Arctic mx-4 VS H100 stock paste

[skyfather]

Hi guys, I overclocked my I7 3770k to 4.6ghz at 1.270v ran prime 95 no problems and the highest temp I was getting was about 84c. After reading a few ppl stats I thought this was abit high especially for where I live (sunny old england jk)

So I heard people saying that the best thermal paste was MX-4 so I replaced my stock paste with it, only to now get a depressing 88c at the highest.

Does this sound about right? Being 4c worse off with mx-4?

 

[socialfox]

There is always a margin of error when applying thermal paste...too much can be bad and too little can be bad.

Unless you put the exact same amount of thermal paste every time and apply it in the same way, you will most likely get different results on many tries.

Edit: Just to specify, the different results will be small, so nothing extreme like one application yields 30 degrees and the next one yields 50 degrees idle (unless you apply incorrectly).

 

[andrewcarr]

I would say IC diamond would be the best. But I'd let it sit a bit longer (depending on how long it's been), about two days to let it set. If it's still worse then try putting it on again and make sure not to put too much on as it'll decrease performance.

 

[skyfather]

I put a small pea size in the middle and then I spread it all over the cpu.

I wasn't expecting massive improvement, but I was expecting some sort of improvement, say 2-4c, which is what I got, just the the wrong way around.

Think i should try another compound AS5?

 

[skyfather]

Well its been 2 days, but I didnt think mx-4 needed a curing time?

 

[socialfox]

I put a small pea size in the middle and then I spread it all over the cpu.

I wasn't expecting massive improvement, but I was expecting some sort of improvement, say 2-4c, which is what I got, just the the wrong way around.

Think i should try another compound AS5?

Nah, I use MX-2 and MX-4 is around .5 a degree better. Silver 5 is worse than both MX-2 and MX-4 and needs a cure time for it to reach max potential (though the cure temp would produce little gain but it's something like 200 hours). Try again IF you have any more w/o spreading it around the cpu. Just put a rice grain size and put the pump on it and let it spread the thermal paste.

Edit: You are right, MX-4 needs no cure time.

 

[skyfather]

Nah, I use MX-2 and MX-4 is around .5 a degree better. Silver 5 is worse than both MX-2 and MX-4 and needs a cure time for it to reach max potential (though the cure temp would produce little gain but it's something like 200 hours). Try again IF you have any more w/o spreading it around the cpu. Just put a rice grain size and put the pump on it and let it spread the thermal paste.

Edit: You are right, MX-4 needs no cure time.

Thanks bud, Ill give that a try.

There is a lesson learnt here. Anybody out there who thinks they should change the H100 stock paste, do yourself a favour and just leave it lol. Thats my opinion on the matter anyway

 

[socialfox]

Thanks bud, Ill give that a try.

There is a lesson learnt here. Anybody out there who thinks they should change the H100 stock paste, do yourself a favour and just leave it lol. Thats my opinion on the matter anyway

When I clicked on this thread, I thought you were going to remove the pre-applied paste for the MX-4 and for that I was going to say no to do so since the temperature change would be different. Anyways tell us what the results are when you re-apply the paste. SO just to re-state do not spread it around, let the pump do that for you.

 

[skyfather]

Yeah I'm gonna try now. I did remove the old stock paste and I replaced it with mx-4. I didn't put the mx-4 over the stock paste if that's what you thought.

 

[steddora]

LOL! MX-4 doesn't require a cure time but you will notice after a few days the temps do drop a little. I've been using it since I first saw it up for grabs on newegg. I love the stuff, cheaper than some and performs dang good.

By the way just let you guys know, MX-4 is pretty sticky at low temperature. So my method for flat base coolers like a water block is to actually toss it in the fridge for a few hours prior to installation. I toss about 2 grains of rice worth in the center of the CPU and press the block on and twist it left and right a couple times while applying pressure. I get a good coverage every time. Only once have I had an overflow and I went with about 3 grains of rice worth. MX-4 is great though, probably the best in the budget arena

If you see it coming out from under the block and running down the sides of the chip in big globs, that's bad. If you have a smidge out there, it shouldn't hurt a thing.

 

[skyfather]

Well I tried the dot in the middle method, ran prime 95, went upstairs for 30 mins, came down to a blue screen, different to BSOD but I have just installed windows 8 yesterday so it could be windows 8's version of the BSOD, I'm not sure.

I have now re-applied again, a couple of grains worth and spread it all over the cpu, gonna run p95 again and see how it goes.

I just cant get my head around how this is supposed to be better then h100 stock paste tbh, at all.

 

[socialfox]

Odd, see if you can lower the voltage of the cpu while still maintaining the overclock. Lowering the voltage may drop the temperatures.

 

[jerry6]

TIM Ttronics 4200 is very good a bit better than the old OCZ Freeze i;ve been using for the last 4 years , get about 2 to 5c difference from stock or cheap paste .
i use a pea sized drop with a micro dot 5mm in from each corner . so far i get perfect coverage , when i change coolers or repair i always see the whole CPU heat spreader covered

 

[skyfather]

I have replaced and re-applied paste about 10 different times now, the dot in the middle seems to be the worse, it goes as high as 92c. Either way no matter what I do they're all pretty much the same. The best way is a pea sized amount in the middle and just scrap it all over with a credit card, where I am getting around 88c full load, still awful I know.

I'm defiantly going to purchase some different paste. Jerry6 can TIMtronics 4200 be used on a h100?

 

[andrewcarr]

LOL! MX-4 doesn't require a cure time but you will notice after a few days the temps do drop a little.

I never said it needed a cure time but most reviews do let the paste sit about 48 hours and there is a bit of a difference. Even you said it should go down a bit after sitting for a short period of time.

I still recommend IC diamond paste.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/282002-28-diamond-test-results
http://www.innovationcooling.com/overview.htm
You can get it for cheap here.
http://ncix.com/search/?categoryid=0&q=innovation+cooling
or just go to a microcenter if you have one around you.
http://www.microcenter.com/product/391498/IC_Diamond_7_Carat_Thermal_Compound_15g