Overrated!! ??

[bobsmith1492]

Is it just me, or is ASx/ceramique paste WAY overrated? I mean, that's all anyone talks about is 'oh, put some AS5 on it...' I've used ancient silicon heatsink compound (10 years old) from Radioshack on some 10 proc installations, and temps are always great; my 2500 mobile runs around 100F in a 85F case at 2.4GHz.

The thing is, the paste layer is so thin the effects of differences in actual heat transfer rates is diminished to a point where I would posit there is slim to no difference possible between cheapo paste and some fancy-schmancy Artic Silver. Now, thermal pads are another story, as they seem to be too thick to go on right.

So, what am I missing?

 

[Megatomic]

It's just you.

 

[ponyo]

Originally posted by: bobsmith1492
Is it just me, or is ASx/ceramique paste WAY overrated? I mean, that's all anyone talks about is 'oh, put some AS5 on it...' I've used ancient silicon heatsink compound (10 years old) from Radioshack on some 10 proc installations, and temps are always great; my 2500 mobile runs around 100F in a 85F case at 2.4GHz.

The thing is, the paste layer is so thin the effects of differences in actual heat transfer rates is diminished to a point where I would posit there is slim to no difference possible between cheapo paste and some fancy-schmancy Artic Silver. Now, thermal pads are another story, as they seem to be too thick to go on right.

So, what am I missing?

You're 100% correct.

 

[Corporate Thug]

why not shave off a few C for such a small cost?

 

[3LEMENT0]

hahaha.....up to you...depends on what makes people happy.... I had the original AS back in 2000 and still using it on my stuff..I'll be building a new system soon and will be using it still...haven't finished the whole thing yet. I also have the same goop from the radio shack...used it a couple of times too...

 

[jagec]

Most people figure if you're spending $100 on even the cheapest HSF+proc, you might as well spend $5 to get a few degrees cooler.

 

[Avalon]

I just use Arctic Silver because I can find it about as cheap as any other thermal paste, and it works nicely.

 

[mechBgon]

The old Radio Shack grease was ok stuff. The last time I bought thermal compound from Radio Shack, however, it was nasty thin pathetic-looking stuff with LUMPS in it. Considering that my AthlonXP has ~50-60W being pumped through a contact area the size of my thumbnail 24/7, I don't want cheapie thermal compound that dries out at the edges of the contact area. A high-quality compound with a long service life is what I want, and if I have to pay $5 every three to five years for a tube of high-quality compound... big deal. Compared to what I spend on computers as a whole, $1-2 per year for high-quality thermal compound seems pretty reasonable

With larger contact areas (e.g. the Pentium4 or Athlon64, which have integrated heatspreaders), the heat is being transferred through a large area and it does become less critical, but heh, my tube of AS3 is paid for... might as well use it

 

[HardWarrior]

Be a luddite if you want, but the technology behind thermal compounds has only gotten better over the years. If you're satisfied with your grease then good on you. As for whether it's overrated, you could easily read some reviews of the product.

 

[MichaelZ]

hmm, it all depends on how much you can get AS for.

around here the cheapest i can find is the tiny little 3.5gram tube for $8 aus online or $10 from a local store. some places charge you $20AU. personally, it's definatly NOT worth 20 aus dollars, even 10 is pushing it for a tiny little tube but i really cant find anywhere selling for less.

the radioshack stuff to tell you the truth does the job just fine if you got a good heatsink for OC. to get the optimal, AS is the sh1t to have but only at a good price. even i felt 10 dollars which i paid for the tiny syringe is not worth it. but it did make 3 degrees difference full load so that's something to think about.

 

[irwincur]

I have used both. Sure there is a slight advantage to AS products (or other high quality products) but it is definitely not worth going out of your way for. Depends on your needs and goals. If the best possible OC is your goal, get the best, if you are a normal user, who the hell cares.

 

[Pauli]

The thing with the cheapo standard thermal compounds is that they tend to dry out rather quickly and need to be re-applied. The good quality ones don't do that.

 

[gwag]

crest toothpaste is the cheapest and it out performs artic silver.

 

[Megatomic]

That was an early version of AS gwag. And I doubt you'd want to use toothpaste as it'll dry out far more quickly than any thermal compound.