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  1. Member
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    My AM3+ system (ASRock 960 gc-gs/ AMD FX 4300) is no longer useable for anything
    that stresses the CPU (like video encoding).
    At 90% + CPU utilization, it gets up to 80 C in about 6 minutes,
    PC shuts down.
    There is a thermal throttling setting in the bios, but it seems ineffective.
    Voltage, as shown by HWMonitor is approx 1.3 at idle, 1.25 at load.

    I found out, by setting the CPU voltage to manual, (HWMonitor now
    shows 1.27 volts at idle, 1.21 at load). It's a small difference, but now
    the CPU gets up to 73C and seems stable there

    The CPU has been reseated, the fan and heatsink are clean.
    It's a budget motherboard, I just wonder if the voltage regulator circuitry
    has worn out ( no sign of bad capacitors)
    Any thoughts appreciated
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  2. I'm a Super Moderator johns0's Avatar
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    Get a better cooler,those stock coolers are crap.
    I think,therefore i am a hamster.
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  3. Stock coolers are crap indeed, but a well-designed motherboard should prevent the system from shutting down. Some motherboards have insufficient thermal controls - not enough sensors, or the sensors located in wrong places measuring wrong temperature, etc. It seems that you found a solution that keeps your system working. A better cooler will help cooling the CPU, it won't help bad thermal protection. But in the end, you will be able to run your CPU faster.

    I installed a huge copper Zalman cooler into my 2008 HP desktop: it is efficient and quiet, it also has manual control.

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  4. I'm a Super Moderator johns0's Avatar
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    Doesn't matter how well designed a motherboard is,having a crappy cooler can overheat any motherboard.
    I think,therefore i am a hamster.
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    Thanks guys, I actually have one of these sitting around,
    https://www.coolermaster.com/catalog/coolers/cpu-air-coolers/hyper-212-evo/
    If I can find it, I will see if it fits (I used it on an earlier AMD board a few years back).
    If not I'll look into your recommendation

    I understand what you're saying about the stock cooler; it's marginal. I've been using this system
    for about 4 years and it was OK to begin with (bought used as a board/cpu combo from eBay),
    but over time the inclination to overheat has got progressively worse.

    Point taken, changing the cooler may extend the life of the system, and possibly allow me to
    return the BIOS back to auto for the CPU voltage (if not I can always slightly undervolt it
    as I'm doing now, it seems stable)
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    Originally Posted by johns0 View Post
    Doesn't matter how well designed a motherboard is,having a crappy cooler can overheat any motherboard.
    Hi johns0
    Well this it at the other end of the spectrum, it's a budget board; I saw some criticism elsewhere about boards from this
    era and design - one of the things that was mentioned was the mariginal VRM.
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  7. aBigMeanie aedipuss's Avatar
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    use a good thermal paste also. cheap stuff can dry up over time and become worse than nothing.
    --
    "a lot of people are better dead" - prisoner KSC2-303
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    Originally Posted by aedipuss View Post
    use a good thermal paste also. cheap stuff can dry up over time and become worse than nothing.
    Yes. I have Arctic silver 5, also a bigger tube of TG-3 by Thermaltake.
    Looks like I'll be doing it again once I either find my old fan or purchase a replacement.

    Regarding the Motherboard in general, here is an interesting thread discussing the design shortcomings of the Budget ASRock
    boards of the era:
    https://www.overclock.net/threads/how-can-i-check-if-my-fx6300-is-faulty.1499698/
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    The other thing, regardless of the other issues, the CPU runs cooler if I leave the side of the case off.
    Perhaps as much as 5 C. I don't think this case has ever had a particularly good air flow,
    I have typical fan at the back of the case blowing out and (at the present) the stock cooler and its fan.

    The power supply is at the top, and has a (feeble) fan blowing air out the back.
    Neither that fan nor the other one seem enough to get the hot air out
    faster than it builds up

    The side vents, nor front of the case is not blocked, I don't get it
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  10. Member pchan's Avatar
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    Unless this system has some PCI cards that a new system is not able to support, it's wise to scrap it. I am using a core i7 2600 which is about the same vintage as your system and it's running OK. AMD FX 4300(Piledriver core) has overheating problem. AMD's Bulldozer, Piledriver, Steamroller and Excavator cores almost sent the company into bankruptcy. Putting money on this system is the same as throw money away. Of course, now AMD make better system than Intel.
    Last edited by pchan; 9th Jun 2022 at 01:45.
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  11. I'm a Super Moderator johns0's Avatar
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    Just listen to people in the forums who know about the mb and under volt and put in the good cooler system,if it's still not good enough then upgrade.
    I think,therefore i am a hamster.
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  12. Member pchan's Avatar
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    Originally Posted by johns0 View Post
    Just listen to people in the forums who know about the mb and under volt and put in the good cooler system,if it's still not good enough then upgrade.
    It might save mother earth with less ewaste but it's not worth the time and money. AMD was brought to its knees with those products.
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    Appreciate the different thoughts and perspectives.

    There's a certain amount of nostalgia involved, the two HDD's inside and the case itself, have survived
    while the motherboard and power supply have been changed 4 times over the last 17 years. The two XP installs in there had to have
    repair installs to keep them running after the MB change(s), while the Windows 10 is a recent install. The whole thing is running fine
    within the limitations I have outlined.

    For casual use, mainly web browsing and other light usage, it'll probably last into the forseeable future. NO reason to just scrap it.

    Pchan -
    the system is main board only, no add on cards. the last upgrade I did to it was 4 > 8GB of RAM two years ago.
    Not worth spending much more money on it, agree with you there.
    But I don't mind working on it, and I'm prepared to upgrade the CPU fan.
    You're right about the history, that set of processors up until the time Ryzen was created was a terrible time
    for AMD.

    johns0 -
    yes, this is most likely my way forward. I use this PC with other family members, but I'm the only one that runs anything likely
    to "push" the system. For video encoding, I may have stabilized it by undervolting the CPU, but the fact is the performance and capability
    is a limiting factor in doing demanding video work. Seems like what I need is a new desktop for myself !
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  14. I still run with and AMD phenom 2 X4 955 (the generation prior FX). I get maybe 50°C cpu temp during games/encodes with the side case always open. But the FX are known for excessive temps. get a good cooler (copper based) or perhaps a good AIO water cooling
    *** DIGITIZING VHS / ANALOG VIDEOS SINCE 2001**** GEAR: JVC HR-S7700MS, TOSHIBA V733EF AND MORE
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