CPU temperature changes during operation Fluctuations in Ryzen processor heat levels
CPU temperature changes during operation Fluctuations in Ryzen processor heat levels
Hello, I built a new PC recently with a Ryzen 7 3800X on an MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus board. I’m seeing big temperature swings in the CPU even when it’s idle—shifting between 32°C and 50°C in seconds. I thought maybe the thermal paste or cooler was installed incorrectly, but I’ve read about voltage spikes and temperature changes with newer Ryzen models. I updated the motherboard BIOS and installed the latest chipset drivers from AMD. Could you help me understand what’s going on? Thanks, Pavlos.
You're using the stock cooler, which is perfectly acceptable. You might also consider slightly reducing the voltage if needed.
The voltage is rising noticeably from around 1.1 to about 1.45V or more, then dropping again, which seems unusual. It appears these voltage changes might be affecting temperature variations. I'm running a Quiet! dark rock CPU cooler.
I'm reviewing this carefully. Ryzen temps are known to vary a lot, even for my own board. Usually only slight changes of around 5°C are seen, but stock cooling tends to be much worse. If you're concerned, try re-seating the cooler and see if it improves things. I'd be more concerned about spikes during stress tests.
The changes are typical since parts are regularly maintained in the background and they usually consolidate into one core. The turbo boost activates, causing a noticeable rise in temperature. The only solution that worked was adjusting the voltage and clock speed. Still, it's within normal ranges, so I don’t need to worry much. For context, my readings stayed between 35-45°C on an AIO.
Try setting your voltage to 1.3 or 1.325 using Ryzen Master
Enable the maximum boost clock via Ryzen Master
Switch to BIOS and activate Diable PBO (Precision Boost Overdrive 9 and Core Performance Boost) and restart
When the hardware was first launched, I faced some challenges. It’s mainly about how the processors handle background tasks—when they activate, performance improves significantly. Thanks to the newest drivers and BIOS updates, things have gotten much smoother.