Discussion CPU getting too hot! help

[alex5]

Hey

I recently upgraded my Mobo and CPU which has led to much higher temperatures.

I was running an i5 8400 before which ran very well, I was getting temps of around 60 degrees whilst playing Call of Duty Warzone and it was running at 100% capacity.

Now, however, my new i5 10600k is running much hotter. On COD warzone, it has gone up to the 95s and has an average value of around 75 degrees.

I used Cinebench and it went to 100 Degrees within the first 30 seconds at 100% capacity so I turned it off.

I have tried remounting the CPU cooler with new Thermal paste but it hasn't made any difference.

Is this Processor too powerful for such a small SFF case? I have 3 case fans blowing at 100% with a CPU fan too but it's not cooling down.

Specs:
i5 10600k
GTX 1660ti
Silverstone Raven RVZ03 Case
MSI z490 Mobo
Corsair SF 450w PSU
16gb Ram
Noctua NH-L9i CPU cooler
2x Fractual Design 120mm 1500 case fans
1x Noctua NF-P12 120mm 1700pwm case fan

Should I just bite the bullet and buy a bigger case such as ATX and hope that helps?

Many thanks for your help

 

[ezerez]

Noctua rates the NH-L9i for 59 watts and the 10600k is a unlocked 125w cpu. So yeah its gonna be hard to cool that. You could look into undervolting/powerlimiting the cpu which might get you like 90 percent (just guessing here) of the performance but much better thermals. Or you could replace the cooler. I see silverstone allows for a 83mm high cpu cooler so a Thermalright AXP-100 or a Black Ridge with a noctua 120x25 fan on top would be good options I think.

 

[alex5]

Thanks for your reply, I naively did not release the wattage from the i5 8400 to the i5 10600k would be so different.

It looks like I will need to upgrade my CPU Cooler then but I am definitely limited by the Silverstone case.

Does anyone have any other good options for a CPU Cooler that can cool a 125w CPU aside from a Thermalright AXP-100 or a Black Ridge?

 

[rcodi]

L12S could be another option that seems to be well regarded for your case, may have clearance issues depending on socket offset/RAM height though.

Edit: Looks like the MSI Z490I Unify isn't compatible due to I/O shroud height according to Noctua.

 

[ezerez]

Also according to noctua its only good to 88w https://noctua.at/en/noctua-standardised-performance-rating thats why I didnt mention it. But it would still be better then the cooler you might have now and might be sufficient. TDP doesnt tell the whole story anyway, you bought and intel K cpu which is meant for overclocking. Normally these chips are better binned also (more efficient). So if you just tweak some settings to reign in the power usage (limit power in bios, lower voltage etc. ) you might be able to get it to run decent even on the cooler it has now but it might not give all its potential (but might still be faster then your 8400). If you want to use it to its fullest potential a beefier cooler will probably be needed + I would recommend still undervolting because in a sff case thats always a good thing to do. So in general I would recommend looking up an undervolting guide on google or here on the forum and experiment a little, its always good knowledge/skill to have when you build in small cases where cooling is more limited. You can also "upgrade" the 2 fractal coolers by 2 arctic p12s they are not expensive and give better cooling/more quiet.

 

[rcodi]

Also according to noctua its only good to 88w https://noctua.at/en/noctua-standardised-performance-rating thats why I didnt mention it. But it would still be better then the cooler you might have now and might be sufficient. TDP doesnt tell the whole story anyway, you bought and intel K cpu which is meant for overclocking. Normally these chips are better binned also (more efficient). So if you just tweak some settings to reign in the power usage (limit power in bios, lower voltage etc. ) you might be able to get it to run decent even on the cooler it has now but it might not give all its potential (but might still be faster then your 8400). If you want to use it to its fullest potential a beefier cooler will probably be needed + I would recommend still undervolting because in a sff case thats always a good thing to do. So in general I would recommend looking up an undervolting guide on google or here on the forum and experiment a little, its always good knowledge/skill to have when you build in small cases where cooling is more limited. You can also "upgrade" the 2 fractal coolers by 2 arctic p12s they are not expensive and give better cooling/more quiet.

Based on the NSPR page, you're referring to the NSPR wrong. It's not a wattage rating, it's a scoring system for how well their coolers perform based on controlled testing. The whole point of NSPR is to not refer to wattage to avoid TDP confusion.

If OP had a compatible motherboard the L12S would be a capable cooler according to the Noctua CPU guide.

Don't take this response the wrong way, I just want to make sure we're not spreading misinformation - please correct me if I'm wrong and I will happily edit this post.

I second your Black Ridge recommendation, with full Noctua fan swap is expensive but chart topping (reference).

 

[ezerez]

Based on the NSPR page, you're referring to the NSPR wrong. It's not a wattage rating, it's a scoring system for how well their coolers perform based on controlled testing. The whole point of NSPR is to not refer to wattage to avoid TDP confusion.

If OP had a compatible motherboard the L12S would be a capable cooler according to the Noctua CPU guide.

Don't take this response the wrong way, I just want to make sure we're not spreading misinformation - please correct me if I'm wrong and I will happily edit this post.

You are completely correct. I am very sorry and skimmed through the page of noctua too quick. Anyway the rest of my points stand
noctua even has a page for the 10600k and also say to put some power limits on the L12S

INTEL Core i5-10600K | CPU Compatibility | Noctua Compatibility Centre

Series: Comet Lake-S, Socket: LGA1200

ncc.noctua.at

but like you said it is not compatible. You can at least see the NH-L9i is just not sufficient.
thx for correcting me!

 

[rcodi]

You are completely correct. I am very sorry and skimmed through the page of noctua too quick. Anyway the rest of my points stand
noctua even has a page for the 10600k and also say to put some power limits on the L12S

INTEL Core i5-10600K | CPU Compatibility | Noctua Compatibility Centre

Series: Comet Lake-S, Socket: LGA1200

ncc.noctua.at

but like you said it is not compatible. You can at least see the NH-L9i is just not sufficient.
thx for correcting me!

Totally agree, the L9i definitely has to go.

OP - I suggest checking out the video I referenced above for options, here's a snapshot from it:

Notes:

• Black Ridge with full Noctua fan swap is king but expensive, although any 120mm should help.
  • You can reuse the fan you have on your L9i here.
• Big Shuriken is potentially option but can also be expensive with fan swap (research motherboard clearance)
• The L9x65 may be an affordable option but no potential for fan swap, slight edge on stock Black Ridge.
  • This option also has the same length/width as your L9i so no problems with fit.
• You will still see high temperatures under sustained load without power limit adjustment/undervolting as eserez mentioned above.

 

[alex5]

Thanks for all the help so far. Do we know for sure that the Black Ridge will fit on a Mini ITX MSI Z490 Unify Mobo?

So from the chart above, it would be best paired with a nf-a12x25-pwm? (Noctua 120mm)?

 

[rcodi]

Thanks for all the help so far. Do we know for sure that the Black Ridge will fit on a Mini ITX MSI Z490 Unify Mobo?

So from the chart above, it would be best paired with a nf-a12x25-pwm? (Noctua 120mm)?

Here's someone who tried it, appears to fit.

Correct - An NF-A12x25 on top with the NF-A9x14 on the bottom.

 

[ezerez]

Black Ridge needs low profile memory though, if you dont have that yet, the big shuriken might be the best value option. Its 40 euro here in germany which seems a good price to me, you can always fan swap later but scythe makes pretty decent fans.

EDIT: It comes with a 15mm fan but a 25mm fan on top would still fit in your case. So I would say Big shuriken en buy 3 arctic p12 and replace the ones in the case to improve airflow/noise and the one on the big shuriken to improve its cooling. Think that will give you a good upgrade for the money and enough cooling to tame the 10600k

 

[Tonkatsu]

My i7-9700kf in a Node 202 and an ID-Cooling IS-60 (definitely a subpar cooling solution for that CPU in a tight case) doesn't overheat even playing CP77, Control, AC Valhalla...
At worst in hairy game moments of ill-optimized games, all cores get on their cruise ~4.6ghz speed for a moment, but that's not enough to bring temps up into the danger zone. Most of the time the CPU sees less use than that.

The i5-10600k is a bigger horse for sure, but I'm a bit surprised it'd behave like that, in games I would have expected it to cruise at lower core speeds most of the time, like the 9700kf.
The only way I managed to make it overheat was with deliberate stress tests, there it showed that the IS-60 and its puny 15mm fan are not enough in heavy load situations.

In my experience however, the 65W 9700 (non-K) could be cooled well-enough by the IS-60 even in stress tests, and honestly its performance in games is just as good, heavy parts making it cruise at 4.3~4.5ghz depending on the mobo and RAM, but the temps remained controlled.

Yet, saying that, but I haven't played Warzone, not my cup of tea. Could it be an early example of the long announced and dreaded 'games that require 6~8 powerful cores' ?

Anyway, I have a Thermalright AXP-100 Full Copper coming, if it doesn't get lost or broken on the way, I should be able to tell if I can get better controlled temps with it in the Node 202.
And I also have a SilverStone FTZ01S on the way, of similar design to the RVZ03, in which I'll try various coolers like the IS-60, Big Shuriken 2, and AXP-100 cu with bigger fans.
You should be able to read some results here in the coming weeks.

Do we know for sure that the Black Ridge will fit on a Mini ITX MSI Z490 Unify Mobo?

Once I saw a picture of it on what was maybe a Z390 like the one I use, and in a Node 202.
Well, the heatpipe tips were in the way of the riser card, or vice versa.
The guy bought an expensive soft riser in place, that ended up still touching the tips anyway.

 

[alex5]

I tried Undervolting the CPU last night (first time) and after watching guides, I am pretty sure I did everything it told me.

I checked HWmonitor afterwards and I could see the offset Voltage was the same as what I had entered into Throttlestop.

However, my temps did not change at all, even under stress. I eventually offset it by around 140 which is a fair bit.

 

[ezerez]

I havent done intel undervolting for sometime. But in general if you offset the voltage it will give less voltage for the given frequency so you will produce less heat on the frequency. However if you dont put a powerlimit somewhere it will just keep boosting frequency untill it hits it powerlimit or thermal limit (which is probably 100c). since you offset the voltage lower now it will use less power on certain frequencies and probably boost to higher frequencies untill it hits this power limit. since you are using a z490 and 10600k which is both overclocking hardware its probably be default on no limits. The best way if you want to use your current cooler is combining to limit the power and offset the voltage. I would do this in the bios so you dont rely on windows bootup program to do this. You can also use the intel extreme tuning utility which is alot easier to use then throttlestop to me. There should be long term turbo limit somewhere in intel extreme tuning utility and your motherboard. Maybe it is easier to first try the intel extreme tuning utility and then move those settings over to the motherboard once its running well. Im sorry if im giving to much information or not making sense. If I can explain something better just ask me or you can contact me on discord also.

Here is some more information about the power limits intel uses:
https://www.anandtech.com/show/1578...ext=Intel Core i5-10600K,and 131 W in LINPACK.

I think you will have to limit it pretty hard and lose some performance to get it running with the current cooler. If you want to use it to its full potential you will have no other choice to get another cooler. Im actually gonna do a build with a 10900 with very limited cooling in a week or so, so I can probably give more specific tips once im doing that. Or someone here can chime in and give some more tips.

 

[alex5]

Thanks a lot for your help.

I was able to go into my BIOS and undervolt it successfully. I started with 0.05 which worked, then went straight to 0.1 which crashed pretty quickly. I kept trying and have settled on 0.07.

On 0.07 it crashes after 2 minutes of 100% CPU usage on Cinebench, however, on Warzone my CPU only gets to around 50-60% usage and I just managed to play a full game.

In terms of temperatures....it has done an incredible job.

My temps whilst playing Warzone before were maxing at 95 degrees, now with the undervolt, the max it got during 1 game was 61 degrees.

During Cinebench previously, it got to 100 degrees after 10 seconds, now after 2 minutes, it got to around 70 degrees.

I will of course keep it monitored as I am sure there will be more tweaks to come but it doesn't look like I need to buy a stronger CPU Cooler just yet!

Thanks for everyones help

 

[jakejm79]

L12S could be another option that seems to be well regarded for your case, may have clearance issues depending on socket offset/RAM height though.

Edit: Looks like the MSI Z490I Unify isn't compatible due to I/O shroud height according to Noctua.

He could try the Big Shuriken 3, its pretty comparable to the L12S, but has a few extra cutouts to the heatsink fins so is more compatible with motherboards, for example it fits my Z390 Strix but the L12S says it wouldn't fit. I think with 83mm of clearance you could also swap the slim fan for a full fat Noctua on the Big Shuriken 3. With the slim fan it keeps my 9600K (drawing ~150W) in the 70's with P95 in a 4L case.

 

[ezerez]

Thanks a lot for your help.

I was able to go into my BIOS and undervolt it successfully. I started with 0.05 which worked, then went straight to 0.1 which crashed pretty quickly. I kept trying and have settled on 0.07.

On 0.07 it crashes after 2 minutes of 100% CPU usage on Cinebench, however, on Warzone my CPU only gets to around 50-60% usage and I just managed to play a full game.

In terms of temperatures....it has done an incredible job.

My temps whilst playing Warzone before were maxing at 95 degrees, now with the undervolt, the max it got during 1 game was 61 degrees.

During Cinebench previously, it got to 100 degrees after 10 seconds, now after 2 minutes, it got to around 70 degrees.

I will of course keep it monitored as I am sure there will be more tweaks to come but it doesn't look like I need to buy a stronger CPU Cooler just yet!

Thanks for everyones help

Glad to hear it worked out. Would still put some kind of power limit, it probably tries to get too much power which it doesnt have enough voltage for in cinebench and thats why its crashing. If you put a lower power limit it probably wont crash on 0.07, for general performance this wont hurt since its just very small turbo spikes that need this power.

 

[alex5]

Glad to hear it worked out. Would still put some kind of power limit, it probably tries to get too much power which it doesnt have enough voltage for in cinebench and thats why its crashing. If you put a lower power limit it probably wont crash on 0.07, for general performance this wont hurt since its just very small turbo spikes that need this power.

I couldn't find any options in BIOS for a power limit, do you know what it would look like/its called?

 

[ezerez]

I couldn't find any options in BIOS for a power limit, do you know what it would look like/its called?

should be under overclocking/advanced cpu configuration

you might have to switch the bios to advanced view or something

https://www.msi.com/blog/cpu-cooler-tuning-optimized-power-limit-based-on-cpu-coolers

 

[alex5]

Think I found it,

"The setting you're looking for is called "Enhanced Multi-Core Performance" and is located in the "Tweaker" section of the advanced BIOS. It will be enabled by default. Disable that, and the board reverts to the stock turbo boost rules."

I will give it a go, thanks