Overheating Issue

[taylorjames]

Hi guys, I've been having big issues with overheating this year (the heatwave doesn't help but even so!). I'm idling around 60-70C and when I play games I'm getting up to 85C while I blast an external tower fan at my case to try to increase airflow. Before I started putting an external fan on I would often hit 100C and the PC would crash. I feel like perhaps the thermal paste was never applied properly, or there's something up with the fans? The case fans at the top seem to be work, and the fan at the back is spinning and I can feel a little air going but frankly it seems a little weak. I'll post my specs and hopefully someone can let me know if my cooling system is woefully underpowered for my spec? Thanks in advance!

Case
CORSAIR CARBIDE SERIES™ 200R COMPACT GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 5900X 12 Core CPU (3.7GHz-4.8GHz/70MB CACHE/AM4)

Motherboard
ASUS® CROSSHAIR VIII HERO WIFI (DDR4, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX/SLI) - RGB Ready!

Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 32GB)

Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 Ti - HDMI, DP

1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 7000MB/R, 5000MB/W)

1st Storage Drive
8TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE

2nd Storage Drive
8TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE

RAID
RAID 0 (STRIPED VOLUME - 2 x same size & model HDD / SSD)

Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W CV SERIES™ CV-650 POWER SUPPLY

Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)

Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 120 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING

Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof)

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

Hi guys, I've been having big issues with overheating this year (the heatwave doesn't help but even so!). I'm idling around 60-70C and when I play games I'm getting up to 85C while I blast an external tower fan at my case to try to increase airflow. Before I started putting an external fan on I would often hit 100C and the PC would crash. I feel like perhaps the thermal paste was never applied properly, or there's something up with the fans? The case fans at the top seem to be work, and the fan at the back is spinning and I can feel a little air going but frankly it seems a little weak. I'll post my specs and hopefully someone can let me know if my cooling system is woefully underpowered for my spec? Thanks in advance!

Case
CORSAIR CARBIDE SERIES™ 200R COMPACT GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 5900X 12 Core CPU (3.7GHz-4.8GHz/70MB CACHE/AM4)

Motherboard
ASUS® CROSSHAIR VIII HERO WIFI (DDR4, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX/SLI) - RGB Ready!

Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 32GB)

Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3070 Ti - HDMI, DP

1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 7000MB/R, 5000MB/W)

1st Storage Drive
8TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE

2nd Storage Drive
8TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE

RAID
RAID 0 (STRIPED VOLUME - 2 x same size & model HDD / SSD)

Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W CV SERIES™ CV-650 POWER SUPPLY

Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)

Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster MasterLiquid Lite 120 High Performance Liquid Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING

Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof)

The cooler is nowhere near suitable for the processor, you'd need a minimum of a 280mm radiator on that beast really. The case can only fit a maximum of a 240mm radiator unfortunately. The case really isn't suitable for the components either, doesn't have enough airflow.

Is it just for gaming or other uses as the design doesn't suit a gaming system either?

 

[taylorjames]

The cooler is nowhere near suitable for the processor, you'd need a minimum of a 280mm radiator on that beast really. The case can only fit a maximum of a 240mm radiator unfortunately. The case really isn't suitable for the components either, doesn't have enough airflow.

Is it just for gaming or other uses as the design doesn't suit a gaming system either?

Thank you for your reply. That's disappointing to hear that the case and radiator aren't suitable for the specs - I thought when you build the PC with PC Specialist it was supposed to flag those things
I'm also a video editor/motion graphics designer, hence the spec. I went for a cheaper case/cooling system at the time because I was on budget and I didn't realise that those things would turn out to be so important! Bit of a shame really, I can't afford to get a new case and cooling system now

 

[Ekans2011]

Thank you for your reply. That's disappointing to hear that the case and radiator aren't suitable for the specs - I thought when you build the PC with PC Specialist it was supposed to flag those things
I'm also a video editor/motion graphics designer, hence the spec. I went for a cheaper case/cooling system at the time because I was on budget and I didn't realise that those things would turn out to be so important! Bit of a shame really, I can't afford to get a new case and cooling system now

The configurator is only meant to highlight the physical compatibility of the components; it is up to the users to understand hardware and spec a system that meets their needs. In the future, always seek help if you are unsure about the components: that's the purpose of the forum

I strongly advise against using the system in that condition to avoid more issues.

 

[taylorjames]

The configurator is only meant to highlight the physical compatibility of the components; it is up to the users to understand hardware and spec a system that meets their needs. In the future, always seek help if you are unsure about the components: that's the purpose of the forum

I strongly advise against using the system in that condition to avoid more issues.

Thank you for your reply. Would you be able to recommend the sort of case and/or cooling system I would need to ensure everything runs as it should?

 

[TonyCarter]

You've got some high tier components in that very small quiet case...so in the short term, I'd remove the side panels from the case to give it some room to breathe.

Then I'd consider either transplanting it to a new airflow case (Corsair Frame 4000 is a good budget option)...and put in a Nautilus 280/360mm cooler at the top to cool the CPU sufficiently...and match the fan style/model that comes with the case...

Corsair FRAME 4000D RS ARGB Black Tempered Glass Modular Mid Tower ATX PC Case

Buy from Scan - Corsair FRAME 4000D RS ARGB, Black, RGB Mid Tower, Tempered Glass, Reverse Connection, USB 3.2 Type-C, 3x RS ARGB Fans

www.scan.co.uk

If you're going to swap case and thus do a rebuild yourself, I'd also suggest the PSU is a bit underpowered/low tier for that CPU/GPU combo, so whilst it's just hanging on now, it's probably running outside of it's peak efficiency window and producing more heat than it should be. It's also got zero room for any future GPU upgrades, as the current 70Ti-tier Nvidia GPU requires a RM850W ATX3 PSU at a minimum (and the CV650W is an older ATX2 PSU). The newer spec PSUs, and the RM are higher tier than the CV-tier PSUs, which are oriented toward office PCs.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

You've got some high tier components in that very small quiet case...so in the short term, I'd remove the side panels from the case to give it some room to breathe.

Then I'd consider either transplanting it to a new airflow case (Corsair Frame 4000 is a good budget option)...and put in a Nautilus 280/360mm cooler at the top to cool the CPU sufficiently...and match the fan style/model that comes with the case...

Corsair FRAME 4000D RS ARGB Black Tempered Glass Modular Mid Tower ATX PC Case

Buy from Scan - Corsair FRAME 4000D RS ARGB, Black, RGB Mid Tower, Tempered Glass, Reverse Connection, USB 3.2 Type-C, 3x RS ARGB Fans

www.scan.co.uk

If you're going to swap case and thus do a rebuild yourself, I'd also suggest the PSU is a bit underpowered/low tier for that CPU/GPU combo, so whilst it's just hanging on now, it's probably running outside of it's peak efficiency window and producing more heat than it should be. It's also got zero room for any future GPU upgrades, as the current 70Ti-tier Nvidia GPU requires a RM850W ATX3 PSU at a minimum (and the CV650W is an older ATX2 PSU). The newer spec PSUs, and the RM are higher tier than the CV-tier PSUs, which are oriented toward office PCs.

I would strongly agree with all of this.

With regards to the PSU, the 5070ti (a modern equal tier GPU) is actually 750w minimum PSU requirements so when it comes to upgrading the GPU, unless you replace the PSU you’d actually have to downgrade a few tiers to fit it

 

[LaneEaton]

Your cooling setup is seriously underpowered for a Ryzen 9 5900X. A 120mm AIO just can’t handle that heat, especially in a compact case like the Corsair 200R with poor airflow and no intake fans. That’s why you’re idling at 60–70°C and spiking to 100°C under load — it’s throttling or crashing because it's suffocating.

Fix it by upgrading to a 240mm or better AIO (or a beefy air cooler like the Noctua NH-D15), adding two front intake fans, and ideally getting a better case with proper airflow. Replacing the thermal paste with a decent one (like Thermal Grizzly) wouldn’t hurt either. That’ll drop your temps fast and keep your system stable.