I usually use the paste that come on the stock HSF of the retail processor I buy when doing a build. I have only brought thermal paste once when I had a board died on me.Question is simple, what is your preferred thermal compound and why?
I usually use the paste that come on the stock HSF of the retail processor I buy when doing a build. I have only brought thermal paste once when I had a board died on me.
Arctic Silver Ceramique 2. Why? Beacause I already have it. If it ever runs out, I'll try something else. I think I've had the same tube for 8 years or so.
I have an older tube of Artic Silver 3 too, but I don't like that it's conductive, and it's probably 16 years old.
My thoughts exactly.Kryonaut is the best one on your list. But you left off Conductonaut, which is my current favorite paste.
While I chose the Arctic Silver, because that's just what I have laying around it seems the application is more important than the brand.
I had been a dyed-in-the-wool AS5 fanboy, even defending it against newer greases, but I've switched to MX-4, partially because AS5 is capacitive, and MX-4 is non-conductive and non-capacitive, and secondly, it's cheaper per-application, and thirdly, it's newer.
I may re-consider, however. I had some disturbing events with MX-4 paste, using it on AM4 rigs, and then trying to "cold pull" a Ryzen CPU with the screw-on stock heatsink. The CPU came right out of the ZIF socket, and was virtually GLUED-ON to the heatsink. Took a risky "chipping" manuever that led to the CPU landing on my carpet, to break it free. (Probably should have just dissolved the TIM with isopropyl alcohol, in hindsight.) So MX-4, lends itself to becoming "glued". Not that this is isolated to MX-4, I've read quite a few accounts that this happens to AMD's larger-heatspreader CPUs and APUs, with multiple paste types. Thus far, though, for as long as I was using AS5, it tended to remove more cleanly. Probably due to the oil suspension.
Kryonaut is the best one on your list. But you left off Conductonaut, which is my current favorite paste.
the next time I was at a hospital I swiped syringes out of their disposal bin - discarded the needles - and filled them with grease.
I use it for that and for mounting waterblocks, but I'd use it for any heatsink as long as its not made of aluminum. Apart from excellent conductivity it never dries out.Do you use it as thermal paste as well? I thought that people predominantly just used to replace stock TIM.
You reached into a sharps bin to dig out used syringes?
WTF is wrong with you, you know you can buy brand new ones at a drug store, right?
Amazon too, they're dirt cheap.
Do you use it as thermal paste as well? I thought that people predominantly just used to replace stock TIM.
I may re-consider, however. I had some disturbing events with MX-4 paste, using it on AM4 rigs, and then trying to "cold pull" a Ryzen CPU with the screw-on stock heatsink. The CPU came right out of the ZIF socket, and was virtually GLUED-ON to the heatsink. Took a risky "chipping" manuever that led to the CPU landing on my carpet, to break it free. (Probably should have just dissolved the TIM with isopropyl alcohol, in hindsight.) So MX-4, lends itself to becoming "glued". Not that this is isolated to MX-4, I've read quite a few accounts that this happens to AMD's larger-heatspreader CPUs and APUs, with multiple paste types. Thus far, though, for as long as I was using AS5, it tended to remove more cleanly. Probably due to the oil suspension.
You have to twist the heatsink a bit (left-right) before pulling on it. Even if it moves just slightly, you will avoid pulling the cpu out with it.