How to increase fan speed under load

[alastc]

Hi everyone,

I'm really pleased with my new PC, it is many years since I had a good desktop and this is a great, quiet PC.

Most of the time it rocking along doing Lightroom & other work without a hickup, but one thing that (obviously) stresses things is converting blu-rays to H254 files with handbrake.

It seems to get pretty hot, and the fans are barely making a sound.

The only thing I can find to get a temperature for the CPU etc. is the iCUE software that was installed with the base OS, this is mid-conversion:

Does anyone know how to get the fans to speed up more when things get hot?

I'll paste the spec below, this is the BIOS interface that seems like it should do the job:

NB: The diagram on the top-right doesn't change if you change the fan on the left.

There are two fans on the front, which drive the water-cooling for the CPU. There are two on the top (that came with the case I think), although they appear to be in-take rather than exhaust, and there is one fan at the back that does exhaust.

The BIOS looks right (to me, but I don't know much about this), but the fans barely change from when it's running cool.

Case
FRACTAL FOCUS G BLACK GAMING CASE (Window)
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 12 Core CPU (3.8GHz-4.6GHz/70MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
Gigabyte B450 AORUS ELITE: DDR4, USB 3.1 - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 - HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB PCS 2.5" SSD, SATA 6 Gb (520MB/R, 470MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
3TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 64MB CACHE
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
16x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD ±R/±RW & SOFTWARE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Processor Cooling
Corsair H100x Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Ultra Quiet Fans

Cheers,

-Alastair

 

[SpyderTracks]

Hiya

Unfortunately that cooler is not software addressable so you can’t control the fans on it. You really wanted the H100i Platinum which is a much more modern version of it with better pump.

 

[alastc]

Well, I guess replacing that would be somewhat tricky now, presumably that would mean removing it from the CPU and re-attaching?

I was hoping there was a way of improving the through-put from the other fans, they don't seem to do very much.

For example, these are the options in the upgrade list:

Would attaching the Corsair fans in place of the current ones provide software-addressable fans that vary with the heat?

 

[SpyderTracks]

Well, I guess replacing that would be somewhat tricky now, presumably that would mean removing it from the CPU and re-attaching?

I was hoping there was a way of improving the through-put from the other fans, they don't seem to do very much.

For example, these are the options in the upgrade list:
View attachment 17661

Would attaching the Corsair fans in place of the current ones provide software-addressable fans that vary with the heat?

Are you seeing any performance issues?

If you install HWMONITOR, that will give you far better readings.

HWMONITOR | Softwares | CPUID

HWMonitor for Windows® x86/x64 is a hardware monitoring program that reads PC systems main health sensors : voltages, temperatures, powers, currents, fans speed, utilizations, clock speeds ... The program handles : CPU and GPU-level hardware monitoring...

www.cpuid.com

 

[SpyderTracks]

Adjusting case fans won’t do anything for the CPU or GPU temps

 

[alastc]

Are you seeing any performance issues?

If you install HWMONITOR, that will give you far better readings.

HWMONITOR | Softwares | CPUID

HWMonitor for Windows® x86/x64 is a hardware monitoring program that reads PC systems main health sensors : voltages, temperatures, powers, currents, fans speed, utilizations, clock speeds ... The program handles : CPU and GPU-level hardware monitoring...

www.cpuid.com

Thanks, I'll try that. The performance is ok, but I think it's throttling, and some of the sensors get to over 105 C.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Thanks, I'll try that. The performance is ok, but I think it's throttling, and some of the sensors get to over 105 C.

That's what you need to determine, if it's an actual core that's reaching 105 then something's not right, if it's some other sensor then it's fine. HWMonitor will have much more specific reporting.

Further to that, if the front fans have been placed to the roof, they shouldn't be acting as intakes, but rather pushing air out of the case.

As @Nursemorph says though, if it's at all possible to swap the radiator to the roof, then that would be better.

 

[alastc]

HWMonitor looks great, this is the current readout:

I'll re-run when under load tonight, but the thing that stands out now is the 0% for Fans PWM, does that mean they are not capable of varying by temperature?

 

[SpyderTracks]

HWMonitor looks great, this is the current readout:
View attachment 17667

I'll re-run when under load tonight, but the thing that stands out now is the 0% for Fans PWM, does that mean they are not capable of varying by temperature?

Those are TMPIN readings. You need the CPU readings.

The fans just means they’re not plugged into those plugs.

 

[alastc]

So running under a load with handbrake, it starts off great (over 100 FPS), but after about 10 minutes you get to this:

I stopped it there, it seemed to be still rising and I'd enabled the warning for 90 deg in the BIOS, which was on beeping solidly at that stage...
(NB: in the screenshot above I'd starting reducing the CPU cores being used with the affinity setting, but it didn't bring down the temperature.)

I think I need better cooling, would this do the job?

In the initial build I was aiming for quiet, but I had assumed the fans would kick in if needed, they don't change at all though?!

 

[SpyderTracks]

On that CPU, I wouldn’t go under the h115i platinum. But you can’t get it fitted in that case.

Unfortunately there are three areas that aren’t suitable on the build, the case, the cooler and the motherboard. It will lead to overheating and instability. It’s just not suitable components.

This is why it’s so important to get feedback on your build if you don’t know what you’re doing.

 

[alastc]

The thing is, every PC I've had since the '90s would do something about the CPU getting hotter: Increase the fans, and then possibly throttle the CPU.

Neither are happening here, which makes it seem like something is wrong.

With regards to the suitability: If the whole PC Specialist interface is geared around selecting components, and it does have options that are not allowed based on your selection, why can you even select options that result in "unsuitable components"?

You can select an 'extreme ryzen' system and you still start with a £20 case. I went about 1/3rd of the way up the cases with no indication that wouldn't be suitable. The motherboard was second from the bottom (i.e. almost the 'top' option).

If the fans kicked in and it still couldn't keep cool, ok, I didn't select the right components. But to do nothing?

Out of interest, what is the minimum case & motherboard you would consider suitable? (With a similar height and an external disk bay).

 

[SpyderTracks]

If the whole PC Specialist interface is geared around selecting components, and it does have options that are not allowed based on your selection, why can you even select options that result in "unsuitable components"?

The configurator simply groups components that fit a socket type and stuff like that. It has no input on weather they're suitable together. You're expected to know what you're selecting.

You can select an 'extreme ryzen' system and you still start with a £20 case. I went about 1/3rd of the way up the cases with no indication that wouldn't be suitable. The motherboard was second from the bottom (i.e. almost the 'top' option).

Again, you're expected to know what you're selecting and that it's appropriate to the build. Or get advice if you don't know. That motherboard is an older generation, it's one of the bottom selections. The place in the list has no bearing on how good the components is, again you're supposed to know what you're selecting.

If the fans kicked in and it still couldn't keep cool, ok, I didn't select the right components. But to do nothing?

Are you saying the fans aren't coming on at all?

Out of interest, what is the minimum case & motherboard you would consider suitable? (With a similar height and an external disk bay).

You'd need an X570 or B550. For the case you'd need something £100 or more for those components.

 

[alastc]

Apart from the moment when you power on (when you can hear the fans at full tilt), they don't change at all. You can see that from the monitor read-outs above, the fans don't change. They are on, but they don't increase.

 

[alastc]

The configurator simply groups components that fit a socket type and stuff like that. It has no input on weather they're suitable together.

Not true, it didn't let me select certain CPU cooling components that were listed as available, but it came in with an error message.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Not true, it didn't let me select certain CPU cooling components that were listed as available, but it came in with an error message.

That's due to physical size limitations, nothing to do with weather it's suitable.

I'm not going to try and convince you of anything, I'll just simply tell you the components you've selected aren't well paired and the system won't perform well.

 

[SpyderTracks]

Apart from the moment when you power on (when you can hear the fans at full tilt), they don't change at all. You can see that from the monitor read-outs above, the fans don't change. They are on, but they don't increase.

None of them other than the CPU fan are PWM fans, so they're all static. You can see from the readouts that the CPU fan is adjusting itself.

 

[alastc]

The CPU fan range appears to be 4066 to 4192, that doesn't seem like much of a change? Also, does >4000 RPM make sense? That doesn't seem right, does it mean something else?

I'm also wondering why the CPU itself doesn't throttle more.

I guess what I'm trying to work out is whether I can bring it within a managable range by upgrading fans, or whether I need a do-over.

 

[SpyderTracks]

The CPU fan range appears to be 4066 to 4192, that doesn't seem like much of a change? Also, does >4000 RPM make sense? That doesn't seem right, does it mean something else?

I'm also wondering why the CPU itself doesn't throttle more.

I guess what I'm trying to work out is whether I can bring it within a managable range by upgrading fans, or whether I need a do-over.

You need a do over, even if you get the best fans on the planet, the motherboard isn't suitable. The VRM's aren't good enough for that CPU.

 

[alastc]

Ok, understood.

I still think there's something wrong with the fan connections (or something), but I'll re-spec, post it on the forum first, and contact PCSpecialist in case I can make anything of my current setup.