I just finished building my PC with a Ryzen 7 9800X3D and a Gigabyte 5070 Ti Gaming OC on an MSI B850 Tomahawk MAG motherboard. I'm using an NZXT Kraken 360 AIO liquid cooler and have a total of 9 fans in my NZXT H6 Flow case (2 inlets and 2 exhausts). While installing a game today, my CPU temperature shot up to 96-97 degrees Celsius, even with the AIO running in performance mode. I've seen others using the same AIO with different GPUs (like the 5080 and 5090) who haven't had this issue. I'm confused about what could be causing these high temps. Also, I accidentally got some thermal paste on my sheets during assembly. Any ideas?
3 Answers
First off, 97 degrees is pretty high, especially with a Kraken 360. Make sure the AIO pump is plugged in and is receiving power. You can feel the tubes to check if the coolant is flowing; if they’re cold, it might not be working efficiently. Good luck!
Your cooler might not be mounted correctly if you're seeing those kinds of temps. Ensure it's tight against the CPU and that the thermal paste application was even and not too thick. How did you apply the paste?
I might have gone a bit heavy on the paste, any recommendations for applying it next time?
The orientation of your tubes and radiator can affect performance too. If the radiator is mounted front-facing with the tubes at the top, air bubbles might be getting trapped in the pump, which will hinder coolant flow. Double-check that setup!
Here's how my setup looks: [image](https://ibb.co/HTNNNZzf). Do you think that's what's causing my issue?
Thanks for the tip! How do I check if it's getting the power it needs?