Official ICD7 Thread

I did read the entire thread, and I have just put the ICD7 back on, as they were my thoughts exactly..

 

Ah, I thought you were out of ICD. Good stuff

 

It has been a little while since I recieved the ICD in the mail, I just have been very busy and had a chance to finally apply it to my CPU/NB...Here are my results so far:

Before
Arctic Ceramique (CPU)
Idle: 33
Load: 47
NB Thermal Pad in place

After
ICD7 (CPU/NB):
Idle: 32
Load: 43

These are just avg numbers but nonetheless look pretty good so far, better than Ceramique which I am a fan of... Ill probably post back results in another week or so once I do various stress tests/games to see if the performance remains as everyone says.... so thanks again Andrew if you see this post

 

I might like to try this ICD stuff on my chipset. I've had a thermal pad, a copper shim, and now another thermal pad (just got my 7811 back from gateway), and I haven't seen much difference in temperature. How well does it fill the gap between the chipset and the heatsink? Just looking at the picture on the website, it doesn't seem like a 5mm bead would be enough (for chipset, not cpu). And when it is applied, do I just tighten the heatsink screw as far as it will go? I'm worried that I might damage the chipset with this.

 

I just applied a liberal globule of ICD7 on the northbridge (size of a M&M) and sat the heatsink on top and applied gentle pressure to ensure even spereading. After that, i just screwed the heatsink in place. Works a treat!

ICD7 is non-conductive so even if it does go eveywhere, it wont do harm.

 

I was more worried about the heatsink putting direct pressure on the chipset. I guess I'll order the 24 carrot tube and use it on both the cpu and the chipset. I doubt it will improve temps on either, but I'll probably have to apply less often than with AS5.

 

just be careful putting pressure on the heatpipe while reinstalling and you will be fine.

 

hey everyone I just tried my icd7 today on my benq s41 laptop and i gotta say, epic failure on my part. I threw away all my old thermal pads, and after applying icd7, my gpu temp went insane, it reached 100 degrees (normally its only 75). So I immediately shut it down and know i did something wrong. My guess is that my gpu and heatsink aren't touching. What are some other possibility? I also threw away the old pads for my gpu memory..is it ok to put icd on those?

most importantly, is it ok to put a thick layer of icd to replace a pad? I dont have any more pads and that seems like the only repairing option for my gpu

thanks guys, any help is appreciated

 

Use the general directions.. That is a liberal size drop in the center of the chips so that when pressed down on the glob/drop will spread out over the entire chip. Yes this is thick enough that unlike regular TIM's you can fil a gap..........

 

Are they still giving samples of ICD7?

 

"Gap-filling" with a TIM is not a good idea. The whole notion of non-pad TIMs is that by compression you work out the air bubbles/pockets and mate the surfaces as closely as possible with a medium between them that maximizes the mating of chip and heatsink.

Using a "big glob" of something like ICD 7 doesn't make that happen.

If you massacred your pad, buy a replacement here: http://www.coolerguys.com/840556020769.html

 

how come other people including some reputable forum members dont seem to share your viewpoint - I dont know whose advice to follow lol!

then again, i cant really do much about it now given that my thermal pad was discarded about 4 weeks ago and replaced with a generous application of ICD7; seems to be working fine for me.

 

You cannot use thermal paste in place of a thermal pad. There will be a .5 - 1.5mm gap, and paste will only cover a fraction of that. Trying to fill up that gap with paste is silly.

You can either use a better thermal pad or the copper mod.

 

I presently use it on my "GAP" over the northbridge with great success. ICD is not thin like a normal TIM. it is quite thick and can be used on a limited sized gap without issue.........

 

Maybe you trolls (sound like company reps to be honest) should do some research and reading before spouting off ignorance........theres probably 40 pages of results here that disagree with you.

Lets also clear up the whole "thermal pad" thing....thermal pads suck . They are terrible at transferring heat, and typically break down pretty quickly. As to the copper mod, its works well, but to be honest not as well as ICD7, not to mention the fact you are adding three layers to the equation, all of which are electrically conductive.

 

maybe you can calm down, if anyone sounds like a company rep its you.

Disagree all you want to, but do it civilly. This is the second time i've had to say this in this thread, its very informative and (IMO) useful, but the next time i will start doing more than warning

Kamin_Majere

 

I think you should pull your head out of the ICD7 fanboy club and actually read and listen. Dont get aggravated just because others said otherwise.

A lot of notebooks have fixed heatsink heights. A thermal pad can leave a gap between .5 - 2mm. So a better thermal pad or copper mod is the only solution. You would have to use a thermal paste thick as chocolate to cover it.

I tried to use thick paste on my 8400m before and it just overheated after 3mins of gaming. I could physically see the gap between the GPU die and HSF when i pulled out the system board.

If your heatsink can compress it down to the surface/die and remove the clearance then yeah thermal paste will be the ideal solution.

Yes we all know thermals pads suck and crumble like crap.

 

This is almost as thick as putty, more like the consistency of a silicon paste. Maybe even a bit thicker than that............

 

Ok chocolate was a bad example, i was just hungry. Look even if it was thick, its volume will still need to fill up the height which will drastically reduce its ability to transfer heat.

Thermal paste is only meant to fill up microgaps/valleys in the cpu die surface to allow maximum heat conductivity to the heatsink.

 

Want to ban me thats up to you.......want to keep letting people bad advice? thats up to you too.

As to me being a "company rep", maybe the mods should do a little reading and research as well before jumping in. Sorry, but it just gets tiresome to see the same thing over and over again, "experts" chiming in with no experience on the topic, disregarding more than 40 pages of discussion, and standing on their soapbox talking about how they know better. Wanna learn something, stop by my place and borrow some of my equipment, or grab a seat and look over more than a year of data on thermal compounds....

again, READING IS YOUR FRIEND..... we are talking about .5-1MM, not half an inch....

 

Read and prove me wrong.

 

I think there is more than enough data in this thread alone to prove you wrong, and plenty of naysayers who either said "Wow, i was wrong"...or who slinked back off to the shadows or others threads to tell people how much they know.

If you are too lazy or dumb to read through the 2-3 threads here that show the results, or my testing, or that of the ICD7 people....or the numerous people who participated in testing, then we are both wasting our time.

Let me also add that I've been using ICD7 on my CPU and chipset for about 6 months without a single issue, running 24/7.

 

Believe it or not i actually read every post that happens in this subforum (kind of my job)

And i also don't care if you get in a hissy fit over my suggestion. I want it to be civil in here. If people disagree with you (right or wrong) you are perfectly free to correct them, but you will do so in an a civil manner.

There has been alot of good info in the thread and i want it to keep going, but getting overly defensive over a difference of opinion does teach anything. If you have another view, then show it. Teach through spreading knowledge not by getting uptight when your view is called into question.

Kamin_Majere

Hopefully this will be the last post i will have to make here and the thread can get back to what its supposed to be about

 

If you stop being a ICD7 fanboy for a second and actually read, i am not going against the ICD7's performance or quality. I am refer to its application.

Why dont you go email ICD7 about filling up 1mm gaps with their thermal paste and we can settle this

I am not a troll and im not giving bad advice.

This is what happens when you try to fill up that ".5 to 1mm" gap with paste:

Proves my point about thermal pad gaps and fixed heatsinks heights. You cannot just replace it with thermal paste unless your heatsink is not fixed and can compress it down to the die/surface which yours probably could.

 

If you note the OP there was asking if they should use a thicker piece of paste to cover the chip ans chip set, and yes he should. You can't apply this as any other TIM. It must be applied in a larger drop/glob and allowed to spread out.

I've also used this on the "GAP" of the heat pipe and GPU heatsink on my XT5000T with great success...............

 

Do you realise how much air pockets that will create?

Proper application: http://innovationcooling.com/applicationinstructions.htm

 

Believe it or not it doesn't. The primary reason is that unlike the thin silver or ceramic TIM's this does not boil out.................

 

Right, so one example....a person who probably didnt apply enough, or like you didnt read anything posted in any of these threads......proves your point, and trumps the dozens of people who have posted positive results, ranging from 3C to almost 20C How do you explain the results of everyone else thats posted here supporting the testing?

As to being a "fanboi", I am a professional in the industry.....who spent more than a little time on this subject, and realized that there was a solution to the temp issues many were seeing with the thermal pads. I tested this on a couple notebook and countless graphics cards, then went to ICD7 and ran it by them, then posted the results here...to help people.

If you've applied the paste, and let it cure (by cure i mean settle), you'll notice that it settles to an almost wax consistency. (Before settling its almost putty like). As I said, I've been running a desktop replacement notebook 24/7 for about six months with no issues at all.

let me close this by saying that thermal pads are almost worthless. While the parts not compressed appear thick, the parts sandwiched between the heatsink and core is almost paper thin. A thermal compound with the viscosity of ICD7, applied as shown in the pics in this thread, and the video I shot, has no problem filling that small gap.

 

Thats for CPU application, not for chipset or IC application.

 

I wasn't trolling. Just because it can work doesn't mean it'll work forever like that, or work flawlessly each time.

And I'll be the first one to attest to thermal pads being next to worthless, but I'd still have some trepidation replacing something that works fine to begin with. Even so, getting replacement pads probably isn't a bad idea should you ever have to get your notebook serviced. Especially with a northbridge problem - if the notebook craps out, and you've obviously removed/replaced the TIM, they're going to probably rule that as the cause and put you in breach of warranty for "altering" the stock configuration.

 

Let me ask a simple question.....have you tried it? Do you have any personal experience with what you are commenting on?

I'm trying to again find a way to break this down (I'm taking Loritab after getting my hand cut open today)....... Typical thermal compounds have a consistency of syrup, or even a thinner substance like dish soap. They have a very high liquid content.... traditional thermal compounds like these were produced with the idea of filling micro cracks and grooves (machine marks, etc). Trying to fill a .5-1.0 MM gap with these wont work, because they are so thin that they just bleed out as they heat up.

The difference with ICD7 is that it has a much lower liquid content, with an almost putty consistency. After it heats up and settles, it becomes almost wax like.And using a large pea sized glob, it has enough compression between the heat sink and chipset that it creates a bond that works perfectly, as evidenced by numerous volunteer testers here.

About a year ago, I was working with Andrew from Innovative Cooling, as well as several other thermal compound makers and found that most thermal compounds performed in bunches (not coincidentally because several of these companies use the exact same materials).

After messing around with ICD7 (which is also fantastic for polishing stuff). I had the idea to replace the thermal pads on a variety of products.....so apart came video cards, motherboards, gaming consoles, etc. I replaced the generic thermal pads with ICD7 and put the whole lot under some pretty rigerous testing. I found that in every instance ICD7 improved the thermal performance, either by direct temperature readings (using professional testing equipment) or by unscientific means (console performance.....not shutting down or freezing, fans turning on less). Specifically, I saw dramatic gains with graphics cards and notebooks. I've been running my 7811-FX with ICD7 on the CPU and chipset for about six months, and the temperatures, even with a T9900, are greatly improved.

When I have seen a problem, its people applying it like traditional thermal compounds, meaning a bead down the middle, or a small rice grain sized glob in the middle......thats not the way to do it, because this is so much thicker and doesnt spread as well as thinner pastes.

As to thermal pads, they are about worthless, and honestly provide a very poor thermal interface.......why are they used? Because on an assembly lne they are much easier to install then thermal paste.....much less chance of getting a thermal paste all over the PCB, or applying too much, or not enough. The real operating life of a thermal pad is also shockingly short.......so combine poor performance with short lifespan, and its easy to see why people are replacing them with the copper mod and ICD7.

Why do I get angry at people? Because a guy like this will spout off like a know it all, without any experience, or facts.......this guy posted a quote from one person who didnt see any benefits, and even that person asked if they did it correctly........as if that somehow trumps all the user experiences here and countless other forums. Aside from that, it makes me mad because I've spent a lot of time trying to help people here, be it with thermal paste, CPUs, drivers, etc......and to me its counterproductive when someone like this chimes in, without having taken the time to read the previous 32 pages here, or 10+ pages in the other thread.

No I apologize, I've been hurting the last few days, and before I drift off to my coma, I want the two naysayers here to go back and read the user experiences here.

 

Sorry to hear about your hand, Capper.

Regarding your last post -

I haven't had a problem with my 7805u, but after reading your post, it somewhat makes me want to put ICD7 on it anyway.

Is there such a thing as an ICD7 kit with cleaner?

 

order from here
Cleaner: http://www.heatsinkfactory.com/arctic-silver-arcticlean-60ml-p-16154.html
ICD7: http://www.heatsinkfactory.com/ic-diamond-7-carat-thermal-compound-15-gram-p-16605.html u can order both should be around 20$

 

I'll live, drugs are good....sometimes. If nothing else, I'm a lot less edgy tonight than i have been over the last couple days.

Alright, to answer some questions.....Arctic Clean is awesome, best stuff you can get. If its too expensive, or you dont want to wait, some denatured alcohol is probably the second best choice, you can get it at Home Depot or Lowes in the paint section.......or you can use good ole 90%+ rubbing alcohol (make sure there are no additives in it, fragerances, lubricants, etc).

If you havent had any issues, then it would just be an experiment. Me personally, I got tired of my temps being too high, and the fan kicking on. when I replaced the P8400 with the T9900 I decided it was a worthwhile endeavor. ICD7 made a huge difference in temps and fan usage.....but add to that using an app like CPUGenie my notebook is dead silent.

I've used pretty much every thermal compound available during testing. I really like MX-2, TX-2, Shin Etsu 751, and ICD7. I really liked OCZ Freeze, but during the longevity testing it dried out and had to be replaced, with isnt a good thing......that also goes back to one of the things that makes ICD7 my recommendation....its so thick, and six months later I've seen no fluctuation in performance at all.

 

Thanks to -L1GHTGAM3R- and Capper5016 for the info.

 

I was wondering which version of ICD7 you recommend - a web store quoted here shows a 7 carat (1.5 gram) and a 24 carat (4.8 gram) - is this simply a quantity definition by the makers of ICD7?

 

You are correct. The 24 carat is just a larger tube. If you are just doing the CPU and GPU on one notebook, the 7 carat tube is enough.

 

"carat" is the measure of weight for diamonds ...

 

Yes, I understood that...just wanted to be sure!

 

Thanks!

And in your opinion, ICD7 is better than AS5?

Again, thanks for your detailed posts on this thread!

 

You are welcome. Yes, I think that IC7/24 is better than AS5.
I am just trying to contribute to a meaningful thread. Thanks for your appreciation.

 

How easy or not easy is it to uncake this stuff? Reason being, I have a 9750 which I need to clean out the copper every 6 months for the cpu and I have to remove the heatsink each time?

Currently using AS5 and alcohol rub to remove it.

 

I used Arcticlean; a two step TIM remover. Smells like zesty oranges too! Very easy to remove with arcticlean.

 

is 99% isopropyl alcohol good enough to clean off icd?

 

I put ICD on my northbridge and CPU today. Easier to work with than I thought it would be. Yeah, it's thick and hard to get out of the tube, but at least the pressure you apply is consistent. It won't all shoot out like MX-2. So for the CPU, I can't say if it's better or worse. I just switched to a t9800, so I have no comparison. It maxes out at around the same as my p8400, but it idles maybe 10 degrees higher, which is still pretty low. So it's an adequate TIM, to say the very least. On the northbridge, temps look the same. Takes a little longer to heat up though. Not a big deal, as I'm betting the heatsink is the limiting factor there. The thing that makes it better than my previous solutions is that I just squirt some on the northbridge and I'm done. It was very easy to put it on. I highly recommend this stuff.

 

Its easy to remove just a lot thicker than typical compound, use a cofee filter or a lint free cloth to removes it.

When I went from the P8400 to the T9900, without undervolting, the temps went up a bit....remember you are going from a power consumption CPU to an "enthusiast" CPU....higher wattage, higher clock speed, etc. Add some undervolting to the equation and you will save battery life and power consumption.

 

Yeah, I undervolted. I get lower temps now than my p8400 in stress tests. Idle doesn't really change.

 

If you currently have AS5, then I wouldn't waste money on getting ICD7 since AS5 will do the job well. However, if you are on the market for one, then I'd definitely choose ICD7 over AS5 since it is slightly better and similarly priced.

Idle temps shouldn't change much processor to processor since the difference in power consumption is negligible.

 

ICD7 dropped my idle temps 7C and 20C full load on my desktop. I highly recommend this product.

 

so my ICD24 came today and it is supposed to have 4.8g. First of all the tube came without any package. Is that normal? Also, I ripped off the ICD label and there is only about 1.8 ml in the tube. Isnt there supposed to be 4.8mL? The are some silver stain at the top of the tube, but the tip is clean, indicating the tube has never been used. There is also a big air bubble in the icd paste -.-

is my tube messed up? do I have to send it back and wait another week for an exchange?

please look at the attached pictures