1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:06,839 Thermal compound or thermal interface material is the stuff that goes between 2 00:00:04,960 --> 00:00:11,840 a heat generating component and the cooler whose job it is 3 00:00:09,519 --> 00:00:15,839 to remove the aforementioned heat from the aforementioned component. Now, 4 00:00:13,679 --> 00:00:20,400 today's video will cover how to replace the factory applied thermal compound on 5 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:25,279 your graphics card with an aftermarket one to reduce the operating temperature 6 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:29,840 of this sensitive electronic component, potentially improving its lifespan and 7 00:00:27,519 --> 00:00:33,760 in some cases even its performance thanks to GPU boost technology. Or 8 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:38,239 another way to leverage it would be to have it actually run quieter, making the 9 00:00:36,160 --> 00:00:42,399 fans not spin as fast, but then have it run at the same temperature if that's 10 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:49,520 your thing. Which if it is, by the way, stay tuned because our review of the CM 11 00:00:44,440 --> 00:00:49,520 Seleencio 652S is coming very 12 00:00:53,719 --> 00:00:59,840 soon. Cooler Master's Case Mod World Series is your opportunity to show off 13 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:05,280 your modding skills and win great prizes. Entries closed February 7th, 14 00:01:02,160 --> 00:01:07,600 2015. Click now to learn more. Now, our 15 00:01:05,280 --> 00:01:12,560 test today focuses on a particular model of graphics card, a GeForce GTX 960 16 00:01:10,159 --> 00:01:17,200 Super Clock that was graciously provided by EVGA. But this principle applies to 17 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:21,680 lots of different types of electronic dudatter. In a desktop computer, the 18 00:01:19,600 --> 00:01:25,680 CPU, motherboard, or really any type of expansion card might have a cooler with 19 00:01:23,280 --> 00:01:30,240 a with lame duck thermal goop on it. And on a laptop, the same can also be true. 20 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:35,280 One thing to be really careful of though is warranty coverage. Some manufacturers 21 00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:40,000 don't want you poking and proddding at their product or they will invalidate 22 00:01:37,119 --> 00:01:43,759 your warranty. Fortunately, EVGA is cool with that as long as you return the card 23 00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:47,439 to, at least as far as outward appearances go, the factory 24 00:01:45,439 --> 00:01:51,200 configuration before sending it in for an RMA. They'll even let you replace the 25 00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:56,079 cooler outright with something else if you want to. But we won't be doing that 26 00:01:53,040 --> 00:01:58,880 because a EVGA's ACX 2.0 Plus cooler 27 00:01:56,079 --> 00:02:02,479 with its dual double ball bearing, 92mm fan design, quad heat pipes, and fanless 28 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:05,680 operating mode is already pretty darn good. And B, because that would 29 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:10,479 introduce an additional variable that would make it impossible for us to know if our goop replacement made a 30 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:15,599 difference. So, we're just going to take it off and put it right back on again 31 00:02:12,640 --> 00:02:18,640 when we're done after we overclock it. After all, if you're not going to push 32 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:23,360 your hardware to the limits, mods like this are certainly a fun thing to do on 33 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:30,000 a Saturday afternoon, but not exactly necessary. So, the settings I dialed in 34 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:33,360 were 110% power target, plus.25 molts on 35 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:36,400 the GPU, and plus 144 MHz to boost with 36 00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:39,120 the fan speed locked at 17% or around 37 00:02:36,400 --> 00:02:44,959 580 RPM. And all of this was in a room with an ambient temperature of about 21° 38 00:02:41,680 --> 00:02:47,599 C. This yielded temperatures of 67° 39 00:02:44,959 --> 00:02:51,920 using EVGA's OC scanning utility 1 million particle plasma stress test 40 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:55,920 running at 2560x440 resolution in windowed mode. The boost clock I 41 00:02:53,840 --> 00:03:00,319 observed with these settings was 1586 MHz. Although it should be noted these 42 00:02:58,400 --> 00:03:04,159 settings were not verified in actual games, and these stress test programs 43 00:03:02,239 --> 00:03:08,319 often allow higher clock speeds than you can achieve in the real world. Anyway, 44 00:03:06,159 --> 00:03:12,000 let's get to business. First, gather all the materials you'll need. The card 45 00:03:09,840 --> 00:03:16,720 itself, isopropyl alcohol, and a lint-free wipe, a screwdriver, and 46 00:03:14,640 --> 00:03:21,599 replacement thermal compound. I'll be using IC Diamond because it's among the 47 00:03:19,040 --> 00:03:26,080 best on the market. Start with the four screws positioned around the processor 48 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:30,319 itself, usually near the middle of the card and tensioned by springs. Loosen 49 00:03:28,400 --> 00:03:34,560 them in a cross pattern. Then remove them fully. For our card, this was 50 00:03:32,640 --> 00:03:38,640 actually enough to completely free the cooler. But on some other cards, you may 51 00:03:36,959 --> 00:03:43,440 need to remove the rest of the screws on the back and even others on the top, 52 00:03:40,879 --> 00:03:47,360 bottom, sides, or even rear IO. You can test if you've got everything by giving 53 00:03:45,519 --> 00:03:52,400 the cooler a wiggle. Then once you're sure all the screws are removed, you can 54 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:54,879 gently pull it free. Never force it and 55 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:58,040 be mindful of your fan power plug. You don't want to accidentally yank on it 56 00:03:56,400 --> 00:04:01,920 since those connectors are often very fragile. Now, you can see from this 57 00:04:00,239 --> 00:04:08,080 footage I took when I did my initial swap that EVGA is using like a a 58 00:04:05,040 --> 00:04:10,720 pre-done exactly square thermal paste 59 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:14,159 patch rather than relying on manual application and that it seems to be 60 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:18,959 working for them. The base plate of the cooler is making very even contact with 61 00:04:16,560 --> 00:04:23,040 the GPU core through only a thin layer of material. This is very desirable. You 62 00:04:21,120 --> 00:04:27,919 need thermal compound on your GPU or it'll overheat, but a thick layer here 63 00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:31,919 can actually insulate the GPU causing it to run hotter. Speaking of which, some 64 00:04:30,320 --> 00:04:35,600 graphics cards will have what are called thermal pads. They're a little bit 65 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:40,960 thicker on components like voltage regulator modules or memory chips. Leave 66 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:46,240 these on and reuse those pads unless you have replacement pads of the exact same 67 00:04:42,960 --> 00:04:48,560 thickness. Replacing pads with a thick 68 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:53,199 application of paste can cause poor contact between your cooler and your 69 00:04:50,639 --> 00:04:57,120 graphics card. With the cooler off, it's time to clean both the GPU itself and 70 00:04:55,360 --> 00:05:01,759 the base of the cooler with 99% isopropyl alcohol. 70% is fine, too, by 71 00:04:59,840 --> 00:05:05,759 the way. I recommend starting with a couple slow, high pressure passes on the 72 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:10,160 cooler base with your cleaning cloth to remove the bulk of the goop from the 73 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:11,520 surface. Then fold that away and find a 74 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:16,240 fresh part of your cloth and use a buffing motion to take off the rest. Do 75 00:05:13,759 --> 00:05:20,560 the same for the GPU itself. Just as an FYI, the compound on there won't damage 76 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:25,680 your card if it gets on the chip package or even on the board PCB, but that's not 77 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:29,759 a license to be sloppy. Try to remove as much as you can. With the compound 78 00:05:27,919 --> 00:05:34,320 removed, I usually do a final pass with a fresh cloth to remove any lint or 79 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:38,400 residue. Applying thermal compound isn't rocket science, and remember, less is 80 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:43,199 more. You want enough for it to spread out and cover the whole GPU, but not so 81 00:05:40,960 --> 00:05:47,680 much that it gets mushed out on the sides and gets all over the place. I use 82 00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:51,120 the line method, but a dot in the center also works. Just don't waste your time 83 00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:55,440 spreading it out. It's messy, unnecessary, and can actually trap air 84 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:58,479 bubbles in the compound in some cases. Although, normally those would be 85 00:05:56,639 --> 00:06:02,240 squeezed out by the same pressure that spreads the thermal compound with the 86 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:06,400 other techniques once you tighten the mounting screws. On that note, now it's 87 00:06:04,479 --> 00:06:10,639 time to tighten the mounting screws. Again, in a cross pattern, throw this 88 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:17,960 baby on the test bench and find out if it worked. Boom. low temperatures using 89 00:06:14,160 --> 00:06:22,080 the exact same testing parameters of 90 00:06:17,960 --> 00:06:23,840 64° about a 3° improvement. Woo! Yeah. 91 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:27,680 All right. So, it's not exactly earth shaking. So, if you're sitting there 92 00:06:25,319 --> 00:06:31,120 wondering what exactly was the point of doing all this to a brand new piece of 93 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:35,039 hardware that's obviously working just fine, I don't blame you. But, I was 94 00:06:33,280 --> 00:06:39,520 ready for that question. So, here are some other situations where it might 95 00:06:36,639 --> 00:06:44,160 make more sense. While EVGA didn't do this, some manufacturers use really low 96 00:06:42,160 --> 00:06:48,479 performance thermal material, either to save a buck or for reasons that are 97 00:06:46,319 --> 00:06:52,960 unlikely to ever even occur to most consumers. Things like stability over 98 00:06:50,560 --> 00:06:57,759 time or at extreme temperatures during storage. So, there's that. And even the 99 00:06:55,840 --> 00:07:02,240 most well-intentioned manufacturer who chooses the highest quality thermal 100 00:07:00,000 --> 00:07:06,000 compound can have a sloppy application once in a while. So, if your component 101 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:10,400 is running hotter than you're expecting or not turboing as high as you'd like, 102 00:07:08,639 --> 00:07:14,319 you can follow this guide to try a thermal compound replacement since it 103 00:07:12,000 --> 00:07:17,520 doesn't cost very much. And finally, this might actually come in handy if 104 00:07:15,919 --> 00:07:21,919 you're trying to breathe new life into an older piece of hardware, too. Thermal 105 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:26,639 pastes, particularly the lower quality ones, don't stay potent forever and may 106 00:07:24,639 --> 00:07:31,360 need to be refreshed every once in a while. 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You can give us a monthly contribution directly if you like our videos. And that was my 134 00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:19,160 opportunity to do my outro. Now is my opportunity to say don't forget to 135 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:29,610 subscribe if you haven't already. Peace.