I'm having a serious overheating issue with my CPU. I just checked it while gaming using MSI Afterburner, and it jumped to a shocking 100°C almost instantly. This has been happening recently, and it's causing not just overheating but also problems like black screens on my monitors when minimizing applications, and a massive drop in FPS—from 300 to just 80! In the BIOS, it cools down from 100°C to 50°C in about 15 seconds after shutting down, which seems too fast, right? I've already re-mounted my Arctic Freeze III 360 cooler and applied new thermal paste, yet the problem persists. I feel some vibrations in the tubes, suggesting it's working, but what should I do next? Should I consider this a sensor error, or is it time to buy a new cooler? It's disappointing since I've only had this cooler for less than a year! My CPU is an Intel i7-13700K, and I'm using an MSI Z790-P DDR4 motherboard with the latest BIOS update from last month.
2 Answers
I’d lean towards it being a problem with the cooler. If there's any thermal paste that's spilled over the CPU itself or if it's not spread evenly, it could prevent effective cooling. If possible, test the cooler on another CPU if you have one, just to rule out any issues there. And if you did buy it new just under a year ago, some coolers might still be under warranty, so keep that in mind before you purchase a new one!
It sounds like you might actually have a sensor issue. While it's possible to cool down rapidly after shutdown, a jump from 100°C to 50°C is suspicious. If you’ve already checked for the plastic sticker on the cooler, I’d suggest looking into whether the cooler is making proper contact with the CPU and if the thermal paste is adequately applied. Sometimes those RGB tubes can cause issues with heat dissipation as well. Maybe try monitoring the temps with another software to verify the readings, just in case MSI Afterburner is giving you faulty information.
Yeah, I’d back that up! Using a second temp monitoring tool could give you a clearer idea if it’s a problem with the sensor or if the cooler really isn’t doing its job.
Definitely worth checking the warranty! It could save you a bunch of money.