Normally, my CPU temperature is always around 50*C / 120*F... But when i am playing [HEAVY DUTY] games on my comp, my CPU temp rises to about 57*C / 127*F!!! I am starting to get worried about these temps and dont know what to do. I live in an apartment with NO CENTRAL A.C. So its always pretty hot in my room... I was thinkin about maybe buying a new HeatSink BTW... I am using an ATI Radeon 9600 XT which works fine. Any help is greatly appreciated! chickens dont have fingers buffalos dont have wings fish dont have sticks, then again, the males do!

#1.. If your room's ambient temperature is too high, all the fans&heatsinks in the world aren't going to help if you are trying to cool a CPU under heavy load with 85F air. Get your unit near a window and open it with a large window fan roaring in to cool down your room. #2.. Save some money and buy a small, 5000BTU single room AC that plugs into normal house outlet. They are very reasonably priced at Sams Club, K Mart, etc. Direct it on your box, end of problem and you sleep better at night also. #3.. Newegg.com has 85mm case fans, even with blue neon lights for around $8 or something like that. Many cases have two vents on the rear, have them blowing in. I have used lots of these and they are great. #4.. Carefully scribe and cut a hole in the top of your case; get one of those Newegg fans blowing OUT and mount it there. Try to get one with a grill to nicely finish off your mounting. Be sure to spread clean rags over the inside to catch any metal filings. Now you have a blowhole which is a lot more efficient in removing hot air from inside the case which collects at the top. #5.. Carefully clean the dustbunnies, cat hair, dog fur dingleberries and whampknots that collect in the case. Take a new, unused, soft, 1" varnish brush and carefully clean out the heatsink fins. Use a vacuum cleaner with a crevice tool to suck up all the garbage that falls to the bottom of the case. Hope this helped. Happy Saving the World!

Given the high ambient temperatures and the likelyhood of #5 above, this just sounds like another day in the life of your pc. That said, grab a copy of MBM5 at: http://mbm.livewiredev.com/ and check your temps at idle (no activity for about 15 min) and under load...heavy gaming is fine. Whatever temp monitoring software you're currently using is fine too. You should see some pretty large temp swings from idle and load on a P4 and that's normal. I'd also follow ranchhand's suggestion of cleaning all the dust from the inside of your case first, especially if your idle temps are in the 50°C range. Let us know if your efforts reduce the temps you see and get up at like six in the morning when it's cooler and check your temperature readings...leave the machine on all night. Skip

Good recommendations by RanchLand. But if you currently have enough loot, then go ahead and buy a water cooling system. Heheh, those are beasts, after getting one of those, you will probably notice that your systems overall stability rises. Im not sure how much water cooling is ringing up now a days but, I DO know that they are pretty dang good. And if your like, rich, heheh NO2 cooling. I think thats what its called. Heh, thats a bit bizzare but their out there. But anyway, consider saving for a water cooling system. You wont be dissapointed.

Water cooling systems are a waste of money...you'll get just as low, if not lower temps with a properly configured air cooled system. As for response # 1, suggestions 1 & 2 may be a bit impractical...suggestion 3 is OK, but generally, rear fans should blow out, not in...suggestion 4 requires a fair amount of work, plus you need the tools to be able to do it...suggestion 5 is the only one that's quick, easy, & should be a part of regular PC maintenance. Follow Skip's advice, then post back....

There is no doubt you will reach 57°C. I suggest what SamZee recommends. After all, watercooling is the best way of eradicating heat. Expert™

I have to agree with the others. Water cooling is runaway consumerism and a major disaster if somthing fails. A properly layed out air cool setup should be fine. The cheapie A/C unit is not a bad idea either. Jimi_l