I deshrouded my Zotac Trinity RTX 3090, but the temperatures were still worse than expected, possibly because I was using slim fans. I decided to repaste the card, but after removing the heatsink I found that most of the paste had been pushed toward the edges and very little remained over the center of the GPU die. Could overtightening cause this, or are the thermal pads lifting the heatsink because they are too thick or the wrong size? I used 2 mm pads on the front, which seemed to be the commonly recommended thickness, and MX-4 paste. Could the paste itself be pumping out over time?
2 Answers
The thermal compound is probably not the main problem here. If the paste is being forced almost entirely to the edges, the cooler is likely being lifted by pads that are too thick or not compressing enough. Thermal putty can be useful because it conforms to the component heights and removes some of the guesswork involved in choosing pad thicknesses. I would correct the pad height and mounting pressure before switching from MX-4 to another paste.
That pattern usually means the heatsink is resting on the thermal pads instead of making proper contact with the GPU die. The Trinity 3090 uses different pad thicknesses in different locations, so even if 2 mm is commonly recommended for the front, one incorrect pad can hold the cooler off the die. Verify the exact pad layout, then reinstall the heatsink with the screws tightened gradually in a cross pattern. Make them snug, but do not overtighten. A fresh spread should cover the die evenly.
I used 2 mm pads based on the usual recommendations. I’m going to check the layout again and retry the mount. I used MX-4, so I was also wondering whether paste pump-out could be contributing.
That makes sense. I’ll focus on confirming the pad thickness and contact first instead of assuming the MX-4 is the cause.