thermal paste Which Thermal Paste to buy and apply (Traditional and Liquid Metal)

[JeanLegi]

4 hours ago, Papusan said:

Use the phrase "Thermal putty" in search. I think digi key offer several viable variants. Look also for Dow Corning and Laird thermal compound products. Well known brands for this type products. 

Thank you bro that helps a lot 🤩

[KING19]

18 hours ago, Rofa1234 said:

There are indeed several of really encouraging tests for the Honeywell PTM7950, interesting paste. There is also a newer PTM7958 used by Lenovo: https://www.reddit.com/r/LenovoLegion/comments/tfxomi/lenovos_stock_paste_is_actually_ptm7958_a_custom/

I looked into this spec sheet: https://thermalmanagement.honeywell.com/content/dam/thermalmanagement/en/documents/document-lists/marketing/ThermalInterfaceMaterials-Electronics-Brochure.pdf

 

PTM7000 series has a thickness range of 0.2-1.00mm which is really good for bare die CPUs and should work on my uneven i7-1165G7. There is also a TG series of thermal paste, TG5500 has a viscosity rating of 300,000 cps. Lower thermal impedance rating than the PTM series but also a lower thermal conductivity. Maybe the thickness range is lower.

 

Thanks for the info!.

 

Hopefully i made the right choice going with the paste version instead of the sheet (Pad) version. There isnt much talk about the paste version on reddit but If this paste is good as people say then it might be the best thermal paste for gaming laptops with good longevity after a few years

 

[Eban]

The (probably) fake stuff arrived. @KING19 @unnoticed

Have yet to test it.

Spoiler

[Rofa1234]

The package/tube looks legit to me, it's the same in several chinese tests from Honeywell pastes.

 

Honeywell 7900SP offers the same performance as 7950 in this chinese test by the way. 7950 has a longer curing time but maybe it means the longevity performance is better on the 7950.

 

https://bit.ly/3KoSt7X

 

[raptorddd]

mx4 fake or not..? bought it from mercado libre mexico.

[Rofa1234]

7 hours ago, raptorddd said:

mx4 fake or not..? bought them from mercado libre mexico.

 

 

 

 

 

 

When it comes to the package it looks legit to me. Same from a reliable shop: https://www.mindfactory.de/product_info.php/Arctic-MX-4-2019-Waermeleitpaste-4g_1290084.html

 

Or Arctic:

[Eban]

 

Yep...looks legit    

[JeanLegi]

This Topic is not good in two ways.. for my money and for the HWI...

I bought Thermalright TFX: 14.3 W/mK and use it on my RX 6900 XT and the GE76.. nice paste 🙂

[jaybee83]

been using the "triumvirate" of thermal pastes ICD, GC Extreme and Kryonaut for ages now, coupled with Gallinstan as a super cheap alternative to brand name liquid metal pastes. still have a huge tube of kryonaut to get through, but looks like there are some new players to check out 🙂 good thread!

[TigTex]

Hi all

Did any of you tested the new 2022 batch of SYY-157? I'm afraid that the newer batches are less thick and perform worse in laptops (pump out easely) because they mention "new refresh, easier to apply"

 

Honeywell is too much expensive and hard to get and my old tube of SYY-157 is almost empty and I need to apply the best TIM possible for all my customers repairs.

[unnoticed]

8 hours ago, TigTex said:

Hi all

Did any of you tested the new 2022 batch of SYY-157? I'm afraid that the newer batches are less thick and perform worse in laptops (pump out easely) because they mention "new refresh, easier to apply"

 

Honeywell is too much expensive and hard to get and my old tube of SYY-157 is almost empty and I need to apply the best TIM possible for all my customers repairs.

If you do customers repair I assume you need to get a good bulk deal, small syringes of 1g or 3g is too expensive or do you charge a premium?
The closest in your price range while still being the "best" in terms of thermal performance and thickness is Thermalright TFX.
If bulk price is your priority arctic ceramique 2 is a good go to, very thick lasting long time, virtually no pump-out and available in 25g syringes.

[Talon]

I've been using Honeywell PTM 7950 thermal pads in my laptop on the CPU/GPU for a few months now and the stuff is absolutely incredible. Best temps I've ever had for a laptop outside of using liquid metal, and even then it's better IMO because it doesn't seem to dry out/pump out. 

 

I was so impressed with the stuff that I decided to use it on my desktop CPU and that was a huge NO GO. The pad seems to be too thick/mounting pressure isn't sufficient. Or it's almost as if the IHS doesn't let the thermal pad melt properly and acts like a huge insulator. When the pads are used on bare die CPU/GPU it melts and transfers heat like no other. 

 

I have not used the paste, but opted for the 0.2mm pads instead. 

 

https://www.ebuy7.com/buy/jd/10043742472432 I purchased from this website, not this exact seller but this website. Kinda looked shady but the item arrived in about 10 days. 

 

Don't even waste your time with anything else. There is no paste that even comes close to the performance this stuff offers. It's on par with LM with none of the risks. 

 

[unnoticed]

24 minutes ago, Talon said:

I've been using Honeywell PTM 7950 thermal pads in my laptop on the CPU/GPU for a few months now and the stuff is absolutely incredible. Best temps I've ever had for a laptop outside of using liquid metal, and even then it's better IMO because it doesn't seem to dry out/pump out. 

 

I was so impressed with the stuff that I decided to use it on my desktop CPU and that was a huge NO GO. The pad seems to be too thick/mounting pressure isn't sufficient. Or it's almost as if the IHS doesn't let the thermal pad melt properly and acts like a huge insulator. When the pads are used on bare die CPU/GPU it melts and transfers heat like no other. 

 

I have not used the paste, but opted for the 0.2mm pads instead. 

 

https://www.ebuy7.com/buy/jd/10043742472432 I purchased from this website, not this exact seller but this website. Kinda looked shady but the item arrived in about 10 days. 

 

Don't even waste your time with anything else. There is no paste that even comes close to the performance this stuff offers. It's on par with LM with none of the risks. 

 

How do you apply this?
Cut out a small square matching the size of the die, start it up and run a stresstest to melt the pad?

Then I assume out of that you can calculate the price per application and get the sum of total applications you can get out of the sheet, but damn that stuff is expensive 69 usd for 100 * 160mm.

 

Does liquid metal pump out on laptops? How is the longevity over time?

I'm looking into replacing my kryonaut on my i7-4940mx

 

[Talon]

23 minutes ago, unnoticed said:

How do you apply this?
Cut out a small square matching the size of the die, start it up and run a stresstest to melt the pad?

Then I assume out of that you can calculate the price per application and get the sum of total applications you can get out of the sheet, but damn that stuff is expensive 69 usd for 100 * 160mm.

 

Does liquid metal pump out on laptops? How is the longevity over time?

I'm looking into replacing my kryonaut on my i7-4940mx

 

 

You cut it out to fit die size and lay it on the die like a blanket. It's kinda sticky stuff that sort of melts in your hands if you handle it too long so you need to kinda place it quickly and not fuss around. I have not experienced any pump out effect. My previous experience with LM was that it would get absorbed into the copper heatsink over time and you would need to reapply it eventually. Then there is the risk of spillage, etc. The Honeywell stuff is expensive, but worth it IMO. I bought the 80x80mm pads and you can easily do a laptop CPU/GPU die a few times with that sheet. 

[KING19]

I finally got the paste version in the mail. It took almost 3 weeks

 

 

Gonna try it out later tonight. Im not sure if i should spread it out on my CPU and GPU or just do the line method and slap my heatsink on it to spread itself like i been doing.

[raptorddd]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaxBYrZFJZM

1 hour ago, KING19 said:

I finally got the paste version in the mail. It took almost 3 weeks

 

 

Gonna try it out later tonight. Im not sure if i should spread it out on my CPU and GPU or just do the line method and slap my heatsink on it to spread itself like i been doing.( not sure if that is the name of material)

this video shows the best method. by using a cpu made from plexi glass. and and a heatsink installed on it. you can see thru wich one seem best.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaxBYrZFJZM

[jaybee83]

4 hours ago, Talon said:

I've been using Honeywell PTM 7950 thermal pads in my laptop on the CPU/GPU for a few months now and the stuff is absolutely incredible. Best temps I've ever had for a laptop outside of using liquid metal, and even then it's better IMO because it doesn't seem to dry out/pump out. 

 

I was so impressed with the stuff that I decided to use it on my desktop CPU and that was a huge NO GO. The pad seems to be too thick/mounting pressure isn't sufficient. Or it's almost as if the IHS doesn't let the thermal pad melt properly and acts like a huge insulator. When the pads are used on bare die CPU/GPU it melts and transfers heat like no other. 

 

I have not used the paste, but opted for the 0.2mm pads instead. 

 

https://www.ebuy7.com/buy/jd/10043742472432 I purchased from this website, not this exact seller but this website. Kinda looked shady but the item arrived in about 10 days. 

 

Don't even waste your time with anything else. There is no paste that even comes close to the performance this stuff offers. It's on par with LM with none of the risks. 

 

hmm....forgive me but im kinda skeptical tbh. a thermal putty at 8.5 W/mK thats supposed to be better than everything else and even on par with LM? 😐 do you have some comparison data or maybe reviews of this stuff?

and yeah, with LM ull of course need to do more than one application in the beginning on fresh, naked copper to soak up the pores properly with LM first before it does not get absorbed anymore. enter @papusan and his LM on copper oven baking method 😄 

[Talon]

1 hour ago, jaybee83 said:

hmm....forgive me but im kinda skeptical tbh. a thermal putty at 8.5 W/mK thats supposed to be better than everything else and even on par with LM? 😐 do you have some comparison data or maybe reviews of this stuff?

and yeah, with LM ull of course need to do more than one application in the beginning on fresh, naked copper to soak up the pores properly with LM first before it does not get absorbed anymore. enter @papusan and his LM on copper oven baking method 😄 

 

I can tell you without shred of doubt that W/mK doesn't mean jack. Those ratings depend on a lot of factors. It may be a thermal putty, but it does not look like a putty when it heats up. It creates this thin greasy layer that has some crazy thermal transfer properties for laptops. There is a reason why Lenovo went with this over liquid metal, or liquid metal pads like the other brands are now using. I've used a LM laptop and I wasn't impressed by the OEM job. I have used LM in the past on delidded CPUs and the results are great, and I've also used it on bare die laptops and it definitely works but not that much better than this stuff for all the mess and risk. LM is better, but I would bet it's not more than a 5c difference. 

 

 

This is after I opened the laptop and didn't bother redoing the PTM stuff. I sort pushed more towards the middle and left it. The temps are still great. That is with a 105w sustained load in a HP Omen 16" jokebook. Before doing this the laptop could barely sustain 75w without thermal throttling near 100c. 105w would have immediately shut down lol. No traditional thermal paste even comes close to this stuff regardless of how many W/mK they put on the label. 

[jaybee83]

8 minutes ago, Talon said:

 

I can tell you without shred of doubt that W/mK doesn't mean jack. Those ratings depend on a lot of factors. It may be a thermal putty, but it does not look like a putty when it heats up. It creates this thin greasy layer that has some crazy thermal transfer properties for laptops. There is a reason why Lenovo went with this over liquid metal, or liquid metal pads like the other brands are now using. I've used a LM laptop and I wasn't impressed by the OEM job. I have used LM in the past on delidded CPUs and the results are great, and I've also used it on bare die laptops and it definitely works but not that much better than this stuff for all the mess and risk. LM is better, but I would bet it's not more than a 5c difference. 

 

 

This is after I opened the laptop and didn't bother redoing the PTM stuff. I sort pushed more towards the middle and left it. The temps are still great. That is with a 105w sustained load in a HP Omen 16" jokebook. Before doing this the laptop could barely sustain 75w without thermal throttling near 100c. 105w would have immediately shut down lol. No traditional thermal paste even comes close to this stuff regardless of how many W/mK they put on the label. 

yes agreed on the W/mK values not being the end of all, at least not when it comes to exact comparisons. however, they still give an inkling of what to expect, i.e. a 2 W/mK vs. 18 W/mK vs. 75 W/mK should give a good idea of which material would perform better or worse in a direct comparison.

that said, 105W at 70s to 80s looks pretty promising, what were ur ambient temps? got any other paste lying around for comparison?

 

[Rofa1234]

Is there any comparison between the pad and paste of Honeywell 7950?

[jaybee83]

9 hours ago, Rofa1234 said:

Is there any comparison between the pad and paste of Honeywell 7950?

good question, that would also be quite interesting 🙂 

[Talon]

17 hours ago, Rofa1234 said:

Is there any comparison between the pad and paste of Honeywell 7950?

 

23 hours ago, KING19 said:

I finally got the paste version in the mail. It took almost 3 weeks

 

 

Gonna try it out later tonight. Im not sure if i should spread it out on my CPU and GPU or just do the line method and slap my heatsink on it to spread itself like i been doing.

 

Haven't tried the paste myself. Can you please report back with your results and laptop you used? Really curious to see if the paste works as well as the pads. 

[KING19]

23 hours ago, Rofa1234 said:

Is there any comparison between the pad and paste of Honeywell 7950?

 

Its hard to say because there not much info about the paste version even on reddit. All i heard about it that it has a cure time but it doesnt seem to be the case in my testing. It feels like im the only one who tried out the paste version.

5 hours ago, Talon said:

 

 

Haven't tried the paste myself. Can you please report back with your results and laptop you used? Really curious to see if the paste works as well as the pads. 

 

I did some quick tests today

 

 

It went to 92C when i first started the test because the fans wasnt running on max speeds but then it hangs around 87-90C during the test so i think the paste works pretty well on my Legion 5. The only game i tested so far was Mafia Definition Edition which constantly goes into the mid 90c range and at times up to 103C before the repaste using SYY-157 but after repasting with Honeywell 7950SP it stays in the 70c range and spikes as high as 86C which is a massive improvement for me. I'll try out other games like RDR2 and Cyberpunk 2077 later.

 

Overall i think the paste is great so far and I'll post more updates when i can.

 

Also if you guys wanna give them a try here the links:

 

Paste Version:

https://www.ebuy7.com/item/641009621899

 

Pad Version:

https://www.ebuy7.com/item/632208664079

 

 

[Eban]

So switching from Silver King LM to the possibly fake/real Honeywell 7950 paste, I did see average temps increase by 2-3 degrees centigrade and temp spikes up at least 7 degrees while stressed. 

 

This was on my alienware 17. 4910mq not OC'd with 4 pipe cicichen heatsink and 10cfm cpu fan.

I could probably live with that. I haven't cracked it open to check pump out. The 7950 has only been in there a week and a bit.

 

My biggest temperature rise has been going from windows to Linux and not having an alternative to Throttlestop. No undervolt 

 

On 4/25/2022 at 6:32 PM, Eban said:

The (probably) fake stuff arrived. @KING19 @unnoticed

Have yet to test it.

  Reveal hidden contents

 

[Vasudev]

12 hours ago, Eban said:

So switching from Silver King LM to the possibly fake/real Honeywell 7950 paste, I did see average temps increase by 2-3 degrees centigrade and temp spikes up at least 7 degrees while stressed. 

 

This was on my alienware 17. 4910mq not OC'd with 4 pipe cicichen heatsink and 10cfm cpu fan.

I could probably live with that. I haven't cracked it open to check pump out. The 7950 has only been in there a week and a bit.

 

My biggest temperature rise has been going from windows to Linux and not having an alternative to Throttlestop. No undervolt 

 

 

Actually you can use TS via cmdline undervolt on linux

For GUI version there is AppImage (equivalent to portable app on Windows) https://appimage.github.io/linux-intel-undervolt-gui/ or debian package Github releases