Thermalright TF8 thermal compound in test – New frontrunner at the limit of what is possible

1 - Introduction and technical data 2 - Test methods and equipment 3 - Thermal resistance 4 - Thermal conductivity and real-world simualtions 5 - Material analysis 6 - Summary and conclusion

The Thermalright TF8 is actually more than just an insider’s tip, especially as this outstandingly performing paste is currently almost unbeatably cheap at just 5 euros in a 2-gram pack. Today you can find out how and why this paste is, in my opinion, almost the maximum of what is technically feasible. Of course, there is always some shadow where there is a lot of light, because you can only achieve such values if you “highly fill” a paste, i.e. work with a lot of thermally conductive particles in the matrix. I will explain this later in the material analysis. The origin is also somewhat unclear, but more on that in a moment.

But back to the (somewhat viscous) product. Thermalright has made a really good purchase here and I was quite surprised at how well it works, especially in relation to the price. However, this is an Amazon price from the Thermalright store, online retailers like Mindfactory add a nasty surcharge on top. If you can live with Amazon, you can find the paste here via this link (no affiliate)

However, I have to mention another important point, which certainly has something to do with the Amazon offer. The licensing issue of who actually owns the rights to Thermalright has recently become a little clearer, as my private inquiries have revealed that the Taiwanese company Thermalright has allowed a Chinese entrepreneur to use the rights to the name as a kind of franchise, who is then allowed to produce and sell things (not only) for the Chinese market under this brand. THEMIS AR Unterstützung UG is listed on the box as the importer for the EU, but sales via Amazon are carried out by “dongguanshihongshengfadianzikejiyouxiangongsi” (also written on the label), which seems somewhat questionable. It remains to be seen why there is no clear name and a legible address here.

The labels for CE and RoHS should also be questioned if the wrong composition is stated on the label. I would also be very interested in the REACH documents. There is no silver oxide in it, nor is there any aluminum in its pure form. Only industrially produced Al2O3, flanked by cheap ZnO (zinc oxide). Unfortunately, my inquiry to the importer has so far gone unanswered, for whatever reason. But in the end, the person who places the product on the market is liable.

The fact is that the products sold under Thermalright only use the well-known brand name (like Blaupunkt, Graetz, Telefunken, etc.), but are real tips in terms of the price/performance ratio. And I can already spoil it by saying that the paste is excellent, which is probably also due to its composition. Of course, I can’t take my own measurements in terms of long-term behavior, but the first impression makes me optimistic. Especially as the Arctic MX-6 is not cheaper when you consider the weight. However, the 13.8 W/(m-K) stated for the thermal conductivity is an outright fair-weather lie, as is the stated thermal resistance. How did I arrive at this?

An important preface to “bulk thermal conductivity” and false marketing promises

I am now deliberately prefacing this with two quotes that not only speak to me from the heart, but also absolutely agree with my laboratory measurements. Conventional pastes cannot achieve much more than 4 to 5 W/(m-K) under the usual conditions on a GPU or CPU in terms of layer thickness, temperature and pressure. Because these quotes are honest and unfortunately correspond to reality, I will use this part from now on as a standard quote in all paste tests of all manufacturers and put it in front. You can’t bend physics.

For those who wonder how you can even arrive at figures above this limit, it should be noted that test conditions can certainly be adapted to achieve astronomically high figures. However, testing in a bucket has nothing to do with reality, even if a known measurement method is used. Without knowledge of the exact circumstances, such values are completely misleading and meaningless. You could give many suppliers credit for simply not knowing any better and just copying the OEM’s data sheets, but it doesn’t make misleading consumers any better.

The previous “reference paste” will only be used for comparisons in the curve diagrams until the automatic, database-based chart generation is ready (soon). Then the best pastes will be used fully automatically in the charts for comparison (can be selected and deselected as with the fans at the time). The Alphacool Apex was and is the tool of choice for me for long-term comparisons, because I have been able to check its behavior for over 12 months. This point will be dropped when we switch to the database.

Real long-term simulations (3000 hours in 1000 cycles up to 90°C) are not feasible in terms of effort. That is why I can only make predictions, but I want them to be understood as such. It is virtually impossible to make scientifically sound statements in just a few days. Yes, you can identify a trend and scale it as a forecast based on existing data, but this is not something that allows you to make really reliable statements. Therefore, I am sorry to say that I have to leave out this important point. However, as far as time permits, I will take community feedback into account and add the comments and long-term experience of third parties to the database as a note in due course, if it seems necessary. In both a positive and negative sense. However, this is a subjective value that has no place in a comparative database.

Unboxing

In addition to the paste, you get a spatula, nothing else. So if you need to clean, you have to rely on your own household. The initiate likes to use glasses cleaning cloths, which are much cheaper compared to offers from the computer trade 🙂

Technical data

Let’s leave the marketing aside and look at the technical data of this paste, which is available in various containers and sizes. We can see that the information on thermal conductivity has nothing to do with reality. The green shaded columns contain measured values, the gray shaded columns contain the manufacturer’s data, which is usually missing

Further links and basics

Thermalright TF8, 2g

	ca. 2-3 Tage	7,30 €*Stand: 16.07.24 01:31
I-CS	Lieferbar	7,90 €*Stand: 15.07.24 15:28
	Lagernd im Außenlager, Lieferung 2-3 WerktageStand: 16.07.24 02:20	8,24 €*Stand: 16.07.24 02:26

*Alle Preise inkl. gesetzl. MwSt zzgl. Versandkosten und ggf. Nachnahmegebühren, wenn nicht anders beschriebenmit freundlicher Unterstützung von geizhals.de