CPU is still 50 degrees at idle even with arctic silver 5 and venus 12...

k i just downloaded that and the everest home edition. Now my computer runs at about 36 degrees when running for an hour doing nothing, and around 45 at full load. YAY!!! Thanks guys, and i definately recommend the everest program, gives you every possible information you need for your computer.
Thanks again,
Jacob

New KV8-MAX3 BIOS available

It looks as though you may have solved your problem, but having struggled with both the v23 & v24 BIOS for that board, I can tell you it may only be temporary. Those two BIOS' temperature readings get out of calibration and the only way I could fix the problem was to re-flash to whichever BIOS I wasn't running at the time. So, if I was currently running BIOS v24 and Motherboard Monitor (MBM) warns to shut-down because my CPU was at 70 deg (idle, BTW), I would simply re-flash the BIOS to v23 and my temps would be at 47 idle again in both the BIOS and MBM. I noticed that whenever I had the warnings and I looked at the temperature monitoring in the BIOS itself, the temps corresponded with what MBM was saying so it was definitely a BIOS issue.

There is a new BIOS available as of 8/22/05, called v00. However, I could only get it by using Abit's FlashMenu utility v1.37, which can be downloaded at ftp://ftp.abit.com.tw/pub/download/utilities/flashmenu/FlashMenu137.exe

I am hoping this new BIOS fixes some of the temp calibration issues, but it can't be much worse than the other two. So far, so good...

RHH

jmcox-
Your temps are very high for that processor, especially considering the amount of cooling you have. I would suspect that you put way too much AS5 on the CPU when installing your HSF. More than a small bead, about the size of half a grain of rice, will actually insulate your CPU from the HSF thereby causing elevated temps.

I recommend that you shut everything down, remove the HSF from the CPU, clean the CPU off with isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol, 99% pure cheap at the drug store) and reapply the AS5 following these instructions http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_instructions_big2.htm

You will see an immediate decrease in temps of about 15c-20c and then a continuing decrease over the next couple of weeks as the AS5 cures.

You can leave the CPU in its socket while cleaning but if it is really a mess then you may want to remove it.

By the way you said you had a fan blowing in over the CPU. Thats actually NOT a good idea. if you got a fan blowing out in the back. You create an air loop. The air blowing out the back/top is sucking the air coming in from the side. and the air that should be being drawn from the fans in the front part of the case arent drawing in cooler air as efficiently. You want to create a constant vacum. (where the air in the entire case is constantly being evacuated) All the fans on the side and back and top BLOW OUTWARDS. And the Fans in the very FRONT of the case. should Draw inwards into the case. That will make the CPU heatsink work its best.

Just looking at your case im sure it seems like it would make sense that a fan over the cpu blowing in would keep it cooler. But it just makes a suction shortcut for stagnant air.

The only time the fan on the door should blow in is if you have a tubular extention that actually aims the air directly on TOP of the CPU. I only see this on some of the antec cases. I kinda looks like a think car wash vacumm hose with an over size funnel at the end.

My case has that actually (Antec SonataII) and it works quite well. I didn't put it on in the beginning because it was such a HUGE tube (in my case) but after putting it on, my CPU temp dropped about 4C.