[SOLVED] Thermal paste recommendation for MSI GS66

[AHAFlier]

So the i9-10980hk my laptop has is currently throttled and i think with a repaste i can gain a little more performance, other people with the same laptop have confirmed this.
Many people have told me that LM isn't worth the risk, is this right? Also I have looked at pads but they don't seem to be recommended a lot.
If a normal paste is a better idea, which should I use?
Heatskink is flat and made of copper, it would be great if the paste could also be used for gpu.My 2 biggest concerns are to get the best performance but also get a reasonable lifetime for the repaste.
I live in Mexico so there are not many pastes in the market, I have narrowed it down to 5 options. Which would get me better results?
My 5 options are. (There is not Thermalright TFX neither Kingpin Kpx)
-Kryonaut Extreme (2g / $25)
-MasterGel Maker (1.5ml/ $30)
-Gelid GC Extreme (1g/ $5)
-Artic MX-4 ( 4g / $15)
-Hydrounaut
I really want to make the right choice since I don't want to open the laptop very often.
Any help is welcome. Thanks!

 

[dorsai]

Artic MX-4 would be my choice as it's not conductive so the chances of a mishap are minimal.

 

[Phaaze88]

Many people have told me that LM isn't worth the risk, is this right?

Worth: It depends on who you ask, and who responds, that sort of thing.
It is a quick way to kill your hardware if you aren't careful. I was pretty nervous at first, and became more comfortable using it after a few times.
It does shine over paste in delid, or direct die(silicon to cooler) applications. Others, it's so-so, or not very good for the price you pay.


With the laptop, the biggest obstacle isn't going to be paste Vs LM, but the laptop's small, restricted package, and you keeping power use low; high power consumption and a laptop's small package don't mix well.
The i9-10980HK is a 45w cpu - 65w with TDP up - for just the all core base clock. Add Turbo Boost into the mix, and the power use is higher than those 45-65w TDPs.
That's high for a laptop cpu, and that's not taking into account whatever your gpu is... I hope this particular laptop doesn't share the heatsink between cpu and gpu.

My 5 options are. (There is not Thermalright TFX neither Kingpin Kpx)
-Kryonaut Extreme (2g / $25)
-MasterGel Maker (1.5ml/ $30)
-Gelid GC Extreme (1g/ $5)
-Artic MX-4 ( 4g / $15)
-Hydrounaut

Probably Kryonaut Extreme, but the others won't trail far behind - if under 5C is anyone's idea of trailing behind...

I don't want to open the laptop very often.

Then avoid LM entirely. If you don't get it right, you end up having to open up the laptop multiple times trying to 'fix' the application.
You're supposed to 'paint' the stuff on the cpu and a non-aluminum coldplate, but the paint shouldn't be too wet or too dry - yeah, hard to describe. It's what I felt from experimenting with it.

 

[AHAFlier]

Worth: It depends on who you ask, and who responds, that sort of thing.
It is a quick way to kill your hardware if you aren't careful. I was pretty nervous at first, and became more comfortable using it after a few times.
It does shine over paste in delid, or direct die(silicon to cooler) applications. Others, it's so-so, or not very good for the price you pay.


With the laptop, the biggest obstacle isn't going to be paste Vs LM, but the laptop's small, restricted package, and you keeping power use low; high power consumption and a laptop's small package don't mix well.
The i9-10980HK is a 45w cpu - 65w with TDP up - for just the all core base clock. Add Turbo Boost into the mix, and the power use is higher than those 45-65w TDPs.
That's high for a laptop cpu, and that's not taking into account whatever your gpu is... I hope this particular laptop doesn't share the heatsink between cpu and gpu.


Probably Kryonaut Extreme, but the others won't trail far behind - if under 5C is anyone's idea of trailing behind...


Then avoid LM entirely. If you don't get it right, you end up having to open up the laptop multiple times trying to 'fix' the application.
You're supposed to 'paint' the stuff on the cpu and a non-aluminum coldplate, but the paint shouldn't be too wet or too dry - yeah, hard to describe. It's what I felt from experimenting with it.

How much behind is the Gelid GC from the kryonaut?, I've seen at the most 1C and half the price here in my country

 

[Phaaze88]

How much behind is the Gelid GC from the kryonaut?, I've seen at the most 1C and half the price here in my country

Not a difference that you will notice: https://www.tomshardware.com/best-picks/best-thermal-paste
Scroll down to Thermal Paste Performance Rankings, but the whole article may be worth a read.

 

[AHAFlier]

Not a difference that you will notice: https://www.tomshardware.com/best-picks/best-thermal-paste
Scroll down to Thermal Paste Performance Rankings, but the whole article may be worth a read.

Even on the higher temp and constrained space of a laptop the difference will be negligible?

 

[Phaaze88]

Even on the higher temp and constrained space of a laptop the difference will be negligible?

Correct.

 

[AHAFlier]

Correct.

Ok, I will then buy the Gelid GC then, Kryonaut difference might not be worth the price increase.
Do you also think CPU clock speeds will stay the same with both pastes?

 

[Phaaze88]

Do you also think CPU clock speeds will stay the same with both pastes?

I don't know, because you didn't go into detail about it. You left out a fair bit of info.
-What kind of temperatures were being observed
-What the power consumption was like
-Windows power plan
-Using a cooling pad or not
-What the gpu is, what kind of temperatures it was seeing, its power use
-What was the laptop model

Laptop manufacturers may not use top-tier paste, but it's not like they're using toothpaste. Sometimes the paste application misses the mark; some are done by machine, not all of 'em are done by hand.

I don't expect the paste to change much unless the previous application was done poorly. Your biggest challenge is getting power consumption in check.
More power = higher thermals... and that just doesn't mix well in laptops, which physically can't dissipate large volumes of heat well... at least, not without increasing the weight to cram a bigger and heavier heatsink inside, thus making it large and unwieldy... then we've crossed into Micro-ATX desktop territory.

 

[AHAFlier]

I don't know, because you didn't go into detail about it. You left out a fair bit of info.
-What kind of temperatures were being observed
-What the power consumption was like
-Windows power plan
-Using a cooling pad or not
-What the gpu is, what kind of temperatures it was seeing, its power use
-What was the laptop model

Laptop manufacturers may not use top-tier paste, but it's not like they're using toothpaste. Sometimes the paste application misses the mark; some are done by machine, not all of 'em are done by hand.

I don't expect the paste to change much unless the previous application was done poorly. Your biggest challenge is getting power consumption in check.
More power = higher thermals... and that just doesn't mix well in laptops, which physically can't dissipate large volumes of heat well... at least, not without increasing the weight to cram a bigger and heavier heatsink inside, thus making it large and unwieldy... then we've crossed into Micro-ATX desktop territory.

-I am observing about 50-60 on idle and 95 with severe throttling under stress.
-Yes, I use cooling pad
-Gpu is Rtx 2070 super max q 80W when playing demanding games it reaches a max of 80C
-Laptop is MSI GS66
I have spoken to other GS66 users and all of them saw positive results with repaste so I thought It would be a good option to improve heat issues and gain some performance as I know it’s impossible for a small chassis to cool the VERY HOT i9-10980hk

 

[Phaaze88]

Msi GS66 Stealth? *views pics
Ok, that is thinner than I was expecting.

Throttling?
The default thermal throttle limit should be 100C, so the cpu shouldn't clock down until 99C.
If the cpu is running into power limits, that'll make it clock down too.
The manufacturer does have the option to set lower thermal and power limits. They don't always do it though.

RTX 2070 Super Max-Q 80w.
That's a long name - this gpu makes sense now that I see what the laptop looks like and what it's paired with.

I have spoken to other GS66 users and all of them saw positive results with repaste

That's good to hear. Hopefully, that does the trick for you.

 

[AHAFlier]

Msi GS66 Stealth? *views pics
Ok, that is thinner than I was expecting.

Throttling?
The default thermal throttle limit should be 100C, so the cpu shouldn't clock down until 99C.
If the cpu is running into power limits, that'll make it clock down too.
The manufacturer does have the option to set lower thermal and power limits. They don't always do it though.

RTX 2070 Super Max-Q 80w.
That's a long name - this gpu makes sense now that I see what the laptop looks like and what it's paired with.


That's good to hear. Hopefully, that does the trick for you.

Well the cores estará to reach 100 and the clock speed starts to go down from the target of 4.4 ghz I end up at 3.6 and 95C
my Question is if the clock speed /performance increase difference between the already mentioned pastes will be also negligible

 

[Phaaze88]

my Question is if the clock speed /performance increase difference between the already mentioned pastes will be also negligible

Benchmarks, sure.
Everything else is a toss up.

 

[AHAFlier]

Benchmarks, sure.
Everything else is a toss up.

Thanks, I was afraid to Make the wrong choice but now I know it Doesn’t matter that much as long as it’s a good paste