Beware of counterfeit Arctic Mx-4

mclaren85 · May 10, 2021

I've bought Arctic mx-4 for my newly built system. During the application I felt sand-like particules that gives me strange feeling. But after the application the temperatures seems higher than my previous 6 years old mx-4.. So I scan the qr code and boom.. the product is fake. although the packaging was the exact same as the original the performance was poor. the pictures are attached. Please be aware!!

xtreemchaos · May 10, 2021

where did you buy it bud ?. thanks for the heads up.

mclaren85 · May 10, 2021

xtreemchaos said:
where did you buy it bud ?. thanks for the heads up.

I bought it from 3rd party seller from amazon turkey. (Not directly from amazon.) I contacted the support and got the refund.

micropage7 · May 10, 2021

i have to say, the packaging is too good for fake paste

Hemmingstamp · May 10, 2021

micropage7 said:
i have to say, the packaging is too good for fake paste

Beat me to it.

Edit: Counterfeiting can bring a company to it's knees. Even opening up the factory you manage to churn out the goods at night and sell them on the market stalls can have the same effect. Just ask B&O.

GerKNG · May 10, 2021

so much effort to fake an already mediocre and dirt cheap product?
people must be insanely desperate to make money...

newtekie1 · May 10, 2021

GerKNG said:
so much effort to fake an already mediocre and dirt cheap product?
people must be insanely desperate to make money...

Calls the best thermal paste on the market "mediocre"...

GerKNG · May 10, 2021

newtekie1 said:
Calls the best thermal paste on the market "mediocre"...

"best on the market"
proof that claim

it deteriorates very fast as soon as it lands on a GPU or something like a 10900k
the performance is mid range
and it's cheap.

NT H2, KPX, Kryonaut/Extreme, GC Extreme, and maybe even arctic MX5! these are one of the best ones.

Hemmingstamp · May 10, 2021

GerKNG said:
"best on the market"
proof that claim
it deteriorates very fast as soon as it lands on a GPU or something like a 10900k
the performance is mid range
and it's cheap.

NT H2, KPX, Kryonaut/Extreme, GC Extreme, and maybe even arctic MX5! these are one of the best ones.

Different scenarios yield different results. Applying the goop incorrectly will also have different results.
I've owned non branded paste from China and it performed well on overclocked rigs.
Those who demand temps be lowered by 1 or 2c need their heads examined.

mclaren85 · May 10, 2021

I don't know if mx-4 is the best in the market, but I'm pretty sure it is the best price/performance paste.

Falkentyne · May 10, 2021

That's why I bought 50 grams of MX-5 and 33 (?) grams of Kryonaut Extreme right when they got released.
Impossible to get a fake product if you buy it that soon.

thesmokingman · May 10, 2021

User assumption...

Hemmingstamp · May 10, 2021

thesmokingman said:
User assumption...

Could you please elaborate?

80-watt Hamster · May 10, 2021

Maybe we could argue about something less divisive. Like pineapple on pizza, or what color that damn dress was.

Hemmingstamp · May 10, 2021

80-watt Hamster said:
Maybe we could argue about something less divisive. Like pineapple on pizza, or what color that damn dress was.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with pinealpple on pizza as long as it's accompanied by ham.

Falkentyne said:
That's why I bought 50 grams of MX-5 and 33 (?) grams of Kryonaut Extreme right when they got released.

50 grams?, Are you spreading it on your morning toast?

erocker · May 11, 2021

This just doesn't make any sense. I'm skeptical of the QR code all together. I'd shoot arctic an email and see what's up. Thermal paste and everything that surrounds it is stupid.

AsRock · May 11, 2021

micropage7 said:
i have to say, the packaging is too good for fake paste

Yeah, it comes in a box and not a packet.

erocker · May 11, 2021

AsRock said:
Yeah, it comes in a box and not a packet.

Amazon.com: Arctic MX-4 4G 2019 EDITION/ACTCP00002B 2019 Edition Thermal Compound (4.0 g): Computers & Accessories
Here it is in a packet.

*After reading around, it seems there's fake packets and boxes but the packets are more likely to be fake. It seems pretty rampant.

Mussels · May 11, 2021

MX4 is great, cheapy cheap and lasts forever in my builds

Fake MX4 however, makes me maaaaaad.

AsRock · May 11, 2021

erocker said:
Amazon.com: Arctic MX-4 4G 2019 EDITION/ACTCP00002B 2019 Edition Thermal Compound (4.0 g): Computers & Accessories
Here it is in a packet.

*After reading around, it seems there's fake packets and boxes but the packets are more likely to be fake. It seems pretty rampant.

It's why i pick the 8g, well one of the reasons as it makes it easier to notice. Artic like changing the syringe cap on amount.

micropage7 · May 11, 2021

so, at least for now you need to consider something for the paste
and seriously, from packaging. it just me or my eyes, usually fake things have grammatical error or inconsistent color or different packaging
and that one (if it's fake) it means their quality improved pretty well

DeathtoGnomes · May 11, 2021

mclaren85 said:
I bought it from 3rd party seller from amazon turkey.

erocker said:
This just doesn't make any sense. I'm skeptical of the QR code all together. I'd shoot arctic an email and see what's up. Thermal paste and everything that surrounds it is stupid.

I wouldnt trust 3rd party sellers, likely Artic would be happy for the awareness.

Athlonite · May 11, 2021

looks like someone got hold of real packaging and labels but the QR codes hadn't been scanned into Arctic's database yet hence the invalid QR codes

DeathtoGnomes · May 11, 2021

Athlonite said:
looks like someone got hold of real packaging and labels but the QR codes hadn't been scanned into Arctic's database yet hence the invalid QR codes

What! Must be a grand conspiracy at Artic! :rolleyes:

(@W1zzard where is the tinhat emote?)

Athlonite · May 11, 2021

DeathtoGnomes said:
What! Must be a grand conspiracy at Artic!

Have you ever seen how these bags are made they come in a flat sheet on a big roll and are made and filled on a forming machine somewhat similar to this

System Name	MSI-MEG
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System Name	MSI-MEG
Processor	AMD Ryzen 9 3900X
Motherboard	MSI MEG X570S ACE MAX
Cooling	AMD Wraith Prism + Thermal Grizzly
Memory	32 GB
Video Card(s)	MSI Suprim X RTX 3080
Storage	500 GB MSI Spatium nvme + 500 GB WD nvme + 2 TB Seagate HDD + 2 TB Seagate HDD
Display(s)	27" LG 144HZ 2K ULTRAGEAR
Case	MSI MPG Velox Airflow 100P
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System Name	Sunk Cost Fallacy
Processor	AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
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Cooling	Arctic Liquid Freezer II 360 Rev. 7
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VR HMD	Oculus Rift S

Beware of counterfeit Arctic Mx-4

mclaren85

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Power Supply	EVGA 1000W G5 Gold
Mouse	Logitech G502 Proteus Core Wired
Keyboard	Logitech G915 Wireless
Software	Windows 11 X64 PRO (build 23H2)
Benchmark Scores	it sucks even more less now ;)