I am overclocking my CPU a bit and I managed to get it 500 MHz faster with only a 5 or 6 degree C change in temp. Still. I decided to buy a new CPU cooler before continuing. I bought this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134
After about an hour and a half of sweating and swearing, I managed to replace the Intel stock cooler and put this one in it's place.

Before this cooler, my computer idled at 44-45 degrees centigrade and maxed at around 60 degrees. Now, it's idling at 65 and maxing at 84 - 86! What gives? This cooler got tons of great reviews so I figured I can't go wrong.

My computer has also gone from "Is it on? I can't hear it." to "Did our neighbors buy a new chainsaw?"

That's the exact cooler I got for my Intel Q6600 and I knocked off about 2-3°C once I installed it, but the airflow inside the case did improved dramatically due to its architecture. It's also quieter.

You have to make sure you install heatsinks correctly. Make sure you wipe and eliminate all traces of the old thermal paste, I use a mixture of 50% white vinegar and 50% of Isopropyl Alcohol. Then apply the new thermal paste, rotate it just a bit after lowering the heatsink on top of the processor, and go from there. The Socket 775 heatsinks are horrible to install, I know, but make sure you do it right and make sure it's nice and tight.

When you experience problems like these, it's best to just start the installation from scratch, once again. Even a tiny object in between the CPU and heatsink can cause your problem.

well the specs on the cooler say it should be fairly quiet. If theres a sound issue, check your fan speeds. Make sure they are stable and running at the proper speed it could be a sign that a baring is bad or something is rubbing/making contact.

I know this is a no brainer, but did you make sure you used good quality heat-sink compound when you put on the new cooler? Arctic Silver is a popular one, its inexpensive but very important. Putting the compound on correctly can make or break your over-all performance of your heat-sink.

Switching from to a quality after market cooler like that should have at least maintained temps. When I went from a retail cooler to a Zalman on my AMD I dropped 6-10c (Depending on the room temp)

Well I removed the cooler and noticed that there was a clean 2mm line across the cpu where the thermal paste wasn't contacting. I used a old SD card and smoothed out the goo onto the blank area. And after a few, less painful, minutes, I replaced the cooler. Now my PC is idling between 53 and 60 and maxing at 70. Lower, but still too high.
The loudness was just the poor fan trying to cool down such a hot computer. It is still louder than the stock cooler but it's not too bad.

I am using the patch of thermal goo that was already on the cooler. Would I get better cooling with a individually packaged compound?

You should always replace the thermal compound after unseating the heatsink. If you want to lower your temps by a lot, pick up some diamond thermal paste.

http://www.heatsinkfactory.com/ic-diamond-24-carat-thermal-compound.html

$20 for a tube of thermal paste... It best be good. haha

Arctic Silver has served me well enough.


But yeah never reuse thermal paste. Especially when its just the crap they slap on the bottom of the retail heat-sink.

Well the temperature is now idling at 70. It won't make up it's mind. I am going to buy
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
and avoid playing games or watching videos for a week until it arrives.

How much thermal paste are you using? For there to be a 2mm gap ( hopefully not somewhere in the middle ) I think you are not using enough.

If the gap was in the centre of the cpu, you have a bent heatsink.

Is your E8400 a E0 or C0?

Nathan Daniels said:
If you can afford it, I recommend getting the bigger tube:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100008

The little tubes don't last very long.

FordGT90Concept said:

Woah! I have never seen this one before but it looks interesting.

FYI guys, I did research & experiments on many brands and types of thermal pastes, ranging from Arctic Silver 5 & Ceramique, to the cheap ones that were included in Shuttles, Barebones and other brands. There was absolutely no difference in temperature, even after the settle-in time. I did this research throughout a period of months using several processors known for high heat, and regular ones known for average temperatures. There was no difference whatsoever, all thermal pastes performed the same. In some cases you could see just barely a 1°C degree drop but after that, all average temperatures were the same throughout the months.

I don't waste time with thermal paste anymore. However after seeing the one Ford posted I may give that one a shot, just to continue the research.

What you do have to focus on is lowering the ambient temperature inside the case itself. So spend time on working on your case and fans. Also, make sure to apply the thermal paste properly and always get rid of all the traces from the old one. Too little thermal paste = overheating. Too much thermal paste = overheating. See the instructions at http://www.arcticsilver.com/instructions.htm - I follow these guidelines and have had great results.

Kieran Blenkarne said:

CRAP! It was right down the center! Now what? And, btw, I had no say in how much paste was put on the heat sink in the factory.

Mothow said:

What?

FordGT90Concept said:

Too late.

Nathan Daniels said:
I've always gone with the instructions Arctic Silver provides (Joshua linked it a few posts above) which basically states to place a large grain of rice worth of paste in the center then do a little twist once the HSF is seated. Doing it that way prevents pockets of air from forming.


Nathan Daniels said:
He's asking for the processor revision. CPU-Z can tell you from http://www.cpuid.com/


Nathan Daniels said:
XD

My E8400 is revision C0

With respect, if the little tubes dont last long then you're putting on far too much. Either that or you're a seasoned profrssional who changes half a dozen cpus a week.

The stuff put on in the factory is best removed first. Some coolers even have a wafer thin layer of plastic placed over the top and you certainly dont need that.

When you've finished put the tube in the butter compartment of your fridge.

If its in the center you've got a problem.

Size of a grain of rice is too small. Should be a little bigger than that.

Well when I remove the sink when the paste arrives, I will clean and further examine it. I hope I don't have a ruined cooler because the eBay seller was adamant with his no-return policy. (Yes, eBay. Don't worry, it is a brand new cooler, it was just $20 cheaper on eBay)

Kieran Blenkarne said:
I see that. They one a strip about an inch long starting at where the two indentations in the cap are extending all the way across to about a centimeter of the edge. The two cores in quad-cores are apparently very far apart.

I just got my first BSOD on this computer! Is this a symptom of overheating? Just to be safe, I brought my CPU back down to stock speeds and voltage which did little to alleviate the heat.

The temperatures you had reported were definitely too high. I have always kept all of my CPUs in the 30s and 40s °C, and you can feel a performance difference than having them in the high 50s°C or above.

Overclocking causes BSODs, not heat. If the processor gets to hot, the motherboard signals the power supply to turn off.