Normal Northbridge temp?

Question

Level 1

80 points

Normal Northbridge temp?

Running iStat Pro v4.1.

I just happened to notice this morning it's reporting my Northbridge temp >200 degrees.

Is that "normal"?

http://homepage.mac.com/michael_aos/.Pictures/Nb.jpg

Mac Pro Mac OS X (10.4.10)

Posted on Jul 8, 2007 10:29 AM

Reply

Answer 1

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

Jul 8, 2007 11:02 AM in response to Michael Aos

I know you can find threads mentioning "Northbridge" and temps, even with "is this normal." And what others did to resolve it.

Reply

Answer 2

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 8, 2007 9:03 PM in response to Michael Aos

I installed smcfancontrol and bumped the PCIe / HDD fan up to 1448rpm and rear fan up to 1707rpm.

That dropped the Northbridge down to 126 degrees F.

Mike

Reply

Answer 3

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

Jul 9, 2007 6:25 AM in response to Michael Aos

I know SFC works, and helps, but I don't think you should NEED to bump it up to 1500 rpm range for the system to run at 'normal.'

I would be concerned as to WHY.

Reply

Answer 4

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 9, 2007 7:13 AM in response to The hatter

Honestly I never found the post that details the "normal" range. Just lots of people asking the question.

http://homepage.mac.com/michael_aos/.Pictures/Nb-2.jpg

Reply

Answer 5

Jul 9, 2007 7:25 AM in response to Michael Aos

My Northbridge heatsink is usually around the 70ºC/160ºF temperature. At over 200ºF you might want to check your Northbridge Watt usage as it should be at around 20W (Hardware Monitor reports this).

A couple of things that could be causing this…

1) Bad RAM - this would be my first choice/guess
2) PCIe card/bus issue

Reply

Answer 6

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

Jul 9, 2007 7:32 AM in response to Michael Aos

Well I know we tried to get into it. You should have run into a link to Maximum operating temperature

Intel chip temperatures
fan and temps

northbridge temps

Reply

Answer 7

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 9, 2007 11:36 AM in response to infinite vortex

I DL'd Hardware Monitor v4.2 by Maecel Bresink. Is that that one you're referring to? I don't see usage / wattage (yet). What's it under?

I've got 2GB of Apple RAM. 2nd GB was installed 9/12/06. I hadn't noticed my Northbridge temp was high before, but I honestly never looked specifically at it either.

I have noticed my Power Supply fan(s) don't respond to smcFanControl. I'm just assuming that's a Mac-Pro incompatibility.

I dropped the PCIe / HDD fan down to 1K RPM and still have the rear fan @ 1500 RPM. Northbridge is steady @ ~137F.

Mike

Reply

Answer 8

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

Jul 9, 2007 11:55 AM in response to Michael Aos

Sounds like it didn't install properly. Try finding the application and components, preferences, startup item, and reinstall.

Someone else mentioned one of their didn't respond, I think they installed the MacBook Pro version. The latest is compatible. That was a concern last fall.

http://www.macupdate.com or look here for links.

It is summer so more stress.

usage and watts is a 'custom' sensor that you have to CREATE a pseudo probe for.

Reply

Answer 9

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 9, 2007 12:06 PM in response to The hatter

Maximum operating temp thread -- lots of good Intel CPU info there. Just wasn't clear to me that was applicable to the Northbridge.

Fans & temps thread -- again, looks to me like they're talking about CPU's. My CPU's appear awesome (~90F).

Northbridge Temsp thread -- that one has me a little concerned. My 202F seems a lot higher than what these guys are talking about.

Mike

Reply

Answer 10

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 9, 2007 1:37 PM in response to The hatter

I must have the wrong version. When I try to create the pseudo-probe it tells me its not supported with this hardware.

I played around with smcFanControl a little. Northbridge is sitting at a reasonable 160F without the fans spinning like crazy.

I'm a little concerned about power-supply #2 now though. It's really cooking @ 194F.

http://homepage.mac.com/michael_aos/.Pictures/Nb-3.jpg

Mike

Reply

Answer 11

Michael Aos Author

Level 1

80 points

Jul 9, 2007 3:41 PM in response to infinite vortex

Turns out I can't monitor watt usage unless I purchase Hardware Monitor.

Mike

Reply

Answer 12

The hatter

Level 9

61,031 points

Jul 9, 2007 3:44 PM in response to Michael Aos

Well seems worth $12? for peace of mind. I used it to keep my eye on one DIMM that was always slightly warmer. ended up putting it in lower B Riser which tends to be cooler.

Reply