Tuniq TX-2 Thermal Compound

Performance

To compare the compounds, the TX-2 will be tested against Arctic Silver 5 and the original TX-1.

Arctic Silver 5 Specifications:

Appearance:	Dark Grey
Thermal Conductance:	>350,000W/m2 °C (0.001 inch layer)
Thermal Resistance:	<0.0045°C-in2/Watt (0.001 inch layer)
Average Particle Size:	<0.49 microns <0.000020 inch
Extended Temperature Limits:	Peak: –50°C to >180°C Long-Term: –50°C to 130°C
Specific Gravity:	4.05-4.15
Volume:	3.5g

TX-1 Specifications:

Appearance:	Grey
Viscosity:	102000 cP
Thermal conductivity:	3.3W/mK
Specific Gravity:	3.5 g/m³
Volume:	1.5g

The testing was completed on an open tech station with one 120mm fan blowing across the motherboard. Idle temperatures were recorded after 30 minutes of resting at the desktop with only the temperature monitoring program running. Load temperatures were recorded after 30 minutes of running Orthos Dual Prime (blend - stress test). Ambient temperature was kept to 26 degrees Celsius (+/- 1°C) and was measured by a standard mercury thermometer. After each test the heatsink was removed and the compound was cleaned off using Arctic Silver's ArctiClean, then the compound was reapplied and retested for consistency.


The stock speed testing proved the TX-2 to slightly edge out the AS5 (which did not have ample time to settle), and better than the TX-1. As a side note, the TX-1 compound was so difficult to apply consistently, the first test resulted in much higher temps. With the second application the results were much better, so the better numbers were used.


The overclocking results were about the same. The Tuniq TX-2 performed the same as the freshly applied AS5, while the TX-1 lagged behind the other two pastes. Again, please remember that the Arctic Silver 5 did not have sufficient break in time (which can take over 200 hours), and that temperatures with AS5 can drop as much as 2-5 degrees Celsius after the initial break-in period.