M11x R2 - Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste

I just put together my machine after disassembling it and applying Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste to the CPU and GPU.

It took me about 60 minutes for the teardown and rebuild - but I gotta say, it is a nice change. I immediately noticed cooler temperatures.

Max temps:
CPU: 58C --> 54C
GPU: 77C --> 72C

Idle temps:
CPU: 40C --> 37C
GPU: 55C --> 51C

I also noticed that the fan isn't on quite as much anymore during non-gaming. Fan speed and fan noise remain the same at max temps, but it takes longer for temps to reach the point where the fan needs to kick on.

I would not say that this project is worth it for the lower temps by itself. But if you like to tinker like me, and like to teardown / rebuild machines, then it is a nice little project you can do to squeeze a bit more cooling perofrmance out of your system.

 

I'm definitely thinking of doing this as my temps are through the roof (CPU almost 90C and GPU mid 80s on load). I think something might be throttling as 20 minutes into a game my FPS drops drastically. I have torn down my m11x for simple things like putting wires under the keyboard but thats about it.

Anyway I was wondering:
I can't get AS5 here is NOCTUA NT-H, THERMALTAKE TG-2 or ARCTIC COOLING Arctic MX-3 any good?
Which method did you use to apply the thermal paste?
Other than the videos on youtube any advice for the tear apart?

Thanks

 

I have recently replaced my stock thermal paste with arctic MX-4
Crysis 2 was causing my temps to go all the way upto 101 degrees!!! However since I applied the new compound - took about an hour and was fairly straightforward (never taken a laptop apart before)
My temps have never gone over 76. Infact in the last 2 days it maxes out @ 74 playing crysis 2 for 3-4hours
Great result, I imagine MX-3 would give a similar performance.

 

I ended up getting THERMALTAKE TG-2. It was the only thing I could get my hands on. How did you apply it M11Ash? Just a dot in the middle?

 

No I spread a thin layer across both chips. Making sure there were no gaps. I used this method as through some research I had found that some people had said that the heat-sink's metal plates did not rest exactly level/flush against the chips. Therefore leaving a risk of not spreading the dot/dots/line of paste evenly over the chips.

 

Damn, it looks like I might not even be able to get to the CPU. I have a worn out screw and it's in one of the deep holes. How am I suppose to get that out?

 

That brand of paste should be fine. Any high-end name brand stuff will be better than the low-end toothpaste junk that Dell uses (you'll know what I mean when you get your heatsink off).

Applying it will depend on what the manufacturer recommends. For Arctic Silver 5, the manufacturer website recommends spreading a thin layer on mobile CPUs, instead of a single dot. I would check with whatever Thermaltake recommends.

As for the worn screw... You gotta get it out, one way or another. Try carefully using a screwdriver, or pliers. If that doesn't work, you will need to buy a special drill bit and drill the screw out. And in the future, it is worth spending $8 to buy a good screwdriver that fits perfectly, rather than use a poorly fitting screwdriver that strips scdews

 

I should also add... The one bit of advice I can give is to study botg the disassembly mabual from Dell's website, and teardown videos on Youtube before you get started. It is very easy to do something luke forget to unplug a ribbon cable, and tear it in half.

 

Hmm, I can't seem to find any information on how this specific grease is suppose to be applied. I'll just use the dot method I think. The screw was worn out when I opened the laptop even though I've never opened it before and it's not refurbished. The screw I'm talking about is the one on the left right after you take off the keyboard. I'm thinking of just ripping/melting off the plastic that thats holding it on and superglueing it later. Huh, this situation sucks.

 

I, like you have also experienced a couple degree difference with AS5, except on my desktop. The only problem with it I feel is that you have to reapply it every several months or so. I feel every time I clean off my heatsink and cpu and reapply it that i get better temperatures. I wonder if all thermal compounds are like that. I think i read somewhere that arctic silver makes an ceramique one that lasts longer

 

Use a rubber band. PLace the rubber band under the screw driver and it'll apply the added friction needed. THats how I got my worn screws out of the hard drive.

 

Thanks I'll try that next time, I already just melted the plastic. Anyway, after applying the grease I'm definitely getting 5c to 10c difference. Nothing is throttling anymore and my max CPU temps don't go past 81c AND MY GPU don't go past 72c

Edit: Never mind it still is ><

 

I have a thread here http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...paste-reapplication-photos-56k-warning-3.html with pics if any of you guys are considering replacing the paste.

 

Hrm, interesting. I wonder how much of that is related to actual thermal paste re-application, and how much of that is related to cleaning out the fans / heatsink fins when you re-apply.

In a few months, I'll try just cleaning out the fans / heatsink, and seeing how much of a temp drop that gets by itself.