Stock AMD HSF Units

[BloodSugarWilksM]

I've got a question about AMD's Retail Heatsink/Fan Units for their processors.

I'm getting a Athlon 64 X2 4600+ @ 2.4GHz and I don't plan on overclocking ever. I know people enjoy buying aftermarket CPU HSFU's and using them and that there's a large market for them on Newegg.

My question is, would they be necessary for a non-overclocker like me? Or will my setup (in my signature) be sufficient to keep my parts cool with the standard HSFU that AMD bundles with the processor?

Just curious, what do you super coolers think??

 

[Rob Williams]

I personally would upgrade regardless of whether you need a better cooler. The one that is included is so utterly cheap, that I don't want it anywhere near my PC. Of course, if you don't have a window on your PC and could care less about ever looking inside, then it wouldn't really matter.

Either way, I'd say wait until you receive it and then decide. It's not difficult to swap out for a better cooler later.

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Okay what I'm getting is that for aesthetic it's imperative to upgrade to a better HSFU, but the included one is going to cool the CPU just fine for the most part?

I probably will upgrade at some point anyway but I'll have to do my homework and get into the culture of aftermarket CPU coolers first.

Kinda scared of taking replacing it though, I feel like I'll mess up putting on the thermal paste etc. if I try...

 

[Greg King]

It depends on which cooler you get. I got an opteron server style cooler with my 4600+. It has heatpipes running through it and cools well. If you got the old style, get a new one. However, with AMD, the stock coolers are more than adequate. Unless you just want to spend 25-40 more dollars, I would stick with what comes with it.

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Good deal, I'm content with not spending the extra money and assuming AMD is not going to bundle a HSFU that is not going to properly cool my CPU.

I'd rather use the money and get my second stick on RAM sometime soon!

 

[Greg King]

applying thermal paste is very easy. There are a few that I would recommend. Everyone uses Arctic Silver 5 but I prefer Arctic Silver Ceramique. It costs a lot less than the Silver 5 but the only differance between the two might be a degree, if that.

You could also get the Zalman ZM-STG1. It comes in a fingernail polish type container and you just unscrew the cap and "paint" on the thermal paste. I have it on my machine now and it works quite well.

Its certainly some food for though.

 

[Rob Williams]

To me, if you are not going to overclock at all, then it really won't matter what thermal paste you use. But, at full load, Dual Cores get very hot regardless. If your case has good airflow, you shouldn't really have much to worry about.

The cooler that's included with the 4600+ is pitiful though. Also, do NOT worry about screwing up... you'd have to be a true idiot, it's so easy.

Clean up the old past and slap a rice sized dab in the middle and put the new HS on. Easy stuff really.

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Good stuff. I'll see how things fly with the stock cooler and then do my research and see if I can upgrade sometime later on. Gotta' be after my second RAM stick though, as you already mentioned Rob

 

[Rob Williams]

Haha aye! The second stick of ram will treat you well. Like I said, use the HS and if you think you need a new one, then do it up. I do recommend keeping a can of compressed air on hand though, and give your PC a little touch up every week or two so the dust doesn't get caked into the fan and heatsink.

 

[Greg King]

Haha aye! The second stick of ram will treat you well. Like I said, use the HS and if you think you need a new one, then do it up. I do recommend keeping a can of compressed air on hand though, and give your PC a little touch up every week or two so the dust doesn't get caked into the fan and heatsink.

I second the canned air idea. It's a PC users best friend. Well, a close second behind internet porn.

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Exactly

Yeah I always keep a can of compressed air around. And now that my new rig will have a clear side panel I can see what's going on a little more easily. Either way it's just gonna rock!

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Speaking of the RAM, I read somewhere that the AM2 mobo's with AMD CPU's take issue with some DDR2 800 PC2 6400 RAM modules, but then I read somewhere else that MY particular Corsair module works well...

Any ideas on what I can expect on first boot from my BIOS with this situation??

 

[Rob Williams]

Never heard of these issues at all. I'd say go into your BIOS, make sure DDR2-800 is selected, set the right timings and voltages and you should be good to roll.

If anything happens, we are always here to help.

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

I know you guys rock, I've been a member of many BBS systems with various tech sites but this one is the best. A lot of knowledgeable people to have conversations with and exchange valuable information while at the same time being cooled out and sharing a passion for technology. Anyway that's my rant.

So if my RAM specs on Newegg says 5-5-5-12 and 1.9v that's what I need to set correct?

 

[Greg King]

Your PC -should- set them by default but if they are somehow worse than that, which I dont think is possible, then you can always set them to what you want them to be. Should you want to tighten those timing up more, Rob can help you out.

 

[Rob Williams]

I know you guys rock, I've been a member of many BBS systems with various tech sites but this one is the best. A lot of knowledgeable people to have conversations with and exchange valuable information while at the same time being cooled out and sharing a passion for technology. Anyway that's my rant.

So if my RAM specs on Newegg says 5-5-5-12 and 1.9v that's what I need to set correct?

Thanks for the nice comments. I like to think of us as a tight-nit community.. good times to be had.

But yes, 5-5-5-12 and 1.9 is what you'd set. Just make sure you are setting 1.9v to the DRAM voltage and not the CPU voltage ;-)

Some BIOS' like to confuse the timing listing also. When you see 5-5-5-12, it means CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS, so you can use that for a reference in your BIOS to make sure you are not setting the wrong timing somewhere. Those four all the only ones you will need to deal with.

 

[Greg King]

it means CAS-tRCD-tRP-tRAS...

What is that, some kind of latin?

 

[BloodSugarWilksM]

Oh okay cool Rob, I haven't messed with BIOS as much as I would like to, but now's my chance. I don't know whether it's good or bad that my first computer build back in May worked perfectly with very little configuration.

At any rate I'll figure the Latin out once I get in there.

 

[Greg King]

9 times out of 10 your PC will funtion as it should when you first boot it up. Just install it all carefully and run with it. If you ever want to get a bit more out of your system, talk to us or read up on overclocking online. There isn't anything to it.

To start out though, just keep it simple. Build the rig, install the software and see where you stand on performance. You can alway go up from there.

 

[Rory Buszka]

There are two things with CPU coolers these days -- noise and longevity. For a long time, AMD used a Delta fan that used one ball bearing and one sleeve bearing, and these fans still began to show wear after a few years of use, becoming noisy though not failing altogether. An upgraded, aftermarket CPU fan (I especially recommend the bigger Zalman heatipe coolers) can dramatically reduce noise while eliminating concerns about longevity. The larger fans used on aftermarket heatsinks can provide increased cooling performance, but they can also be run at slower speeds to provide only the necessary cooling for the processor, while generating a lot less noise. Newer enthusiast boards (including the one you're likely getting) offer automatic temperature-based speed control of the CPU fan, making it easy to integrate a system that's quiet at idle, but can still handle increased cooling demand under load.