Gelid Solutions GC-2 Thermal Compound Review

Introduction

With computer hardware getting better and better, namely CPU Coolers/CPUs, you’re going to need a decent thermal compound to go with your hardware.  Today we have the GC-2 Thermal Compound from Gelid Solutions.  Described as “Premium Thermal Compound”, lets see if it lives up to its description.

About Gelid Solutions

GELID Solutions Ltd. is a Hong Kong based company with Swiss Management and founded in 2008 by Gebhard SCHERRER and VC TRAN. Both have worked in the PC Cooling industry for a number of years and successfully built up an  IT company with their expertise.

GELID designs and manufactures thermal solutions, CPU coolers, fans, and other computer hardware for both gamers and silent enthusiasts. We provide computer hardware distributors, retailers and system integrators with innovative, virtually silent, high- performance and top quality thermal solutions.

Features

• Optimal Heat Conductivity
• Low Thermal Resistance
• Non-Electrical Conductive
• Non-Corrosive
• No Bleeding
• Non-Curing

Specifications

The Packaging

The front of the GC-2 Packaging houses quite a lot of information.  At the top there is the company name and website address.

Located to the side of the thermal paste itself is the product name (GC-2) and the description, “Premium Thermal Compound”.

The thermal paste and spreader are packaged in a plastic casing in front of a cardboard insert containing lots of useful information.  The bottom right of the packaging also displays award images from Drive Heaven and TweakTown.

The back of the packaging has information about the GC-2 and a “Recommended and Awarded by” section which carries on from the award images located on the front.

The GC-2

Once we removed the syringe and spreader from the packaging, we can clearly see that they are a similar design to most syringes and spreaders and like the Noctua NT-H1 Thermal Compound we reviewed a couple of months ago.

The whole syringe contains enough paste for about 10 – 15 applications depending on how sparingly you wish to use it.

The paste is a silvery/greyish colour similar to most other compounds and is fairly thick so it takes a short while to get an even spread.

The syringe is a fairly generic size and the nozzle is a good enough size to allow the paste to flow out easily.  The syringe itself though does not show warnings, written on the label, of any kind where as the NT-H1 does.

Testing

To test the thermal paste we use a similar sort of routine that is used to test CPU coolers.

All of the testing is carried out with the side panel of the computer case on. All case fans are installed and are on their maximum settings. Ambient was 18C. To test we boot the PC up and measure temperatures under idle and load states.
When performing the idle test we leave the PC to do nothing for about 30 minutes then take several temperature readings over a short period of time and calculate an average (all figures are rounded up to the nearest whole number).

For testing under load states we use a CPU loading program to load both cores to 100% to create maximum heat output and then take several temperature readings over a short period of time and calculate an average.

In the interest of a comparison the GC-2 Compound will be compared to the stock heat paste.

Note: The Akasa AK-876 CPU Cooler is used for all testing.

As you can see the GC-2 is definitely a good improvement over the stock paste.  The GC-2 decreases idle temperature by 3 degrees and load temperature by 5 degrees compared with the stock paste.

Conclusion

The GC-2 Thermal Compound from Gelid Solutions is a great thermal compound for those of you wishing to shed a few degrees off your CPU’s temperature.  Compared with the NT-H1 compound which only sheds off 1 degree more, the GC-2 is a cheap and easy solution to solve your heating problems.

Cost

The GC-2 costs around £5.50 from most retailers which for something that decreases your computer temperate by 4/5 degrees is a very respectable price.

Bottom Line:  If your computer is over heating and you need a cheap and easy fix then the GC-2 Thermal Compound from Gelid is a great choice.

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