Best Thermal Paste for gaming laptop

[Unlce Ornage]

Can anyone tell me the best thermal paste for a gaming laptop(acer nitro)??? I applied mx-6 and still had throttling issues.

[Zef]

It's mostly marketing bs, that thermal paste looks decent. You're not gonna get massive temp differences between popular thermal paste brands.

Maybe you should clean out your fans instead and check the heatsink if you applied the thermal paste correctly.

[A&A]

https://www.tomshardware.com/best-picks/best-thermal-paste

Burger King Ranch sauce is the best

Just kidding. It doesn't really matter what normal thermal paste you will use. It's the same stuff anyway.

[76561199389059995]

Originally posted by Unlce Ornage:

Can anyone tell me the best thermal paste for a gaming laptop(acer nitro)??? I applied mx-6 and still had throttling issues.

Alright I have questions here, did you applied for heat pipe as well? Did you replaced thermal paste for thermal pads? Example some places on your laptop it required some thermal pads (it looked like some sticky notes hehe) and you will see some thermal pads placed there.
Some dude just listened to Reddit and bought better thermal paste for apply his gaming laptop but he forgot how to apply approriate way. OOPS accidently his action almost destroyed PCB

[Alice Liddell]

Check the heatsink pipe for any bending, dents, or scorching marks but, generally speaking, ARCTIC MX-6 (not to be confused with Arctic Silver, different company) is good to use with laptops but I find laptop heat exhaust fans tiny and terrible.

Maybe the question should be why don't laptops have liquid cooling solutions available in this day and age.

Probably ripped a thermal pad like this guy said above.

[_I_]

laptop is probably throttling for other reasons

power settings
poor battery
not plugged in to its brick while gaming

[Unlce Ornage]

I don't know how to reply to everyone. But I applied that paste thrice again and again by cleaning to test out of it was wrong application, but it was the same issue everytime , temps were good in the beginning but after 10-15 mins of gaming it would go at the highest and throttle. My factory paste dried out and temps were high but I was not experiencing anything like that just high temps. People on reddit are saying that thermal grizzly kyronaut pumps out, so I can't seem to find a good replacment. Without thermal paste the temps are the highest but unlike with artic mx-6 it's not causing a sudden drop and stuttering.

[Raoul]

The pump out effect is over a long time not 15 minutes, this sounds like a bad application. Also I've had no issues with kryonaut myself even after a reapplication like 2 years later the paste was perfectly fine. If running 90C daily I'd guess it's a more of an issue then maybe but ~65C was no issue in my experience. Make sure to be using the spread method and actually tightening screws properly in sequence and a bit at a time so do 5 turns on 1 then 3 then 2 then 4 diagonally and a bit at time so it installs evenly.

[Alice Liddell]

Originally posted by Raoul:

The pump out effect is over a long time not 15 minutes, this sounds like a bad application. Also I've had no issues with kryonaut myself even after a reapplication like 2 years later the paste was perfectly fine. If running 90C daily I'd guess it's a more of an issue then maybe but ~65C was no issue in my experience. Make sure to be using the spread method and actually tightening screws properly in sequence and a bit at a time so do 5 turns on 1 then 3 then 2 then 4 diagonally and a bit at time so it installs evenly.

Tighten using the X formation/pattern, almost like a cars lug nuts which are tightened in a star formation/pattern, little at a time is correct though, more so at even turns. (i.e. 1, 4, 2, 3 formation from left top corner as 1) and keep them snug not strongarm tight (lugs are about 80 - 100 ft lbs).

[Tiberius]

gelid GC4 has very thick consistency. Maybe that'll work better on laptop

[Unlce Ornage]

Originally posted by Raoul:

The pump out effect is over a long time not 15 minutes, this sounds like a bad application. Also I've had no issues with kryonaut myself even after a reapplication like 2 years later the paste was perfectly fine. If running 90C daily I'd guess it's a more of an issue then maybe but ~65C was no issue in my experience. Make sure to be using the spread method and actually tightening screws properly in sequence and a bit at a time so do 5 turns on 1 then 3 then 2 then 4 diagonally and a bit at time so it installs evenly.

Originally posted by Tiberius:

gelid GC4 has very thick consistency. Maybe that'll work better on laptop

Dude, I haven't even tried kyronaut, Reddit users are advising against it for laptops. But The company itself mentions that above 80© their paste will pump out. Because you had a desktop so you got no issues, I was talking about artic mx-6 that paste is garbage, even though it does not pump out, it gives bad performance on anything high end like rdr2 or Ghost of Tsushima. Gelid GC Extreme has been recommended to me for laptop along with hydronaut, I ordered hydronaut.

[A&A]

Good luck finding a thermal paste that won't pop off at some point. Especially running at 90°C+ and cycling cold and hot tnx to throttling and load changing.

The solution is to generate less heat. Stupid and simple.

[Unlce Ornage]

Originally posted by >9000:

Originally posted by Unlce Ornage:

Can anyone tell me the best thermal paste for a gaming laptop(acer nitro)??? I applied mx-6 and still had throttling issues.

Alright I have questions here, did you applied for heat pipe as well? Did you replaced thermal paste for thermal pads? Example some places on your laptop it required some thermal pads (it looked like some sticky notes hehe) and you will see some thermal pads placed there.
Some dude just listened to Reddit and bought better thermal paste for apply his gaming laptop but he forgot how to apply approriate way. OOPS accidently his action almost destroyed PCB

I don't why you out here hating. I know the difference between thermal putty,pads and paste, pea size,line method and how to use spatula if necessary. It's a 1k $ laptop, I wouldn't open it without learning about it first. This a steam support forum either provide help by giving answer to the orginal question or get lost.

[BurakZG]

If you applied thermal paste 3 times and the problem persists, then it might be a sign that it's not a thermal paste problem.
Maybe the cooling module is sinply broken? Mybe it's not sealed and the cooling liquid evaporated from the heat pipes? Fans not working properly? Or is the laptop design simply bad?

Don't expect different result if you do the same thing many times.

[Unlce Ornage]

Originally posted by BurakZG:

If you applied thermal paste 3 times and the problem persists, then it might be a sign that it's not a thermal paste problem.
Maybe the cooling module is sinply broken? Mybe it's not sealed and the cooling liquid evaporated from the heat pipes? Fans not working properly? Or is the laptop design simply bad?

Don't expect different result if you do the same thing many times.

No, I had a technician check it out on when I started having problems, he checked and told me the thermal paste was the issue, applied a corsair one that worked for 3-4 days, it gave me thermals below 80 and then stopped working. I opened it and saw it dried off. That is the reason I looked for a paste that could give good performance and won't dry out so easily, so I ordered artic mx-6 and applied it. There's too much confusion in the post now. But let it be clear that I have only applied one paste "artic mx-6" no other paste. I have applied it three times in 2 days with different methods and testing again and again. Now before applying this paste the temps would go up to 90 in 2-3 mins, but after applying the paste it would be stay below 80 for 15-20mins and then go back up and give me a bad stutter suddenly dropping my fps to 8 and lagging. It didn't give me any improvements in thermals. So I only played older games with low load that didn't give any thermal problems. But recently with marvel rivals, I am having issues again, so I wanted to change it. When I opened my laptop again after 3-4 months, the artic mx-6 is still there intact. So I knew it was this paste and wanted other people's perspective who have a gaming laptop and what thermal paste do they use, that's why I made this post. After researching and personally talking to someone with the same lappy, Thermal Grizzly Hydronaut and gelid extreme was the best choice along with PTM 7950. I would recieve my hydronaut on 23. So fingers crossed I hope it was this **** garbage artic paste.

[Vault Lord]

1. Thermal Grizzly Conductonaut
• Best for Extreme Performance: This is a liquid metal thermal paste, which offers the best thermal conductivity available, significantly outperforming traditional pastes. However, it’s more challenging to apply and requires extra care because it can damage components if it spills over.

2. Arctic MX-4 (or MX-5)
• Balanced Performance: Arctic’s MX-4 is one of the most popular and trusted thermal pastes for both laptops and desktops. It offers great thermal conductivity and is easy to apply, making it a good option for those who want solid performance without the complexity of liquid metal.

3. Noctua NT-H1
• Reliable and Easy to Apply: Noctua is well-known for its cooling products, and the NT-H1 thermal paste is no exception. It’s easy to apply and has a great balance of performance and durability, though it might not be quite as good as liquid metal solutions in terms of raw performance.

4. Cooler Master MasterGel Maker Nano
• Excellent for Gaming Laptops: This thermal paste uses nano-diamond particles for enhanced thermal conductivity. It provides excellent heat dissipation and is also easier to apply than liquid metal.

5. Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut
• High Thermal Performance for Overclocking: Kryonaut is another high-performance thermal paste from Thermal Grizzly. While it doesn’t perform quite as well as Conductonaut (liquid metal), it is still one of the best non-liquid-metal pastes, especially for gaming laptops.

Additional Tips:
• Application: Make sure you’re applying the thermal paste evenly—just a small, pea-sized amount in the center of the chip and letting the heatsink spread it evenly is ideal.
• Cleanliness: Ensure both the CPU/GPU and heatsink surfaces are cleaned thoroughly with isopropyl alcohol before applying new paste. Any leftover residue from old paste can affect performance.
• Cooling: If throttling persists, check if your laptop’s cooling system (fans, vents) is clogged with dust. You might also want to consider using a cooling pad for additional airflow.

If the throttling continues despite using top-tier thermal paste, the issue may lie in other aspects such as hardware limits or improper cooling solutions.