Thermal Paste Specification Comparison

[Yongkit]

As I recently bought the Cooler Master Cryofuze thermal paste and apply to my new EK 360 Basic AIO noticed its good cooling performance (spoiler with screenshot normal operating non gaming), I started to get interested in the thermal paste specification and below are some of the popular thermal paste comparison for quick reference:

Cooler Master Cryofuze: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 250°C.




Arctic MX-5: maintaining stability from -40°C up to 180°C.





Arctic MX-4: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 150°C.





GD900: maintaining stability from -58°C up to 392°C.




Noctua NT-H1: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 110°C.




Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut: maintaining stability from -250°C up to 350°C.

Spoiler: EK AIO 360 Basic + R7 3800x

 

[elmariachi]

As I recently bought the Cooler Master Cryofuze thermal paste and apply to my new EK 360 Basic AIO noticed its good cooling performance (spoiler with screenshot normal operating non gaming), I started to get interested in the thermal paste specification and below are some of the popular thermal paste comparison for quick reference:

Cooler Master Cryofuze: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 250°C.

View attachment 30457


Arctic MX-5: maintaining stability from -40°C up to 180°C.

View attachment 30458



Arctic MX-4: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 150°C.

View attachment 30460



GD900: maintaining stability from -58°C up to 392°C.

View attachment 30459


Noctua NT-H1: maintaining stability from -50°C up to 110°C.

View attachment 30461


Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut: maintaining stability from -250°C up to 350°C.

View attachment 30463

Spoiler: EK AIO 360 Basic + R7 3800x

View attachment 30465

Most thermal pastes perform around the same especially for CPU. For GPU, it's more complicated and none of those pastes listed above with maybe the exception of Cryofuze would do well under long term stability. I've had my GPU with Thermalright TFX pasted with my new block and my Hotspot Delta for the last 2 weeks sits at 6.9 degrees. It was different with Kryonaut for example where after 2 weeks, I started getting increased hotspot temps.

Most pastes today work roughly the same but only few pastes work with long term stability especially so with GPUs.

 

[RLWZ21]

but there are pricing difference between each thermal paste as well. i mean some does not care can still to something like artic, while others have slightly better buget should go for noctua but those pc enthusiast would consider Grizzy

 

[elmariachi]

but there are pricing difference between each thermal paste as well. i mean some does not care can still to something like artic, while others have slightly better buget should go for noctua but those pc enthusiast would consider Grizzy

Grizzly breaks down past 80c. No one uses that anymore. Even Noctua and Arctic performs better in that sense.

 

[Yongkit]

Most thermal pastes perform around the same especially for CPU. For GPU, it's more complicated and none of those pastes listed above with maybe the exception of Cryofuze would do well under long term stability. I've had my GPU with Thermalright TFX pasted with my new block and my Hotspot Delta for the last 2 weeks sits at 6.9 degrees. It was different with Kryonaut for example where after 2 weeks, I started getting increased hotspot temps.

Most pastes today work roughly the same but only few pastes work with long term stabilit

I have not try on the GPU yet since I am not really ready to explore with warranty still intact.

Wow hotspot delta at 6.9 degrees is very amazing.

ya long term stability is a good consideration points.

At the moment it seems to be difficult to comprehend unless we really experience with the specific thermal paste and monitor the temperature on regular basis.

edit: just check Cryofuse & Thermalright TFX have the same Thermal Conductivity at 14W / m.k’s level while thermaright was additional 0.3 W / m.k’s higher

 

[elmariachi]

I have not try on the GPU yet since I am not really ready to explore with warranty still intact.

Wow hotspot delta at 6.9 degrees is very amazing.

ya long term stability is a good consideration points.

At the moment it seems to be difficult to comprehend unless we really experience with the specific thermal paste and monitor the temperature on regular basis.

CPU not so much issues. It's only with direct die and specific type of dies that you'll have problem with the usual popular type of pastes. The thicker harder to apply pastes are always better for direct die and dies used on the rtx3000 series cause they aren't entirely flat. Only problem with these pastes is it's annoying to apply and you need to heat up the paste with a hairdryer and apply it. Alot of patience needed. See how thick and dry the paste is below? Like spreading bubble gum.

 

[Lastwishes]

Had the same experience. I went from MX-4 to NT-H1 to Thermalright TFX for my 5950x and had negligible differences in performance.

For GPU, NT-H1 worked better than MX-4 but performance suffered for both after a few months. Significant performance improvement with TFX. It's been 3-4 months and my hotspot delta has been similar (only 0.1 degree increase so far). But like @elmariachi said, it's a pain to apply. I ziplock the tube up and place into boiling water for 15 minutes before application.

People have said the Gelid GC extreme is equally good. SYY-157 has similar specs to TFX as well (I didn't verify).

 

[elmariachi]

Had the same experience. I went from MX-4 to NT-H1 to Thermalright TFX for my 5950x and had negligible differences in performance.

For GPU, NT-H1 worked better than MX-4 but performance suffered for both after a few months. Significant performance improvement with TFX. It's been 3-4 months and my hotspot delta has been similar (only 0.1 degree increase so far). But like @elmariachi said, it's a pain to apply. I ziplock the tube up and place into boiling water for 15 minutes before application.

People have said the Gelid GC extreme is equally good. SYY-157 has similar specs to TFX as well (I didn't verify).

Yes exactly my same sentiments moving from Kryonaut to Thermalright TFX. I also have SYY-157. Great value paste and seems to perform very similarly to Thermalright but slightly easier to apply.

Hotspot delta degradation is a problem for many RTX cards over time due to the convex die. Igorslabs has an article about this. One thing about Thermalright TFX is that it has a short curing time after which your temps can be about 1 to 1.5 degrees better so avoid temps above 70 for the 1st week or so.

My way of application of TFX is to put a blob of paste on a metal platter and heat that up untill you see it become abit soft. I used hairdryer on the lowest heat which is about 65 degrees centigrade. Then quickly apply it on the die in 1 stroke. You have to do it a few times as you can't restroke the paste once it dries up as it will collect all the paste on the spatula. By far, this is the easiest way to do it. Once you're done, just give it a soft pat to ensure that it's even. Don't worry too much about the edges as most of the paste will be pushed towards the edges once you mount the block.

I have gamed 4 hours non-stop every night for the last 2 weeks and none of my temps have changed. Even my 12900k stock sees a max of 60 degrees during gaming. And I'm not even using a specific LGA1700 kit and block. I'm using my old EK Magnitude with the 1151 kit on my Asus Z690 Apex. If anyone is keen, I can post a video of my in-game temps. Both my CPU and GPU are exclusively Thermalright TFX.

 

[Lastwishes]

My way of application of TFX is to put a blob of paste on a metal platter and heat that up untill you see it become abit soft. I used hairdryer on the lowest heat which is about 65 degrees centigrade. Then quickly apply it on the die in 1 stroke. You have to do it a few times as you can't restroke the paste once it dries up as it will collect all the paste on the spatula. By far, this is the easiest way to do it. Once you're done, just give it a soft pat to ensure that it's even. Don't worry too much about the edges as most of the paste will be pushed towards the edges once you mount the block.

I have gamed 4 hours non-stop every night for the last 2 weeks and none of my temps have changed. Even my 12900k stock sees a max of 60 degrees during gaming. And I'm not even using a specific LGA1700 kit and block. I'm using my old EK Magnitude with the 1151 kit on my Asus Z690 Apex. If anyone is keen, I can post a video of my in-game temps. Both my CPU and GPU are exclusively Thermalright TFX.

Nice, thanks for sharing the method. I ran into same issue with the paste sticking to the spatula so much that I decided not to use spatula at all. I've just been using the cross + 4 dots method, and put the heatsink on, followed by some prayers that it has spread nicely .

Even in cases where the performance increase is negligible, TFX is supposed to last longer between the need to reapply due to viscosity. I'll be switching to TFX for all my future repastes for a while, until something better comes along.

 

[elmariachi]

Nice, thanks for sharing the method. I ran into same issue with the paste sticking to the spatula so much that I decided not to use spatula at all. I've just been using the cross + 4 dots method, and put the heatsink on, followed by some prayers that it has spread nicely .

Even in cases where the performance increase is negligible, TFX is supposed to last longer between the need to reapply due to viscosity. I'll be switching to TFX for all my future repastes for a while, until something better comes along.

No worries! You can use the spatula but it's a one stroke spread once you apply. And maybe abit more. Problem is once it dries up, spreading over again will mess everything up. I mean the paste itself is good stuff. Applying part is the **. I'm also only using TFX for all future applications owing to the fact that I do not like to keep opening up the card to keep reapplying especially after getting all the proper and optimal contact with good temps.

 

[Yongkit]

Just watched a video of Thermalright TFX paste seems very challenging to apply get hard soon.

My experience with cryofuze is abit easy and it doesn't seems to be difficult to spread the paste like the video.

 

[elmariachi]

Just watched a video of Thermalright TFX paste seems very challenging to apply get hard soon.

My experience with cryofuze is abit easy and it doesn't seems to be difficult to spread the paste like the video.

Like I said, CPU is not really an issue. Even long term stability is not that bad as compared to GPU. GPU within weeks the degradation of the hotspot is very very obvious with those usual pastes. TFX once you learn to apply, it becomes easy. Especially if you want to avoid keep re-applying in the long term. To me that is a big plus. Thermal paste performances are more or less within 3 degrees between most popular brands. But long term stability only few pastes can do that.

 

[Lastwishes]

No worries! You can use the spatula but it's a one stroke spread once you apply. And maybe abit more. Problem is once it dries up, spreading over again will mess everything up. I mean the paste itself is good stuff. Applying part is the **. I'm also only using TFX for all future applications owing to the fact that I do not like to keep opening up the card to keep reapplying especially after getting all the proper and optimal contact with good temps.

Yup, totally agreed. Repasting CPU is simple enough, but the GPU is a pain - plus it may increase temps for the vrams unless you swap out the thermal pads again as well. I'm also looking to mod the cooling for the x570 chipset with a copper shim + pad as well, and the longevity of TFX will be ideal for that usage.

Though I've been itchy handed lately and am looking at MX-5 as well.

Just watched a video of Thermalright TFX paste seems very challenging to apply get hard soon.

My experience with cryofuze is abit easy and it doesn't seems to be difficult to spread the paste like the video.

Some CM pastes have really good performance, it seems (MasterMaker Pro iirc). But I've read some instances where the paste has some issues of scratching the die. Not sure if the new cryofuse has the same issue, but might be worth paying attention to.

 

[elmariachi]

Yup, totally agreed. Repasting CPU is simple enough, but the GPU is a pain - plus it may increase temps for the vrams unless you swap out the thermal pads again as well. I'm also looking to mod the cooling for the x570 chipset with a copper shim + pad as well, and the longevity of TFX will be ideal for that usage.

Though I've been itchy handed lately and am looking at MX-5 as well.


Some CM pastes have really good performance, it seems (MasterMaker Pro iirc). But I've read some instances where the paste has some issues of scratching the die. Not sure if the new cryofuse has the same issue, but might be worth paying attention to.

The one that people posted was scratching the die was the Kryonaut Extreme. It has not been entirely verified but those Extreme pastes from Krynonaut are all designed for sub-zero cooling. I do not even know why people use them for 24/7 builds. They cost a ton and have the same issue of hotspot degradation. As long as the paste is liquidish or runny, you can bet your last dollar you will have hotspot degradation.

 

[86technie]

I mainly use Noctua NT-H1, other brands not so.
But be careful not to use thermal paste that is liquid metal/conductive on GPU
since the die is expose so no heat spreader unlike CPU.

Pasting thermal paste on GPU is tricky, depending on the die size have to try not to apply
too much. If small die just a small drop will do, however a large die than have to apply
in four corners than one in the middle.

 

[Yongkit]

Yup, totally agreed. Repasting CPU is simple enough, but the GPU is a pain - plus it may increase temps for the vrams unless you swap out the thermal pads again as well. I'm also looking to mod the cooling for the x570 chipset with a copper shim + pad as well, and the longevity of TFX will be ideal for that usage.

Though I've been itchy handed lately and am looking at MX-5 as well.


Some CM pastes have really good performance, it seems (MasterMaker Pro iirc). But I've read some instances where the paste has some issues of scratching the die. Not sure if the new cryofuse has the same issue, but might be worth paying attention to.

There is very little review for cryofuze paste at the moment as it is a new product from cooler master I think 2021 when I see the box, not sure if any others have experience using cryofuze for their gpu.

 

[Lastwishes]

The one that people posted was scratching the die was the Kryonaut Extreme. It has not been entirely verified but those Extreme pastes from Krynonaut are all designed for sub-zero cooling. I do not even know why people use them for 24/7 builds. They cost a ton and have the same issue of hotspot degradation. As long as the paste is liquidish, you can bet your last dollar you will have hotspot degradation.

Hmm, I might have been wrong on the Master Maker stuff. There were some concerns as the gel had nano diamond particles, but it seems unfounded.

I'm not a fan of the Grizzly stuff either. Performs great for OC, but I've read enough issues on their stuff (including Conductonaut) to know that it's not a product for my use case.

 

[elmariachi]

Hmm, I might have been wrong on the Master Maker stuff. There were some concerns as the gel had nano diamond particles, but it seems unfounded.

I'm not a fan of the Grizzly stuff either. Performs great for OC, but I've read enough issues on their stuff (including Conductonaut) to know that it's not a product for my use case.

They only perform very well from fresh application. Most reviewers that do these paste reviews are all fresh applying the pastes and honestly, Kryonaut fresh apply is better than most other pastes fresh applied. But it degrades faster than others and even faster once you reach the breakdown point of 80 degrees often.

That is why most reviews Kryonaut comes out top. Almost 99% of them do a fresh apply. And very few actually bothered doing long term stability testing on that same paste or similar pastes for that matter.

 

[Yongkit]

Like I said, CPU is not really an issue. Even long term stability is not that bad as compared to GPU. GPU within weeks the degradation of the hotspot is very very obvious with those usual pastes. TFX once you learn to apply, it becomes easy. Especially if you want to avoid keep re-applying in the long term. To me that is a big plus. Thermal paste performances are more or less within 3 degrees between most popular brands. But long term stability only few pastes can do that.

Glad to learn new knowledge today

 

[KYOGRE]

Can't find Noctua NT-H1 locally, have to import. Used Kryonaut on cpu but it dry out pretty fast & have to re paste frequently like every 5-6months.