News RTX 5090 gets new $25 KryoSheet thermal pad option from Thermal Grizzly

I never mastered the thermal paste spreading skill so this was a lifesaver.
I've always opted to use the method of depositing a single blob and then mash the heatsink onto it. Specifically, what I do is:
  1. put a blob in the center. Exactly how big takes a bit of practice. If you use too little or way too much, you might need to clean it off and start over.
  2. press down on the heatsink with one hand, while reaching around and pressing on the underside of it with the other. This lets me use way more force than if I were relying on the case for support (although I never do this while it's mounted in the case). If you opt to put it on a table and use that for support, at least put some high-density foam between the motherboard and table.
  3. while pressing, I do some slight sliding and twisting motion
  4. I continue until I can see the paste reaching the edges of the IHS
  5. then, I keep doing it until I can feel the sensation of the heatsink grinding against the IHS, which tells me there's metal-to-metal contact, at least at one spot.
 
I've always opted to use the method of depositing a single blob and then mash the heatsink onto it. Specifically, what I do is:
  1. put a blob in the center. Exactly how big takes a bit of practice. If you use too little or way too much, you might need to clean it off and start over.
  2. press down on the heatsink with one hand, while reaching around and pressing on the underside of it with the other. This lets me use way more force than if I were relying on the case for support (although I never do this while it's mounted in the case). If you opt to put it on a table and use that for support, at least put some high-density foam between the motherboard and table.
  3. while pressing, I do some slight sliding and twisting motion
  4. I continue until I can see the paste reaching the edges of the IHS
  5. then, I keep doing it until I can feel the sensation of the heatsink grinding against the IHS, which tells me there's metal-to-metal contact, at least at one spot.
Thanks for this, but things get a bit trickier working with the AIO. When I removed the pump to clean up the CPU before installing the Kryosheet I saw the mess I had made of applying paste last time. Once I cleaned everything up, all I had to do was place the sheet on the IHS and screw the pump on top of it; now I never have to worry about optimal contact between the IHS and the copper plate.

Regarding the performance, my CPU operates around 3 degrees cooler, but I’m sure it’s because my thermal paste application was bad not that the Kryosheet is better at keeping the processor cooler.
 
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I've applied KS to more than 30 devices. The only no go for KS is low pressure installations like MacBook Pro's and Office notebooks. Also it's super fragile so re-application is possible maybe 2 - 3x, when You're super careful maybe a bit more. Also the KS stays deformed from Ryzen iHS a lot on sides and broken. I much prefer PTM atm and KS only for installations that I know will stay unmoved for 5+ years or even a decade and will receive dedusting only.

Massive plus of KS is that You almost can't install it wrong. And it's performance is homogenous. I've applied Thermal Paste and always get unhomogenous results, no matter how well I apply it. So KS and PTM are my go to option for past year.
 
I much prefer PTM atm and KS only for installations that I know will stay unmoved for 5+ years or even a decade and will receive dedusting only.
Oh, I didn't realize Grizzly had added PTM to their portfolio – I wonder if it's TM7950 or some other material, their website doesn't seem to list the details.

I also find it a bit weird that PTM7950 doesn't seem to be available through more regular channels. Sure, LTT peddles a product, there's the PTM from TG, and you can gamble on Ali... but I don't see anything at the (usually very well-stocked!) retailers in Denmark.
 
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Some people must be much more brave that I ever was. Take apart a brand new GPU that is almost impossible to get for anywhere close to list price and take a chance on void your warranty.

Would not take much for nvidia to blame improper application of the new cooling pad as the cause of a gpu core failure. People already scratch the boards or knock small parts off trying to pry the cooler loose. Then again thermal grizzly also sells liquid metal to people who are brave enough to risk their hardware.

Many people doing this are likely in it to their name on some overclocking list that nobody really cares about. It is not going to make some game that is unplayable magically improve so much it now runs smoothly.
 
Switched to Kryosheet for my 7950X a few months ago and it’s worked like a charm, I never mastered the thermal paste spreading skill so this was a lifesaver.
Spreading skills? LoL! You drop a little turd in the middle of the CPU. It makes a very thin film across the whole CPU. That is all the skill you will ever need.
 
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I did the same with my 7950x3d, just to avoid getting it dirty with paste😅 I have a lot of different ones (TF7, MX4, NT-H2, etc.)
When you drop a little thermal paste in the middle of the CPU, there is no mess. It spreads a thin coating across the whole CPU. As effective as pads without the BS marketing hype to charge y'all more money for not following good advice in the first place.
 
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When you drop a little thermal paste in the middle of the CPU, there is no mess. It spreads a thin coating across the whole CPU.
Yeah, but apply a little too much and it can get overflow into the nooks of the AM5 heatspreader. However, applying too little is worse than too much, so you want to err slightly towards a larger amount.

kSn8o4267yuuywwX9yH6gA-650-80.png


For non-conductive pastes, this is just a cosmetic thing, but there are companies making gaskets to prevent this.
Obviously, that application is atrocious. But, I assume it's just to illustrate the point.
 
Yeah, but apply a little too much and it can get overflow into the nooks of the AM5 heatspreader. However, applying too little is worse than too much, so you want to err slightly towards a larger amount.
kSn8o4267yuuywwX9yH6gA-650-80.png

For non-conductive pastes, this is just a cosmetic thing, but there are companies making gaskets to prevent this.
HPpwy6iPTj4qGNfopAutKR-650-80.jpg
Obviously, that application is atrocious. But, I assume it's just to illustrate the point.
Yes, it is atrocious. You are trying to transfer heat not manufacture a resistor. Hahaha.
Just a litter dab of paste goes a long way. No muss, no fuss.
 
Yes, it is atrocious. You are trying to transfer heat not manufacture a resistor. Hahaha.
Just a litter dab of paste goes a long way. No muss, no fuss.
The excess will be squished out to the sides – apart from messy results, and as long as you're not using conductive thermal paste, applying too much doesn't really have negative effects.

It's safer to err on the side of too much :)
 
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The excess will be squished out to the sides – apart from messy results, and as long as you're not using conductive thermal paste, applying too much doesn't really have negative effects.
It really depends on how much excess. If you go way overboard, then it won't all get squished out.

Also, it mattes how viscous the paste is. It's usually the really thick stuff that you have to spread with a spatula, and that's precisely because it won't squish out much at all.
 
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It really depends on how much excess. If you go way overboard, then it won't all get squished out.

Also, it mattes how viscous the paste is. It's usually the really thick stuff that you have to spread with a spatula, and that's precisely because it won't squish out much at all.
The trick is using just enough thermal paste without having it leak out of the sides.
After applying thermal paste since the early 90's, I believe my technique is pretty solid.
I will be 70 next month.
 
The trick is using just enough thermal paste without having it leak out of the sides.
Like I said, erring a little on the side of excess is far better than putting too little (which I've done in the past).

After applying thermal paste since the early 90's, I believe my technique is pretty solid.
In my case, I don't build/upgrade PCs every year; I'll often go quite a while between doing it. I will sometimes use a cheaper old paste, just to confirm the size of blob I should use. Pull it off and see how it spread. When the spread is right, clean it off one last time and apply the good stuff. This does assume they have similar viscosity.

TBH, I've never re-pasted a CPU. But, I'm not a gamer and don't run heavy workloads at a high duty cycle, so maybe that's why I've not suffered from "dry-out" or "pump-out". I do exercise a little care in watching out for pastes that are known to degrade substantially.
 
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It really depends on how much excess. If you go way overboard, then it won't all get squished out.

Also, it mattes how viscous the paste is. It's usually the really thick stuff that you have to spread with a spatula, and that's precisely because it won't squish out much at all.
Wouldn't that take going **super-crazy** and really weak mounting pressure?

Several of the tech youtubers have done tests where even pretty overkill levels of paste showed no discernible temperature deltas from "perfect" amounts :)