What is the best thermal compound?

[JEDIYoda]

again idle 25....idle 26....idle 27.....

you know how many variables there are that determines the temperature of your CPU??

Why is it that some reviews rate AS5 as being the best?
So reviews rate Ceramique as being the best?
Some reviews rate Walmart Turbo thermal Paste as being the best?

I will tell tell you....

becuase they all are so close to each other that there is actually no discernable difference.

Sorry but thats the truth!

Its like asking which heatsink is the best......

Or its like asking are dual 12v rails better than a single 12v rail......lolol

 

[eplebnista]

ceramique :thumbsup:

 

[Realguns]

Here you go.
This is when Ceramic first appeared.

 

[Luckyboy1]

Actually, it's the silver... yeah, real silver like as in silver spoons in the Artic Silver that conducts the heat so much better. I add anoher 15% silver nitrate to the mix and get a much better and more stable heat tranfer rate...

http://www.silvernitrate.org/

and before you whine, yes, it is expensive and yes, they used to make premade pastes with more than 5% in it, but they didn't sell to this very cheapskate PC crowd.

 

[Susquehannock]

My choice is Shin Etsu X23-7783D :thumbsup:

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
[
Because AS5 has such a high silver content this just might be As Good As It Gets for your lab work.
...Galvanized

What is the amount of Silver in AS5? A few percent maybe? Says right on their webpage
that AS5 is "over 88% thermally Conductive filler by weight".

Originally posted by: Luckyboy1
Actually, it's the silver... yeah, real silver like as in silver spoons in the Artic Silver that conducts the heat so much better. I add anoher 15% silver nitrate to the mix and get a much better and more stable heat tranfer rate...

http://www.silvernitrate.org/

and before you whine, yes, it is expensive and yes, they used to make premade pastes with more than 5% in it, but they didn't sell to this very cheapskate PC crowd.

Curious. I'd have thought a salt like Silver Nitrate wouldn't be a very good thermal conductor.
Hope you use that stuff in a well ventilated area. And you do know that Silver Nitrate is both
corrosive & photo sensitive, right?

IMhO, the importance of Silver in AS5 is overstated. Ceramique is made from essentially
the same conductive fillers. And as we've seen Ceramique often performs better.

 

[Luckyboy1]

http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/englishhtml/S2282.htm

keep reading and it's not as alarming as it initially sounds. It has a fairly neutral PH and all the slightly acidic nature of it does is act like a flux keeping the heatsink or waterblock clean and corrosion free actually. Don't knock it 'till you tried it!

 

[Susquehannock]

Thanx. I am well aware of it's properties, & have read the MSDS already. Actually the
reactivity & contact ratings (both = severe) concern me more than the pH.

Besides, there is a reason the label says :

"POISON! DANGER! CORROSIVE. CAUSES BURNS TO ANY AREA OF CONTACT. MAY BE FATAL IF SWALLOWED. HARMFUL IF INHALED. STRONG OXIDIZER. CONTACT WITH OTHER MATERIAL MAY CAUSE FIRE."
(taken from the page you provided)

Anyway, I am still rather dubious as to how well Silver Nitrate would conduct heat.

 

[Luckyboy1]

The reactivity rates mostly concern nitrogen, which is pretty much absent in the paste, but not on the sweat of your hand, so yes, I forgot to tell folks to wear gloves to keep from getting a rash.... maybe.

 

[Susquehannock]

Not to mention one should use a chemical vapor respirator, or better yet a fume hood.
I am a metalsmith & know for a fact that Silver Nitrate is one of the chemicals one should
not breath the vapors. If you want to avoid the possibility of a condition called Argyria that is.

" Inhalation:
Extremely destructive to tissues of the mucous membranes and upper respiratory tract. Symptoms may include burning sensation, coughing, wheezing, laryngitis, shortness of breath, headache, nausea and vomiting. May be absorbed into the body following inhalation with symptoms paralleling those from ingestion exposure. Dust deposits in the lungs may resemble a form of pneumoconiosis. "
(again from the MSDS page)

In any event .... if you have tried Silver Nitrate and had good results with the thermal properties
then great. But lets not understate the possible health dangers of using such a material.

 

[morkus64]

i imagine AS5 would beat ceramique (what i use) for your specific application, only because I believe that ceramique takes longer to "stabilize"

 

[imported_Seer]

Originally posted by: modempower
Yes thank you. Theres 2 proven benchmarks.

Originally posted by: John
Maximum PC did a shootout in the Jan 2006 issue and AS Ceramique was the winner.

AS5: idle 36 / load 54
Ceramique: idle 35 / load 53
OCZ 5: idle 36 / load 53
Frozen CPU Copper: idle 37 / load 58
Radio Shack generic: idle 40 / load 54

This proves nothing. Three words:

Margin of Error