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    Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by fizzyflaskan, Oct 29, 2006.

  1. fizzyflaskan

    fizzyflaskan Notebook Guru

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    Is it worth 20$ for Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound, when im going to buy a new notebook, dont know if its going to run hot or not, but im not that technical and won´t be able to install it by myself later....
     
    fizzyflaskan, Oct 29, 2006
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  2. Mark

    Mark Desktop Debugger

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    I would say yes. Especially for notebooks, as they have much less space to dissapate heat compared to a notebook. AS5 keeps my CPU temps down about 3-5C, which is worth it IMO. If you have the money I would go for it. Where are you buying a notebook from?
     
    Mark, Oct 29, 2006
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  3. Bobby M

    Bobby M Notebook Enthusiast

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    Pardon my ignorance, but where would one apply Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound in a laptop? Is it the same as with a desktop? If so, would you actually have to crack your laptop open and apply the compound to the cpu or what? Do most stock laptops already come with Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound already applied in the appropriate places or not?
     
    Bobby M, Oct 29, 2006
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  4. ikovac

    ikovac Cooler and faster... NBR Reviewer

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    One question: I can buy here in Croatia AS 5 for 5 USD and ARCTIC SILVER Arctic Alumina Thermal Compound for 8 USD. And I checked some reviews saying that AS5 is still better. Now I don't get it. Why is Alumina more expensive? Did anybody tried it? Besides its property of absolutely no conductivity it has no other advantages in comparison to AS5.

    Thanks in advance.

    Ivan
     
    ikovac, Oct 29, 2006
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  5. Mark

    Mark Desktop Debugger

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    I have wondered the same thing myself to be honest with you. I figure any thermal compound is much better than the thermal pads that are put on stock.
     
    Mark, Oct 29, 2006
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  6. Mark

    Mark Desktop Debugger

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    Alright, check out the Arctic Silver Guide in my sig to see how I applied it and where I applied it on my laptop. Most laptops do not come with AS5, most companies don't even offer it. You would have to take your laptop apart and apply it to the directly to the CPU. When I opened my laptop, I also applied it to the GPU, and the GPU ram modules, as well as the MCH and my RAM. Typically most people apply it to their CPUs. Applying it to the GPU gave me nice temp drops too, which was great becuase I overclock. Let me know if you have anymore questions.
     
    Mark, Oct 29, 2006
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  7. ikovac

    ikovac Cooler and faster... NBR Reviewer

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    And it is easy in my case (only 14 screws :)). And I had some issues with the default (silicone presumeably) thermal paste. I bought some cheap silver paste and got normal temps again. Now I would like to apply AS5 to CPU and GPU.

    Ivan
     
    ikovac, Oct 29, 2006
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  8. ivar

    ivar Notebook Deity

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    AS5 is the best and not the most expensive one.
    The only one which is better is Coollaboratory LiquidPro, though it can't be applied on Al surfaces.
     
    ivar, Oct 29, 2006
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  9. Schmohey

    Schmohey Notebook Enthusiast

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    I want to know is it normal for a laptop's fan to keep turning on after arctic silver has been applied?
     
    Schmohey, Oct 30, 2006
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  10. Teranfirbt

    Teranfirbt Notebook Consultant

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    Depending on how the fan is controlled, it would make sense because the heatsink would be getting warmed up faster due to better thermal conductivity off the CPU.
     
    Teranfirbt, Oct 30, 2006
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  11. Schmohey

    Schmohey Notebook Enthusiast

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    As I'm testing right now, if I run the CPU at 100% (Prime95), the fan kicks in and runs constantly. If I let it idle, the fan will turn every other minute. Now, after I turn the Prime95 off, the fan will still stay on for a little. The air blowing out seems to be cooler before the fan turns off.
     
    Schmohey, Oct 30, 2006
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  12. ikovac

    ikovac Cooler and faster... NBR Reviewer

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    I applied AS5 to my CPU. GPU needs thermal pads. But anyway - temp has gone down for 1 degree on idle. While gaming it cannot go over 61 now! It used to be like 75 before. I need more time testing, but I must admit it brings down temp in games. So far so good. I have overclocked CPU and GPU and undervolted CPU. :)

    Ivan
     
    ikovac, Oct 30, 2006
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