DDR-RAM Latest news Practice Reviews System

DDR4 RAM cooler to DDR5? Not a good idea! The differences in detail including 3D scan and instructions

DDR4 cooler as a mini skirt?

We already guessed it and see it on the photo: the cooler very daringly shows lots of uncovered flesh in the form of the partially exposed modules. It is an otherwise very usable cooler, which fits on any normal DDR4 RAM and has also done a good job so far. However, the normal 0.5 mm pads are not enough, here you have to reach for either firm 0.75 mm pads or better yet really ultra-soft pads with 1 mm thickness.

Ultra-soft because there is no underfill and you should really put the RAM modules in cotton wool when printing. If you want to be sure, feel free to do the underfill yourself. Any reasonably fast curing glue that can be applied with a cannula and sucks itself under the RAM module by capillary action will work. Or, pay attention to the soft pads to avoid too much pressure in the first place. Since more than half of the RAM module is covered here and the memory itself is only an elongated block in the middle of the module and does not cover everything anyway, this is still feasible as an emergency solution. The temperatures were still much better with this solution than the original with the thin heatspreader glued on. Just not optimal yet. Unfortunately.

A 3D scan reveals the heights and new edges

I have now put the board into the 3D scanner and measured the whole thing quite accurately. The heights are important mainly because every manufacturer or do-it-yourself builder has to see where it is better to cut out the pads later and, above all, which thicknesses he really needs. Otherwise the best cooler is of no use or it cracks already when screwing it together. That’s exactly what nobody wants. And you really have to solve it two-sided and get some sort of pressure equalization with thicker, large-area pads when the back is free.

Now let’s take a look at the result of the scan. The width of the complete memory module remains the same with 133 mm, also the 32 mm in the middle are still set (outside just under 31 mm). The left and right edge to the first memory module is 5 mm, at the top it would be (unfortunately I can’t measure due to lack of a template) about 1 mm (optical projection). The height of the respective memory modules including solder pads is 0.9 mm. Only one component is higher at 1.14 mm. But in the middle, they’re going to leave it all out anyway. I would set the heatspreader spacing to a safe 1.8mm. Then you can also use soft 1 mm pads, which can be easily compressed to 0.9 mm without much pressure.

You also have to take into account that pads are subject to a certain thickness tolerance, which can be up to +/- 10% (but is usually less). Thus equipped, one can mill oneself a cooler if necessary (let) or wait, until times what is available. Whereby the question should almost be, who is faster on the market: The cooler manufacturers, who have to adapt the few dimensions or the RAM producers, who then please finally flood the market. Electronic availability provided.

 

Danke für die Spende



Du fandest, der Beitrag war interessant und möchtest uns unterstützen? Klasse!

Hier erfährst Du, wie: Hier spenden.

Hier kannst Du per PayPal spenden.

About the author

Igor Wallossek

Editor-in-chief and name-giver of igor'sLAB as the content successor of Tom's Hardware Germany, whose license was returned in June 2019 in order to better meet the qualitative demands of web content and challenges of new media such as YouTube with its own channel.

Computer nerd since 1983, audio freak since 1979 and pretty much open to anything with a plug or battery for over 50 years.

Follow Igor:
YouTube Facebook Instagram Twitter

Werbung

Werbung