• Welcome to Overclockers Forums! Join us to reply in threads, receive reduced ads, and to customize your site experience!

Wrecked the Thermal Pads on my Asus HD7950

Overclockers is supported by our readers. When you click a link to make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn More.

abarth_1200

Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2009
Location
Scotland, Inverness
Hi guys, so I have noticed my temps have steadily rose (any ideas why?) from around 35 idle to a steady 45 idle over the past couple of weeks. I did take it apart to inspect/reapply new thermal paste but in doing so I managed to tear some of the thermal pads that cover the memory chips and I think voltage regulators.

I want to replace them all but as the card is currently assembled and is a pita to take apart again and measure (not sure how I would measure them tbh only about 1mm thick at a guess) I was hoping someone knows what thickness I should be looking at, I understand I can cut them to lenght and width its just that they come in sizes from 0.5mm to 3mm.

Obviously its benificial to have the thinnest pad for the area in question but too thin and the heatspreader wont make contact.

Also any good brands to look for??
 
Dust? Rising ambients... etc? But usually the temperature you are monitoring is the core, which isnt using a thermal pad. So I guess I first ask how do you know that your memory and VRM temps on the card went up? You have only mentioned the core temp which has nothing to do with it really...

Someone JUST posted about this question too... let me search the forums and see if I can find the thread.

EDIT: A couple of things.. 1. Search THERMAL PADS on the forum and the top few threads discuss your issue. Cliff's notes on that are to contact the MFG of your card to confirm the right thickness as it will vary by MFG.
 
I know the core (temp readout you see in GPU monitors) uses thermal paste like CPU's and has nothing to do with my pads being wrecked.

Also the temps were rising before I removed the cooler so im not making the connection between wrecked pads and temps being the problem here. Just want new pads for peace of mind.

Ambient temps havent chaneged 10 degrees since installing, if anything its colder outside and my heating is on timers so not changed. ALso no dust, its only been installed a couple weeks and most dust I have ever seen took a year to collect as I have dust filters, hoovered regularly. Just seems as if something has changed, like the contact between cooler and core has degraded.
 
Oh sorry, was written that way (to me). Anyhoo, try, once you get more thermal pads, to remount and see if that helps. That is the only thing I can think of at the moment.
 
=So I guess I first ask how do you know that your memory and VRM temps on the card went up?

I dont in essence and im not asking about the temps of vrm and memory as I am unaware of any software that can even read those temps, I just need new pads. Unrelated to core temp rising.

Ill have a look at contacting the manufacturer, I have had good responses from them in the past. Thanks!
 
Ah right, well technical enquiry sent off to Asus, would love to see the technicians face when he reads it... eh how do I know the size of the thermal pads?
 
Im waiting on a proper response from Asus, here is what I got in reply

Dear Sir/Lady,

Thank you for contacting ASUS Customer Service.
My name is Carol and it is my pleasure to help you with your problem.

For the problem, I suggest you to send it to your retailer for service first. The retailer has to legally assist the customer, as they are the place of purchase. If they can't do this, please call 08454 04 05 06. They will be able to advise the customer on the legal aspect.

If you have another problem, please get contact with us ASAP.

Best Regards,
Carol
ASUS Customer Service


First off, my name is a male name only so that tells me this response is generic.

Second, I had even stated that this is the second 'line' of contacts I have been directed to and that I need an answer from someone who knows how to help.

Third off, how is Amazon meant to be held accountable to answering any technical enquiries on this product?

Needless to say im a bit miffed and sent back an angry looking email to get me someone who can help me.

However after hours (yes hours) I have come across this

Which says it needs 0.5mm pads all round, however that is for their waterblock design.

I have never ventured into waterblocks so unsure if they are different to most stock cooling setups, gap wise.

Anyone with a good handle in waterblocks and GPUs care to share their experiences?
 
Just incase anyone else is having difficulty finding which pads fit the Asus HD7950 I got 2 strips of 20x100 at 0.5mm for the memory and 1 strip of 20x100 at 1mm for the vrms
 
Back