De-Lidding: A couple of questions before I proceed

[Arya]

I want to de-lid my 8700K and fit a better IHS. I've watched and read a couple of guides and feel confident, but I do have a couple of questions that they didn't answer.

First of all, I obviously need to remove Intel's cruddy TIM from the CPU die. How would I do that safely? Normally I would gently rub the paste off with a cotton tip and rubbing alcohol; would that work on the Die as well, or does it need special treatment?

Secondly, every guide I read mentioned protecting the CPU's PCB while adding the liquid metal, and gave a couple of ways to do that. I've heard that nail polish works really well, and that scotch tape is also a solution. What I don't know is why you need to do this.

Why does the PCB need to be kept protected? And does the tape/polish stay on from that point onwards, or do clean it off once you've added the liquid metal? None of my guides covered this.

Thanks for reading.

[_I_]

90% isopropol is good enough
qtip can leave contton fibers on it
paper towel works better

only delid a cpu if you dont mind killing it and absolutely need better tim

its only a few c difference between a delid and the stock tim/ihs

if you need more help, ask on the ocn forum
https://www.overclock.net/forum/5-intel-cpus/1639998-i7-8700k-overclock-results-settings.html

[Arya]

Publicado originalmente por _I_:

its only a few c difference between a delid and the stock tim/ihs

Have you any direct experience with that? Because quite honestly all of the guides and all of the information I've seen suggests 10-20 degrees difference for this CPU.

[_I_]

on the previous ones the tim wasnt bad
on the 1-3rd gen i5/i7 the tim wasnt applied in the best way or wasnt as good

[Arya]

Publicado originalmente por _I_:

on the previous ones the tim wasnt bad
on the 1-3rd gen i5/i7 the tim wasnt applied in the best way or wasnt as good

Ahh, OK. Thanks a lot - you may've just saved me $100. :)

I've taken a look at yields for the 8700K and I'm now on the fence whether this is cost effective. The gains seem to be minimal unless you're running a severe overclock; it's clearly not the magic bullet it used to be.

[FeilDOW]

I have delidded both my 8700k's with the rockit 88 and have not had an issue. I think you are overthinking it and it will knock off 20°c and makes a huge diff with temps even if you don't want to OC like crazy and just want a quieter rig.

I use https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAA5K5MZ1477&cm_re=Arctic_Silver-_-09Z-01VZ-00002-_-Product to clean the thermal paste off and I use a little piece of wood to clean off the gasket around the IHS something like this https://www.amazon.com/Orange-Cuticle-Remover-Manicure-Pedicure/dp/B009WLX83Y.

I also used scotch tape to protect the PCB and IHS just to keep it clean because you don't want liquid metal all over everything while you apply it and it comes off when you're done. I wouldn't use nail polish.

https://youtu.be/jGrErLzePdw this is a good no bull vid that I followed with no issues.

[Monk]

Be careful using nail polish some work, some don't, you protect the PCB as there's a good chance of some spillage and there are components around the CPU that will or can be short circuited by liquid metal.
If it's for your own system there is no need to re-apply silicon to hold theirs in place, the clamping force will hold it fine and it will drop another degree or so as the silicon may be thicker than the liquid metal.
You'll save a good 10-20c, I wouldn't be able to even run my 7900x as I do if it wasn't delidded.
Just use a proper tool and take your time.

[FeilDOW]

Publicado originalmente por Monk:

Be careful using nail polish some work, some don't, you protect the PCB as there's a good chance of some spillage and there are components around the CPU that will or can be short circuited by liquid metal.
If it's for your own system there is no need to re-apply silicon to hold theirs in place, the clamping force will hold it fine and it will drop another degree or so as the silicon may be thicker than the liquid metal.
You'll save a good 10-20c, I wouldn't be able to even run my 7900x as I do if it wasn't delidded.
Just use a proper tool and take your time.

With the 8700k there really isn't much around the die to short unlike the 7900x , just contacts around the edge of the pcb but I still use tape just to keep it clean.

I put a very thin layer of silicon in each corner so the IHS stays on when removing the CPU from the socket. And I have seen at least 20°c improvement with the 8700k's.

[Monk]

While I bought my chip binned and delidded already (wasn't taking a chance of a bad overclocker at this price and the delid was virtually free), i don't think I'll ever not delid an Intel CPU unless they fix the tim, the benefits are just to much to an enthusiast like myself, however, I do see how it's not for everyone.
But as long as you are aware of the risks and take steps to manage them, it's one of the best performance gains you can do to your pc.

After all, CPU's tend to be remarkably durable to the point loosing a warranty really isn't a big deal, as CPU's tend to be DOA or last for years anyway (I got a 1 year warranty with my delidded chip from overclockers that has just expired heh, though I did need to return the chip initially as core 2 ran 20c above the rest, so if you have a similar issue, chances are you got an air bubble in an unlucky spot.

[Arya]

Thank you both. Forgive my caution; I'm coming off a disastrous water cooling build and it's really knocked my confidence.

I feel re-assured about the risks, I'm confident I can get this done easily and quickly. And looking at the hard data, there's no reason not to go ahead. I appreciate the help.

[Kaihekoa]

Honestly, I think a delid makes as much of an impact on CPU temps as good, custom watercooling and only costs a fraction of the amount. It does hurt the resale value a bit because you void the warranty though. I would delid my 7700K, but I'm planning to resell it when these 8 core cofee lakes get released. Hope it all goes smoothly for you.

[Monk]

Well, by the time 8 core coffee lake is out, the 7700k will be coming close to the end of it's warranty, plus, I'm pretty certain the warranty isn't transferrable.

I'd think a delidded chip that is shown to be in good working order would be worth the exact same, or more, than a stock one.

[Arya]

As a final note, how much of an impact do copper IHS replacements make? They're such a cheap add-on that I'm going to get one anyway, but I'm curious to how much improvement they make.

[𝔇ave]

Publicado originalmente por Wolfey:

As a final note, how much of an impact do copper IHS replacements make? They're such a cheap add-on that I'm going to get one anyway, but I'm curious to how much improvement they make.

I don't think a copper ihs will do much other than pull the heat out of the die more evenly and transfer that heat to the block more efficiently. I doubt it will lower temps more than what you will get just by delidding and using liquid metal tim. If I decide to delid my 8700k I'm definitely getting a copper ihs.. Just makes sense to me

[Arya]

Publicado originalmente por Ðavз:

Publicado originalmente por Wolfey:

As a final note, how much of an impact do copper IHS replacements make? They're such a cheap add-on that I'm going to get one anyway, but I'm curious to how much improvement they make.

I don't think a copper ihs will do much other than pull the heat out of the die more evenly and transfer that heat to the block more efficiently. I doubt it will lower temps more than what you will get just by delidding and using liquid metal tim. If I decide to delid my 8700k I'm definitely getting a copper ihs.. Just makes sense to me

Thanks a lot, that's about what I expected. And I may as well - they're only $19 after all.

[Monk]

I think stock is already nickle plated copper if I remember right, if you want any improvement look at a silver IHS replacement, they are surprisingly cheap.