I just used the Thermalright TFX on my RTX 3080 and I can say it improved the core temp by 3-4C compared to MX4. The application was a pain though. It had the consistency of sticky rice all squeezed together in a tube. The spatula had more paste than the die.
View attachment 202594
Spreading TFX Was the most annoying thing in the world.
I couldn't even do it without losing the half (not all) of the freaking tube to the spatula (I was using ZF-EX 2g tubes though, which is the same paste, the TFX itself I did the X pattern + 4 dots in quadrants), until I found this post, which explained how to spread TFX easier. You basically have to yeet it right away and then apply an even stroke to it.
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When I used that exact method (except on a much larger 3090 die rather than smaller laptop chips), I got a nice complete thick spread.
End result: 3 weeks later, core to core hotspot temp deltas are almost the same as day 1, sometimes varying by 1C depending on when I test it or how the chip cools earlier (Delta ranges from 10.0C to 11.6C depending on power limit and what I'm running. Had 9.9C at 530W last night, 10.1C this morning. Then 10.6C two days ago, whatever...).
That being said, TFX wet vs dry consistency can vary wildly.
I had several 2g Thermagic ZF-EX tubes (still three unopened ones left, the current opened one is perfect). One of them was the consistency of rubber. Almost like there was no liquid left lol. Only way to apply that was X + dots pattern. The very next one was perfect consistency (still super thick with most sticking to the spatula). The one I spread fully manually on my 3090 FE was the perfect one. Same thing with the TFX. I've had four total 6.2g tubes. Two: absolutely perfect. One tube: a bit "too" perfect (actually seemed a slightly bit wetter than normal, even wetter than the perfect ZF-EX). Fourth tube: dry as living hell (still came out of the syringe fine though). No way you're spreading the "super dry" ones. The method I linked screenshots above works fine with the 'wet' or 'normal' consistency tubes. The super dry ones--no chance in hell.
I wasted way too much expensive TFX and ZF-EX messing around with my 3090 FE
and different thermal pads until I found the Gelid Extreme 1.5mm soft pads.
I have always wondered about such heat, is it the silicone that fails or the solder attaching the chip?
RTX "Space Invaders" (Turing cards) happened because the solder got loose on the BGA chip closest to the PCIE slot due to crappy soldering and very high heat (an expert solderer from Germany found this out by testing).