A64 X2 6000+ Brisbane temperature issue

TomMe · Post by **TomMe** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 9:49 am

Hey guys,

According to my temperature monitoring software, my A64 X2 6000+ Brisbane gets too hot. The maximum temperature I've observed during the last few weeks was a peak of 63Â°C today with CPUID Hardware Monitor, probably because of the warm weather. According to AMD the maximum safe operating temperature is 62Â°C so this doesn't sound very healthy. I don't understand why this is happening, I've tried everything I could come up with to get the temperature down, but it just won't work.

Here are the things I have tried:

I've mounted and remounted (and remounted) 3 different coolers: my stock AMD heatpipe HSF which I even lapped, my trusty Thermalright XP-90 + Nexus 90mm and I even bought an OCZ Vendetta 2 which should be comparable in performance to the Sigmatek HDT-S1283.

I've tried lowering the vcore, but at 1.325V my system is unstable and the stock voltage is 1.4V so this doesn't leave much room to work with. Right now I'm running Prime95 @ 1.35V @ 61Â°C max already, and I don't know about stability yet.

I've pulled off the side panel of my case and let a large fan blow cool air into it. This lowered the CPU temperature to a maximum of 57Â°C after 45 minutes of stress testing. It's something, but shouldn't I see a much larger improvement? The Vendetta heatsink feels mildly warm to the touch during stress testing (my optical drives are warmer), and the case air feels a bit too warm when I put my hand inside after opening up the side, but who knows.

It's been suggested I should get a better case, but good cases are expensive and I'm used to my current one. The question is, will a new case improve the airflow over my components and thus lower the CPU temperature. I have a feeling this chip just likes it hot, especially because leaving the case open and blowing cool air into it doesn't help much.

I've had no temperature issues with my A64 4000+ and Core Temp reports around the same temperatures as CPUID HWM but CT makes my system crash regularly. Oh, I have a Chieftec Dragon case with 2 80mm Nexus fans blowing air out the back.

What do you guys think?

LodeHacker · Post by **LodeHacker** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:25 am

63C load, right? Not idle temperature, correct? How's ambient temperature there?

psiu · Post by **psiu** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:38 am

Well, if it's a Brisbane, the DTS sensor is broke anyway. Does HWMonitor give you an alternate CPU temp from the motherboard?
Also, are you sure it's a Brisbane? Only ask since there were 3 different 6000 models--2 of which were Windsors.

Do you have any intake fans?

TomMe · Post by **TomMe** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 11:17 am

LodeHacker wrote:63C load, right? Not idle temperature, correct? How's ambient temperature there?

Yes, that's the maximum load temperature of one of the 2 cores. The idle temps are around 31-35Â°C/39-42Â°C for the 2 cores. What do you mean with ambient temperature? I don't have a thermometer, but I would say it's the warmest day of the year yet.

psiu wrote:Well, if it's a Brisbane, the DTS sensor is broke anyway. Does HWMonitor give you an alternate CPU temp from the motherboard?

Yes, here's a screenshot: link. SpeedFan also reports much lower temperatures, at least I think those are the core temperatures. There are so many sensors, I don't know what is what so I don't really trust it. Even more so because Core Temp and CPUID HWM show comparable results. Here's another screen: link.

Also, are you sure it's a Brisbane? Only ask since there were 3 different 6000 models--2 of which were Windsors.

Yes, it's a 89W Brisbane.

Do you have any intake fans?

No, due to too much noise. They're 80mm intake holes, and I have a suspended HDD in front of it so I don't know if I can put some fans there, I'll check. But..will it help? The large fan next to the case didn't..

edit: RMClock shows around 34Â°C for both cores, wish it were true.

LodeHacker · Post by **LodeHacker** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 12:28 pm

Well, you know how warm the human body normally is, right? So when idle, take off the side panel and touch the heatsink with your fingers (hold the fan with your hand for a few seconds if you need to). Now describe how it felt, was it warm or hot? this way you can at least be a bit more sure if the readings in SpeedFan are correct.

psiu · Post by **psiu** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 1:44 pm

The DTS sensor is what Coretemp is reading, and what HWMonitor reads as the core temps (thus being identical). However the CPU temp being read is still high...if you can finesse an intake fan in it might help.

One thing I've noticed is that the airflow is touchy--you can take the side of a case off but temps for certain things may go up since you are "short-circuiting" the airflow (ie a rear fan is just pulling air in from the open side instead of bringing it over all the components).

What are you using for thermal paste, Colgate?

TomMe · Post by **TomMe** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 2:46 pm

LodeHacker wrote:Well, you know how warm the human body normally is, right? So when idle, take off the side panel and touch the heatsink with your fingers (hold the fan with your hand for a few seconds if you need to). Now describe how it felt, was it warm or hot? this way you can at least be a bit more sure if the readings in SpeedFan are correct.

I just touched it during load, it was a little warm but it cooled down very rapidly after the case stayed open, even the top of the heat pipes. I've never known a CPU heatsink to be hot to the touch though.

psiu wrote:The DTS sensor is what Coretemp is reading, and what HWMonitor reads as the core temps (thus being identical). However the CPU temp being read is still high...if you can finesse an intake fan in it might help.

I'll see what I can do tomorrow.

One thing I've noticed is that the airflow is touchy--you can take the side of a case off but temps for certain things may go up since you are "short-circuiting" the airflow (ie a rear fan is just pulling air in from the open side instead of bringing it over all the components).

I get what you're saying, but I aimed a 40cm fan at maximum setting directly at the CPU heatsink and temperature dropped by only 4Â°C. Is that normal?

What are you using for thermal paste, Colgate?

Arctic Silver 5. I could try Colgate, but we'll put it in the "maybe category" for now..

TomMe · Post by **TomMe** » Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:57 pm

Hmm, my computer seems to have crashed after 6h30m of Prime95. The monitor was blank when I woke up this morning and the system didn't respond. That's twice I've had that in 2 days, once @ 1.35V and once at AUTO settings.

Could I be dealing with a malfunctioning CPU? I've never had any troubles with my 4000+, it passed 12 hours of Prime and Memtest just last week.