What's this on my 3820QM?

Noticed this on my CPU die - alcohol cleaning solution doesn't seem to shift it and it's as smooth as the surroundings so it's discolouration/staining of some sort. CPU temperatures are normal and it's performing exactly as it should. I have been using IC Diamond exclusively and I have been cleaning the heatsinks every month on average.

I'm only mildly concerned as I was planning on replacing this with a 3940XM in the not very distant future and this might put folks off purchasing.

 

By "cleaning the heatsinks every month on average" does this mean removing and cleaning the die and heatsink of thermal paste? I wouldn't do that. Also IC Diamond is made of, well, diamond, so it will scratch surfaces so a regular removal and reapplication will mar the surface, although as you find it doesn't affect performance. But other than testing, I don't see any reason to remove and clean the thermal paste on a regular basis.

 

ICD must be the culprit, especially if you paste/remove it on a regular basis - I have seen CPU/GPUs with scratches/marks on the die (not as bad as yours though) due to this paste - to be used with lot of care and as rarely as possible (once for good, that's it)

 

Thanks for the replies. I'll be more careful in future (I'm also going to switch paste - so I'll remove one last time!).

 

You should still be able to get 10 or more repastes with IC Diamond before you see much wear, and even if you repaste a few times a year it shouldn't be an issue. How many times have you done it?

 

There's no need to repaste so much, unless if you're using low-lifespan paste.

 

Or unless you have a laptop where you have to remove the heatsink to reach other components... been there done that.

 

Yes, even then you can be careful with cleaning to get by. I would repaste IC diamond at most once every 2 years, probably never needs doing unless temperatures go funny though.

 

What are you talking about Meaker? You don't own a notebook longer than 6 months!

 

It's just staining. As long as your temperatures and cooling performance are working, I wouldn't worry about it.

I also agree with everyone else on this thread... re-applying thermal paste every month isn't really necessary. If you're doing it because you're obsessive-compulsive about your cooling, then you're likely doing more harm than good.