r/overclocking • u/DerAlbi • 3h ago

Threadripper 3970X CCD TIM broken

This is not really an overclocking question but i feel like it should ask people who like to de-lid their cpus about my issue...

One of my chiplets has slightly detached below the heat-spreader of my 3970X. Probably TIM-aging. It is progressing (very slowly over months/years) and it is now very noticeable.

I have run targeted tests (stress-test-pulses) through each CCD, measured the power-draw curves, correlated it with the temperature sensor readouts and have fit the data to a thermal model. It clearly shows that the thermal capacity of one of my CCDs is way too low and its thermal resistance is way too high (3x over the average). The thermal model makes it absolutely clear that the TIM below the heat-spreader is the culprit and it also shows that the thermal interface to the water-block is fine (and the chiplet itself is normal too)

I wonder now, if I should put the CPU into an oven, let it bake for a few hours at 80-90°C, then ramp it up to 170°C to re-melt the indium solder in the hopes the crack heals. I do have proper thermal couples and Aluminium blocks laying around - as one has. 😂

1) what are my success-chances
2) what are my chances this goes catastrophically wrong
3) should I put weight on the heat-spreader while heating to 170°C? Intuition says yes, to heal the crack. Intuition also says no, not not stress the die once the weight is removed, on the other hand, the pressure on the package is massive anyway. The right move would be a slight agitation, maybe ding it with a screwdriver a bit "tap tap tap" while hot, then leave it alone.

I need some encouragement, hints and suggestions. I have no experience with indium solder, which is the largest confidence issue for me.

Thank you 👀

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u/lGazak_FLXOC https://hwbot.org/users/lgazak 26m ago

Hey! Overclocker here, you do not want to put any hardware in an oven. It has more probability of fucking up than anything else. You can heat up the cpu with a heatgun from a reasonable distance to avoid cooking the pcb, but it might not be perfect i'm afraid. You should measure temperature with a thermal probe, probably aim for 200°c not more to get a bit over the 170°c threshold but not enough to make the solder melt. Ovens are notoriously imprecise with temperature (ask me how I know lol)