Cooling a 1.4 XP

[ThatPianoGuy]

Hi guys!

I'm curious to know, does it matter at all if my cpu runs somewhat hot? If I run my CPU at 65 C will it hinder stability?

Basically, I just bought an ABIT KG-7 RAID and an Athlon XP 1.4 (OEM) and I have no intension of over clocking it (for now), but it absolutly must run super stable and as quiet as possible. I'm not interested in water cooling, and I'd rather not spend a ton of money on a heat sink but people seem to recommend the Zalman:

http://www.inflowdirect.com/zalmancnps5000.html

Do I need to go with the fancy heatsink? I mean heck, even if it does run hot I'd save on my heating bill..

Kind Regards,
Rob

 

[BR34K]

Time will tell i suppose. 65 is quite hot, i would reccomend a better heatsink and fan personally. But if youv'e been running it a long time without stability issues and you really don't want to spend 20 or 30 bux, then just stay the way you are, and if you do start having problems get better cooling..... Ummmm is that 65 temp in idle? or after running games and what not. If thats idle,,,get better cooling.

 

[Blain]

"Do I need to go with the fancy heatsink?"

YES, you do!
When you signed up as a member of the AnandTech forums, that obligated you to buying the best/wildest cooling solution you can afford. You can make your purchase from the "For Sale/Trade Forum", a quality vendor or even whip something up yourself. Regardless of which option you choose, you MUST HAVE some fancy cooling!

 

[Buz2b]

does it matter at all if my cpu runs somewhat hot? If I run my CPU at 65 C will it hinder stability?

Does it matter? YES! At least if you are interested in keeping that system for any length of time it is. Continous running @ 65C is a sure way to a shorter cpu life. Hinder stability?? YES. YMMV, but depending upon the peculiarities of your system, you can start having stability troubles at a lot lower than 65C.
As to the Zalman; you don't need to spend $40 for a good HSF. I'm not judging the zalman either, just saying that you can get something that will do the job as well or better for less $$.

You can get an AX-7 for about $24.00.
You can get an Alpha PAL8045 for $33.00.
Or, if you already have a fan (or want to pick one of your own), you can get a Thermalright SK-6 for about $20.00.
Or if you are even more budget concious, you can get an
SVC Golden Gate for about $10.00. I haven't used one on a 1.4 yet but it is rated very well and should do the job.

Before you plunk down your hard earned cash for a new HSF though, make sure the rest of the variables are in line. You need to be sure you have decent airflow through the case (what is the case temp?). Is your current HSF mounted properly? Does it use the "thermal pad" or a decent quality thermal paste such as ASII or ASIII? Many other factors to consider before buying new hardware like this. Do a search or just look around in this section and get some idea of how you are doing with the other variables first.

 

[farmercal]

Even when I had stock cooling my temps were 28/43 never as high as 65! I even had my BIOS set to shut down if it got that high. I recently bought the Thermalright AX-7 and put a Vantec Stealth 80MM fan on it and the temps are better and I can't even hear the fan at all. The AX-7 will mount on just about any motheboard and putting it on was a snap. Hint: mount the heat sync without the Arctic Silver 3 just to get the hang of mounting so when you use the AS3 you don't smear the stuff off during the mounting process. IMHO $25.00 is a modest investment to protect a $100 CPU and you can use the HSF forever.