CPU running hot ?

What cpu fan are you using? Have you powered it up with the case open, just to verify that the fan turns and is operating okay? How many other devices are plugged into the systemboard? How many fans are on the case? Has it always run this hot? Or is this a nerw development? Have you taken a can of compressed air and blown out the system/fans of dust?

A one GB processor should not be running 131 deg Fahrenheit (55 C).... If that's the temp when you first power it up, I'm surprised youstill can power it up. My AMD Athlon XP 2700+ runs at 55 deg Celsius... but it's twice as fast as yours.

131F is ok after a few hours of hard use.

But, it is very high for just after startup.

Start by seeing if your CPU fan is clean of dust, and spinning freely.
If so, it may be too small a fan for your CPU.

Either way, I would replace the heatsink and fan.

Take a look at the Thermaltake Volcano or Orb series.
A Volcano 7 should be more than enough for a 1GHz Athlon.

Next, check your airflow through the case.

Are the vents blocked, dust covered,
Are cables in the way of the air flow.

Consider installing a case fan to blow air into the case.

The only other thing to check, is the CPU 'core' voltage setting.
If the core voltage is set too high, it can cause the CPU to over-heat.

AMD has made several models of the Athlon CPU, so verify which one you have, and look up the specifications on AMD's web page.

You can check the core voltage setting using a motherboard monitor program, or from the CPU setting page in BIOS settings.

I have read of failure in the voltage regulator circuit. You may need to have a technician measure the actual CPU voltage.

Chas

If you will be able to read this I would like to add this that both the CPU fan and power supply have been changed every thing is clean and have three fans 1 for the power supply 1 for the cpu and 1 case fan all are working now the new fan on the cpu has a larger part of the side that sits on the cpu coverd with the black stuff not sure if it is called a heat sink or dope or tape .
my old power supply was a 300 watt and the shop sold me a 400 watt saying that it would not hurt any thing because itonley gives out the same amount of power to each device card cpu onley that if I want to add a hard drive latter on and lets say a DVDplayer or w/wr to would have enough power to run all of it could this problum of my cpu running hot be because of the cpu fan or power supply or both.

TheChas is right and I will add: The 400 is BETTER than the 300 anyway you look at it as long as the 400 is okay. I would add an out fan at top back and an in fan at bottom front. I run a 7000rpm on my heatsink at 50cf or better and one front bottom in at 45cf and one top out at 45cf and PS should always be out. If your case sides do not have holes in them then I drill a few in bottom front of side [either side okay].

I wonder if there is something wrong with the sensor.
If the heatsink is properly installed, and its fan is working the CPU can not get to 131f at turn on without a drastic problem.
Open the case.
Put your fingers on the heatsink. (Let the fan turn)
Turn on the PC.
At 131f you will notice the sink is uncomfortable to touch because it is so hot.
If the heatsink is not hot, something is wrong with the sensor.
Regards, Chris

Actually that it is a new motherboard makes it more likely.
In electronics, most failures come as infant (First Hour) and end of life. (Huge number of hours) , and in the middle almost no failures.
Regards, Chris

As stated, the 400 watt power supply is better than a 300 watt supply.

The wattage rating is the maximum amount of power that the supply can produce.
However, the supply only produces as much power as needed.

Based on your comments, here are a couple more things to check.

Boot up the PC long enough for the CPU to get hot, and shut it down.
Feel the heatsink.
Is the entire heatsink hot to the touch?
Or just the bottom?
Under 'normal' operation, the heatsink should be hottest near the CPU, and coolest near the fan.
If the entire heatsink is hot, the fan is not doing it's job, or there is not enough free air flow over the heatsink fins.

If the bottom of the heatsink is cool, then part of the pad between the heatsink and the CPU may need to be removed.
Some heatsinks come with a protective cover over a thermal transfer pad on the bottom of the heatsink. The protective cover is a very good insulator.
If the entire pad comes off, you should apply a thin coating of heatsink paste over just the area where the raised section of the CPU meets the heatsink.

Next, around the CPU there should be some large capacitors. (silver topped cylinders)
Do any of these look like they are bulged, burnt, or have liquid seeping onto the motherboard?

If so, you have one of the motherboards that were built with a bad batch of capacitors.
1 of the Chinese capacitor manufactures produced some bad parts that were used in a number of motherboards.
Some failure modes could raisethe CPU core voltage and cause the CPU to overheat.

Chas

Your new temperatures are only a little bit high for an Athlon system.

I think you have nothing more to worry about.

My Athlon 950 runs around 116F after a few hours in my basement.

In a warmer room, it would run warmer too.

The Athlon CPUs are good to 60 or 70 C.
This equates to 140 to 158 F.

Chas

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