temperatures. I know that the i7s run a bit hotter than the C2D/Qs, but the temps that i am getting compared to others in my vicinity is simply abnormal.

The temps @ 17degrees ambience (thats pretty much lower than the normal room temps!) : core 0-3 > minimum 53-57 degs. and 77-80 degs maximum at load!

I have tried reseating the processor umpteen number of times, tried applying different TIM's to the stock cooler, replaced motherboards, coolers etc. but the temp problem still exists. In the past i had a biostar X58 and the temps were as good as present. I also had a TRUE(after market cooler) from a friend to rule out any issues with the stock cooler - it made me happy by 2-3 degrees but that is not acceptable isn't it?

I have been using realtemp, coretemp and many other temp readers

Now, i am out of suggestions, ideas and most importantly patience. Please help me with this problem and i will forever be indebted to you

Another question is that - Can i opt for RMA for this problem or will intel shun it down saying "no problems found" ?

I have never gone for RMA for intel processors till now, can anyone guide me where to go in India, Mumbai ?

Thanks a million in advance!

Regards,

Anish

[plee21]

Hi

77-80 degrees at maximum load is absolutely fine, quite often the BIOS doesn't speed up the fan until 80 degrees is reached so those temperatures are by design.

The temperature readings are taken from the hottest part of the CPU directly on the silicon, and the amount of transistors packed into the CPU means that the waste heat from the CPU can't be passed to the heatsink any faster for lower operating temperatures.

Silicon can run at 150-200 degrees so while 80 degrees seems hot to us the CPU is quite happy.

Note that using a burn-in program to artificially stress the CPU can cause the CPU to overheat, although no damage will be done as it is designed to slow down automatically to allow it to cool, this is because the CPU and cooling solutions is designed for normal use where the CPU isn't running at maximum for extended periods.

Regards

Phil

[idata]

afaik 80+ is not what anyone wants. At same ambience temps, i have my neighbour who has the same CPU which idles at 33degrees. I do intend to overclock my CPU and the idle temps do reach 70+ which is not really a good sign. Why the difference in two of the same CPUs under same conditions?

Even at stock, when prime95 is run, the temps reach 90+ and the system shuts down. This has been thoroughly noticed on two different systems and different motherboards.

Speaking about the BIOS speeding up the fan, I have an after market cooler fitted for a couple of days and the temps are still on the higher side.

So, does that mean I cannot overclock my CPU and just live with the high temps and at the same time look at other i7 owners happily overclock and live with the low temps?

I'd certainly like to know if intel can help me with the RMA on this.

PS : Before this processor, I had a i7 920 C0 (which is not so accepted in the overclocking community) which had lower temperatures than this. I seriously feel that the current processor is faulty.

[plee21]

Hi

You said "and 77-80 degs maximum at load", at full load that temperature is as expected, you now seem to be saying your temperatures are going much higher and that 80 degrees as idle temperature, if so something is wrong.

Have you checked task manager to see if at idle all cores are 0-1% utilised? Is the BIOS set to manual or automatic voltages and is EIST enabled? Have you checked for a BIOS update for your board?

I think it unlikely the processor is faulty, but it can happen.

Regards

Phil

[idata]

77-80+ goes when the load is like 20% (mostly while gaming, everyday usage). When testing stability, the temp goes way above 90 on stock speeds.

EIST and C1E is enabled. When the CPU is idle (12x, 1500mhz) the temps are near 45. BIOS is set to automatic and at present only the rams are clocked to match 1600mhz as rated with the uncore at 3333mhz and 1.6v. BIOS is updated to the latest 9FM from gigabyte website itself.

The C0 that I had earlier, gave out really nice temperatures (used to idle at 32-36 when o'clocked to 3.7ghz and shoots to 66 at 100% load). Ideally, the D0's should have better temps than the C0 as they need lesser volts to reach better clocks.