I recently installed a Ryzen 7 5800X3D and would like a sanity check on its temperatures. My system uses a Gigabyte B550 AORUS ELITE V2, an RTX 4060 Ti 16GB, an NZXT H510 case, and an Arctic Freezer 36 cooler. Instead of thermal paste, I installed a Carbice Ice Pad a few days ago, and Curve Optimizer is set to -30 all-core.
The case currently has only two fans: the rear fan is exhausting and the top fan is configured as an intake. There are no front fans. Both fans run at roughly 900–1,000 RPM. While playing Black Desert Online, the CPU uses around 65W and reaches about 80°C on average, with peaks near 83°C when the side panel is removed. With the panel installed, it averages around 85°C and continues to rise slowly. Idle temperatures are around 60°C, while the BIOS shows roughly 50°C. The CPU fan also becomes fairly loud.
The cooler appears to be mounted tightly, the Ice Pad is centered, and the protective film was removed. I have already ordered two Arctic P14 fans for the front. Should I install them and change the fan layout to front intake with the top and rear fans exhausting? Would the restricted front panel of the H510 still limit airflow, or should I replace the CPU cooler with a larger dual-tower model? I would also like to know whether the Ice Pad could be contributing to the higher temperatures compared with conventional thermal paste.
4 Answers
I would replace the Ice Pad with good thermal paste, such as the MX-6 that commonly comes with the cooler. Thermal pads can work, but they need the right thickness, orientation, and mounting pressure. Since the cooler was designed to use paste, repasting is the simplest way to rule out poor contact or a pad that is not transferring heat effectively. Idle temperatures in the 50s can still be normal for Ryzen, especially with background tasks, but 60°C at idle is worth investigating.
Around 80–85°C while gaming is not dangerous for a 5800X3D, but the temperature difference with the side panel closed shows that the case airflow is a real limitation. The H510’s restricted front panel is already difficult to ventilate, and having no front intake fans makes it worse. Install the two front fans as intake, then set the top and rear fans to exhaust. That should create a much better airflow path through the CPU cooler.
The -30 Curve Optimizer setting can reduce heat, but it does not guarantee that every chip is completely stable at that value. Check stability after making changes rather than assuming the setting is helping. Also, 40°C idle and 70°C while gaming are reasonable goals, but Ryzen processors often sit in the 45–60°C range at idle depending on background activity, fan curves, room temperature, and BIOS behavior. Even one user with a much larger cooler may still see temperatures in the mid-40s in the BIOS.
The Freezer 36 may be usable here, but a 5800X3D benefits from a larger dual-tower cooler. Models such as the Thermalright Phantom Spirit or Peerless Assassin, the AK620, or a similar high-capacity cooler would provide more thermal headroom and lower fan noise. I would improve the case airflow and switch back to thermal paste before buying a new cooler, though—the current setup is not an ideal test of the cooler itself.
My first step will be installing the two front intake fans and changing the top fan to exhaust. If temperatures are still high, I’ll remove the Ice Pad and try proper thermal paste before replacing the cooler.