cageymaru
Fully [H]
- Joined
- Apr 10, 2003
- Messages
- 22,087
As computer enthusiasts we're often tasked with suggesting computer components to friends, family, coworkers, etc. Thermal paste is one component that seems small, but can make a huge difference especially when overclocking. The website Play3r has published their findings of a thermal paste shootout that they conducted this year. Using 26 different thermal paste compounds, they were able to find a few winners based on use case. A person overclocking on air wouldn't necessarily want to opt for the time and expense of a liquid metal paste. But if that person was wondering what they are missing out on performance wise by skipping the liquid metal pastes, then this is the review for them!
Personally I'm happy to see how well the Noctua NT-H1 did. I have a tube sitting unopened on the shelf as I wait for a motherboard to show up.
It really depends on the type of cooling you are using. My recommendations are different based on if you’re using conventional cooling methods such as air, water and even sub-zero; liquid nitrogen and dry ice. What I will say though is for air and water cooling, most of the ‘decent’ aftermarket thermal pastes will have a couple of degrees Celsius between them…aside from those with high thermal conductivity ratings such as liquid metal.
Now those questions have been answered, now you will maybe understand why thermal paste is an important tool in ensuring adequate and good thermal transfer between your CPU cooler and of course, your processor. That is why I spent around 30 days (in total) comparing and testing 26 of the top thermal pastes on the market with the Intel Core i7-7700K processor to see which reigned supreme…and which failed to deliver on their marketing.
Personally I'm happy to see how well the Noctua NT-H1 did. I have a tube sitting unopened on the shelf as I wait for a motherboard to show up.
It really depends on the type of cooling you are using. My recommendations are different based on if you’re using conventional cooling methods such as air, water and even sub-zero; liquid nitrogen and dry ice. What I will say though is for air and water cooling, most of the ‘decent’ aftermarket thermal pastes will have a couple of degrees Celsius between them…aside from those with high thermal conductivity ratings such as liquid metal.
Now those questions have been answered, now you will maybe understand why thermal paste is an important tool in ensuring adequate and good thermal transfer between your CPU cooler and of course, your processor. That is why I spent around 30 days (in total) comparing and testing 26 of the top thermal pastes on the market with the Intel Core i7-7700K processor to see which reigned supreme…and which failed to deliver on their marketing.