Rethink your use of AMeCh SGT-4 thermal paste!

[Draco1962]

PSA: A popular thermal paste is destroying CPUs and heatsinks -  Beware while buying cheap thermal pastes from lesser known brands!

Per the article:

"According to PC hardware expert and IgorsLab founder Igor Wallossek, the SGT-4 thermal paste sold by the South Korean company Amech contains an unstable, reactive compound that is damaging CPUs and coolers by corroding their metal surfaces. The resulting corrosion causes pitting and can permanently fuse the processor to the heatsink."

[Tom Speirs]

Interesting. i never knew if the high end thermal paste was a rip off but I always got it.

[Draco1962]

I stay away from the liquid metal stuff. I have started looking into PTM-7950 thermal pads. I am pleased with the performance of Thermal Grizzly Duronaut Thermal Paste.

[tthurman]

I used the Thermal Grizzly PhaseSheet PTM on my new 9950X3D build but haven't had enough thermal cycles to fully break it in.

I'm currently idling at 43c with air cooling.

It's a pain in the ass to deal with once it gets to warm (handling etc.) but I didn't resort to the fridge or freezer like some.

[Draco1962]

10 hours ago, tthurman said:

I used the Thermal Grizzly PhaseSheet PTM on my new 9950X3D build but haven't had enough thermal cycles to fully break it in.

I'm currently idling at 43c with air cooling.

It's a pain in the ass to deal with once it gets to warm (handling etc.) but I didn't resort to the fridge or freezer like some.

Nice cooler! Looks similar to the one I added to my retro case:

I've been watching a series of videos and a few others that have solidified a following for PTM sheet use:

Not saying liquid metal doesn't have a good use case — say, for a rig or server that isn't being moved around a lot — but I wouldn't use it on laptops or LAN party rigs (are they even a thing anymore?).

[Draco1962]

Apparently the manufacturer was made aware of the issues over a year ago - https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/cpus/producer-of-stinky-thermal-paste-that-corrodes-copper-knew-about-the-issue-since-2024