# Replacing 'Northbridge' thermal paste with AS5: Any Improvement?



## HookeyStreet (Feb 6, 2007)

I recently had to rotate my Northbridge heatsink 180 degrees so while I had it off the motherboard I decided to remove the standard thermal paste and replace it with some fresh Arctic Silver 5.  

Does anyone know if this is a good idea and if it makes a change in the Northbridge temps?

I ask this because usually AS5  any other thermal paste/grease  

Also I had some Arctic Cooling MX-1 lying around, so did I make the right choice in using the AS5


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## niko084 (Feb 6, 2007)

You might get a little difference, depending on how warm it was running before..

Either way, the thermal paste is far better!


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## HookeyStreet (Feb 6, 2007)

niko084 said:


> You might get a little difference, depending on how warm it was running before..
> 
> Either way, the thermal paste is far better!



That was a quick reply, thanks m8.  I thought I made the right decision


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## Pinchy (Feb 6, 2007)

yeah AS5 is the best


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## lufrey (Feb 6, 2007)

I tried it a while ago. Didn't make any difference that I could see.


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## Zubasa (Feb 6, 2007)

HookeyStreet said:


> I recently had to rotate my Northbridge heatsink 180 degrees so while I had it off the motherboard I decided to remove the standard thermal paste and replace it with some fresh Arctic Silver 5.
> 
> Does anyone know if this is a good idea and if it makes a change in the Northbridge temps?
> 
> ...


But you better be very careful, since the north bridge chip is just like a GPU...


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## Pinchy (Feb 6, 2007)

It wont make THAT much of a diff, but its better than nothing


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## t_ski (Feb 6, 2007)

If the old paste was crappy stuff and put on way too thick, then AS5 would definitely


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## lemonadesoda (Feb 6, 2007)

It wont make much difference... if any.

While the northbridge gets "hot"... it doesnt output THAT much heat... unlike a CPU.

On a CPU there is a lot of heat transfered through the thermal paste... from the CPU to the COOLER.  Think of the heat "flowing" through the paste. The cooler is big and the fan is spinning and a LOT of heat is being moved off the CPU.

While on the chipset... there is no fan... just passive cooling... and while the chipset gets hot... there is not a lot of heat flowing from the chipset to the cooler.  Hence the compound is not so critical.

A bigger effect would be by using a bigger heatsink and or fan. And then the thermal paste is actually doing something... moving MORE HEAT ACROSS THE chipset/cooler boundary.

If you have an old CPU cooler (say 386/486) knocking around... then cut it to size... drill holes... thread the holes... and use it to replace your northbridge cooler. Fan not needed. THAT will make a BIG difference to cooling.  It's a fun DIY project too.

(I did this in my silent HTPC system)


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## lufrey (Feb 6, 2007)

Zubasa said:


> But you better be very careful, since the north bridge chip is just like a GPU...



Well, as long as the temperature is at least the same or lower than before, then it should be ok. If the temp is higher afterwards, there is a problem there.


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## Namslas90 (Feb 6, 2007)

Thermal probe on Gateway Gamer showed a drop of 4'F overall.  Not much improvement, but when combined w/fan, dropped about 13'F.


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## ktr (Feb 6, 2007)

I believe ceramics are the best for NB....


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## Alcpone (Feb 6, 2007)

When I removed my chipset heatsink the ceramic that was on there was like concrete bonded to it, took me about 5 mins of cleaning it with nail varnish remover pads which worked nicely, then I put a nice dob of as5 and a waterblock on and bob's your uncle it does not get bloody hot no more!


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## JC316 (Feb 6, 2007)

I slapped some silver compound I had lying around in addition to lapping the heatsink, I noticed a 6*C drop in temps.


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## WarEagleAU (Feb 6, 2007)

I know Artic Silver Ceramique is best for GPUS, though Im not sure about the north bridge. Also, AS5 is, IMHO, the best stuff out there. Others are great, TT, Zalman, AC MX, etc...but AS is the best, hands down.


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## niko084 (Feb 6, 2007)

Curious whats the difference is reasons to use Ceramic vs regular?


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## t_ski (Feb 6, 2007)

Ceramique is non-conductive and ideal for GPU's and exposed CPU and NB core where there are lots of other resistors, etc on the chip surrounding the core.  If you have any AS5 on those resistors you can really screw things up.


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## niko084 (Feb 7, 2007)

Aww ha, I didn't even think about that...


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## ktr (Feb 7, 2007)

WarEagleAU said:


> I know Artic Silver Ceramique is best for GPUS, though Im not sure about the north bridge. Also, AS5 is, IMHO, the best stuff out there. Others are great, TT, Zalman, AC MX, etc...but AS is the best, hands down.



some NB does have circuitry on top.


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## tkpenalty (Feb 7, 2007)

If you are careful enough the AS5 wount go near any of the transistors. I haven't noticed any difference after installing the AS5.


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## Alcpone (Feb 7, 2007)

tkpenalty said:


> If you are careful enough the AS5 wount go near any of the transistors. I haven't noticed any difference after installing the AS5.



I agree, if you dont smudge it all over then there isnt anything to worry about with resistors etc...

TK have you checked your pm's recently?


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## whc.demo (Feb 9, 2007)

i did the same thing, applied arctic silver to my northbridge chip

the heat sink on it almost gets too hot to touch now, i wonder how hot the chip was getting before i applied the arctic silver!


i also noticed on my friends mobo which is the same he has a fan on his northbridge chip and i have some big gold passive heat sink with a sticker covering the top, im sure the sticker cant be good for removing heat..


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## Completely Bonkers (Feb 9, 2007)

For thermal radiation efficiency, anodize your heatsink black (or change it).

Northbridge coolers are often quite noisey for their size. Get a BIG passive block.

Use an old CPU block... cut it down to fit... and thread some screw holes in the right place.


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## t_ski (Feb 9, 2007)

Completely Bonkers said:


> For thermal radiation efficiency, paint your heatsink black.



Don't!  Most paints would seal in the heat and not allow it to dissipate.  That's why most heatsinks are anodized and not painted.


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## Alcpone (Feb 9, 2007)

... some things in life just drive you bonkers. Especially the rubbish you see on forum posts


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## t_ski (Feb 9, 2007)

Well, he hasn't posted back in this thread, so who knows how it went.  I did look up the mobo in his system specs and found this:

http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=15&l3=260&model=1003&modelmenu=1

It's got a passive block on it, probably not too tall.  I'm not sure what the point of "ratating it 180 degrees" was, as it is square and not odd-shaped.  Unless for some reason the top was not level, but that doesn't make any sense...

For passive blocks, I highly recommend Thermalright's HR-05 series.


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## tkpenalty (Feb 11, 2007)

*STOP!!!*
*GRAMMAR TIME*

lol its pointless rotating it 180* i would see a point in it being rotated 90* however. 

OFF TOPIC: Has anyone seen the P5ND2 SLI's northbridge cooler? Doesn't the NF4 chipset get hot? 
Someone find me a store in Sydney that actually sells Zalman "hook type" northbridge coolers.


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## erocker (Apr 16, 2007)

I have a nForce3 chip that had the heatsink stuck to it with some double sided tape, stock.  When I took it off i noticed the chip had a plastic covering over it.  I put some AS5 on it and the temps are ok.  Should I be using some other kind of paste?


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## tkpenalty (Apr 17, 2007)

Yes... AS5 isnt good with non-IHS applications. Its better to use Ceramic (it will give better results), MX-1 is better.


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## mauriek (Apr 18, 2007)

tkpenalty said:


> Yes... AS5 isnt good with non-IHS applications. Its better to use Ceramic (it will give better results), MX-1 is better.



is there any logical reason why AS5 isnt good for non IHS application?
this is the first time i see somebody said that AS5 is only good for IHS.

i read in previous post that AS5 is conductive? i think this statement is not correct. based from AS5 review i read in many review site.


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## rhythmeister (Apr 18, 2007)

I believe AS5 has a capacitive effect NOT a conductive effect!


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## jurrasstoil (Apr 18, 2007)

AS5 is only conductive under high pressure.

If he has got the Board t_ski posted, everything should be fine. I have the same board in a small LAN-PC and swapped the heatsink for a zalman and applied AS5 or Ceramique and it works great.

@tkpenalty my ZM-NBF47 came with both. Hooks and Pins.


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## top41 (Apr 18, 2007)

I thrust AS 5 for many years and think it's the best.
Also, it is the easiest to apply.


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## Zalmann (Apr 22, 2007)

Yes, I also *thrust* it, and very hard I must say.


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## mandelore (Apr 22, 2007)

Zalmann said:


> Yes, I also *thrust* it, and very hard I must say.



I just skipped to last post, wtf? lol


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