CPU temps

[Tony Alfrey]

Vu Pham wrote:
> Tony Alfrey wrote:
> [...]
> 
> 
>>> Kurt
>>
>> Yes, but are 26C and 28C really the temperatures of your CPU?  This is 
>> lower than body temperature.
>>
>>
> 
> As long as it is higher than room temperature then it is possible, I think.

Yes, but it will be higher than the ambient air temperature in the box. 
  The finned heat sink itself will be higher than that and the CPU 
(sensor is where? - maybe on silicon in the chip?) will be higher still. 
  I see from specs that a Pentium IV can dissipate some 60-ish watts 
when operating under substantial load (not idle).  I see that a typical 
big fan/heat sink combination for CPUs has a thermal impedance of about 
0.6 C/W.  So 60 watts x 0.6 C/W yields a CPU case temp of 36 C above 
ambient.  If ambient in the box is perhaps a little above room temp, 
let's say 35 C then the CPU is at 71 C.  I see that Intel specs a 
maximum case temperature of 85 C.

So Kurt is right:  103 C is too high, but 26 C sounds as though the CPU 
is totally at idle.

BTW, how do you make that little °C symbol from the keyboard?

I don't know stink about computers but I know physics.


-- 
Tony Alfrey
tonyalfrey at earthlink.net
"I'd Rather Be Sailing"