Just received a new Mini so I thought I would stress test it.
I loaded up four instances of the "yes" test and the CPU maxed out, so fine.
Then I see that after 10mins or so, the CPU is still at 65C and the fan hasn't moved from 1900rpm. Meanwhile I can still run Geekbench (score 4000+), download a 6GB file at 90MBps and run Safari with almost no lag.
Does this seem right to all of you ?
It's a new 2012 base Mini that I have modded with a 120GB Samsung 840.
If I had "broken" the fan or anything else, then it would be obvious, yes ?
I tried the same approach on my 2011 MBA and after only 3mins it was running at 95C with the fan at 4000rpm - so exactly as expected.
That sounds fine to me. The fan on a 2012 is different to 2011. The 2012 fan runs at 1800rpm until about 80'c. The fan doesn't hit really high revs (4500-5500) until it is around 90-95'c+
The 2011 is different, the fan speeds up as the temp gets higher. The 2012 has more of a larger window for the fan to run low before it kicks in. '
I am only guessing but it has to do with the ivy bridge handling 105'c so the 2012 has a higher tolerance to heat before the fan really kicks in. Once again, this is only my view but I think Apple has gone for trying to have an all-round quieter machine under normal operating conditions so the OS hold off on when to start cooling it down.
There are many posts on 'heat' & 'Fans' etc in the Mini forum that cover this.
My 2012 i7 2.6GHz sits on 1800 rpm until about 80'c when the fan then goes to around 2200rpm or so. At around 85-90'c the rpm gets stronger and will hover around 5500rpm from the mid 90's onwards to its max 101'c that it hits.
Get used to high temps with your Mac mini. It is the way they are designed. I let the OS control everything, even though some use SMC or iStat to keep the fan RPM higher.
I have run a 2011 i7 Quad 2.0GHz mini permanently for over a year or two (when it just came out?). It is still absolutely fine even though I use it regularly to code video for days on end at peak temp. Although my 2012 has largely taken over that job now because it is quicker.
As to whether 65'c is a high idle temp, my 2.6GHz idles around 45-65'c (always at 1800rpm) with a few basic apps running in the background like iTunes. So for me, your temp seems ok - but not low. It depends a lot on your ambient room temp and ventilation. I also have Tuniq TX-4 thermal paste on mine.
Most Mac mini users go through the initial 'Holy crap!' look at those temps. But then you get used to it. As I said, they are designed that way. The OS looks after it very well from my point. A few members have suggested a larger body to accommodate a bigger fan would be good. I can't see Apple making the mini any bigger. I think they will just push/test the tolerance of what the CPU is capable of.
If you want to know more about your temps try iStat Menus (small price but excellent App), otherwise try SMC Fan Control for free, but that is basic. They both let you set a higher idle RPM for your fan if you want.
Anyway, I'm rattling on...