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For fear that this question is too specific, I'm posing the general question first and including details of my own situation below.

General Question

If I know that my system is overheating (to the extent that it's actually shut itself down a few times), how can I determine what's causing it to overheat? What are the most likely causes/solutions (e.g., CPU heatsink dysfunctional, thermal paste not applied correctly, internal fan damaged, etc.)?

Specific Question

So, I'm pretty certain my CPU is running way too hot. According to HWMonitor, both of my Athlon 64 X2 5400 cores are around 80C. I understand this is way too high.

I THINK the issue may be my heatsink, so I am ready to order another from Newegg. However, I don't want to go ahead with that if there are other likely causes of this overheating. For example, how can I be sure the fans inside my system are working properly?

My motherboard is an ASUS M3A78-EM. When I go into setup when starting my computer, and navigate to the Power section, I see the following under Fan Speeds:

CPU     3000 RPM [approx.]
Chassis 1300 RPM [approx.]
Power   N/A

Should I be concerned about that "N/A" next to "Power"? Do I need another fan?

Also, in HWMonitor, what does the "Fans PWM" section indicate? There are three entries, and they all read 0% across the board. Here's a screenshot, just to make it clear:

alt text

Clearly, I am rather helpless here. Where do I start? How can I fix this problem?

Tamara Wijsman
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Dan Tao
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3 Answers3

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Can you verify the voltages using a different tool, perhaps Everest or SpeedFan ?

Those +5v and -12V rails are low, I want to confirm that this is because of HWMonitor readings being incorrect. I'd start with examining if the thermal paste has dried up. If so, you should re-apply the thermal paste.

Community
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Sathyajith Bhat
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Your first step should be to actually check how many fans you have and to what is each fan connected. The names for fans are just that: names.
Usually on Asus motherboards CPU fan connector is close to CPU socket, so CPU fan is connected to it. Other connectors have names too, but their names do not have to match their functions. You can plug any fan into any connector and it will show up under that connector in diagnostic programs. Unless you actually plugged the power supply fan into the power supply fan socket on motherboard, PSU fan reading has no relation to what PSU fan is doing.

The PWM comes from Pulse Width Modulation and is a way of controlling fan speed. I wouldn't be concerned with zeros there. Check how many pins the fan connectors have and how many wires the fans have. PWM connectors should have 4 pins. If fan cables have less, then the aren't using PWM.

Also your heatsink could be badly installed. Try reinstalling it first.

I myself would be more concerned with voltage readings. the 3.41V at +5 line is dangerously low and can be a symptom of bad PSU. Check what voltages in your BIOS say, because sometimes diagnostic software can report bad readings.

Also that 128C temperature looks really bad, but on the other hand it could be some phantom reading.

AndrejaKo
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A great way to check thermal issues on a system is to use a laser temperature sensor and a thermal camera.

hanleyp
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