Another thermal paste question

How much difference can thermal paste make from one brand to another? I looked at the poll and it showed arctic silver 5 is by far the most popular so there must be a reason..but if it's just like 2 degrees difference I don't wanna go to the trouble.

thx

Well it all depends what you are looking for in a thermal paste. If you are looking for bar none thermal conductivity the AS5 wins but if you need it to be stable down to extremely low temps you would be better off going with another product.

arabarabian said:

Well it all depends what you are looking for in a thermal paste. If you are looking for bar none thermal conductivity the AS5 wins but if you need it to be stable down to extremely low temps you would be better off going with another product.

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I'm just looking to lower my cpu temps. Right now they'are around 54 on heavy load. Do you think AS5 would lower them over 5 degrees?

It depends on what thermal paste you're currently using.

If you're using generic white goop (the kind that comes with most heatsinks) then you'll probably see a 3~10*C difference.

If you're using CompUSA or OCZ Ultra II thermal paste then you'll probably see a 2~5*C difference (both claim to be silver but really aren't).

If you're using OCZ Ultra 5 then you won't see any difference because Ultra 5 is just rebranded Arctic Silver 5.

If you're using Shin Etsu then you're already doing better than AS5 in some applications, and even in others. You might see a gain of up to 3*C or no difference.

If you're using AS II, AS3, or AS Ceramique then you'll probably see a 0~4*C difference.

If you're using original AS, or AS Alumina you'll probably see a 2~6*C difference.

I'm just looking to lower my cpu temps. Right now they'are around 54 on heavy load. Do you think AS5 would lower them over 5 degrees?

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Maybe you should consider a better HS or work more on case cooling. Thermal paste is not going to make that much of a difference with the temps you are getting now. What kind of case and HS do you have now?

Case: http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-125-444&depa=0

I have two suck fans at the front, three blow fans at the back and my ide cables are tubes not ribbons.



HS: http://www.cluboverclocker.com/reviews/heatsinks/aero_cool/ac_sd/

I have one fan on the heatsink about to add another when I get home.



I used the paste that came with the heatsink. Do you think 54 under heavy load is bad?

I just put in AS-5 after using the regular white stuff that comes with most HSFs. Before i applied as5 my machine at 3.5ghz could withstand 50 degrees and at 3.6only about 43-44 before crashing. Now after I added AS5 it can go up to 50 at 3.6 speeds and it is about 5 degrees lower then before...hasn't broken in yet either i just did it yesterday.


Honestly I thought as5 was no biggie but its done wonders for me.

AS3 or AS5 seem to be the rave right now. They have been proven to have silver where others have been proven fake. I use AS5 faithfully and it seems to help with my oc. BTW..... don't bother overclocking with stock heatsinks.

If your computer is stable at your current overclock with your current cooling, then there is no need to improve your cooling, unless you're looking to reduce noise.

54C is a good load temp, although I would caution anybody against trusting those numbers, and even more so against comparing temp readings between different systems. Board temp readings are generally unreliable and inaccurate.

Any difference you observe between different thermal pastes on your system, even if they apparently vary by 3-4C, could just as readily be attributable to variations in your heatsink mount, variations in thermal paste thickness, quality of application, etc. Up to the inaccuracies involved in measurements and application, they'd all be roughly a statistical dead heat. It would be difficult to differentiate between the results.

So, I guess what I'm trying to say is that from the perspective of overclocking performance and saving money for better purposes, you don't need to worry about switching around your thermal paste (or case cooling, or or or ... ) -- Paul

I was wondering about the paste because if I can get it a good amount lower then I can oc more (in theory, but won't know until I try). I don't think I want to pay 150-200 bucks to water cool right now so I'm looking for other alternatives.

thanks for the replies, I think I'm going to try the AS5 and see what happens just to cure the curiosity.

You can use Shin Etsu X23-7783D or Arctic Silver AS5, but neither one can make miracles happen. They both will cool within 1 degree C of each other if applied properly..

Make sure that you have a great heatsink and fan and excellent air flow through the case.