Hey everyone, I'm feeling a bit lost with my PC and could really use some advice. For the past few months, the CPU light on my motherboard has been staying red while I've been gaming. Recently, I started getting a warning when I boot up, saying the CPU is overheated, and it takes me to the BIOS screen. Initially, I thought it was a problem since my CPU temperatures were normal when I checked—around 40-45 degrees Celsius when I first power it on. But then I noticed that while playing games, the CPU temperature spikes to 90-100 degrees. I tried reapplying thermal paste, but the issue keeps happening. I thought it might be the AIO cooler but the RPMs are showing around 1600 in the UEFI, so I'm not sure if that indicates it's still functioning properly. I've done some Googling and found a bunch of conflicting advice, mentioning potential issues with the CPU, motherboard, or even the PSU. Is overheating something that can indicate a CPU is dying? Does RPM actually confirm the AIO is working correctly? Any guidance would be hugely appreciated!
2 Answers
You definitely seem to be on the right track. The RPMs being normal doesn't necessarily guarantee the cooler is functioning well, especially if the temps are still shooting up. A lot of people run into issues where the pump fails even if the fans are working, so replacing the cooler might be your best bet.
It sounds like your AIO cooler might be having issues. AIOs can fail after a few years—even if the fans are spinning, the pump could be failing or there might be air bubbles trapped, which affects cooling. You should definitely consider getting a new cooler since those temps are not safe for your CPU.
Totally agree, the high temps seem to point to the cooler failing. If you're hesitant about taking apart the AIO, just go for a new one. Regarding your question, CPU overheating like that typically isn't normal for a failing chip—it usually points to cooling problems instead.
Thanks for confirming! I just wasn't sure if high temperatures could signal that the CPU itself was going bad. Sounds like a cooler swap is the way to go.