Is this Alienware missing thermal pads?

[iamdarkyoshi]

Quite clearly the CPU heatsink has a place for thermal pads for cooling the VRMs. But there are no thermal pads, and no signs of there ever being any.

Ideas?

 

[Pendragon]

Which Alienware is this?

[don_svetlio]

I believe it is direct-contact.

[W-L]

3 minutes ago, iamdarkyoshi said:

Quite clearly the CPU heatsink has a place for thermal pads for cooling the VRMs. But there are no thermal pads, and no signs of there ever being any.

Ideas?

If you have some that are the right thickness looks like it would work there, probably something they implemented and found it wasn't required or only for models that use a lot of power. 

[iamdarkyoshi]

2 minutes ago, don_svetlio said:

I believe it is direct-contact.

There was no thermal paste either. There is a slight gap.

[don_svetlio]

Just now, iamdarkyoshi said:

There was no thermal paste either. There is a slight gap.

Is there a gap there or does it make contact?

[iamdarkyoshi]

1 minute ago, don_svetlio said:

Is there a gap there or does it make contact?

There is a small gap.

[don_svetlio]

Just now, iamdarkyoshi said:

There is a small gap.

Hmmm. Then likely @W-L is correct.

[YedZed]

Just cover the whole thing in thermal paste. I did that in my PC and now its a quantum computer. 

[tim81517lh]

11 hours ago, YedZed said:

Just cover the whole thing in thermal paste. I did that in my PC and now its a quantum computer. 

Have to be cautious some thermal paste have conductive material in it, you don't want to bridge a connection between two things that aren't meant to be connected

[YedZed]

9 hours ago, tim81517lh said:

Have to be cautious some thermal paste have conductive material in it, you don't want to bridge a connection between two things that aren't meant to be connected

'Twas the joke.