H50 / Q6600 Core temps

I installed a H50 onto an older HP (Asus OEM) motherboard (IPIBL-LA http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01077641&tmp_task=prodinfoCategory&lc=en&dlc=en&cc=us&site=null&lang=en&key=null&product=3623090#N443). I have an Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 G0 (not overclocked). Before installing, I had just moved everything from the original case (except the 300w power supply and video card) to a new case with a bigger power supply (550w) and better video card (GTX 460).

I never really tracked CPU temps before. I did some searching and picked up both Speed Fan and Real Temp. Since I had a Quad core, I read that Real Temp was actually supposed to be more accurate, so that's what I've been using.

I noticed that my cpu core temps at 50% usage were getting up around 145f and that concerned me. I was expecting the temps to be lower because of the perceived better airflow in the new case. I tried different combinations of case fans and nothing seemed to make a difference. Room temperatures were never higher than 78f.

Knowledgeable friends suggested I replace the stock cpu fan. I found the H50 and it "seemed" easier for me to install than some of the other aftermarket fans. I installed the H50 and did notice a difference. However, it wasn't as big a difference as I expected. I was running about 125f at 50% and around 95f at 2 to 3%.

I ran through the checklist in the sticky " READ THIS if you are getting high temps with the H50": I do have the fan blowing air into the case through the radiator. I actually had to replace the Corsair fan with a Cooler Master Blade Master PWM fan that had higher RPMs because HP in their infinite wisdom had Asus disable the CPU FAN part of the BIOS and the Corsair fan was not recognized by the BIOS. I do have a question about the second one. I'm a visual person. I'm unclear about what the poster meant by the fact that he had put the retention bracket mount UNDER the retention bracket. I know what the retention ring or retention bracket is. I'm not sure what the retention bracket mount is.

2. Is the mount ON TOP OF the retention bracket?

During installation I had put the retention bracket mount UNDER the retentention bracket. This caused a 1-2mm gap between the base of the CPU and the base of the cooler. From top to bottom, the order should be as follows:

H50

Retention bracket mounts

Retention bracket

CPU

Motherboard

Backplate

After talking with my "knowledgeable" friends, again. I decided to RMA the case I got (pws on top near cpu) and go with a Thermal.... V4 (pws on bottom) (I have a 17" height limit) that has a place for exhaust fans on top, intake on bottom and front, if needed. I also had a friend who had a Corsair HX620 pws sitting around (he'd replaced his with a 1000w so he could crossfire) so I decided to use that power supply just in case there was an issue with the new 550 I had received as well.

After spending way too much time moving everything over -- yes, I now know that the radiator has a slight (1/4 ") issue with the top of the Thermal...., ugh. I also decided to take the time to re-seat the pump on the processor. I cleaned the old paste off, using a soft clean, lint-free cloth, first, then a q-tip with a slight bit of alcohol to make sure everything was clean. I then followed the directions on some A.... Formula 5 (supposedly the same as Arctic Silver and the only thing I had available to me)

One thing I did notice when cleaning off the copper plate on the pump. I actually saw what looked like a slight gouge, some nicks, etc. I took some pics, just in case.

After everything was assembled, and I started the system back up, I was a bit heartened, in that even though I would see the temps jump up as cpu usage spiked they would go down just as fast. That was something I did not see before. It was very early in the morning before I finished. I left the machine running -- not in test mode however.

Later that day I decided to play some WoW since that was where I would tend to see the highest sustain temps and I was getting up around 128f to 133f on all four cores, but what was interesting was that previously, the first core was usually the higher temperature core, now it was the 4th core.

I'm not sure what to do. How to diagnose, etc. Any suggestions? Please let me know what else you may need to know about my system, etc.

Thanks in advance from this CPU newbie!

With no air cooling on this rig ever, so I have no base.. But when I keep my house at 62F at night, at idle I can drop the temp to 62F and when I keep it warmer, its warmer. As in this cooler at idle keeps me at room temperature.

I had zero problems on the install, did it by myself (the little two sided pads held the bracket in place just fine.. and I see NO spaces and what I would call good tension on the processor itself.

When I bench stress for an hour I see nothing warmer than 124F.

I did add a second fan, I was able to use my original ******** (from the case) And put it on the other side.. If this was not a gift I would buy the H70 simply because more fluid = less fan rpm at the end.

I love this device. Ive already clocked to 3.6Ghz.. and my temps are about 78F at idle at that clock.

Hope you work your issues out.

With no air cooling on this rig ever, so I have no base.. But when I keep my house at 62F at night, at idle I can drop the temp to 62F and when I keep it warmer, its warmer. As in this cooler at idle keeps me at room temperature.

 

I had zero problems on the install, did it by myself (the little two sided pads held the bracket in place just fine.. and I see NO spaces and what I would call good tension on the processor itself.

 

When I bench stress for an hour I see nothing warmer than 124F.

 

I did add a second fan, I was able to use my original ******** (from the case) And put it on the other side.. If this was not a gift I would buy the H70 simply because more fluid = less fan rpm at the end.

 

I love this device. Ive already clocked to 3.6Ghz.. and my temps are about 78F at idle at that clock.

 

Hope you work your issues out.

1) My house is much cooler at night, usually no warmer than 70f, and around mid to lower 60's if it's that cool outside.

2) I couldn't see any spaces, BUT I am sometimes visually challenged and since I had to put the mobo in the case before I mounted the pump it is kind of hard to get a good look. However, it did seem firmly in place. My only concern was that everything I read elsewhere about mounting heatsinks indicated no movement of the heatsink after having it touch the processor. I'm not sure about anyone else but for me the only way to get the retention screws/bracket to NOT pop off when holding up so that you can lock the pump into place didn't leave much room and I can't say for sure that the pump didn't touch the processor at anytime before getting locked into the ring.

3) I can't do a push/pull unless I put one outside the case because there just isn't room unless I go with 2 slim 120 fans and I'm not sure I'm there yet.

4) I REALLY want the H50 to work out, which is why I've gone to all of the trouble I've gone to and also made this post. :biggrin:

5) Thanks!

Does anyone think I should RMA the H50 due to the nicks and marks on the copper plate? I really need some answers since this machine is used daily for my work.

Thanks in advance!

the marks i see are totally insignificant.

i would like to know the exact method you applied the paste if you dont mind :)

These are the instructions from the manufacturer:

Instructions:

1. Remove any thermal pads or other compound from the heat sink and the CPU core surfaces.

Use a LINT FREE cloth and low residual solvent such as isopropyl alcohol or acetone (nail polish remover) to clean the mating surfaces completely. Make absolutely sure the surfaces are free of foreign materials such as old compound, a hair, piece of lint or oil from fingers. Note: Never use any oil or petroleum based cleaners (WD-40, citrus based grease removers and other automotive degreasers) to clean the surfaces.

2. Put a finger into a clean plastic bag and apply a small amount of Silver Thermal Compound to the outside of the bag. To apply the compound, use a circular motion to rub the compound onto the base of the heat sink where the CPU core will contact it. Use a LINT FREE cloth to clean the surface again.

DO NOT use any solvent or fluid this time.

3. Slowly and carefully squeeze about 1/2 size of an uncooked grain of white rice or 1/4 of a BB to the CPU core.

4. Use a razor blade or the clean edge of a piece of paper to spread the compound over the core. Note: DO NOT use your finger to apply or smooth the compound.

5. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to secure the heat sink. Minimize any "Twisting" or lateral "Sliding".

For Step 4, I ended up using a stiff piece of card paper to try and spread it thinly and evenly. The first time, it didn't go well at all. It was very splotchy. A friend suggested I use the plastic bag method for step 4 as well. It also seems that the first bit out of the tube may have been separated. I cleaned the processor again and started over. I used a very tightly wrapped plastic bag around my index finger and smoothed the thermal paste across the processor until I got a thin, even coat.

I'm attaching a picture, before I cleaned up the outside edge.

If I didn't tighten it evenly, though I'm fairly sure I checked for movement, etc, could that cause the temps i'm seeing?

Would it be worth it for me to just loosen the screws and retighten, or would I need to remove entirely, remove, clean and reapply the paste and then re-seat the pump. I know I didn't tighten in the recommended pattern as I didn't see the diagram online until afterwards. I didn't see anything in the packaged instructions, but then I may have missed that somehow.

Thanks!

those instructions are for a bare core CPU not a quad with the metal cap.

the paste on a quad core intel should be in a straight line. too much IS too much (i found out the hard way myself!!

like this...

i dont think you put it on correctly..

never spread the compound on an i7/5/3

 

This is what it looked like after I cleaned it off and before I applied the paste. I don't think I have a "metal cap" like yours shows in the picture.

I have a Core 2 Quad Q6600, not one of the new Quads.

http://img515.imageshack.us/i/cpuinmobouf1.jpg/sr=1

Note: This is not my processor, it's just a picture I found that is almost identical to mine.

I'm not sure I made this clear, so I'll mention this here. I cannot control the intake fan (for the radiator) on the CPU FAN header via BIOS nor the pump on the SYSTEM FAN header due to the fact that HP had ASUS disable and hide that part of the BIOS. Do you think that connecting those to some sort of a fan controller might give me better results?

What should be the RPM range for the pump and fan. BTW, I did switch out the Corsair fan to a Cooler Master Blade Master PWM that will go up to 2000 RPM so that I would not get a CPU FAN failure error at start up.

its not about the fan rpm its the CFM that matters.

the pump needs to be at 1400-+

there is a metal cap, those are not the cores.

http://media.photobucket.com/image/under%20the%20cpu%20heat%20spreader/ericeod/sidebysidecomp.jpg with and without the "heat spreader" that's what i meant by metal cap, i just couldn't think of the word before :)

its not about the fan rpm its the CFM that matters.

the pump needs to be at 1400-+

Okay then I can see where I have several problems. Well, possibly. If I'm looking at Speedfan, how can I tell which Fan number would be the one plugged into the SYSTEM FAN header and which is into the CPU FAN header? Fan1 is running anywhere from 850 to 890 RPMs and Fan2 is running 1350 to 1400. I'm thinking Fan2 has to be the CPU FAN header because otherwise I'm fairly certain I would get the BIOS error that would shut down the computer.

there is a metal cap, those are not the cores.

 

http://media.photobucket.com/image/under%20the%20cpu%20heat%20spreader/ericeod/sidebysidecomp.jpg with and without the "heat spreader" that's what i meant by metal cap, i just couldn't think of the word before :)

So it looks like I need to remove the pump, *again* and put a long bead down the center, like your picture shows? I'm wondering why no one else bothered to tell me I put it on wrong? Does it matter which direction? And when putting the pump back on how careful do I have to be to make sure the pump doesn't touch the paste until it's been twisted under the locking tabs? It would have been nice if Corsair had given us just a fraction of an inch more leeway to work with. :roll:

Thanks!

check in the BIOS for the fan / pump speeds.

watch the videos if you haven't already http://www.corsair.com/cooling/hydro-series/hydro-series-h50-cpu-cooler.html click the videos tab.

check in the BIOS for the fan / pump speeds.

I can't. Sorry if this sound's testy. I'm just very frustrated with HP. :( This is why I asked about the RPMs from Speed Fan.

HP had ASUS disable and hide that part of the BIOS.

those basstarts. i understand.

compare everest and speedfan but one at a time.

pretty much as long as your pump speed is 1400-+ the fan you can always use a molex and a fan controller. me personally i dont pipe much from board headers i use adapters right from the psu.

let us know the avg speed ok?

Everest is giving me pretty much the same speeds.

Can you recommend a good fan controller? I'd like to get one that I can see temps and RPM's since I can't via BIOS. Or, will the software (Speed Fan / Everest) will be able to read the RPMs from the controller?

I have two other case fans so if you know of one that will handle 3 - 3pin fans (pump, top case, bottom case) and 1 - 4pin fan (radiator), that would be great! I have an Antec Tri-Cool with a switch that I can manually set for the front, so I don't need a controller for that one. I need one that will have whatever wires that need to go to the mobo headers so that the BIOS won't freak and decide to not boot.

I'm not really sure which fans (other than the radiator - intake and the top case - exhaust) should be intake and which should be exhaust. So, if y'all want to give suggestions, I'm open. :)

Thanks!

Just thought I'd come back and update what I ended up finding out and doing.

• I added an AeroTouch 1000 fan controller and used it to control the pump, the PWM attached to the radiator and the top and bottom fans
  
• The front Tri-Cool, top, and bottom fans are all set for exhaust. The radiator fan is set for intake.
  
• I used a single wire off of the Tri-Cool to connect to the SYSTEM FAN header and the Aerocool had a similar Y with two wires to connect to the CPU FAN header so that the BIOS would not error out.
  

The software SpeedFan is reporting ~1900 RPM for the system fan which is about right for the Tri-Cool which tells me that it was probably correctly reporting the pump rpms at 880 to 890. Which in turn explains why my core temps weren't dropping like they should. As soon as I connected the pump to the fan controller, I was getting 1300-1400 RPMs and the core temps are not going above 45c and when they do go up, they come down fairly rapidly.

I want to thank everyone for their help.

:D:

hey good deal!!

cheers!