Hey everyone! I built my PC a few months back and I'm really happy with how it's running, but I've run into an issue. I had to limit my Ryzen 9 7900X's CPU power usage to 90%, because if I don't, it bluescreens whenever I try to run most games. While it still functions well capped at this level, I can't help but think about the untapped potential.
I suspect my cooler, the Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 Evo, might be the weak link. I've been considering upgrading to an AIO cooler, specifically the Kraken Elite 240 or the Liquid Freezer III 240. Would one of these be effective enough to run my CPU without needing to cap the power? The reason I'm looking at 240mm coolers is that I have an H5 Flow case, which is pretty compact, and I'm worried about fitment issues.
2 Answers
First off, check if your CPU hits 95°C, which is the max safe temperature. If it does, then yeah, the Phantom Spirit 120 SE might not be cutting it, and you could consider returning it for a more high-performance cooler. That said, if it’s not reaching that limit (and you mentioned it maxes around 86°C), you might not need to worry as much; it could be something else causing those bluescreens when under load.
Before you make any upgrades, it would help to know what your CPU temperatures are under load. We can only guess without that info!
That’s strange, sounds like there might be something else wrong if it's crashing at 100%. CPU issues could definitely be in play. Have you checked if it’s stable outside of gaming?