More cooling? Overclock recommendations?

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Seldorin

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Mar 26, 2007
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I just upgraded my video card to a GTS 512 and was wondering if I need some additional cooling in my case. I've never overclocked but I would like to try since I have parts capable of doing it. I just want to make sure I have enough cooling so I don't mess anything up. Anyway, this is my build:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
EVGA 122-CK-NF68-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard
CORSAIR Dominator 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
COOLER MASTER Stacker 830 Evolution Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad - Copper EPS12V 750W Continuous @ 40°C (825W Peak) Power Supply
Creative 7.1 Channels PCI Interface Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty Professional
EVGA GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0

The only fans I use are the ones that came with the case (2 I think, one front and one rear), and one that came with the motherboard over the processor. My idle temps are:

VGA Core: 58ºC (between 70-80ºC under load)
VGA Ambient: 47ºC
Processor Core 0: 46ºC (between 50-60ºC under load)
Processor Core 1: 46ºC (between 50-60ºC under load)

I don't have any thermal paste on my processor at the moment but when I purchase more fans/heatsinks I was going to grab some of that as well. Anyway, any thoughts or ideas on what I should throw in there if I want to start overclocking my system? It seems pretty warm even with stock settings..
 
Those temps are high even for air cooling.

I'd say do your research first before you start changing any numbers in the bios.


If your case temperatures are a lot higher than the ambient temperature of the room then you have some areas that you need to improve in your case to get the temps to a close enough level to start oc'ing.
 
What kind of case do you have?
If you don't have thermal paste on the cpu, I assume you have some kind of TIM.... right?
 
I am using the Cooler Master Stacker, I posted the exact one in my first post. Actually I don't even have a TIM, just using the normal fan that came with the motherboard. I am looking into purchasing a fan/heatsink combination for my processor and picking up some AS5 while I'm at it. Was also thinking about getting 4 more case fans for the side panel since all I have are the two it came with in the front and back.
 
TIM = Thermal Inteface Material.

If you don't have any heat transfer compound you are gonna run really high temps on your CPU unless both the heatsink and CPU are perfectly flat, and that ain't gonna be very likely to happen... ever.
 
Seldorin said:
I am using the Cooler Master Stacker, I posted the exact one in my first post. Actually I don't even have a TIM, just using the normal fan that came with the motherboard. I am looking into purchasing a fan/heatsink combination for my processor and picking up some AS5 while I'm at it. Was also thinking about getting 4 more case fans for the side panel since all I have are the two it came with in the front and back.
Click to expand...

Sorry, I see the case in there now, lol.
Anyway, you better get some interface material between the hs and the cpu, or you are going to run into a lot of issues; thermal throttling, random restarts etc...
As for overclocking, you really need to get an aftermarket cooler.
For a good cheap option, I recommend the Zalman CNPS 9700. Often less than $50, easy to install and very good. Looks nice too.
If you want to go something more expensive, I have the CoolIT Eliminator, and love it. Watercooling plus TEC's equals awesome cooling.
 
Yeah I am ordering some thermal paste with the fans I get. Do you think the Zalman one you mentioned is better than this Arctic Cooling one? I've just been browsing newegg and reading the forums here. Purchasing 4 more case fans for my side panel should help too right?
 
Seldorin said:
Yeah I am ordering some thermal paste with the fans I get. Do you think the Zalman one you mentioned is better than this Arctic Cooling one? I've just been browsing newegg and reading the forums here. Purchasing 4 more case fans for my side panel should help too right?
Click to expand...
I would hold off on the fans for now...
The AC hs/fan, espevially considering the $, is agood way to go.
 
So just getting a good CPU hs/fan is enough? It's not worth having more than 2 case fans if I plan to OC even with a GTS 512 in there? For the CPU I am still deciding between

Zalman CNPS 9700
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro

But I was also thinking of grabbing a couple of these Silverstone FM121 case fans.

How does all of this look for cooling my build when I start to OC? I don't really know which CPU cooler to get, but it would be nice if it fit in my case (which is pretty large anyway) and if I didn't have to dismantle everything in my case to install it (if it's even possible to install without removing the motherboard).
 
Ok so I made up my mind after more reading. Instead of going with either of the CPU coolers I listed above I decided to grab the KINGWIN Revolution 12025. It's the first non-stock cooler I've ever bought so I figure it'll be good enough to use on my first overclocking experience. Plus I can install it without removing the motherboard--always a perk. I'm holding off on any side panel case fans to see how the cooler fits in my case and to observe the temps before purchasing any unnecessary fans. Thank you all for your help.
 
Modred189 has been giving you good advice through this whole thread.

This is my very first post on this forum but I'm by no means a beginner to overclocking. Take my advice too... A noob can burn up a processor just as well as an expert by getting a cheap/unproven heatsink. The fact that you are new to this sport is all the more reason to get a good heatsink.

BTW I'm using the same case with 4x120 Scythe fans in the side.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185005

The air coming out of my exhaust fans is always cool as a cucumber.
 
Lord Lollipop said:
Modred189 has been giving you good advice through this whole thread.

This is my very first post on this forum but I'm by no means a beginner to overclocking. Take my advice too... A noob can burn up a processor just as well as an expert by getting a cheap/unproven heatsink. The fact that you are new to this sport is all the more reason to get a good heatsink..
Click to expand...

Agreed. Why would you save $20 on your cooler when you plan to oc? The zalman has nearly 600 reviews, most very positive, and your kingwin has NO reviews at all.

Seems like a very unnecessary risk to me...

Liike I said via pm... check out the C2D oc database, no one uses kingwin ANYTHING. That's not to say it's a bad cooler... just a risk not worth taking.
 
Yeah, the reason I chose the kingwin (rebadged xigmatek) is because after reading many reviews of it and input from other people on the forums here and from anandtech, it appears to be significantly better than the AC Freezer 7 Pro while around the same price and easy to install. It's relatively new technology and the 120mm version hadn't actually appeared on newegg until I pasted the link in my message yesterday when I checked again. I just didn't really want to spend a lot of money and dismantle my motherboard to install a cooler when I just want to get started OCing and not try to max anything out. However after all of the help from you all, if I do get really into OCing and want to push things as far as I can, I will invest in either the Zalman or the TRUE-120. This is a good comparison of the Kingwin I chose:
http://www.hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1258394&highlight=kingwin
 
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