Is the Thermalright PA120 SE ARGB causing CPU throttling in Apex?
Whenever I hit the final circle, my frames just dive from 144 down to 80, and the instability is just nerve-wracking. The fins on the Thermalright PA120 SE ARGB were hitting their physical limit at 85-92℃, triggering aggressive thermal throttling. I tried leaving the side panel off for a quick fix, which dropped temps by 5℃, but the dust buildup and noise were just too much to handle long-term. I eventually swapped to high-conductivity liquid metal paste and forced the fan curve to 100% once the CPU hits 75℃. Monitoring now shows full-load temps dropped from 92℃ to a manageable 76-81℃, and the FPS swing narrowed from 40-60 to a steady 130-144. I actually overshot the fan curve at first, making the idle noise unbearable, until I dialed the sub-50℃ speed back to 800 RPM. CPU power is steady at 115-125W with fans at 1800 RPM. Stress tests show no more throttling, and the mouse feel is finally crisp again.
