Arctic Silver 5 - Mobility Radeon 4830HD

Hi there, long time I haven't posted.

After over a year of having my HP Envy 15 with me, I must say I have really enjoyed using it, and pushing its components to the limits. My configuration is as follows:

• Components:
• CPU: i7-720QM (Clarksfield) 1.6-2.8GHz TB HT
• ATI Mobility Radeon 4830HD - 1GB GDDR3 (400MHz; 800MHz)
• 6GB DDR3 PC10600 RAM

Thing is, I have been gaming from time to time, and rendering some other times, pushing both the CPU and GPU to the maximum capabilities. Problem lies in the thermal paste. After one year of continuous use I am worried it is no longer working properly as I've seen a jump in idle temps. Idle temps used to idle at high 40s Celsius, now I am idling at 64 Celsius. Which means a huge jump in temperature, and the other day, after a somewhat long use of the GPU, it reached for the first time ever 80C.

I am certain that I could keep on going, since the PCB is designed to last to higher temps, but I am not willing to risk my laptop over negligence, even less considering how the HP Envy 15 is no longer being sold by HP, and this is by far the best laptop I have used (including the defects, I am still proud of my Envy).

So my question is this, and I apologise if this is the wrong forum, but I have been away for some time now...should I apply AS5 (or any other variant for that matter) to both the CPU and GPU? If so, how should it be done?

As some notes about myself, I have yet to open my Envy. I was weary of voiding the warranty (which is now over), so never got to disassemble it. Now, in view of the temps I'm reaching, I shall get to work on this ASAP.

My GPU has been overclocked all the way to 550MHz; 1100MHz being stable and usable. More than that is a immediate crash. My CPU has never been overclocked, other than Intel's limits, and even so, I rarely push it over the limits.

Max temps I have reached:
- GPU 80C
- CPU 91C
Those are under full load on different occasions, the CPU does not worry me that much as it sits idling or at a very low state most of the time, is the GPU that seems to be heating more and more.

I will greatly appreciate any and all helpful responses on this matter. Again, should I go with AS5 or anything better? How should it be applied? Can I apply it to both the CPU and the GPU? And if you happen to know how to open the Envy 15 it would be even better...^_^

Thank you,

Serg

 

I just have a quick response. I prefer Masscool Shin-Etsu (from Newegg) versus AS5. I've been using it for quite some time and I remember seeing a few detailed reviews showing its superiority, sorry no linky.

 

Hi Serg,

If you've already cleaned out the inside of the laptop for dust and debris, then I would apply a new layer of thermal paste. If the problem persists, consider undervolting the CPU with RMClock.

 

AS5 would probably be fine, although given the choice, I'd go with a non-capacitive paste (I personally have a big tube of Arctic Silver Ceramique lying around that I still use... not the highest end, but good enough for general use). Yes, paste both the CPU and GPU, and if your GPU has thermal pads, you should probably replace those too. Perhaps check in the Envy subforum for any helpful hints on the procedure.

 

The problem may not be related to your thermal paste at all. In fact, when temperatures rise over time, the problem is very rarely related to thermal paste. It is far more likely that the problem is related to the fans or cooling system of the laptop.

Before you try to apply any thermal paste, I would try and clean out the airflow of your laptop. Just take a can of compressed air, and try to blow out the dust. Be sure that you aim the air to blow dust *OUT* of your system... otherwise, blowing dust in to your system will just distribute that dust somewhere else. You may find it easier to partially disassemble your laptop to get a good angle on blowing out the fans and heatsinks.

You could still proceed to replace the thermal compound with Arctic Silver 5 if you want - My guess is that you will see quite a bit of dust blowing out of the system, and your system temps will drop after cleaning out that dust.

 

1- Clean out the dust on the heatsink fins.
2- Use IC diamond instead of AS5. Proven to be more effective.

ic diamond 7 vs arctic silver 5 review


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3- Use Shin-Etsu X-23 instead of IC diamond. Proven to be more effective.

 

When it comes to choosing a brand of thermal paste, I see a lot of anecdotes and very little evidence.

Have you people not heard of a decision-making tool known as a cost-benefit analysis? Don't pay more for products that deliver a small performance increase, especially as you approach higher-end products. There is always an optimal category in terms of performance-per-dollar.

 

Use AS5 instead of Shin-Etsu X-23. It has proven to be more effective.

 

MX-3 seems to have a pretty good value. *rumored* to be better than as5, and it is at least on the non capacitive front!

AS5 has ruined a few hard drives of mine.. with just a tiny smudge

 

Can you elaborate? What was the problem?

I've also seen advice on these forums saying that applying thermal paste is only for very specific problems and situations. Getting rid of dust and dirt inside your machine would be my first port of call.

 

He obviously got some AS5 on the circuit board of the HDD and they shorted. AS5 is conductive material.

 

No its not, its slightly capacitive

 

Yep it gave my hard drive some issues, making funny noises and really bad burst rates...

Right its not a matter of conductive vs capacitive its a matter of whether it does anything electrically whatsoever, it should be an insulator IMO

 

Oops, wrong terminology.