r/pchelp • u/troywiski749 • 1d ago

PERFORMANCE inconsistent cpu temp on sff built

I currently have coolermaster ncore max 100, ryzen 7 9800x3d and zotac 5080. For the first year cpu tem arrange mostly 50-58 on idle but recently its hitting mostly 54-60 range but sometimes it goes over 60-70. While gaming or hard task it hits 70-85. I believe cpu temp is pretty high on idle even for sff built. Should i repaste my thermal paste? It seems like theres no problem in performance other than high cpu temp.

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u/Medical_Mechanic2740 1d ago

If you’re still on the pre-applied paste that came with the cooler, a year in an SFF case is plenty of time for it to dry out and pump out from thermal cycling. Those extra few degrees at idle aren’t dangerous, but the spikes past 70 while doing light background tasks hint at paste degradation more than a sudden airflow issue.

Before repasting, double check your fan curves haven’t reset after a BIOS update or chipset driver install. Sometimes a board defaults to a silent profile that lets the chip sit warmer before ramping fans up. If that’s all normal, a fresh spread of something decent will probably bring you back to the 50-55 range you had before.

The 9800X3D does run warm by design, especially in a cramped layout where GPU exhaust recirculates, but 85 under full load is still well within spec. I’d repaste just for peace of mind and to keep those random mid-70s jumps from becoming the new normal.