iStat readings

[djquash]

Hi all. how do you read iStat temps. I want my overall CPU temp. not the cores & threads.
iStat show CPU A,B,C,D, Ambient, heatsink A & northbridge. I'm assuming abc & d represent my cores. How do i find the overall CPU temp?

many thanks

 

[mmaenpaa]

Heatsink A is the same temperature sensor that you see in bios as cpu temperature.

 

[justr]

Hi all. how do you read iStat temps. I want my overall CPU temp. not the cores & threads.
iStat show CPU A,B,C,D, Ambient, heatsink A & northbridge. I'm assuming abc & d represent my cores. How do i find the overall CPU temp?

many thanks

As far as I know there is no such thing as a "CPU temperature" on the modern, multicore chips. Each core has its own thermal sensor, and the temps on a core can vary quite considerably from one to the next-- so use the hottest core as your "temp" to make wise decisions about overclocking/cooling/load.

 

[djquash]

I've got no overclocking implemented and my i7 920 idles around 50-55c. is that normal, ok? It doesn't get above 75c under load? Stock cooler by the way.

 

[Blackstar]

I've got no overclocking implemented and my i7 920 idles around 50-55c. is that normal, ok? It doesn't get above 75c under load? Stock cooler by the way.

I have a i7 920 myself. It's currently over-clocked to 3.8 GHz and at idle I get lower temps than that.

Currently:

Ambient Room Temp - 20C

CPU
A- 40C
B- 40C
C- 36C
D- 36C

Hard Drives
Hitachi 3TB - 28C
Samsung 1TB - 28C
Samsung 2TB - 26C
Samsung 2TB - 26C

So I think yours may be a bit on the high side. Do you have an active fan controller? Where/what is your case? Is it getting enough air? You may not have enough fans to get the airflow you need. (As a general rule, you want more intake fans than exhaust to maintain incoming cooler air and positive pressure.)

What cooler and thermal paste are you using again, the one the chip came with? You may have too much or too little. The cooler may not be seated correctly. Also your ambient temp of 47C, seems a bit high if that's correct for your room temps.
Might think of getting an aftermarket one, they can work wonders.

Dumb question, but are the fans blowing in the right direction? Can be a simple mistake to put them in backwards, I've done it myself. Always start with the simplest solution first.

Air cooling can be a finicky thing. Simple wire placement can change airflow inside a case, or choke it off completely. Or replacing smaller fans with larger slower moving ones can increase your airflow and even lower your noise levels tremendously.

Don't be afraid to experiment.

 

[djquash]

Hi BlackStar,

Thanks for your post

I'm just using the stock cooler and my house is a little humid upstairs which is where my system is. I didn't build the system so I don't know if it was the stock paste or not.

I can tell you that the fans are all correctly fitted.

Can you recommend a good aftermarket 920 cooler.

One thing that worries me is that with my DSDT installed (yes it matches my bios version) it enables C-states & P-states in the plist which causes my PSU to make scratching noises which respond to mouse movement and application loading. This does not occur in win7 which is on a separate HD. I have had to set P & C-states =No to stop the PSU noise (seems like a ground loop) setting them to =Yes does nothing for my temps tho.

I have brought this up on the board before and it seems no one is able to shed any light on it? I managed to stop the PSU noise in win 7 by disabling:

CPU EIST
C1E halt
Intel turbo tech

in the BIOS.

 

[Blackstar]

Hi BlackStar,

Thanks for your post

I'm just using the stock cooler and my house is a little humid upstairs which is where my system is. I didn't build the system so I don't know if it was the stock paste or not.

I can tell you that the fans are all correctly fitted.

Can you recommend a good aftermarket 920 cooler.

I use a Mugen-2 rev B Cooler myself. The current equivalents for your particular case would be located here:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductLi ... toreType=1

Since you didn't build it yourself, it's more than likely the cooler is just not seated properly, or has the incorrect amount of TIM (Thermal Interface Material). Would suggest removing the cooler and either installing an aftermarket one like mine, or simple cleaning and reapplying a better TIM product to the cooler before re-attaching.

 

[justr]

Hi BlackStar,

Thanks for your post

I'm just using the stock cooler and my house is a little humid upstairs which is where my system is. I didn't build the system so I don't know if it was the stock paste or not.

I can tell you that the fans are all correctly fitted.

Can you recommend a good aftermarket 920 cooler.

One thing that worries me is that with my DSDT installed (yes it matches my bios version) it enables C-states & P-states in the plist which causes my PSU to make scratching noises which respond to mouse movement and application loading. This does not occur in win7 which is on a separate HD. I have had to set P & C-states =No to stop the PSU noise (seems like a ground loop) setting them to =Yes does nothing for my temps tho.

I have brought this up on the board before and it seems no one is able to shed any light on it? I managed to stop the PSU noise in win 7 by disabling:

CPU EIST
C1E halt
Intel turbo tech

in the BIOS.

Don't make cooling decisions using idle temps!


The sensors in modern CPUs count from thermal max (~100c) backwards, and grow ever more inaccurate the closer one gets to idle.

Unless you've corrected/normalized the readings on your idle temps using an external/IR thermometer... just ignore your idle temps.

All that matters is load temps. Intel calls under 100c safe (for i7-9xx). Most overclockers aim for the lowest possible 100% load temps. Many are satisfied with full load temps, for day-to-day stability, in the 70 to 85 c range during benching-- which usually works out to much lower temps in REAL use, even of heavy applications, like video encoding/editing.

Don't go messing with your setup if you have higher looking idle temps -- matched to perfectly fine full (100%) load temps.

 

[djquash]

Thanks for your post Jusstruss,

Really informative. It seems that apart from auto sleep not working, I have a fully functioning Hackintosh!

Sweet.

 

[Blackstar]

Thanks for your post Jusstruss,

Really informative. It seems that apart from auto sleep not working, I have a fully functioning Hackintosh!

Sweet.

Congrads!