Running a P3 FCPGA without a CPU Fan.

[SiRDOHC]

Hi I run an ancient system, a PIII 550E @ 733MHz stock voltage, on a Trusty Asus P2B BX Board.
Recently my Intel Fan got really buzzy, so buzzy that I couldnt take it anymore. Given the fact that this computer is worthless, I didnt do anything about it and am enjoying the silence. It has remained very reliable, and hasnt crashed. While just surfing the web it remains warm, but if doing anything intense like encoding something it gets warm, but remains stable.

My question to you guys is: Will running this cpu without a fan just shorten the life of the CPU or should I expect a heat related failure in the near future? BTW There is a case fan, a 120mm running at half speed in the back of the computer. This computer is as silent as a notebook!

[skold]

that depends on what the cpu temp is. if you have a large heatsink you can probably get away with it.