Question i7-4790 delid?

[lmsrcmig06]

I got an Intel Core i7-4790 (locked), an ASUS H81M-E and 8 GB of RAM for free (Yes, I was very lucky.) and, because of that, I'll join the PC Master Race. I ordered some ARCTIC MX-4 and Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut and I want to know if I should delid the CPU. It always ran at more than 90 degrees Celsius for 2 years of gaming and streaming and I think the IHS may be in a bad condition. I will be using the stock cooler (https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41OAyGJOsNL._AC_SL1500_.jpg) with ARCTIC MX-4, because it's made of aluminum. What do you think? Is it worth it?

 

[WildCard999]

90C is too hot for normal use, I would replace the thermal paste and get a better cooler but deliding it isn't necessary and probably isn't worth the risk of damaging the CPU.

 

[geofelt]

Because a 4790 can not be overclocked, it should run perfectly well using the stock Intel cooler.

What is your temperature at idle?
If it is more than 10-15c. over ambient, it is likely that your cooler is not mounted well.

Any cooler needs fresh air to do it's job.
What is your case and fan arrangement?

----------------how to mount the stock Intel cooler--------------

The stock Intel cooler can be tricky to install.
A poor installation will result in higher cpu temperatures.
If properly mounted, you should expect temperatures at idle to be 10-15c. over ambient.

To mount the Intel stock cooler properly, place the motherboard on top of the foam or cardboard backing that was packed with the motherboard.
The stock cooler will come with paste pre applied, it looks like three grey strips.
The 4 push pins should come in the proper position for installation, that is with the pins rotated in the opposite direction of the arrow,(clockwise)
and pulled up as far as they can go.
Take the time to play with the pushpin mechanism until you know how they work.

Orient the 4 pins so that they are exactly over the motherboard holes.
If one is out of place, you will damage the pins which are delicate.
Push down on a DIAGONAL pair of pins at the same time. Then the other pair.

When you push down on the top black pins, it expands the white plastic pins to fix the cooler in place.

If you do them one at a time, you will not get the cooler on straight.
Lastly, look at the back of the motherboard to verify that all 4 pins are equally through the motherboard, and that the cooler is on firmly.
This last step must be done, which is why the motherboard should be out of the case to do the job. Or you need a case with a opening that lets you see the pins.
It is possible to mount the cooler with the motherboard mounted in the case, but you can then never be certain that the push pins are inserted properly
unless you can verify that the pins are through the motherboard and locked.

If you should need to remove the cooler, turn the pins counter clockwise to unlock them.
You will need to clean off the old paste and reapply new if you ever take the cooler off.
Clean off old paste with alcohol and a lint free paper like a coffee filter.
Apply new paste sparingly. A small rice sized drop in the center will spread our under heat and pressure.
Too much paste is bad, it will act as an insulator.
It is hard to use too little.

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[lmsrcmig06]

As I said, it wasn't mine and I'm waiting for the rest of the components to arrive. It ran at more than 90 because the case barely had airflow and the stock cooler was dusty to death. I guess I'll just change the termal paste and not delid the CPU.

 

[qu245]

90C for 2y? It didn't melt a hole in the floor? I have a panic attack whenever I see anything over 70 or 75 during hot summer days... once you get it all together I would stress test your build with Prime95 to make sure the hardware was not physically damaged by excessive heat

Jokes aside, as was mentioned before a delid is not necessary on a locked CPU, I wouldn't use the stock cooler though. Even on an unlocked CPU a delid is not always necessary unless you want to do some serious OC'ing. Even the i7-7700K, in which intel used toothpaste as TIM between the die and the IHS, runs at perfectly fine temps at stock clock speeds without a delid.

A good cooler is always advisable though. Look at it this way, good coolers are made extremely versatile and compatible with nearly all existing sockets and often they will still be compatible with newer sockets. Something like a Corsair water cooler that costs 100-200$ will last you through several builds and upgrades, it's a long term investment.

Also, when mounting a cooler use this thing http://www.arcticsilver.com/arcticlean.htm to clean up the TIM, alcohol doesn't do a good enough job.

Don't know anything about Arctic MX-4, but you can use Conductonaut between the IHS and the heat sink too, you just have to be careful since it's conductive so if it gets on the mob or into the socket it will cause a short circuit. But the thing isn't that liquid, I've worked with it when I delided my own i7-7700K. It's pretty viscous still, you just have to be careful. Do at your own risk ofc.

*This is a bit off topic, but honestly, deliding and OC'ing are generally not that super worth it unless your RIG is in the end-cycle of it's life (becoming obsolete) and you want to run it into the ground before upgrading. Without resorting to extreme measures (Liquid Nitrogen cooling for example) you will at best get an extra 10% of your base stock speed, or so... but clock speed isn't everything, that extra 500 mhz you will squeeze out will amount to possibly 5-10 frames in game on average... there are some separate special cases but on average that's about it... on the other hand you get a less stable system, more heat, potentially lower CPU life and a void warranty (might be irrelevant if already expired) so meuh…