WTH? 6g of thermal paste = $25????

[Pyro]

What is up with that? I saw a store the other day that sells 6g of artic silver for 25!!!! (CDN that is)

is it normal for thermal paste to be that expensive? are there any cheaper alternatives??

 

[bacillus]

the arctic silver is about the best thermal interface paste out there at present & commands a premium price. there are other cheaper pastes available which will do the same job but in a slightly less efficient manner.
the choice is simple, get the best or get second best! 🙂

 

[divinemartyr]

American you would pay about $11-13 (cheapest i've seen it) for a small syringe of it, not sure if it's been 6g or not, but it's enough for several CPU's worth. When you apply the stuff, use it VERY generously. Arctic silver dissipates heat about 3 times as well as any other thermal grease or paste out there, you get what you pay for!

dm

 

[Viperoni]

Trust me, AS will last you a LONG time.
I've applied it 5 times on my Duron, once on my dual celeries, twice on the bx chipset, twice on a tnt-2 pro's chipset, twice on a tnt-2 ultra's chipset there's still lots left.
You get what you pay for 🙂

 

[rommel]

does anyone have numbers to support the claim that arctic silver is that much better...and let me explain why i am asking...i bought some stuff from 3dcool.com...one of the things was copper goop....supposedly like the artic silver it is said to be a better cunductor of heat then the regular silicon thermal grease....well i applied it to my flip and replaced my super orb and went to reboot...actually was installing a new ATA 1oo from seaget at the same time...well was going to boot off a floopy to partition and format....well would get to the memory count and stop...i was like WTF...three times...checking cables to the floppy to the hard drive unplugging replugging....still same issue...my asus mobo after each time wold bring me to my cpu setup screen...so after three times i set the cpu speed down...it booted...so then i started looking around some and the freaking temperature was 158 degrees.
after seeing that i wiped the copper crap off got one of those lil gimme packets of grease put every thing back together booted checked the temp 95 degrees with out the case cover adn 98 with it back on.
i repeated this twice with the copper goop just cuz i couldnt believe it...lol...well word to the wise dont believe the hype

 

[Mikewarrior2]

Rommel,

What hype with artic silver? The only hype I saw was when people were actually testing it with a good/reliable method. Now that most people test on socket-a setups, with compressed readings, they only show 2-3C temp drops at best versus Radio Shack Grease. Where's the hype?

It is far better than 2-3C better than Radio Shack grease. Unless of course you buy the "repackaged" stuff that inflow direct was selling, or the "copy-cat" products at e-bay.

In my own use, wiht 25-30W processors, I have seen 4-6C drops versus Radio Shack Grease, and 3-4C drops versus Melcor Aluminum Thermal Paste. On my own processor(some 34W or so), I get 4C drops versus Melcor ALuminum stuff. Imagine the difference on a processor that produces 60W and up.

The techzone did a good review back when it came out: Arctic Silver And Other Greases: Roundup

To this day, this remains one of the more well-done reviews on the internet as far as cooling goes.


Mike

 

[rommel]

well uh mike...read what i said exactly...i was using copper goop that was supposedly better then the regular silicon thermal grease.....i dont know for arctic silver....k..nada...havent used it...was just expressing my unbelievable surprise at the results i got trying to use a product that was suppose to an improvement over what was stock so ta speak.
i doubt artic silver is that good either though but i will tell ya what i will buy it tonight online try it and tell you how it works for me

 

[Mikewarrior2]

On a socket-thermistor setup, you're lucky to see a 2C read drop.


Mike

 

[Wah]

i used the stuff that came on my GORB and then changed to artic silver and saw a significant temp drop. I don't remember the actual number, so I won't make it up, but I just remember being amazed, so it must have been pretty big... 🙂

 

[paruhd0x]

CrazyPC.com is selling Arctic Silver for $10.99 here

 

[MichaelD]

MikeWarrior,

Thanks for the link to the TechZone article. That's the best article I've ever read on Thermal Pastes. I've already ordered some ASII, and a new HSF (FOP32). I'm expecting my CPU to freeze into a solid block of ice. 😉 Kidding! I know that you can never pass judgement on a product until you use it yourself, but with so many folks giving very positive reviews, I'd imagine the stuff would have to be good. We'll see!

 

[Mikewarrior2]

MichaelD,

A few notes on it:

Application method matters greatly. I personally see a 2-3C spread depending on how i apply it.

On a socket-a setup, a 2C "read" temp drop is usually pretty good, and all that you can expect to see.


Mike
P.S. I apply AS with a "finger in a ziploc bag method". Thickness depends on how smoother your heatsink and cpu surfaces are.

 

[Windogg]

Arctic Silver has another advantage over copper compound. AS has little to no electrical conductivity. I remember the copper stuff was highly conductive and a slight misapplication would lead to a long conversation with the RMA department.

 

[MichaelD]

Hi MikeW,

Thanks for the application tips. I had seen some pics of the "ziplock bag" finger method. It's a really cool idea! I'd never thought of that. I was gonna use a business card or something like that, but the finger method will result in a much better/smoother/even application.

I'm looking forward to seeing my new HSF in action. The one I'm currently using has a 15cfm fan, while the FOP32 has has a 26cfm fan. Should be good to go. I won't even try to OC with my current HSF setup. I'll try once I get the new setup. I'm curious to see what my temp drops will be w/the default CPU speed. I'll post once I'm setup. Thanks for the tips.