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Question What the heck happened here? (AM5 and stock heatsink)

mikeymikec

mikeymikec

Lifer
IMG_20250904_170134_hdr.jpgIMG_20250904_170144_hdr.jpg

The quality is a bit potato because I didn't realise I had the macro lens in use. A customer contacted me saying a computer they had just built wouldn't start, so I visited and went through the routine (it wasn't POSTing, no display, no beeps) until I found this (see images).

The processor (Ryzen 7700) was bought new and the AMD Prism heatsink came with it. My only theory is that the CPU has been sitting in stock for so long that the paste dried out (it felt completely dry), but I've never seen stock AMD paste look like that, with the circular pattern being so uniform. The computer likely wouldn't boot because of a bent CPU socket pin (I didn't see the point in reinstalling the heatsink and trying again, I didn't have paste with me).
 
mikeymikec said:
My only theory is that the CPU has been sitting in stock for so long that the paste dried out (it felt completely dry)
Click to expand...
Was that heatsink fastened properly? To me it almost looks like uneven pressure on top of whatever issue the pre-applied paste had.
 
Interestingly, I went on ebay and found an AMD Prism with an underside pic:

s-l960.jpg


So at least that explains the pattern. I'm wondering if an improperly fitted heatsink with the paste getting slowly cooked by the processor is the reason for it being dried out.

In contrast, this is what unused paste on the AMD Wraith Stealth looks like:

IMG_20250908_203943_crop.jpg

I've had that cooler sat unused for likely years and the paste is still moist. I wonder why there are different techniques being used by AMD for applying the paste, maybe two companies are being contracted to produce the heatsink products.
 
Hail The Brain Slug said:
I agree, if the system never worked, the paste never got a chance to break in through thermal cycling.

There doesnt appear to be anything wrong here and you probably could have just reinstalled the heatsink.
Click to expand...

You mean apart from the bent CPU socket pin and the fact that the system wouldn't POST?
 
Hail The Brain Slug said:
You made the thread to ask about the thermal paste, didn't you?
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Strictly speaking yes, though for me the bigger picture is that it wouldn't boot, and when viewing your previous comment from that context it sounded like you're suggested that the machine wouldn't boot because the heatsink might not have properly installed, which probably isn't what you intended to convey 🙂
 
mikeymikec said:
Strictly speaking yes, though for me the bigger picture is that it wouldn't boot, and when viewing your previous comment from that context it sounded like you're suggested that the machine wouldn't boot because the heatsink might not have properly installed, which probably isn't what you intended to convey 🙂
Click to expand...
Nope, just that the thermal paste is normal and you can reinstall the heatsink just fine as you try to fix the pin/test the system without changing it.
 
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