My computer had been locking up too often, and I knew it was hardware related.
So, first I cleaned the case and the CPU heat sink. That helped for a while, but it then started to lock up again. Then I noticed the chipset fan was turning sloooowly, so I replaced that. Got a little better, but still would lock up after about 12 hours. Then I replaced the power supply. No dice.
So, finally I bought some new, silver based head sink compound. I had heard that silicone based compound can dry out. It has been 4 years since I installed the current heat sink. I pulled up the heat sink and there was NO material between the die of the CPU and the heat sink. It looks like it migrated away from the die over these years.
As you can see, there was almost nothing conducting heat other than force of habit. Apparently, the tape type compound used before is wax and silicone based. You can see how it migrated away from the die to the outside of the die. Now, with the new silver grease, there have been no lockups and the CPU is running about 8 degrees C cooler than before.
We shall see if this does the trick.
PC woes resolved, I think.
My computer had been locking up too often, and I knew it was hardware related.
So, first I cleaned the case and the CPU heat sink. That helped for a while, but it then started to lock up again. Then I noticed the chipset fan was turning sloooowly, so I replaced that. Got a little better, but still would lock up after about 12 hours. Then I replaced the power supply. No dice.
So, finally I bought some new, silver based head sink compound. I had heard that silicone based compound can dry out. It has been 4 years since I installed the current heat sink. I pulled up the heat sink and there was NO material between the die of the CPU and the heat sink. It looks like it migrated away from the die over these years.
As you can see, there was almost nothing conducting heat other than force of habit. Apparently, the tape type compound used before is wax and silicone based. You can see how it migrated away from the die to the outside of the die. Now, with the new silver grease, there have been no lockups and the CPU is running about 8 degrees C cooler than before.
We shall see if this does the trick.
Posted by admin on May 5, 2007 in General Comments
2 Comments