i would like to know what is the best thermal grease in the market? i would like to know there differences.

thank you so much!

Have a look at ArcticSilver Instructions (http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_instructions.htm)
Here's some of the compounds (http://www.arcticsilver.com/instructions.htm)there
Also don't forget that you still need a good Heatsink (http://www.frostytech.com/)

Looks like to me the differences are CPU hardware related, not so much which is the best compound

thanks so much.....
although i am using only the silver type grease, the ordinary one...

I also just went out for some Arctic Sliver 5 Thermal grease today, decided it was time to get rid of the stuff that came with the heat sink. I was a bit disappointed that it cost 10$ for such a small amount of the stuff, and another 4$ for 500ml of 99% isoprophyl alcohol, but you also only need a little less than the size of a BB to apply so It will last me a long time as well as a still have like 480ml left of the isoprophyl alcohol.

I have to say that after cleaning my computer and applying the grease to my CPU the temperature has gone down from 34 Celsius to 26 Celsius and It also takes some time for the compound to sink in which will also make the processor a bit cooler. My room temperature is about 22 Celsius and my CPU is slowly doing down in temp.

I'm happy ;D

BTW if you get isoprophyl alcohol to clean off the thermal grease don't get one with anything less than <70% really I wouldn't even go under 99% or else you pose more of a risk of damaging stuff.

That silver stuff is supposed to be good, like everyone above just said.

i am from the philippines and my pc is not in an air-conditioned room. my processor is an intel pentium d (dual-core) 2.8 ghz. idle temp is around 48 degrees while load temp is around 53 degrees and my motherboard temp is around 39 degrees. i have installed the necessary exhaust fans and i always clean my pc every month. so is my cpu temp ok or not? im using the silver type thermal grease, the cheap one actually.

thanks!

i just applied the silicon thermal grease that my Zalman Fan Came with.... but im having issues... my temps are in the 50's C. Im gonna switch it out for artic silver 5

The thermal compound does have an effect on the temperature, but to an extent. Temperature can depend on your processor model, current cooling solution, ventilation, cleanliness, your climate conditions, the amount of operation time and load on the CPU.

Make sure that your case has adequate ventilation, air must be moving threw your heat sink in order to cool it so even if your case may be open if their are jumbles of wires or dust near then it will effect the ventilation just as badly as if your case were to be closed, be sure to clean your case often and keep wires from hanging all over the place. If you have over clocked your CPU or it runs at a high clock speed that will make it run warmer. If the CPU uses a larger architecture and consumes more power it is more likely to be warmer.

Thermal paste can have drastic effect on the heat but If you already have it properly installed between your CPU and heat sink then switching the thermal paste may have a slight effect but It might not be the answer. Buying a new cooling solution for those with higher temperatures would do you more good.

Good operating temperatures would be anywhere from <49 Celsius but if your going over 40 you might want to find something to cool it down. 50-65 Is getting a bit warm and might start to pose a risk. Over 66 you should probably start thinking about a new cooling solution, thermal paste probably won't do you to much.

Make sure you can trust your temperature monitor as well, some can give bogus temperatures.

yea i was having problems with the heatsink... the clips that came on my zalman fan were not connecting rite

i fixed em now im getting 29C - 36C

Nice, that seem pretty good. Much better than before =3

much better Thanks XD.... im still gonna put artic silver tho lol

so these means that even dual-core cpu can get around below 50 or much better below 40???

Yeah, mines a AMD athlon 64 X2 4800+ and its at 26c-34c.

Not to say it doesn't get warm, when playing COD4, Crysis or COH she does get a bit warm, 48c is the most I've seen it get to though.

yea i got a E6750 and with arctic silver 5 and an asus block cooler i was at 35 idle 46 Load... but my room is hot...

i switched it out for a ZALMAN 9500 but i had no arctic silver left so i used the silicon paste that came with it.... pain in the *** to apply... but im happy with 30 - 39 temps.

i want to redo my thermal paste with Arctic Silver just beacuse its less messy than the silicon crap... but any ways make sure that your heatsink is sitting correctly on your CPU. your CPU radiates heat from the center usally so that would be the most wise place to apply thermal paste...

Yeah, remember like the instructions say don't put to much of that thermal grease on.
About the size of a BB in the centre. All your trying to do is make the processor have as much contact as possible with the heat sink so putting to much grease will only make you worse off. What ever you do DON'T do it like this guy.

http://www.techspot.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/396/si/paste

Good operating temperatures would be anywhere from <49 Celsius but if your going over 40 you might want to find something to cool it down. 50-65 Is getting a bit warm and might start to pose a risk. Over 66 you should probably start thinking about a new cooling solution, thermal paste probably won't do you to much.

You have to realise different makes have different operating temps. The Pentium Ds are notorious for running pretty hot (and thus, higher normal operating temps). Same goes with some Pentium 4s (Prescotts anyone?)

Make sure you can trust your temperature monitor as well, some can give bogus temperatures.

You nailed it there. On board temperature monitoring isn't accurate at all. There was a test somewhere (if anyone would be bothered checking really old threads) where the temperature can differ more than 10C from the actual temperature (measured with a seperate, calibrated, probe). And the temperature changes aren't accurate neither (can't remember what thats called).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anyway, just wanted to point that out.

About that link:

Thats actually the wrong place to put the thermal grease, so don't even think of a BB sized thing anywhere near there.

Besides, the guy could be laying di-electric grease (however you spell that). You'd need that kinda amount if you were doing that. Wrong color for that I think.

Less is more when it comes to thermal grease. But too little isn't good neither, and the only way to know if you've got the right amount is to apply what you think is the right amount, fully complete the installation, take it off, and check how much it has spread from where you originally put it. repeat until you've found out how much you really need.

It'll be somewhere between half a grain of rice, and a BB.

Although I personally did that, I think that its too much of a hassle for anyone other than enthusiasts (the gains aren't that great neither).

There was a test somewhere (if anyone would be bothered checking really old threads) where the temperature can differ more than 10C
This one?-->http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthread.php?t=98948

Not old enough.

I'm talking sometime mid 2007 I think.

Thats just comparing different monitoring programs, but it'll do in supporting my point. :D

Aha sorry I probably should have mentioned that about the picture before =p

so bottom line pentium d dual processor operates on higher temperature like around 50, i guess?

Yes, it would perform at a higher temperature.

If you checked my sig (the first link), there would be some links in the second post. One of the links would bring you to the actual spec for AMD/Intel chips, and their max cover temps. Its not exactly the same as what you'd be measuring, but its a good indicator of what the max temp you should be thinking about.

For Pentium Ds, the temps range between 63C and 68C, depending on the model. I wouldn't trust my comp to run any higher than those figures.

try check intel for the optimal operating temp... my E6750 is sapposed to be at 35 C with stock fan but i got a ZALMAN and a hot room so i run around 32 - 33 at the min

thank you for the information. i am using the asus pc probe II to read my cpu and mb temperature and as far as this software would tell, idle temp is around 48 degrees and loading temp is around 55 degrees.

are you using a stock fan? if you are mabey you need to consider better cooling. check new egg

Your temps are completely fine.

Some users of techspot can get carried away by what actually are ridiculously low operating temps, because they've spent some real serious money on their cooling systems.

However, unless you are running into problems related to the temperature of your CPU, I would say save your money. Of course, if you've got cash to burn, why not? But I do warn you: your computing experience will not be enhanced in any way possible, your money may be better spent getting a nice new mousepad: at least you'd see the difference there.

And if someone tries to convince you with the your-computer-will-self-destruct-much-sooner-if-you-keep-running-it-that-hot spiel, I'd say sure, if you wanna keep your computer running 15 years more than the current 15 its gonna run. Yes, I'm serious. Your computer isn't gonna implode before you really should consider an upgrade. I've mentioned in another thread: its like investing in a cooling system on a 286 system 15 years ago, would you still use that computer?

I have another dumb question! (indirectly related to the heading)

I have a fan at the front of my case sucking air in (actually straight on to the HDD)
I have a CPU Fan suckig air in (ofcourse)
I have a rear fan blowing air out (another ofcourse - getting rid of CPU heat)

This setup creates an airflow, from front of case -> out to rear of case

Is this right ?

Someone told me (today ironically) that all case fans should blow air out
But if I did this, it would stop the air flow (that may be non-existant anyway I suppose?)

So, regarding CPU heat removing. Should all case fans (even if I get more) blow air out ?

I hope this is not too off topic

I would think blowing on the parts would make it cooler because fans like that don't have much suck. Most of that airflow doesn't even come from behind the fan so puting it in backwards thinking it will suck in the heat and blow it away might not work so well. If you see a logo sticker on the fan just leave it upside up ;d

Thank-you for the reply

But the back case fan does draw heat out (mounted near the heatsink)
So therefore at least I believe that is ok (and not exactly what you said)
I have confirmed that the CPU is cooler for it too.

But the front fan (yes not much suck) So then maybe mine is ok (as this one is exactly what you said) Seeming it is blowing on the HDD anyway.
And if I turned it around, I don't believe it will really get rid of much heat (ie front of case)

I just wanted an official response from this, from any builders (Although I build too, I do not normally put front of case fans in) I believe there may still be some confusion here.

I have another dumb question! (indirectly related to the heading)

I have a fan at the front of my case sucking air in (actually straight on to the HDD)
I have a CPU Fan suckig air in (ofcourse)
I have a rear fan blowing air out (another ofcourse - getting rid of CPU heat)

This setup creates an airflow, from front of case -> out to rear of case

Is this right ?

Someone told me (today ironically) that all case fans should blow air out
But if I did this, it would stop the air flow (that may be non-existant anyway I suppose?)

So, regarding CPU heat removing. Should all case fans (even if I get more) blow air out ?

I hope this is not too off topic
a terrific question and what you say is right! there should be enough intake of air from one part of the chassis and greater amount of air flowing out would help.

just like my chassis, there is an intake in front and air flowing out in the right side and also at the back and the power supply but typically it should be cleaned ones in a while to prevent dust from building in your board and other components.

this is the most recent topics i've been fallowing on thermal compounds.

http://www.circuitremix.com/index.php?q=node/124&page=0%2C0

and if your really into it look into thermal pads.

http://www.coollaboratory.com/en/

* http://www.burnoutpc.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=245 *

i personally haven't used the pads yet(ordered them yesterday)

and if your nitpickey enough to learn and take the time to really make the stock heat spreader & heatsink shiney and absolutly mirrored with a still perfectly flat surface it's worth it you'll drop a lil degreese with a nice buffing and sanding job

http://www.watercoolingshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=39&products_id=78&osCsid=a2e2539b11bf9f5eee7d77bdc396c642

Someone told me (today ironically) that all case fans should blow air out
But if I did this, it would stop the air flow (that may be non-existant anyway I suppose?)

Whoever told you that probably meant it as an april fool's joke.

Airflow in the case doesn't really have to mean that you always have wind in your computer. It really just means that you're getting cool air in, and hot air out.

So if you're saying that the back fan is blowing hot air out, its good.

Blowing cold air continuously on a component may sound like a good idea, but you'll end up making other components heat up, since air around them would be static.

I believe the ultimate case/fan setup would be a tunnel shaped case, with a fan on each end on a push-pull setup. Since our cases aren't cylindrical, the closest we can get to that would be having an intake fan in front, and an exhaust fan at the back. The fact that the exhaust fan would be positioned higher up, and closer to the CPU, helps.

What you absolutely want to avoid is an airflow loop: air coming in somewhere, and going out again without actually cooling anything.

Thanks CMH.
As I don't know if the front fan is causing an airflow loop or if it is causing issues on static (no air flow) parts. How can anyone test this.

I believe the information here is useful trying to cool their CPU (and M/b) starting from the correct Heatsink then Thermal paste the Fans (air flow) (and proper mounting of all 3).

So again, do I leave the front (cheapo colored lights) fan there in the front sucking air in ?
What do others do here. Does anyone put front fans in ?
I should really get a box that has a fan vent in the top of the case (ideally) As heat goes up.

Should I inform the guy that not all case fans should be mounted to blow air out.

I forgot to mention I have 5 fans actually (The powersupply - new also gets rid of hot air via 2 fans one underneath and one out the back.)

It's fan city here!

Here's my current setup:

Front 120mm intake
Back 120mm exhaust
Top 80mm exhaust.
80mm hole on top of CPU.

I have actually tested having the top 80mm as an intake, and I had a 1C change in CPU temps, which I thought was negligible enough. As it was a year ago, I can't remember if it was a 1C increase, or decrease, but like I said, it was negligible, so I ignored it, and set it as exhaust.

I've had problems with overheating HDDs before, so I didn't even consider having the front fan as exhaust. It doesn't seem to make any sense anyway having it as an exhaust fan. Feel free to try swapping it around, and record some CPU/GPU temps.

Most of you would quickly note the 80mm hole on top of the CPU. Its not exactly on the CPU itself, but somewhere smack in the middle of the side panel. The real reason why its a hole, and not filled with a fan is because I have a Thermaltake Ultra-120, and this beast comes all the way up to the side panel, leaving absolutely no space (okay, maybe a few mm) for a fan, unless I want to mount it protruding from the case.

Besides, I thought since it comes all the way up to there anyway, any cold air would end up going past the heatsink, which is a good thing. (right now, there's a fan guard blu-tacked onto the hole :D)


As far as a box with a fan vent, like I mentioned, it didn't make any difference blowing in or out. I doubt it would make much difference if the fan wasn't there at all.

However, if you have a particularly short case, then an exhaust fan might be a good idea.

BTW, have you even decided if your temps are worth all this trouble? o_O We're talking about very minimal changes in temps here, I'd say a 5C decrease in temps would be the max you'd see, with 1-2C being more the norm.

A good thing you might want to do which may help with airflow is to tidy up your cables. It might take a long time to do, but once done, poking inside your computer would be a much more pleasant chore, without having to shove all the wires out of the way to access something. Here's a photo (http://www.techspot.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/2236/cat/500/ppuser/38703) of the insides of my case as it currently is, with my few hours of cable management. What you can't see in this photo is the management at the back of my case as well, which would serve absolutely no functional value, but given my case has a window on both side panels, and the top panel, I had to spend a real long time making sure the cables couldn't be seen at all from these panels.

I would say go with either Arctic Cooling MX-2 or Arctic Silver 5. Those are the best thermal grease solutions on the market, besides the Coolab's Liquid Metal Pro.

Arctic Silver 5 is the only thing I'd recommend for now.

The Coolab's Liquid Metal Pro is:
a) too hard to obtain.
b) pretty dangerous to heatsinks.

b is there because that thing will dissolve any aluminum, which means you absolutely can't use it with aluminum heatsinks.

Even if yours isn't an aluminus heatsink, you'd have to be really careful with it, as any contact with aluminum would be disastrous to any other aluminum product.

In terms of temps, I think they're pretty similar to AS5.


Someone did a comparison between a few different thermal greases, AND toothpaste, AND water.

It turns out that water is the BEST thing to use, but you'll have to reapply it every few minutes :D:D:D

you can yiou any type or brand of thermal grease, only u must be carefull about heatsink and cpu fan

OK, The front fan draws air into the case, the back fan exhausts it. (Blows out).
This is the same thing as cross ventilating your house.

The rear fans are generally high in the case, right below the PSU which is always blowing OUT. If the fan under the PSU sucked air into the case, the PSU would pick it up right away and most of it would never get into the case. the rising column of hot air from the CPU would further cause the incoming air to rise into the PSU area.

If the front fan were used as an exhaust, it would need to suck hot air down from the top of the case through the optical drives, since the front fans are generally low in the case.

So, with the front fans drawing cold air into the case, this assists the natural flow of heat upward from the CPU, toward the PSU and out the rear fan.

Any other arrangement for want of a better technical term, is just plain stupid.

Did I fall for an April Fools Day prank?

you can yiou any type or brand of thermal grease, only u must be carefull about heatsink and cpu fan

Yes, any type or brand of thermal grease is good. Some are better than others of course, but the difference isn't much (5-6C? I'd be very surprised if the difference between a standard paste, and the best paste go above 10C)

Correct application of thermal paste can make a bigger difference. Correct application is having the minimal paste, while covering the whole contact surface. May different suggestions are around for this, I personally just put a small amount (bb sized blob) on the CPU, and press the heatsink on. Other people suggest spreading it first, but whatever it is, the idea is not to spread it like a fat kid spreading peanut butter on his toast.