my new comp:

asus p5p800s
p4 3.2ghz 540 lga775
zalman cnps7700 alcu
2 x 120mm fans in the case

mother board and hdd temps never go above 30c

my CPU temp:
48c idle
temps go up to 77c when i put on winamps visualization plug in
which puts about 50% stress on the cpu
but it might even go hotter if i didnt stop it

is this normal? i wouldnt want my cpu temp to go above like 65c!!!

i re-installed this 7700 cooler 3 times already... no luck.
i checked many forums, a lot of people complain about this cooler.
and at the same time a lot of people love it... and have good results with it..

what am i doing wrong?
i read up on thermal paste. i cleaned off all the leftover thermal paste, and applied a perfectly thin layer each time (i guess)...
what should be an ideal temp for this cpu with this cooler?
what temps are you guys getting?

i loved my 7000alcu cooler on my other p4 northwood 3.2ghz...
temps never go above 43c under full load. this is why i got the 7700 for this new cpu

i'm already giving up on this after 2 weeks of nightmares
any help is apprechiated. thanks.

Unfortunately, I don't know about your specific HSF/ CPU combo, but it does seem like an air prob. You say you have repeated the paste app, so either A: the surface of the sink is grainy and needs to be sanded (lapped) down, or B: airflow. I'm guessing it is the latter. Are there any ribbon cable blocking the fan or the sides of the sink? Is your power supply or other hardware mounted in such a way as to impede airflow? Try looking for these signs and leave your case side off while you start it up. Also make certain there is an actual air flow from your case fans. Again, blockage, unplugged fan, or having all fans blowing in or out will cause a prob, but with the side off you should see better temps and you can take it from there.

Is the fan running full speed?

yes, fan is att full speed...
i also tried it both with the fanmate on, and off

the side panel of the case is off all the time..
i got a nexus fan in the back for exhaust, but when i turn it off it doesnt effect the temps that much.
also the psu fan is pulling the air out from inside...
and i got an aerocool fan in the front blowing at the hdd...
not too many cables.

here are some pics:
http://mysite.verizon.net/ndroid/comp1.jpg
http://mysite.verizon.net/ndroid/comp2.jpg

here is a forum where a lot of people are having the same problem:
http://www.zalmanforums.com/showthread.php?t=769

i still trust in this fan, its gotta be good if it works for a lot of other people...
its just some lack of information that keeps me from installing it right i guess...

any ideas?

Gently press evenly on the heatsink while running a constant load application. I te temperature drops ou have a mounting problem.

looks like you purchased a problem! Judging by A: zalman sinks are generally not for O/Cing B: the wattage of your cpu and C: the numerous complaints about that sink from so many people on that link; I would say you should be looking for a new one. The only thing I see wrong with your setup is the lack of material in that sink. It doesn't seem to have half the meat that a stock sink has. Those deals are for people who want their computer to be quiet and just do what it is told. Same kind of people who blow up the motor on their car because (enter god of choice) forbid they get dirty or have to maintain something when they have money to do that for them. I personally like my desk sounding like the deck of a carrier!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by WrathOfSocrus looks like you purchased a problem! Judging by A: zalman sinks are generally not for O/Cing B: the wattage of your cpu and C: the numerous complaints about that sink from so many people on that link; I would say you should be looking for a new one. The only thing I see wrong with your setup is the lack of material in that sink. It doesn't seem to have half the meat that a stock sink has. Those deals are for people who want their computer to be quiet and just do what it is told. Same kind of people who blow up the motor on their car because (enter god of choice) forbid they get dirty or have to maintain something when they have money to do that for them. I personally like my desk sounding like the deck of a carrier!!!!

You obviously dont know what you are talking about considering half the people on this forum own a 7000 or a 7700. Our very own $SOLID$Necro was able to reach like 9th on the hall of fame in 3dmark05 using a 7700. You say they arent for overclocking yet he has his Athlon 4000 at like 2.8ghz on it and his Mobile Athlon at 2.6 on a 7000. I have a 7000 on my pc and right now it is running 32C. He A) Prolly isnt making good contact with the cpu. B) Put to much or to little of thermal grease or putt some ****ty kind on. C) He got the aluminum copper version D) He has a newer Intel which put out more heat than the sun. BTW If i were to blow up a fookin motor on my car it would be cuz I was pushing it to the limit not because I didnt want to get dirty.

Have you tried flashing the bios on the mobo?
If it isn't a mounting problem, there may be a problem with your monitoring software.
I've owned 3 different motherboards that have required a bios flash (to the most current bios) in order to correct a temp reading problem with the cpu (one of which was an asus).

judging by his posts/ pics I'd say you are on target with C and D on your list. I didnt say zalman doesnt have any enthusiast products, I was saying many of their items are geared toward a silent PC and comparing overclocks on a mobile AMD(or any AMD) to a 3GHz + P4 is a true apples to oranges affair. That P4 connector was made for just that . . . the P4's need more electrons to perform the way they were made to.

better yet I retract my statements in this post. I dont know wtf i'm doing

Quote: Originally Posted by WrathOfSocrus better yet I retract my statements in this post. I dont know wtf i'm doing

good boy.......

peace out i'm goin to a different site . . .

well.. i dont use artic silver 5. i just use the regular zalman thermal greese i got with the heatsink.
but would artic silver fix a problem like this? my cpu temp jumps like 30c in a matter of seconds, when i occupy the cpu.

in 1-2 seconds it jumps from 48 idle to 58, then in the next 5 seconds it jumps to 68, then it kinda slowly goes up to 78... and the CPU is only used at 40-60%... with winamp visualization..

i need this pc for music making, running a lot of synths and ****... where i need the cpu power to constantly support my apps for hours and hours... on my other pc it works great.. with the cnps7000 it never goes above 43c...

i tried applying gentle pressure on the cooler while some apps were stressing the cpu... nothing really happened.. the temps didnt drop.. the cooler is strongly screwed into the brackets, so it cant even move a milimeter... so pushing down on it doesnt help i guess...

i have the latest bios updates. these versions support asus Q-fan control. i just enabled it to see if it does any magic, but it doesnt effect the fan speed at all.. also i heard in speedfan i can speed up the cpu cooler fan, but i couldnt figure out how... right now i'm not using the zalman fanmate , so the speed is constantly around 1800rpm...

i'm still confused about the thermal greese thingy.. how much should i apply? i put a paper thin layer.. it was all grey, but i could still see the writings on top of the cpu.. kinda transparent...
its evenly spread...

a question. does it make a huge difference if i use alcohol to wipe off the left over greese from a previous install? i did not use alcohol.. but i used very soft cotton things (kinda like tampons.. lol).. and it completely cleaned off every bit of greese my eye could see.. (and i have a good eye)
maybe the alcohol cleans the microscopic pieces?

its pretty cold in my case... when i put my hand around the 7700 theres wind all over the place... and its not even warm.. its kinda cold.. i cant sense any heat... only a little bit coming from the ati 9200se when i put my hands 1/2 inch from it...

i also have a thermaltake silent tower.. and i will put that on, if i see no more hope...

but i know i still havent tried everything, so there is hope...

so keep the ideas coming !

and thanks for all the help...

Quote: Originally Posted by n604 well.. i dont use artic silver 5. i just use the regular zalman thermal greese i got with the heatsink. but would artic silver fix a problem like this? my cpu temp jumps like 30c in a matter of seconds, when i occupy the cpu. in 1-2 seconds it jumps from 48 idle to 58, then in the next 5 seconds it jumps to 68, then it kinda slowly goes up to 78... and the CPU is only used at 40-60%... with winamp visualization.. i need this pc for music making, running a lot of synths and ****... where i need the cpu power to constantly support my apps for hours and hours... on my other pc it works great.. with the cnps7000 it never goes above 43c... i tried applying gentle pressure on the cooler while some apps were stressing the cpu... nothing really happened.. the temps didnt drop.. the cooler is strongly screwed into the brackets, so it cant even move a milimeter... so pushing down on it doesnt help i guess... i have the latest bios updates. these versions support asus Q-fan control. i just enabled it to see if it does any magic, but it doesnt effect the fan speed at all.. also i heard in speedfan i can speed up the cpu cooler fan, but i couldnt figure out how... right now i'm not using the zalman fanmate , so the speed is constantly around 1800rpm... i'm still confused about the thermal greese thingy.. how much should i apply? i put a paper thin layer.. it was all grey, but i could still see the writings on top of the cpu.. kinda transparent... its evenly spread... a question. does it make a huge difference if i use alcohol to wipe off the left over greese from a previous install? i did not use alcohol.. but i used very soft cotton things (kinda like tampons.. lol).. and it completely cleaned off every bit of greese my eye could see.. (and i have a good eye) maybe the alcohol cleans the microscopic pieces? its pretty cold in my case... when i put my hand around the 7700 theres wind all over the place... and its not even warm.. its kinda cold.. i cant sense any heat... only a little bit coming from the ati 9200se when i put my hands 1/2 inch from it... i also have a thermaltake silent tower.. and i will put that on, if i see no more hope... but i know i still havent tried everything, so there is hope... so keep the ideas coming ! and thanks for all the help...

Yea its ok to use alcohol. I would invest in some good Artic Silver 5 and try again. It could be the bios thats giving off the wrong reading. If you could id hook up a thermal prob to the cpu.

I might be off base here (wouldn't be a first ), but i believe that a probe would have to touch the IHS (Integrated Heat Spreader) dead center in order to give an accurate-ish temp reading. That would mean either drilling a hole through the HS or cutting a groove in the base of the HS to allow clearance for the probe wire. I think that n's proc has too many pins to be able to cut a groove in the ziff socket and run a probe to the underside.

Definitely use isopropyl alchohol to clean the surfaces when prepping for thermal paste/pad.

Although time consuming, try mounting the other cooler and see what sort of temps you get.

When you apply the thermal grease, it should be the size of a BB, I usually have the CPU off the mobo when doing this. Use a credit card to spread the grease evenly, then carefully put it back in the mobo. When installing the HSF on the CPU, set it flat on the CPU and gently give it a lil twist to seat the HSF to the CPU and finally tighten (carefully of course).

There is absolutely no way that AS5 versus anything else, properly applied or not, will make a 15-20 degree difference.

Either your mounting is off, or your temp readings are inaccurate.

What ^he^ said.

You should also review your thermal compound application procedure. Read the correct one here.

How bout updating your BIOS? My MSI had a huge error in calculating temps and it was fixed in the following BIOS update. Try updating to see if that works. BTW at 77C does your computer reboot? If not i would think that your temp gauge is off 77c is damn hot, most peoples computers reboot at around 66c

EDIT: err i guess someone mentioned this already...

Quote: Originally Posted by Dreyco How bout updating your BIOS? My MSI had a huge error in calculating temps and it was fixed in the following BIOS update. Try updating to see if that works. BTW at 77C does your computer reboot? If not i would think that your temp gauge is off 77c is damn hot, most peoples computers reboot at around 66c EDIT: err i guess someone mentioned this already...

latest bios revision didn't help. putwig has hit the nail on the head, and i was hoping that n604 would try the other heatsink to see what sort of temp readings he got with it (hopefully the results would help to determine whether it was a mounting problem with the Zalman, or if it was a bum temp sensor).