GPU thermal paste

Hey guys; Just have another 460m vs 5870 question:

I'm picking out the last details on a G73 laptop, and amongst all the other stuff one can customise there is the thermal paste. So I'm wondering, how much better is the IC Diamond Thermal Compound compared to the standard one, and would I be well advised to buy it in conjunction with the 5870 or GTX460m? (I've heard the 460 runs cooler)

 

If applied correctly, any good thermal paste, whether AS5 or IC Diamond, or G751, is better than stock, and will make about 2C difference at idle, and maybe 5C at load.

Whether IC Diamond is better than the cheaper AS5, no, not really, at least not measurably better.

BTW, where are you buying the laptop from? That makes a big difference in the equation. AVADirect charges around $10 for the thermal paste, which is reasonable. XoticPC charges $75 which should be considered fraud, and is absolutely not worth it. You can do it yourself easily for under $10. There's plenty of guides floating around this forum that show you how to do it. Regardless, unless there's some super-special non-standard configuration you just have to have, you'd be better off just getting a factory-direct ASUS G73 from Amazon than buying from one of the resellers.

 

Quick clarification: Are you talking about thermal paste which is normally applied around the CPU area? GPUs are kept cool through lack of overclocking and occasional undervolting.

 

I was looking at the xoticpc offer which I now am given to understand is overpriced (and it is I suppose). Thats both GPU and CPU

 

It is applied to both, I'm not sure what Harleyquin means. If you wouldn't feel comfortable doing it yourself, then I say definitely get the paste job done. Not only will it be better paste, but there's a better chance it will be applied properly compared to stock.

 

Always used AS5 myself and its always done me very well and knocked a good 3-4oc off after the initial setting period.

I think you can pick up a tube for around a fiver on ebay worth the extra couple of quid!

 

That, the G73 is know to have some units with badly applied thermal paste. See Chastity's post about her repaste experience. Changing the paste from stock one is a good choice imo. The temps are still within an acceptable range on stock thermal paste though.

 

The G73JH stock thermal paste is applied poorly and degrades quickly within a few months, after 5 months of usage I had to open mine since temps were up the roof to repaste. It is better to have xotic or whoever you're buying from to repaste it with IC Diamond.

 

I think if you look at what it takes to completely dismantle the G73, apply the thermal paste and put it back together again I think you will better understand why resellers(not just Xoticpc) have to charge so much for the thermal upgrade on a laptop like this. Not only is there a lot of risk involved when taking apart a laptop in this manner, but we keep your warranty active by replacing the broken warranty sticker with a new one. On laptops that require less labor to install the paste we charge less. Unlike many other laptops you dont have panel access to the CPU and GPU. It certainly isnt fraud when on average it takes about an hour or so to do it right. Call around and ask what local computer shops in your area charge for 1 hour of in shop labor. My guess is that you will find they charge between 45 and 75+ dollars per hour of labor.

Hopefully that helps you understand better. Please feel free to email me directly if you have any other questions.

 

^^ I can vouch for what Joseph said. It is extremely delicate in opening the G73 and you might even break your keyboard or permanently damage components if you're not careful enough. Go for the upgrade man, saves you a lot of future problems.

 

All the threads I read about the AS5 always seem to refer to the CPU, at least now I know it applies equally to both CPU and GPU.

 

just a note about AS5 and the 5870...
i noticed with AS5 i kept getting temps in the high 80's in a matter of seconds on the 5870... i had been using AS5 for years prior to this and never had a problem, only with the 5870 core (clevo card). after cleaning and reseating a few times i decided to go ahead with a few other good pastes such as ocz-freeze, mx2 (i couldn't get my hands on mx3) and shin-etsu.... instantly better results.

i've had no issues with the AS5 on my cpu however, very strange indeed. i've tried both spreading on the core, pea method, line method and nothing worked well on the 5870... bleh.

yea both need some thermal interface material or TIM.