Hi Guys, Took the plunge and de-lidded my 3770K as even with my huge loop, 90c at 1.28v and 4.7ghz was stopping me testing any further and I really want some more clocks. Also, my core temps were very uneven which has always niggled me. Plus - I just wanted to do it for the hell of it, so off we go... Quick test beforehand using ten runs of IBT on normal yield the following results. Idle Core 1 = 31c Idle Core 2 = 26c Idle Core 3 = 29c Idle Core 4 = 23c Max Core 1 = 76c Max Core 2 = 88c Max Core 3 = 83c Max Core 4 = 79c After the work was completed, I performed the same test, and yielded the following results. Idle Core 1 = 27c (-4c) Idle Core 2 = 24c (-2c) Idle Core 3 = 26c (-3c) Idle Core 4 = 22c (-1c) Max Core 1 = 53c (-23c) Max Core 2 = 56c (-32c) Max Core 3 = 58c (-25c) Max Core 4 = 54c (-25c) An incredible max improvement of 32 Degrees C! And importantly, the cores are now all within 5c of each other, instead of 12c as they were previous, which I expect is a result of the lapping. Just to be sure it wasnt a fluke, I put ona quick double run on Max settings. results are almost identical. Pleased? Oh yes! Now for some more volts and clocks! Pictures to follow. just uploading.
The bits n bobs... She's under the knife... No turning back now... IHS was definately concave... that pleased me. Pop her back in with some Liquid pro... And that is pretty much that. All I can say is TAKE YOUR TIME. Rush this and you will slip and wreck her... but take your time and its very simple to do.
Nice temperatures. Do you mind explaining why you took it apart? It looks to me you could have lapped it without taking the cap off? Or did you change the paste between the casing and the chip?
Sorry mate, it's getting quite a common conversion so I guess I just assumed everyone would know why it was done. It's become apparent that the TIM between the 3770 die and the heat spreader is far from optimal and one of the main reasons for the excessive temps we struggle with once the volts are increased. To this end it's worth dismantling and changing the TIM for something more serious like liquid pro. The lapping was done while it was apart in a quest to improve core cooling efficiency across the 4 cores as mine were poor with a 12c difference between hottest and coolest cores. Best Regards, Stu. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Just Google "3770k Delidding" and you will find plenty mate. Best Regards, Stu. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
Tnx for the explanation. I didn't know that is there any merit to just skip the heatspreader and cooling the chip directly? Or is it too weak for that?
Excellent work, the new temps are impressive for what is a relatively easy fix, that's not taking anything away from your work I appreciate it's very fiddly and requires a steady hand and a strong nerve to hack an expensive CPU I've lapped many a h/sink but never heard of this process but then I'm not really into overclocking but as I'm from a mechanical/engineering background I find it amazing that with all the high tech involved in making CPU's that the physical mounting of them is still so crude and obviously not a lot of work goes into ensuring good areas of thermal conductivity and that concave IHS is poor engineering, it's not difficult to machine high tolerances these days especially on a flat surface. TIM is ideally only meant to act as a filler between microscopic grooves to ensure even transfer of heat but with a concave IHS like that one the TIM needed to fill that gap is more likely to cause a heat build up which is why the core temps are now much closer and lower as your test results show. It's obvious that often not a lot of care is taken when assembling CPU'S and GPU cards, here's a picture of a BFG 8800GTS card that I bought new a few years ago (and it's still going strong!) the original fan was useless and going flat out all the time and when I stripped it to fit a decent Zalman h/sink I found a real mess of TIM and thermal pads all over the card I've almost finished my latest scratch build project which has a 3570K, can you de-lid the 3570K as I might give that a go?
No need to worry about that mate, they arent alluminium. Its a nickel base. I didnt bother re securing the IHS. After 48 hrs it should be welded in place anyway. And its not like it moves about. After some tests and benching, my best overall settings with 100% stability are 45x103 for 4640mhz @ 1.27v with ram at 2200 with 1.55v. I have also brought PLL voltage down to 1.7 for less heat. So I have done some IBT tests set to max, with extreme ticked for ten runs using all the ram. Results are very impressive. A max of 54C. But perhaps even more impressive are the results of my same tests PASSIVE with no radiator cooling at all. (All cooling fans switched off except the 2x silent case fans to keep the Vregs cool.) Still a max of 67C. Well happy.
I did this about 5 months ago and am running a nice cool 3570K at 4.5 Ghz 1.20V. Being in Asia, the ambient is generally higher, but still I never cross 45 Degrees on any of the games I play including BF3. Does not cross 50 on Linx. Also just to point out, the Liquid pro/ultra will not reseal the chip back to the IHS. I have removed it twice for some testing on another baord and both times the CPU and the IHS seperated. So be careful when taking the CPU out of the system, as you can drop the CPU part and kind of ruin some pins on your board. For all those who want to try it, its a simple enough mod with a 100% chance of around 20 deg drops in core tmps.
Well I've never tried this before, but as I am about to start a re-build I think its time to give it a go - I've already ordered some Liquid Ultra. I'm amazed at how much your temps have dropped.
Just take your time getting the IHS off mate, it will at first seem like there is no way its coming off, but slowly and surely make your way through it and you will be fine. One slip and the Die is dead.
Impressive results! I knew that lapping cpus could really make a difference, but wow! Nice to know what to look for if I want to head in that direction. +rep!
Those results are amazing. Good job! don't know if I'd dare go down this path with a new generation CPU. 'looks at my q6700' hmmm...
