Well guys here it is.
First i'll start with the process and how i went about it.
What i used:
Thin Stanley blades
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=TH-005-CL
my original plan was to use the vice method and after watching a load of vids i felt confident, that was until it came to doing it..
If you're remotely good at DIY then you'd probably have no issues, but i'm not, after placing the cpu in the vice i just couldn't bring myself to hit it hard enough with a rubber hammer.
If i wreaked the cpu there'd be no chance of getting a new one for at least a month, so i decided to use the blade method instead.
You'll need thin blades for this to work, i've seen a few vids of guys using shaving blades, but i found it much easier with a thin Stanley blade, as they tend not to bend.
First cut
As you can see i started on the corners first, making my way around the IHS in a clockwise direction, tbh it wasn't difficult at all and just moving the blade forward and back was enough to get though the glue.
Something i found to help was this, a small hobby magnifying glass.
Be careful on the leftside (as you look at it), about a centimetre in is the Vrms, it's not to difficult though as you'll feel straight away when your past the glue, just be patient, don't apply too much force and go slow.
After getting around the corners i positioned the blade along the straights and again just wiggled it until it was passed the glue.
The end result should look something like this.
A bloody mess right?, first i decided to get the paste off the cpu, using a little bit of roll and cotton buds.
Once that was done, i set about removing the glue, i used the edge of a card i had in my wallet and just started peeling it off, taking care not to hit any of the vrms.
When i removed as much of it as possible, i gave the whole thing a wipe over with the Isopropyl cloth that comes with the Liquid Pro paste.
I repeated the process on the IHS.
Happy with how everything was looking, it was time to apply the Liquid Pro, as others have mentioned, this stuff comes out quick, so be very gentle when you apply it.
you won't need a lot at all, i found if you use the size of half a grain of rice it'll be plenty, apply using the cotton buds that come with the Liquid pro and just take your time.
You should have at the end something like this.
As you can see, i've not done anything to cover the vrms, it's up to you if want to though, using something like MX4 or Clear nail varnish.
And that's it guys, all that's left to do is pop the cpu in the socket, put the IHS on top, close down the clamp and finish off by applying some Liquid Pro to the IHS.
The rest is up to the gods and how careful you were during the process.
Thankfully my system booted up first time and the results definitely worth it
I don't use Prime, Ibt or any of that, i prefer to just test using either something like Bf3-4, record around a 10min clip of the gameplay then use handbrake to encode it.
I have no doubt at all though, if i were to use Prime or IBT, i'd see the same sort of drops in temperature.
On to the results
4770K @4.6 1.3v (WC) 290X @1200/1400 +120mv (WC)
Before Delidding @Idle
After delidding @Idle
For the load tests i used BF4, Ultra settings, 1080P, 64 player for 30mins.
Load before Delidding
Load after Delidding
Core 1 = 19c drop or 24% difference.
Core 2 = 17c drop or 22% difference.
Core 3 = 16c drop or 23% difference.
Core 4 = 14c drop or 20% difference.
There you have it, a massive difference and imo definitely worth it, sorry if my testing methods aren't the best, feel free to suggest others and i'll see what i can do.
Cheers
Dave
i do have some AS5 or some of the EK stuff that came with the gpu block... any good?
, got the liquid pro and a temp display for my loop turning up tomorrow.