Build Log: i7 920 rig [Update: Installed Dark Knight 7/20]

GT3mich
The cooler I linked to was designed for i7 first. As for lapping you're right about voiding it. How far off are the temps?
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It seems to be about 4 degrees from the highest to the lowest when dealing with max temperatures. Or are you asking about something else?

The coolers are still a bit expensive. The Megahalems alone costs ~$60, then I would need a good fan. It still seems weird to me that a cooler that also works on the 775 socket, should work efficiently on the 1366. I don't think I'm ready to decide now, but I could get a OCZ Gladiator Max for about $33. I'll scout the for sale section on one of the computer forums, maybe I can find a good deal sooner or later.
 
Actually I think I might jump on that Gladiator Max, despite it being a 775 cooler. It should do the job and fan seems pretty quiet, topping out at 1500RPM.

How would I remove the thermal pad off of the CPU?


edit: Also found where I saw the shared memory. I'm guessing this is how it's supposed to be

hd4850.jpg
 
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GT3mich
I just wipe it off with a cotton swab and follow up with Isopropyl alcohol. Looks like new.
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Wouldn't the cotton leave lint or something?

What about putting the thermal grease on? I think it's similar to your cooler but the gaps between the pipes are worse.
 
Cotton swab = q-tip. I've never used a thermal pad, just the grease. It looks like it covers well though. You just have to use new material when ever you remove the cooler.
 
ROAD_DOGG33J
Wouldn't the cotton leave lint or something?

What about putting the thermal grease on? I think it's similar to your cooler but the gaps between the pipes are worse.
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Cotton balls shouldn't leave anything behind, but you can use a lint free cloth if you want. I usually put a little isopropol alcohol on the cotton ball to clean it off, then do another pass with a dry one.

As for spreading the paste into all of the nooks and cranies, Id do it just to be on the safe side.

Eitherr the TRUE or a the Meglaham with a good push-pull setup would be optimal.
 
Solid Lifters
Use only 99% Isopropyl Alcohol. I've read about what you plan to do, so I know that much.
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That's useful since I was planning to use 90%, but apparently we're out. I guess when the sites say pure they mean pure.


I e-mailed Intel about safe temperatures. I doubt their response will tell me anything I don't know, but I'll see.
 
All this talk got me into replacing my cooler. I went with this one.
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler $29.61 after $10 mir
It was one of the best for the money when it was released.
35-233-003-03.jpg
 
Nice^^

Here was Intel's response:
Thank you for contacting Intel Customer Support.

I understand you are looking for information on the operating temperature of the Intel(R) Core(TM) 2 Quad processor Q9300

The maximum operating temperature of the Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-920 Processor is 67.9 degrees Celsius. As long as the processor is operating under this temperature it is operating within specifications. We do not have a normal operating temperature for the processor as this temperature will vary depending on the chassis and other hardware installed on the system as well as the actual load the software is placing on the processor.

You may verify the thermal information for this processor here:
http://processorfinder.intel.com/details.aspx?sSpec=SLBEJ
http://processorfinder.intel.com/details.aspx?sSpec=SLBCH

There is always going to be a 5-to-10-degree difference between cores because there is a main core, which is going to have the constant load of the system (even when this is at idle conditions) and a secondary core that the motherboard and the operating system would determine when to function.

Furthermore, this type of situation is usually related to the incorrect recognition of the processor by the motherboard. This can happen because of static, grounding or the incorrect BIOS revision loaded. This could end up in wrong information reported to the operating system such as overheating or wrong specifications on the processor.

To reduce overheating you will need to use a thermally advantaged chassis. A Thermally Advantaged Chassis will help reduce overheating to a minimum. Please check the following website to identify a thermally advantaged chassis:
http://support.intel.com/support/processors/pentium4/sb/CS-008537.htm

We recommend contacting the motherboard manufacturer for them to advice on thermal monitoring software.

Also, high CPU utilization is almost always caused by an application or program, in many cases a virus or spy ware; therefore, make sure that your antivirus is up to date since this could end up in an overheating issue.

I would also recommend running the Intel(R) Processor Identification Utility to properly identify your Intel(R) processor.

The Intel(R) Processor Identification Utility was developed by Intel(R) Corporation to enable consumers the ability to identify and, in some circumstances, determine if their Intel(R) processor is operating at the correct speed intended by Intel(R) Corporation. You can download this utility at:
http://www.intel.com/support/processors/tools/piu/

Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you need further assistance.
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Pretty much what I would expect, but at least they confirmed the max temperature I should aim for.

I looked at their "thermally advantaged chassis" list and one of them looked worse than my case with no front fan at all. My case does have a side duct, but I removed it since it was off.

5-10 difference on the cores? Going between 2-4 right now.

I like the recommendation to contact the motherboard manufacturer. One of the pieces of information I put in was the motherboard.
 
GT3mich
All this talk got me into replacing my cooler. I went with this one.
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler $29.61 after $10 mir
It was one of the best for the money when it was released.
snip*[/IMG]
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I have this cooler too. Its simply amazing that at 4.2 Ghz I was only getting 45C idle

There is a socket 1366 version of this called the dark knight, which I think is very close to the TRUE:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029

I dont remember the price being that high for some reason.
 
opendriver
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029

I don't remember the price being that high for some reason.
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That's because it wasn't. I think it was $39.99 with free shipping. Recently they removed the free shipping and I guess now they just increased the price instead. I'm liking the new Egg Saver shipping, though not the DHL part.



edit: I first ordered the Gladiator Max, but I canceled the order. The Dark Knight is $36.98 at chiefvalue. Hopefully the PWM will save me from the noise.
 
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Feel free to share any pictures if you will be taking some. How are you putting on the thermal grease? Are you going to spread it or fill in the cracks and do the two lines?
 
Installed the cooler. Idle temps went from 46,40,41,45 to 30,26,28,25! Thats a huge drop in temps. I used AS5 in a 5 point drop pattern. You start with a small drop in the middle and then add 4 more about 1/2 inch away in the shape of a box. No spreading. Here is a pic with the cooler installed.
Xhdtfan.jpg

I'm very happy with the cooler. Took about 10 minutes to install.
 
That looks good. Did you switch out the stock fan? I'm guessing you're not using the motherboard fan controller.


On another note, I didn't know "water" cooling got so cheap. The Domino ALC goes for under ~$80.
 
So I was switching out the fans in the old computer and it triggered in my head that I put in the rear fan in the wrong direction. :ouch:

The CPU temp is down by about 2 degrees. The video card seems to be about about the same, possibly worse. The power supply is probably a bit worse off. But the hard drive is 3-5 degrees cooler.
 
I did the installation yesterday. It sucked having to take out the motherboard and getting the cables plugged in again. There were a couple of moments where I thought I might have damaged the motherboard. It also took me a while to get the thermal pad off of the CPU. Most of it came off right away, but a tiny bit was probably still left on.

For the thermal grease, I used TIM Consultants T-C Grease 0098. I put some on the heatsink and filled in the cracks using a sandwich bag. Then I put two lines down in between the heatpipes and placed the heatsink down on the CPU. I had to remove the side fan since it didn't clear the heatsink. The GPU temp is about the same, at least during idle.

Max temperatures were now 68-65-64-64 with HT off. The fan only went up a little under 1200RPM. But turning the fan on to max speed only dropped a couple of degrees (2-3 C). With HT on the hottest core was 71 and the fan going up to 1600RPM. The max speed of the fan is ~2000-2200RPM.

IMG_7241.jpg


 
That thing sure is Dark! Never heard of the sandwich bag technique. I see your temps dropped quite a bit though.

From July 12th
Though I did run 2 passes of Linx and the core temperatures got up to 86 85 82 and 83
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From today
Max temperatures were now 68-65-64-64 with HT off
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What about noise? The loudest fan in my PC is the GPU fan. I turn it up when gaming but turn it down for normal use.
 
GT3mich
That thing sure is Dark! Never heard of the sandwich bag technique. I see your temps dropped quite a bit though.

From July 12th

From today

What about noise? The loudest fan in my PC is the GPU fan. I turn it up when gaming but turn it down for normal use.
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I think in the pictures it's a little bit darker than in the flesh. I actually saw the sandwich bag technique on youtube. But the actual way to do it is to spread a thin layer of paste on the CPU. I did read that it's good to fill in the cracks.

The temperatures dropped about 15 degrees when factoring in HT. When I turned the fan to max, it dropped down another 3 degrees. Plus before the rear fan was facing the wrong way, but it didn't help that much.

I'm not sure about how much they should drop. I may have put on too much paste. This thermal paste is a bit more viscous than AS5. And I moved the heatsink a little when aligning the screws. But it feels good knowing that the processor is operating cooler.

With the fan control on, it's pretty quiet even at 1600RPM. At 2000RPM it wasn't that loud. I didn't notice the graphics card when gaming, though some people have said that it is loud. The loudest thing on the computer is probably the DVD drive. You can hear the hard drive working pretty well too.
 
I just ordered the Dark knight and i have a revision, but basically the same case as yours (fan is on side of case instead of in front). I'm guessing you have the rear fan set to blow air out, and have the cpu fan blowing air out as well? I was t 3.5 w/ stock cooling. i wonder if I can hit 4 with the DK
 
Gabkicks
I'm guessing you have the rear fan set to blow air out, and have the cpu fan blowing air out as well? I was t 3.5 w/ stock cooling. i wonder if I can hit 4 with the DK
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Yep, though there is a bit of an offset since Intel put the RAM on top. 4GHz should most likely be no problem if you got to 3.5 with stock cooling.
 

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