i5-14600K constant temp spikes all the time

[Alex81]

Hello. I want to ask if it's normal to have temperature spikes all the time. I attached a few CPU usage & CPU temperature graphs. The first graph is right after Windows starts. The second graph is when I use internet browser and few apps running at the background but nothing serious. The third graph is playing 5 mins of a video game. As you can see graphs of CPU usage and CPU temperature have very similar shape. So when CPU usage increases, the temperature also immediately increases with a spikes. Is it supposed to be like this? Also I did Intel(R) Extreme Tuning Utility Stress test. During 5 mins test it showed CPU Power throttled, CPU Current throttled, CPU Thermal throttled (I attached a screenshot with test records). I have MSI B760 GAMING PLUS WIFI Motherboard with the latest BIOS update (but everything was the same with previous BIOS versions). I don't do overclocking or any other changes in default settings in BIOS. I also changed thermal paste twice but nothing changes. I tried both auto mode of air cooling and manual settings with fans working on full speed and there is no difference in temperature graphs. Also temperature itself seems a bit too high for not so high CPU usage. Can you tell me your thoughts about all that, please? Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

Temperature spikes are not necessarily a cause for concern.

When the system is idle, the temperature of the processor is not as high as when the system is running a workload. Having temperature spikes or having high or maximum temperatures while running a workload—such as games—isn't necessarily cause for concern. Intel processors constantly monitor their temperature and can rapidly adjust their frequency and power consumption to prevent overheating and damage.

Kindly check this article for more information:

Information about Temperature for Intel® Processors

Seeing Temperature Spikes when Playing Games on Systems with... (intel.com)

Randy T

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello and thanks for the response.
I am not a tech guy myself and don't know how things work. But it seems to me that temperature is a bit too high under not a heavy load. I attached two more screenshots with graphs of CPU temp and CPU usage. It's almost 80 degrees during around 10% of usage and around 100 degrees during around 25-30% usage. And it seems like it doesn't react at all on CPU fan settings: I tried it to work with default settings or put to work at full capacity, it's no difference at all. I might have not good enough CPU cooling system (Deepcool AK400 Zero Dark Plus with 2 fans). Or might it be that motherboard doesn't work properly with CPU, maybe it doesn't show proper temps?
Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

I understand your concern about the high CPU temperatures, especially under light loads. While these temperatures might seem alarming, they are not necessarily a cause for immediate concern. However, it’s important to ensure your system is running optimally.

To troubleshoot the issue, let’s start by running the Intel® Processor Diagnostic Tool and share the results here. This tool will help us verify the functionality of your CPU and identify any potential issues.

Additionally, please run the Intel® System Support Utility for Windows* and share the logs with me. This will provide a comprehensive overview of your system and help us identify any underlying issues.

To assist you effectively and resolve your issue, I need some additional information. Kindly provide answers to the following questions: 

1. Have you noticed any performance issues or system crashes when the CPU temperature spikes?
2. Are the CPU temperatures consistent across different applications or tasks, or do they vary significantly?
3. Have you checked if the CPU cooler is properly seated and if the thermal paste is applied correctly?
4. Are there any other components in your system that are running hotter than usual?
5. Have you updated your motherboard’s BIOS and chipset drivers recently?

These steps and questions will help us pinpoint the root cause of the temperature spikes and determine the best course of action. Let’s start with these and see if we can identify the issue.

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.

Here I attached files with the results of tests.

And answering your questions:
1. I sometimes have some performance issues from time to time. But it's hard to say if it's related to temp spikes because those spikes happen constantly.
2. CPU temp varies across different applications. Highest temp is during playing a video games. It reaches 100 degrees even in not CPU demanding games with ~40% load.
3. Yes. I checked it two times and changed thermal paste, there are no visible problems there.
4. I don't know how to measure other components temp except for GPU. But GPU temp looks fine and temp graphs look consistent and smooth. During a game I always see that GPU is fully loaded while being ~60 degrees hot. While CPU is loaded at 40% and being 90 degrees hot.
My PC case has 4 fans (3 in the front and one in the back) constantly running at ~1000 rpm. And I believe it has okay air flow. It feels cold.
5. Yes. I updated BIOS several times in a last few months for the latest versions hoping it will solve the problem. Now it's also the latest version.

Also I recently managed to lower the temp just by ~10 degrees with changing thermal paste (bought a brand new one) and with putting two CPU fans run at max speed (around 1600 prm). So now it it 80-90 degrees in a game that is not CPU demanding with ~40% load. But it's still high considering light load and fans working at full capacity, no? And spikes are still there all the time.

Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

In the meantime, I will coordinate the data and findings with our engineers. While you are waiting, could you please provide the names of the games and applications you mentioned experiencing temperature spikes with? This information will help us investigate further and see if we can replicate the issue, allowing us to better understand your experience.

Once I have this information, I will forward it immediately to the testing team. Additionally, if you could include any screenshots or recordings of the issue, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your cooperation!

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.
I attached few more graphs with CPU temp + usage. As you can see there are spikes in every applications I use: photoshop, after effects, even when I simply open Internet Browser (Mozilla or Chrome). Spikes happen even when system is almost idle. I also attached the pic with GPU graphs. Temperature graph looks so much more smoother and stable even under the high load. That's why I am so concerned about CPU temp.
As for games it happened in all the games I played: Elden Ring, Cyberpunk (which is the only CPU demanding game I think), Resident Evil 4, God of War etc. I recorded a bit of a game (God of war) with CPU temp and usage statistics. You can see how it goes from ~50 to ~80 rapidly. Then it seems a bit more stable staying in the range of 70-80 degrees. But spikes happens anyway (you can see them better on the graph with the same game).
Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

It’s common for CPU temperatures to spike when launching applications or performing intensive tasks like gaming or video editing. However, these spikes should stabilize quickly. It’s not unusual for GPU temperatures to be more stable than CPU temperatures, as GPUs are designed to handle high loads consistently. However, significant discrepancies between the two could still warrant a closer look at your CPU cooling solution but you mentioned you already change it two times and reapply thermal paste

In addition, high-end games and applications like Photoshop and After Effects are known to be CPU-intensive, which can explain the temperature spikes. However, consistent high temperatures (70-80°C) under load are generally acceptable, but frequent spikes to 80°C or higher could shorten the lifespan of your CPU.

I will coordinate with our engineering team to obtain a comprehensive explanation regarding this issue and to explore potential resolutions that address your concerns about the temperature spikes.

Thank you for your patience as we investigate this matter further.

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.
I understand that temp should be higher when running intensive tasks. But I saw other people with the similar configuration 14600k + rtx4070 (ti or super) and they have way lower temps in the same games, and much more stable temp. It may be that I have not the best CPU cooling system. But even being not the best it should cool down CPU at least when running at full speed, right?

Here I found similar topic with almost exact issue: https://community.intel.com/t5/Gaming-on-Intel-Processors-with/13700k-crazy-temp-spikes/m-p/1469744
The CPU is a bit different but you can see they also have quite high temp with spikes all the time under not heavy load. And they had ASRock B760 Pro RS motherboard. I have MSI B760 GAMING PLUS WIFI motherboard. They are different but both B760. And the solution that they found for their problem was to buy a new motherboard z790A. So I wonder if it would be the same for me. I am not a tech guy, I only know that Z-series is supposed to be for OC. So if I am not going to do OC, B-series should be enough, right? But could it be that B-series is actually can't handle my CPU properly? Because the issue of that guy is very similar to mine. I just want to be sure this is the solution. I build the whole new pc recently and I don't have an opportunity to buy new expensive components randomly just to try how it would work. Since both CPU and motherboard are kinda working, I won't be able to make a refund. But if you say it would 100% solve my problem I'll buy a new motherboard.
Thank you.

[Alex81]

Hello.
I have an update on my situation. I started to have very low CPU and GPU usage in the same game (God of War) that I sent you a video record of. I attached another video with monitoring those attributes.
It happened just next day after it was okay and I played game normally (but with high CPU temp and spikes as usual). I didn't make any changes to software or hardware (except I disconnected one HDD that has died two day before but it might be a coincidence). As you can see in the video CPU and GPU usage is so low I get 4 fps instead of 120+ normally. I've read that it might be because GPU is very fast but CPU is struggling and it just can't send signals to GPU properly (or something like that). Is it CPU or motherboard or something else, I am now so confused.
I tried another game (resident evil 4 remake) and it wasn't that bad tho. CPU/GPU usage was high as well as fps, but there was constant terrible stutters and lags (which shouldn't be a thing for a decent pc like I have).
Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

Since you've already updated your BIOS, I recommend following the troubleshooting steps in the article linked below. Specifically, please update the Intel® Processor Graphics driver to its latest version.

How to Fix Stuttering Issues While Gaming (intel.com)

Once you’ve completed these steps, let me know if the issue persists.

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.
All those steps were done before so I had nothing more to do (except for disabling a Windows game bar). But I found a source of that weird problem with low cpu/gpu usage, low fps and stutters. It was my controller. I had it connected via bluetooth and it somehow caused those problems. When I switched for a wire, the problem went away. But high temperature and spikes remain as before.
I am now even more confused. It didn't happen before. How can a controller cause such a problems or is it something wrong with the whole system. I don't do anything crazy with my pc, no overclocking or anything like that. Not even using xmp like most people do. Maybe it's motherboard after all.
Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hi Alex81,

Since we’ve exhausted all troubleshooting steps and tested the processor without identifying any issues, it appears the processor is functioning properly. However, if you’re experiencing other system problems such as game or program crashes, system hangs, or Blue Screens of Death (BSoD)—which are commonly observed with 13th and 14th generation processors—it could indicate a faulty processor.

It might also be worthwhile to check with your motherboard manufacturer, as you mentioned. Please reach out to them and share their findings with me. They may have specific configurations or settings that could help address the temperature spikes based on your system information.

Thank you, and I look forward to hearing back from you!

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.
Earlier you said you will coordinate with your engineering team to obtain a comprehensive explanation regarding this issue. I guess I shouldn't wait for anything from them now? I was waiting for it because hoped they can say something. But I think I will have to go a make some professional diagnostics since I can't do much myself and I don't want to damage anything to keep my warranty since the whole pc is new.
As for problems you mentioned. I have some of them sometimes. System hangs from time to time but not very often. Games still have lags no matter what. And the last time I had Blue screen of death two month ago when during the game my controller's battery died so I just connected it with a wire right in the middle of the game - BSoD happened immediately. So I just don't do that again.
Anyway thanks for your advises. I will keep investigating the issue because this is definitely not how pc for 2000+ euros should work, be it a cpu or motherboard's fault. My previous pc with i5-8400 + gtx1060 had no such issues.
Thank you again.

[RandyT_Intel]

Hello Alex81,

I sent you an email regarding my previous coordination with our team. Please take a moment to check it out.

I'm still analyzing the situation to determine if the issue can be replicated, as the temperature spike doesn't seem to be a major concern at this point. However, to extend my assistance, I’d like to proceed with our last troubleshooting step for the processor. If we find that disabling a certain feature in the BIOS helps, I can guide you on the next best steps.

I remember you mentioned experiencing BSOD (Blue Screen of Death) while using the updated drivers andBIOS version, so let’s work together to resolve this.

Looking forward to your response!

Randy T.

Intel Customer Support Technician

[Alex81]

Hello.
I disable a turbo in BIOS as you told me. After that temp spikes disappeared and temperature overall is much lower. So what does it mean? I didn't even know about such a thing like turbo mode (I am not a tech guy at all). I thought it's something related to overclocking but my motherboard doesn't even support overclocking, as I understand.
As for BSOD, it did happen some time ago once, when I switched my xbox controller from bluetooth mode to wired mode during a game. I have no idea if it's about cpu or motherboard or game or controller itself. I just don't do that during any games.
Thank you.

[RandyT_Intel · Accepted solution]

Hello Alex81,

I’ve sent you a message with an offer. Please check your email when you have a moment.

Thanks!

Randy T.

Intel Customer support Technician