...myPC is beginning to crash/reboot or sometimes freezes (total freeze
- no mouse movement - no CTRL/ALT/DEL - have to press RESET to start)
i've just checked my temperatures and got this
AMD Athlon 2200+ 68c or 154f
board temp 46c or 114f
power/aux temp 57c or 134f
are these temps too hot ???
Yes, all of them.
Could this explain why i'm getting problems ???
Yes.
If So - whats the best way to COOL DOWN - I'm not an expert when it
comes to getting inside PC's
Everything is relative. So start with the case (board) temp. Assuming you
have a standard mid/mini/etc. tower case, remove the left side cover. In
15 minutes check your temps again. That should tell you where you need to
concentrate your efforts to get proper cooling. case/MB temp should not
exceed 42C accoding to AMD, and that's way too hot IMO. Decent case
cooling will keep the inside case temp within 5C (or less) of the room
temp. So, your first objective is to get your case temps down to a normal
level. Normally, this will only require 1 or 2 case fans (not counting the
PSU exhaust fan). The best place for a case fan is the lower front, but
before you install it you need to check for obstructions, and all cases
I've seen have the problem of obstructing the airflow to the front fan. On
every case I own, I've cut the metal out in front of where the fan mounts
and then made sure the front plastic bezel has plenty of holes/passages
for air. If your front bezel has air holes, make them a lot larger if
they are small. One case I had had 16 holes about 1/16". I made each of
these about 1/2". Another case didn't have holes so I cut out plastic
underneath the brezel. As much as possible. Now not only did airflow
inprove by more than double, the fan no longer made that whining starving
for noise. use your imagination according to your case. Once that's done
and you have the case temps down, then check your cpu temps again. My
guess is that they would still be high, but not near as high as before
fixing the case airflow. And front fan should be an intake fan, Always try
to even out the intake and exhaust fans so you intake the same air as you
exhaust. Intake fans should be mounted low. Exhaust fans high in general.
For the cpu cooler. make sure it's clean and mounted properly. A
collection of dust in it will kill you. make sure it has a decent thermal
paste or pad. In your situation, with temps as high as they are, I'd
remove the cooler, take the fan off and oil it, wash the HS, and then
reinstall it with new thermal paste. It's also a good idea to have a
decent cpu cooler, and the AMD K7 retail cooler is not IMO. I wouldn't use
one given a choice. A cheap TR2-M1 or M3 will support any Athlon XP cpu
even overclocked. Cost about $7-$10.
Not sure what your power/aux temp is, but you may also need to remove
your psu, take the cover off and blow out the dust and clean/oil/replace
the fans as needed. Good luck.
