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    best thermal compound

    Discussion in 'Sager and Clevo' started by Nothing.To.Lose, Jul 29, 2012.

  1. Nothing.To.Lose

    Nothing.To.Lose Notebook Consultant

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    What is the best thermal compound? Justify your choices with reasoning.
     
    Nothing.To.Lose, Jul 29, 2012
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  2. JMCD23

    JMCD23 Notebook Geek

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    I like Mx-4. Non conductive, easy to apply, great performance and no cure time.
     
    JMCD23, Jul 29, 2012
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  3. Nothing.To.Lose

    Nothing.To.Lose Notebook Consultant

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    I don't mind curing time
     
    Nothing.To.Lose, Jul 29, 2012
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  4. Exposed88

    Exposed88 Notebook Consultant

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    any of the top brands mx-4, ic7, prolemitech(sp), GC extreme
     
    Exposed88, Jul 29, 2012
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  5. arcticjoe

    arcticjoe Notebook Deity

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    I have tried Arctic Silver 5, MX4, ICD7, Gelid GC Xtreme and some other ones I cannot recall now, all were tested on my previous laptop - p170hm with 2920xm OC'ed to 4ghz constant and Gelid gave me the best temps and smallest temp variation between cores.
     
    arcticjoe, Jul 29, 2012
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  6. fantomasz

    fantomasz Notebook Deity

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    arctic silver and ic diamont
     
    fantomasz, Jul 29, 2012
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  7. __-_-_-__

    __-_-_-__ God

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    indigo extreme. because it's really the best and gives the lowest temps then any TIM. would I personally use it? no.
    other suggestions: prolimatech pk-3
    avoid as5 and icd
     
    __-_-_-__, Jul 29, 2012
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  8. Shiroi14

    Shiroi14 Notebook Guru

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    Shiroi14, Jul 29, 2012
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  9. Stevenbrz

    Stevenbrz Notebook Enthusiast

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    When you say to avoid AS5 and ICD, would you recommend AC MX-2 instead? I can only choose from those three.
     
    Stevenbrz, Jul 29, 2012
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  10. Tmets

    Tmets De-evolving to Amoeba

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    Tmets, Jul 29, 2012
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  11. Shiroi14

    Shiroi14 Notebook Guru

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    Untitled.png Untitled 1.png


    Note: ICD7 include it in comparison
    Original link : Thermal Compound Roundup - January 2012 | Hardware Secrets
     
    Shiroi14, Jul 29, 2012
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  12. hackness

    hackness Notebook Virtuoso

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    hackness, Jul 29, 2012
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  13. Tmets

    Tmets De-evolving to Amoeba

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    Strange but apparently true. Not chocolate though, only for eating.
     
    Tmets, Jul 29, 2012
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  14. sgogeta4

    sgogeta4 Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    There is no single best TIM. As stated in several other threads like this, the differences between the top TIMs that are applied correctly are within the range of error of each paste (ie. even a single brand of paste will perform within a few degrees range due to minute variances in chemistry). The most important factor in getting good temperatures is the application of the TIM.
     
    sgogeta4, Jul 29, 2012
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  15. fenryr423

    fenryr423 Notebook Evangelist

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    I stand firmly by Gelid Extreme. Its easy to apply and lowered my temps by 4C from ICD7. i have now applied it to 2 of my friends computers and they are seeing great results as well. my 680m hits 73 degrees max after hours of gaming with a decent OC
     
    fenryr423, Jul 29, 2012
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  16. hackness

    hackness Notebook Virtuoso

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    I have tried PK-1 and ICD7, I like PK-1 better, easy to apply, no scratches, temp is equal or lower than ICD7. And the PK-3 is out too and seems to have higher thermal conductivity than the PK-1 according to the official site, have gotta try it when I get a chance :p.
     
    hackness, Jul 29, 2012
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  17. jaug1337

    jaug1337 de_dust2

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    They should make a mix of mayonnaise and butter... seems like the perfect thing to do
     
    jaug1337, Aug 2, 2012
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  18. Zymphad

    Zymphad Zymphad

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    I think the other problem with most of these benchmarks is that they don't use laptops to test.

    Personally, I've used AS5, ProLimaTech PK1, MX-4 and OCZ Freeze Extreme, in two laptops so far for me, ICD7 has been the best. Great durability, apply it once, lasts 3 years. It's very forgiving with imperfect applications due to the imperfections on laptop heatsinks etc.
     
    Zymphad, Aug 2, 2012
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  19. hackness

    hackness Notebook Virtuoso

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    OK this is what I've come across on the spec of some thermal compound:

    Prolimatech PK-3: 11.2 W/m-°C (On official site)

    Prolimatech PK-2: 10.2 W/m-°C (On official site)

    Prolimatech PK-1: 10.2 W/m-°C (On official site)

    Arctic Silver 5: 8.7 W/m-K (not listed on the official site, I found it here)

    Gelid Extreme: 8.5 W/m-K (On official site)

    IC Diamond: 4.5 W/m-K (On official site)

    IC Diamond is good if the gap is huge, but others will perform better if there's only a small gap between the die area and the copper plate.
     
    hackness, Aug 2, 2012
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  20. rmmrolf

    rmmrolf Notebook Consultant

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    Sometimes, it depends on how you applied the paste? I used arctic 5.
     
    rmmrolf, Aug 8, 2012
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  21. NeoCzar

    NeoCzar Notebook Evangelist

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    The overall difference is very minimal. I chose mx-4 for ease of application, good reviews. IC7 seems to be a hit and miss if you're not experienced with it and it stains/affects your heatsink surface and is a pain to remove. Silver 5 is ancient and electrically capacitative (not conductive) which some have complained about.
     
    NeoCzar, Aug 8, 2012
    #21