SK-7 question.

[Deagle]

Well since I will be buying the AMD 1700+ OEM which means that it won't comes with HS/F, so I need to get a custom one. Now I have heard that the SK-7 is great and its only $20(which is true). But when I read the description, it said that it only comes with the HS no fan. Well no problem, I was planning to use a SFII on it anyway.
Ok now the problem is that I don't know if that SK-7 comes with a thermal pad or do I need to buy thermal paste for it?
If anyone knows please tell me...I will be grateful.
THANX:p

[Reid]

It looks like you get a thermal pad and standard paste:
http://www.ocmodshop.com/default.aspx?a=115
(I did not know that, but Google did)

[Steve]

Well, I don't think it comes with a thermal pad. LINK (http://www.overclockers.com/articles630/) AS3 would be a good choice, keeping in mind warranty issues. Your setup sounds like an overclocking opportunity so get the best thermal compound you can, lap the HS and keep track of the temps. ;)

EDIT: Reid got in there before me. ;) Now I'm not sure if it comes with a pad or not...

[Deagle]

Hmm well after reading the infos from the site that you gave me Reid I don't think that its talking about the Sk-7 from newegg that I will buy. Newegg's description clearly said that it doesn't comes with any fan, only a HS. But that site said that it does so I'm thinking that the newegg one is OEM and the ones in the reviews is retail.

Umm I have no idea what does lapping of the HS means. Can someone please explain in more details? Hmmm ya I've heard of the AS3 but my friends told me to get the ceramique ones since that one don't conduct eletricity like the regular AS3.

I'm going to email Thermalright to ask them about the compatability between my Epox and their SK-7 and see if I will have problems attaching it.

You're right Steve, I chose all of those parts with OCing in mind and I want to get the best performance out of it. But I'm not a crazy OCer.;)

THANX:D

[Budfred]

Lapping the heatsink is basically sanding it down so that it is as flat as possible. There are several threads that address it, so use "lapping as a search term and search the forums to get more detail. There was a long thread about it a few months ago that had several methods and I think even a link to a site that talks about how to do it.

If the SK-7 is designated as working with the chip you are getting, the motherboard will support it.

I believe regular Arctic Silver doesn't conduct electricity either, but Arctic Silver does claim that the Ceramique cools better.

[malcore]

Various vendors will sell Thermalright HSFs with or without a fan.

Arctic Silver doesn't claim Ceramique to provide better cooling than AS3.

From their site: AS3 will cool 3 to 12 degrees lower than other compounds.

Ceramique will cool 2 to 10 degrees lower than other compounds.

The advantage of Ceramique is that like AS3 it is not conductive, but unlike AS3 it is also not capacitive.

Quotes from AS site:

"Arctic Silver 3 was formulated to conduct heat, not electricity. It is only electrically conductive in a thin layer under extreme compression.
(While much safer than electrically conductive silver and copper greases, Arctic Silver 3 should be kept away from electrical traces, pins, and leads. While it is not electrically conductive, the compound is slightly capacitive and could potentially cause problems if it bridges two close-proximity electrical paths.)"


"Ceramique does not contain any metal or other electrically conductive materials. It is a pure electrical insulator, neither electrically conductive nor capacitive".

Thermalright heatsinks usually come with a small amount of grease, no "thermal" pads. They have pads with the SLK 800/900 SK7 but they are not thermal pads. The reviewers on Reid's link are out to lunch. The pads are just a standard thing with the SK/SLK line of heatsinks. They aren't really of any use with an SK7. They are for the SLK800/900 series, which have a very narrow base that will not touch the cushion pads on Athlon CPUs. The longer strip they speak of is not a shim, it is for use with a TMD fan to keep the metal casing of the TMD from having contact with the sink.

That sink will work nicely with your chip and board. Good choice!;)

[BigBlue66]

Every SK-7 that I have bought has come in a sturdy little brown box with springs, some sort of pad and a tube of paste.

I recommend the Ceramique. Been using it for several months now. Works good.

[Deagle]

Oops, my bad:D, after looking at the pictures that newegg provide, it seems that it does comes with some paste and some springs like bigblue said. Only thing is that it doesn't have a fan.;)
Ummm so lapping is perfectly safe right? What if I were to not do a good job and the base were somehow to be uneven, like lop-sided. Would my processor be destroy instantly when I boot up?
THANX:p

[BigBlue66]

Depends on how bad of a job you did. If it's really uneven, then yeah, maybe the processor would fry. In reality though, if the base isn't quite flat, temps would just be high.

Thermalright does a very good job on their heatsinks. I have bought several, and they have all been perfectly flat. However, you will see and feel machining marks. You could use it like that, but lapping is preferable. I lap all mine and I swear by it. The smoother you can get the base, the less TIM you will need to use.

Take your time when you lap the base. Make sure you are using even pressure on the sink.

It's really not all that hard to do, so don't make more work out of it than necessary. Only thing is that it's time consuming. You can use up an hour easily.

Cheers.