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Went back and forth on liquid metal vs. thermal paste for my PS5 fan swap. I actually swapped it twice in one weekend.
I was dead set on liquid metal for my PS5 APU. Watched a ton of videos, bought the special tape and everything. But after I got the console open, I realized one tiny slip and I'd fry the board. So I chickened out and used some Arctic MX-6 I had sitting around instead. temps dropped like 8 degrees C under heavy load, which is honestly enough for me. Now I'm wondering if the liquid metal hype is just for benchmarking flexers. Anybody here actually seen a real-world benefit from it in daily use?
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tyler4923mo ago
Wait, you swapped the fan twice in one weekend? That's wild. Dude, I can't believe you opened that PS5 up two separate times. I get being nervous about liquid metal though. One drop in the wrong spot and your console is toast. I've seen the videos where people brick their boards from it leaking out. MX-6 is solid stuff, I ran it in my PC for years. Honestly, 8 degrees cooler is huge for a daily driver. The liquid metal hype is mostly about shaving off that last 2-3 degrees for benchmarks. Not worth the risk unless you're chasing records in your opinion.
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casey3933mo ago
The MX-6 vs liquid metal debate is pretty settled for most people honestly. I've built maybe a dozen PCs over the last five years and every time I think about trying liquid metal I stop myself. You're spot on about that 2-3 degree difference being the real gain but the risk just isn't worth it for a daily driver. I had a friend who put liquid metal on his laptop CPU and three months later it started creeping out from under the die. That thing killed the motherboard within a year. Meanwhile I've got MX-6 on a 5800X that's been running rock solid for two years straight without even needing a repaste. The piece of mind alone is worth those extra few degrees if you ask me.
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