Threadripper Thermal Paste Methods Benchmarked
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- Опубликовано: 2 окт 2024
- We look at the best thermal paste application methods & patterns for AMD Threadripper CPUs, featuring the Threadripper 1950X.
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You've gotta update that article author photo....
I use AMD's method on all CPU's (I call it "x-dot" :D).
It gets great coverage with small use of paste (5 dots isn't enough for this CPU).
I still would use more on mid dot, and smaller ammount on corner dots.
That is one HUGE IHS... is it 4-6 times as big as LGA 775 ?
An all IHS CPU's history live comparison would be great :)
have you seen latest linus video, he showed a heat sink the make a dull contact with the cpu that's what should be used as amd stock cooler.
i love the little barbs you are throwing out lately, so funny.. you're sharp lol
RIP, work network blocks gamersnexus
I always just make a smiley face when applying thermal paste. If the paste is happy, then the cpu is happy, and the cooler is happy too! They'll all be happy friends, unless you set the voltage too high then they all burn to death.
Hahahaha
aw that is cute. 😆
9:48 "Wait... That hand's okay".
9:56 *puts other hand in hair too*
😂 That legitimately made me laugh.
ill just draw "amd" on mine and call it good.
i drew a swastica
Oh boy this is going to be the new "blob vs spread" internet argument for the next coming decade.
spread is better and you know it
also i take issue with the paste used, this is not my favourite paste. I'm out, you're both fired and the weakest link, so triggered
Blob master race!
So what should people without a cock do, Filmer?
thermal grizzly kryonaut blob master race
Thermal paste application always seem to get people divided for some reason. I've always just put a bit in the centre.
PhilsComputerLab this has four processor dies under the heat spreader
Looking at the tests though... Just put a bigger blob.
ColtaineCrows Yea that's it.
And it seems the blob method still won.
I have always spread a thin layer of paste over the whole CPU, but in my last 2 builds, i have used the small blob in the center method. I am not sold on the blob method as the temp differs a lot more between cpu cores when idle. Spreading a thin layer over the whole cpu gives me a similar temp on each cpu core when idle. I dont think i am going to use the blob method anymore. It would have been good if we say an even spread over the whole cpu here for comparison.
A bit wild to see that a X62 isn't really able to cool this CPU effectively with that power draw... Time for a 420mm AIO cooler with a larger mount designed for TR! Come on NZXT, impress us! :)
It’s the size of the tubing and the thickness of the plate. Threadripper probably could do with a super slim cold plate, and a larger pump block with slightly thicker tubing
This is why I subscribe!!! Where else will you see medium blob and heavy blob in a graph? Plus I'm sure tons of people out there are wondering what to do when it comes to this!
Alex Collins truly they are blob masters
I'm not a ThreadRipper owner (at least, not yet) but my method: 1st-spread a very thin layer of TIM's on the heat spreader. The idea is to squeeze paste into the microscopic crevices & cracks in the heat spreader. So the best way to do that is to apply & spread the paste then scrape off the excess leaving a very thin layer. When done, then use your usual method of applying TIM's.
Personally, because there is 4 sectors to cool on the Threadripper, they should be putting a small diagram on the Threadrippers cooling plate to begin with.
They can have their current logo still visible, then also put the 4 rectangles on the cooling plate as an outline of the 4 sectors.
Doesn't make sense that we as customers have to use stencils of sorts. Something so simple, yet the end result would be magnificent, then we would surely, more accurately be able to put the thermal paste on the CPU for proper coverage.
Basically, it doesn't matter. You are supposed to have a thin sheet of "paste", to as much of the contact area between the cooling apparatus and the CPU, as possible, ideally the 100% of the supposed contact area.
Sure covering just the cores provides the greater efficiency between cooling and quantity of paste and actually is good enough but still having all the contact area (barely) covered will provide an improvement, even if less so if you take into consideration the paste wasted.
More paste is detrimental only if it translates to thickness of the sheet OR if it means that the sheet became larger than it should and dropped out of the CPU's surface (which might or might not short circuits depending on conductivity and what it came into contact with).
Why not just use a thicker piece of acrylic/ plexi and drill some holes out for the retention screws to mount it just like a CLC?
Christopher Morgado it would probably crack. But I guess you could cnc a metal frame.
While everyone else is still screwing around, Gamer Nexus is posting what theally matters.
Rexin Oridle Tyson is that you??? Lolz
A solid peace of hard glass would have worked much better than flexible Plexiglas
It was just meant to be used as a visual demonstration of how the thermal paste would spread :)
without the massive mounting hardware, you're never going to come close to the pressure needed to show a realistic spread.
yea, i watched the rest of the video, and i guess he does address it.
We address that pretty thoroughly when we come back with the actual cooler mounting.
Most AIO's also recommend a twist. Read the manual of your AIO's. Twist and back 45 ish degrees.
Call me crazy, but I combine a (thin) spread with a (small) blob in the middle for standard CPUs.
Best of both worlds! (Maybe?)
For the Threadripper I'd probably use four small blobs, though.
even though I have no desire to buy a Threadripper...you sir are freaking awesome to take the time and abuse for doing this especially considering there isn't a proper cooler at launch for these cpus..
What about putting the thermal paste evenly over the baseplate of the AIO Pump then applying that to the CPU instead of applying to the IHS.
I would use automotive copper grease and car radiator for that :D
*hides computers*
vabese XD. I actually probably wouldnt do the copper grease but car radiator would be good. P.S- using copper grease on core 2 duo(does pretty well 50C maximum with Scythe Ninja 4 passively cooled)
I've been considering using a car rad for a long time. Guess when I have my own house I might do it.
ColtaineCrows I knew a guy from Germany who used a car or truck radiator with his set up. Had it under his desk leant against the wall with a bunch of various fans attached with wire.
It performed really well ha.
I'd just stick it outside and let it cool passively, don't want to go too overboard in "sub ambient" cooling. But yeah, it would work well, it's meant to cool off lots of liquid with several kW's of heat getting pushed into it, having to keep that liquid at around 90*C even while the car isn't moving and using only a dinky little fan in many cases. Cooling a mere ~200W or even 500W would be a piece of cake.
Anyway, there's the whole mixed metals thing, but a G30 auto-coolant or similar should have the correct corrosion inhibitors to make that less of an issue as long as it's mixed correctly.
so that's what you use for your hair.
Only way to cool that hotness down. ;)
if you made that piece of plastic a little longer and drilled holes through it where the mounting holes are you could have simulated the pressure more accurately with the cooler while still being able to see how it would spread and while keeping the cooler clean for that step.
I'm pretty impress about the fact of nobody talking about how much screws must be tighten. In my experience makes difference.
ive always blobbed it..nice to see steve PROVE its the superior method lol....nice work guys
I work in power electronics. The rep for the semiconductors we use recommends as thin a layer of thermal compound as possible, only a few molecules thick, spreading with a credit card. This is just to fill the microscopic gaps left in the machining of the heat sink. What he recommends even more than thermal paste is phase change thermal sheets. Just put one on, and when it gets to 52 centigrade the materials phase changes, and it becomes a perfect thermal interface. How about trying this on a cpu? I would be very interested to see the results.
Good technical comment - those sheets sound interesting (googling intensifies)
i always just used card or something thin and manually spread it thin layer all over the heat spreader then let the cooler press out uneven spots always worked fine for me even gotten some what cooler results then using just blob in middle method since not insanely caked on
The AMD Method...
A.K.A. - "The Dog Bone."
A 22 minute video about applying Thermal paste on Threadripper CPUs?
>_________________> ;
Then go back to LinusTechTips with the 2 second benchmark charts without explanation
Thats exactly why I watched this video. Details.
lol...what does >_____> this mean?it looks hilarious
Great video! I wonder if manufacturers will start building AIOs with bigger blocks/pumps. They've got all that contact space to use- why not take advantage of it by fitting a stronger pump or larger reservoir to the CPU socket assembly? :D
They will, but remember they have to use Asetek designs for their CLC's; due to patents..
I am guilty of over spreading, but I also get some high over clocks on air that run fairly cool. My method is a big glob in the middle and spread with a razor blade. I barely have an seepage, and I always run at about 26c/45c no matter the chip. people have always question my temps. I have never killed a cpu so far.
Explain why blob is stupid? The spreader will make it even with pressure. Sure it won't be absolutely perfect, but air bubbles will be less with the pressure method.
Great use of their "gift". Basically a "Hey remember this gift when you review our product!"
Result:
Two straight long lines are the best for THREADRIPPER, *IF* you have a cooler with wide rectangular plate that fully covers it.
Worst: "X"-shape and "one single drop in the middle". Medium tier - "five small drops". Runner up - "two lines with mid drops".
P.S.
Enermax just now has announced LiqTech 240 AIO that has a FULL wide rectangular plate footing for TR4. So there's that.
From my optical contacting attempts, starting from a single blob introduces far fewer (insulating) bubbles which is a good reason for why the blob performs the best.
"Air bubbles are not a issue at all; the spread of the thermal paste, a solid, with pressure, and heat cycles, totally kicks out any air between the thermal paste and the surfaces. If that was a issue, placing those silicon gel protections on smartphone displays would be way harder because of the surfaces being drastically different, or doing a display change would be almost impossible to kick air bubbles.
Also, not the X method, but a + plus sign method, is the one that spreads the most without yourself spreading it."
@@calypsojordana3274 it is much easier to peristaltically pump the air bubbles out when you have fl3xible surfaces to work with and can see the bubbles you are trying to remove. Mounting a heatsink you have neither
@@EndersSaga ?
@@calypsojordana3274 It pushes the air out towards the edges if you start from the center. If you push on a bubble from all sides it doesn't go anywhere.
Redo this test after you get a cooler with full TR4 wide rectangular plate footing on your hands. Not that small-ass, wrongly shaped AseTek. Fortunately for you - Enermax just now announced the availability of LiqTech 240 TR4 AIO with a plate that FULLY covers the entirety of THREADRIPPER's socket. This thing should (and highly likely will) work way better than AseTek.
In their (Enermax) video they put a tiny blob of thermal paste on center the IHS. That cant be right after watching this video.
Naturally that was just purely for example purposes.
It may have been an example but the problem is people may see that video and continue to think that putting a tiny little blob on paste is still the way to do it. From the size of the blob they put on in that video and comparing to what was shown in this video there will be problems.
I personally highly doubt that anyone who decides to buy an expensive, high quality, high-tier AIO water cooling solution, is so utterly inexperienced or downright stupid as not to do the thing the right way. People such as these won't bother and would just buy an air cooler, instead of "messing with water". Even if it's "just an AIO" and not a hardcore solution that is FCWCL, you still need to have at least some minimal experience accumulated of dealing with computer hardware, before you go and decide to buy yourself one. Air, on the other hand, is, mostly, absolutely "fool-proof" (ESPECIALLY if it's something like a Noctua or a Cryorig product) thing. At least that's how that usually works.
Not everybody who buys these high end systems builds them themselves. I new someone who bought a boutique HEDT system and there were no air intake or outflow fans on the thing - it had an AIO and the builders told them that was enough airflow. Sure enough when it was overclocked it overheated which i cured by installing more fans.
The covers on the tubes of the clc look awesome!
You should have someone make you a really thick piece of plexiglass/acrylic or something that fits into asetek cooler brackets, so you can crank down something clear for the camera with full mounting force..
I know it doesn't actually make any discernable difference, but I would probably go with an X with dots between the arms of the x in order to get really even spread. Just because I'm particular about such things. It really doesn't matter in real-world applications, though...
another cool way to show the spread is to use a transparent film (like the screen protectors for smartphones) between the cpu paste and the cooler, so you can put real pressures and then remove the cooler leaving the film... hand pressure is not perfect and you could damage the mother
The problem you are having with the plexi-glass is because its too thin and it is actually flexing, causing a less even spread. If you use a thick solid piece of plastic you will be able to apply better, even, pressure and get a better result. Also something you and most other youtube pasters forget is, once the system is running, the heat from the CPU warms up the paste and helps it spread out more under the cooler, not just from the pressure of the coolers mounting.
Do we know roughly how much paste we need for the most prefered "heavy blob" method...? i.e. 5g, 10g, 15g or 20g etc etc... Thanks in advanced 👍
I would say maybe use a thicker piece of acrylic in the future if you do this again that thin kinda flexes and makes the results wonky.
You have a round base plate on a rectangle cpu. Best method would be a circle of thermal paste.
All these methods are going to result in bleeding of the paste and not very good or over coverage.
A circle will provide full coverage with little or no bleeding, with a lot less paste.
so wait... intel can't keep one cpu die from not hitting its thermal limit without risking breaking the thing with deliding and then you'd need a fairly respectable liquid cooling setup to even handle it? yet amd can keep 4 cpu dies under complete control with a standard aio even when not completely covering all the dies? intel wtf...
AMD spent the extra 2$ to solder their dies to the heat spreader. Intel being supper cheap this way finally bit them in the ass.
I can't believe this is still debated. The standard that dictates the proper way to install shower tiles is the maximum physically lab proven way to achieve maximum coverage.
Wow, a 1mm thick piece of plastic... I mean, you can get some 1cm thick pexiglass and drill holes on the thing so you can properly simulate the shit.
Thank you. Just what I wanted to know! The Threadripper is too expensive to be ignorant and careless about protecting it.
9:48 during covid-19 on the street
Q: what if you use a copper thermal pads (like these ones www.amazon.com/Vktech-Heatsink-Copper-Thermal-15mmx15mm/dp/B00E5SMY0W/ref=pd_ybh_a_100?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=GX5P96WX1QGA7JF686AH) under the pump to cover a bigger surface? Would that improve cooling or just interfere with the mounting bracket?
I can always count on Gamers Nexus to make a long, in depth , methodical and detailed video on the smallest of tasks.
Are you Montez from workaholics
Doesn't the heat spreader do just that-- spread the heat? under continuous usage, the whole surface comes to an equilibrium depending on how much heat it's getting, so focusing on where the TIM should be, instead of trying to maximize surface area contact for a given heat sink, seems a little silly? If I disable all but one core on my ryzen 1700, after a few hours, temps reported for each core will be within 1-2C.
That's the point. People argue about method for application all the time, though.
I would like to propose an idea for improvement of these kinds of tests:
apply the thermal paste on a precise scale. This way we could precisely tell how much paste is applied or compare methods with the raw amount of the paste equalised. :)
In case of other sockets it would be enough just to place just the CPU on the scale, but in case of Threadripper, due to how the installation procedure goes, I guess one would have to weigh the entire motherboard. :/
You could also do an X then another smaller X at 45 degrees turn from the first one
I'm guessing AMD's recommended method is so the load is even among each core. Depending on your compound, a giant blob in the middle could be enough to indent the IHS.
Meanwhile, the parallel lines likely create air pockets. I think concave lines would work better.
Meh, just spread a even and fine layer of the paste on the entire copper base of the heatsink. Easier than way and you get the most surface covered you can possible get from the heatsink base to the CPU.
method i've always used is an x with four dots, one dot in the middle of each v part of the x. always had the paste spread perfectly across the entire cpu lid.
Dude, thank you SO much for the videos you upload, specifically for these threadripper ones. I run a small project studio for audio and video work, and I am pre-ordering the 1950x with the Gigabyte AORUS Gaming 7 board. I JUST bought my Corsair H115i cooler a couple weeks ago (before I knew I was going to able to swing the Threadripper setup) and your videos on the cooler/paste topic have helped a great deal! Keep up the great work!
I did 4 thin hair lines and vs blob and I got 10c drop with 4 line thin line . So this proves that thermal compond in a blob is less effiecient. It seems blob is too much and line super thin was way more effective.
How about evenly spreading with a plastic card over the cooler itself?
Do I something similar but use a piece of plastic food wrap over one finger to make a nice thin, even layer. The paste is only really meant to fill any tiny air gaps in imperfections on each surface. The smoother the surfaces the less you should need.
Couldn't you have asked how much mounting pressure a typical AIO applies and then found a suitable weight to put on the plexi? rather than just pushing on it with your hands. Probably wouldn't make a huge difference but it might better represent how the TIM would spread.
We covered that with the second half, where we apply the coldplate directly and then show the spread after mounting & burn-in.
Have SC2, can confirm its baller. Also, glad you guys "got" the go ahead to show thermals!
Just thinking why don't you mount a cooler on top of the clear plate or mount a retention kit to the clear plate.
I like you content but could you shorten your videos a bit more like 15-20 minutes
Nice to see that threadripper is easy to cool, compare that to intel where a 240 rad can't even cool their 10 core, yet alone their 16 core.
How come nobody else ever states that this CPU is a fucking rectangle
What brand/type of tim was used? Perhaps you could add that info to the description. Good video.
Any time you want to more more specifics read the article..
"We used an unbranded thermal compound from a liquid cooling factory for all tests; it is the same compound used on Asetek CLCs"
Great video, as always. I really liked seeing the plexi even if it isn't representative of real world spread; I've always worried about air bubbles being trapped when using anything but the blob in the centre method but seeing the spread with all the methods really put my mind at ease! Thanks!
^^^ Exactly This ^^^
So all the people saying you should have used this or that over the plexi - Or Full Spread - or any of the other nonsense..
This video gives you the real world use case example; not some super long drawn out fringe unneeded complexity.
@@tisjester As far as I can tell, from observing every "Full Spread" benchmark I could find, spreading all over basically always results in the lowest temperatures on the bench given enough compound is used. From a physics standpoint this makes sense because theoretically, if the goal of thermal paste is to fill in tiny air gaps between the cold plate and the IHS, you would want to cover every square millimeter of IHS coldplate contact area right? Then why would you ever use a method than only covers part of the contact area if done incorrectly? Just spread it all over, more is more when it comes to thermal paste. There is a video on YT of a gentleman taking some Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste (literally has silver in it) and putting it UNDER an AMD cpu, installing it and the computer booted up just fine. Full Spread with a blob on top of it if you're worried about "air bubbles'
Disclaimer: No threads were ripped during the making of this video.
I'm a rebel and take a butter knife to apply it onto the cooler side and then slap that on
I could care less about thermal paste method. But MY GOD... The glorious hair.
Couldnt get flimsier acrylic piece? Thick one would be stiff as cooler will be. It would lead to proper smear not barely pressed blobs
can't wait for you to test those new Noctua coolers released for ThreadRipper
have you guys tried reverse application rather than on the cpu on the cooler before it goes on, yes it may be a little more messy but it would optimize contact for the cooler since the cpu's contact is the bigger than most coolers...
The outrage over the dry erase marker on the fake CPU still cracks me up. What did these people want you to do, draw on one of the _REAL_ CPUs instead?! 😂
easy...do the big blob in the middle...and 4 medium/small dots around it to make the 5dot version with a fat center xD
I just don't get this ongoing discussion. If I buy a 1000 bucks cpu...I take the time to spread the thermal paste with a credit card or something so the whole cpu is covered. I always did this like that and will always do it like that.
1 year late, but whatever.
You definitely shouldn't spread the thermal paste manually, as you'll cause un-even coverage leading to air pockets between the IHS and the cooler. Also, as he explains in the video, there's no need to spread paste over the entire IHS, as the actual processor core(s) are located in the middle.
Grey-man it doesn't matter. If you didn't have an IHS it would matter. You'll get micro pockets of air any which way you do it.
Why not pinch the plexi between the CPU IHS and the cooler? I know the plexi adds depth but you could still use it to clamp down to roughly the pressure. Removing the cooler would then reveal the plexi and paste spread without much disturbance.
@Gamers Nexus, do you think that OEMs will come up with updated cold plates that properly support Threadripper in the future?
Of course they will.. This way they can SELL more coolers..
Enermax
Thanks for this, conclusion I've come with no reason to get a threadripper until there's a full plate solution.
For me, it's waiting for a custom water block, EK has stated they are working on one but nothing on their site yet. Other than if you punch in the ASUS Zenith board block status is, "Coming Soon."
This runs... cooler than 7900X, right?
Even my oven runs cooler than 7900X
_It appears to be arround as hot as a 7900X, but hey, it has 6 extra cores!
makes sense
Tuchulu
The 7900X isnt soldered so they are about equal.
Tuchulu no it just looks cool
That shot of evga 1080 with rain in the background... Hmmmm XD
When he started pushing his fist on the cpu and motherboard...AH! :)
U FORGOT THE SPREAD METHOD
There will be new cooling brackets in weeks covering the whole shit
Plexiglass would work better if you actually screwed it onto the socket mountings and with probably a thicker, more rigid piece.
Heathens, the lot of you. Grab a new, clean razor blade, run a thin line of paste along one edge, and spread it out as thin as you can without being able to see the metal underneath. Why rely on mounting pressure to spread your paste out? All that does is cause mounting pressure to drop over the first few days as the paste spreads out. Skip that, spread it yourself.
i think he got 1 and 3 the wrong way around lol i think anyway.
Can you not mod that plastic shim thing to go under a heatsink, so then you can apply the pressure you need and then take it off and see exactly how the paste has spread, without taking paste away with the heatsink. Maybe would need to use thinner plastic.
I'm predicting that he'll shave off his hair for charity in the future or just shave it off for a fresh start at new year
Why don't you pre-spread it and ensure you cover the whole thing and not rely on blobs being smooshed out via pressure alone?
Surprised this doesn't break NDA.
I'm sure it does.
? Threadripper has been released for a week now.
Threadripper has not been released yet, it will be released on the 10th of august.
He says it at the very start, Thermal Performance isn't under NDA, benchmarks are.
Fairly certain thermal performance goes under the NDA too, but he feels it's okay because others have published similar data.
Wouldn't using a thermal camera to determine which parts of the cpu actually produce more heat (and thus figuring out which are the active dies) be a good idea? Just a suggestion. I guess this aspect shouldn't change from chip to chip, as - as far as I know - AMD stated that the "inactive" dies are dummys not actual deactivated dies.
If you want patterns with normal mounting pressure, put cling-wrap on the bottom of the heatsink/cold plate. Wouldn't recommend doing a burn-in with that setup though.
Would be nice if you can get one of those copper coolers from Cryorig ( when they are released ), and use them on i9 or TR.
Myself i personally put a small dot of paste in the middle then use plastic spreadder to spread through the entire CPU!
make sure to do it small bits at a time and not too much of a dot that will leak over, once the metal of the CPU is fully covered with no leakage of the paste, then i know its safe to apply the Heat Sync!
Thats my preferred method as this i know u get full coverage of the CPU!
use the Tech YES City method it never fails
so basically just make a huge splodge at the middle of the Z. Also DAMN, them temps when Overclocked leave a good bit to be desired, but given the number of cores I'm not surprised, will be interesting to see how the full coverage plates turn out, I suspect some more significant temp changes.
Well, there's hopefully going to be more full plate coolers coming to market soon. I hope. Not that I'm likely to buy a Threadripper... Well maybe the 1900X.. Maybe.
That photo of the 5 point method looks like the dots aren't placed very well compared to the dies. It seems like you could have gotten the rest of that edge coverage if they were more in the center of the dies.
This test is a bit weird. I understand the "round" cooler is too small, but what about the squarish cooler is it also too small ? At the end of the video you make it seem so.... Also the temperatures shown... is this an average for both coolers, or for just the round one ? The results that the big blob is better is kinda surprising, is this because only the round cooler was used ? Bit confused about this. 10 degrees celcius difference is a big deal though ! So far maybe inclusive until bigger coolers are tested.
I'm gonna draw a big "Z"! :D
That's probably not the worst way to do it, actually. Drawing the diagonal line across the 2 active dies might result in better temps. Or, a more plausible scenario - I am an idiot!
I think a (thick) line down the middle would do very well though as shown in this video, the application method hardly matters. I would attribute that to AMD soldering the IHS rather than putting mayo underneath
Try again with the actual heatspreader. Your hands might not be able to exert more force, but a cooler? Hell yes. Plus, this method is a bust with the wobbly plexiglass due to very uneven force distribution. What your method shows is how the paste would spread if the heat spreader was shaped like your hand, and had a soft layer like the plexi.
you could manually spread it with a gloved hand very gently