Official Rampage Extreme Review/Overclock/Guide Thread

Im still debating whether to take the Heatsinks off or not to check for crappy Thermal paste application. Is it that hard? Did they use Paste or Adhesive?, i just have this awful image in my head now of doing it then ripping the NB chip out lol. I was so close undid 2 screws then chickened it lol.
 
Did they use Paste or Adhesive?

Asus used paste this time around unlike the cement mixture used on the previous models. The stock heat pipe should come away easily. Remember to gently lift away and replace the washers. When, or if you do decide to remove the stock cooling check the contacts on the heat pads especially over the NB. See photo (Taken from another forum).


NBheatsink.jpg


There is bad contact over the NB and the VRM where there is no contact between the pad and plate. i have checked my board and i can see the gap :( hence the bad contact point as demonstrated in the above pic). Hence the Fusion block is useless transferring heat away from the NB. The cause of this bad contact is X48 chips are heat sensitive. Above 70 and FSB OC is affected resulting in Bsods ect.

Also check the pad imprints over the PWMs ensuring proper contact is made with the thermal pads (look for imprints)
 
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Right ok so removing it is quite a simple process, but you are saying even if i did remove it the actually design of the heatsink is not suitable and the coverage is not 100%? is there a fix out for this?
 
You need to check the imprints on the pads when you remove the stock cooling. If you look directly at the North bridge block from a horizontal position (from the CPU socket end of the board) you will be able to see if the right hand side of the fusion W/B is raised at an angle higher than the left. You should be able to see also if there there contact to the VRM (to the right of the Fusion block) due to the thermal tape contact area. Not all boards have this problem.

The easiest way to tell is once stock cooling is removed check the thermal tape for signs of surface contact
 
OK i will do that tonight :), i wont chicken out if its just a case of removing screws.

Out of Curiosity if i do find that the pad is not making full contact with everything, what do you do? Has anyone come up with a solution for this yet?
 
Out of Curiosity if i do find that the pad is not making full contact with everything, what do you do? Has anyone come up with a solution for this yet?

There are solutions. Eternal Fantasy has found a solution (modding) But others have found adding an extra washer has worked.

Check your board first. Post back your findings and pics if you can, and don't panic
 
Hmmm, I didn't notice any dodgy connection on mine - I did, however, replace the two heatsinks with the air cooled bigger versions, and cleaned the existing thermal paste and applied AS5....
 
Out of Curiosity if i do find that the pad is not making full contact with everything, what do you do? Has anyone come up with a solution for this yet?

Just sent my board/ block off for a simple skim on the CNC machine to fix the problem i described above. My email in trust
 
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Ah ok that will be interesting to see if the skim makes any difference, any ideas when you will have the results?

Also very sorry new to these forums lol what does "my email in trust" mean lol sorry again.
 
HI there

Our re-buy on this motherboard is now higher than our selling cost, once This Week Only ends tomorrow the price will be increase by approx £30-£40 as dollar rate is now 1.83 compared to 1.98 when we purchased these.

If you want this board at this price then you have less than 24 hours to buy it, sorry but we can't help exchange rate variences and the dollar continues to drop not in our favour.
 
that exchange rate at the moment is sucking more and more daily :(, glad i got my 2 x 4870X2 when i did hehe.

CyZ have you also heard of people adding washers on to the heatblocks?
 
Hey everyone,

I'm new hear. Glad to join!

Hey guys this is my prelim build. Ofcourse i'm gonna cut some stuff out cuz its too expensive but what CPU Cooler should I get? And what do you think of my build? I also put this here becuase i'm getting the rampage extreme.

OCZ Vendetta 2, Xigmatek HDT-S1283, Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme, Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer, Zerotherm FZ120??? These are the suggestions I have recieved recently.


COOLER MASTER Stacker 830 Evolution RC-830-KKN3-GP Black Aluminum ATX
$279.00

ASUS Rampage Extreme LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$399.99

ASUS EAH4870X2/HTDI/2G Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$559.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 Power Supply - Retail
$259.99

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model
$559.99

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1800 (PC3 14400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TW3X4G1800C8DF - Retail
$499.00

3 Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.$579.98

ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound - Retail
$6.99
 
Hey everyone,

I'm new hear. Glad to join!

Hey guys this is my prelim build. Ofcourse i'm gonna cut some stuff out cuz its too expensive but what CPU Cooler should I get? And what do you think of my build? I also put this here becuase i'm getting the rampage extreme.

OCZ Vendetta 2, Xigmatek HDT-S1283, Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme, Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer, Zerotherm FZ120??? These are the suggestions I have recieved recently.


COOLER MASTER Stacker 830 Evolution RC-830-KKN3-GP Black Aluminum ATX
$279.00 - Really really bad case

ASUS Rampage Extreme LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$399.99

ASUS EAH4870X2/HTDI/2G Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$559.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-1000HX 1000W ATX12V 2.2 / EPS12V 2.91 Power Supply - Retail
$259.99

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model
$559.99

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1800 (PC3 14400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TW3X4G1800C8DF - Retail
$499.00

3 Western Digital VelociRaptor WD3000GLFS 300GB 10000 RPM SATA 3.$579.98 - Might aswell get ocz core SSD drives

ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound - Retail
$6.99

The ram and the CPU will work well togther, I'd be aiming for 450x8.5 which will give you 1800Mhz on the ram and jus over 3.8Ghz on the CPU, That about your safe limit on air.
 
Ok well last night i did it :), i ripped off the Heat blocks to find very poorly applied Thermal Paste, and many of the small NB chips had no contact at all, after a while of changing little things and aplying a lot of paste im pretty confident that all are now coverd i also tightend the screws down slightly more than before, which im sure are not making better contact. Sorry for no photos my Cam ran out of battery and the less time with that block off the better lol.

Also a note for anyone going to be using this board for Watercooling, the kit comes with 2 x converters to change the 1/4" barbs to 1/2" barbs, and also provide all locking bands etc. "DO NOT USE ASUS LOCKING BANDS" i tried it the way asus instructed. Once done i put my finger on one tube and blew in the other and it leaked like crazy. I found the best way was to install about 100mm of 1/2" Tube over the 1/4" tube to cover the barb then use a 1/2" locking coller as this ensure pressure is put evenly on the Barbs. Now pressure tested all seems perfect and im confident in it now.
 
Ok well last night i did it :), i ripped off the Heat blocks to find very poorly applied Thermal Paste, and many of the small NB chips had no contact at all, after a while of changing little things and aplying a lot of paste im pretty confident that all are now coverd i also tightend the screws down slightly more than before, which im sure are not making better contact. Sorry for no photos my Cam ran out of battery and the less time with that block off the better lol.

Also a note for anyone going to be using this board for Watercooling, the kit comes with 2 x converters to change the 1/4" barbs to 1/2" barbs, and also provide all locking bands etc. "DO NOT USE ASUS LOCKING BANDS" i tried it the way asus instructed. Once done i put my finger on one tube and blew in the other and it leaked like crazy. I found the best way was to install about 100mm of 1/2" Tube over the 1/4" tube to cover the barb then use a 1/2" locking coller as this ensure pressure is put evenly on the Barbs. Now pressure tested all seems perfect and im confident in it now.

what is the deal with that whole paste issue - why is it so poorly applied??
 
I think in the ASUS factory Thermal Paste is very very expensive lol so they use very little and do not apply it in the optimal area, so always best just to check if its ok if your having temp issues.
 
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