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In this video, I will test the effectiveness of thermal paste and liquid metal on PS4 Pro.
I chose the first revision, it is the hottest and noisiest of all PlayStation 4 Pro models.
Before testing the thermal paste, the game console was completely cleaned. In this video, I do not
show the detailed process of disassembling and cleaning the PS4 Pro, there is a separate video
on my channel, I left the link in the description. To measure the heating temperature of the PS4 Pro,
I will use two sensors: the white sensor I'll connect directly to the heatsink, and the black
sensor will measure the temperature of the air blown out of the game console's cooling system.
To fix the temperature sensor to the heatsink,
I use a special adhesive tape that is resistant to high temperatures.
Now we have a directly connected sensor to the heatsink, let's move on to applying thermal paste.
For the test, I chose the most popular Arctic MX-4 thermal paste. If you are interested in
more detailed tests of different thermal pastes, I left a link to the video in the description.
Let's fix the temperature in the room - almost 30℃, and inside the PS4 housing, the temperature
is similar. Now I place the black sensor in the vent grille on the game console housing.
Also, I put my smartphone on the PS4 Pro housing near the vent grille to
measure the noise level of the fan. Let's start the test and launch the
game. I chose Tom Clancy's The Division 2 to test the game console. The run time is 20 minutes,
I think this is enough to determine the average temperature of the PS4 Pro.
PS4 Pro Thermal Paste Test Result: Heatsink temperature – 60℃ (140°F)
Air temperature – 52℃ (125°F) Fan noise – 53.7dB
So, once again I'm disassembling the game console but now for applying liquid metal.
The process of applying liquid metal is more complicated than using thermal paste. It consists
of two steps: preparation of the APU chip and application of liquid metal to the surface of
the processor. The PS4 Pro processor has SMD components that must be isolated from accidental
contact with liquid metal, otherwise, if liquid metal gets on the SMD component, a short circuit
will occur, which will damage the processor. The whole process of disassembling and applying
liquid metal to the PS4 Pro is also in a separate video - I left the link in the description below.
So, now we have liquid metal, let's assemble the console and proceed to the test.
The duration of the game and other test conditions remain the same.
PS4 Pro Liquid Metal Test Result: Heatsink temperature – 64℃ (147°F)
Air temperature – 56℃ (133°F) Fan noise – 48.1dB
Compared to thermal paste, the liquid metal improved the heat transfer from the APU to
the heatsink by 4℃, resulting in a lower fan speed and the PS4 Pro is less noisy.
According to the test results, liquid metal is better than thermal paste for
the PS4 Pro of the first revision. For more info check out the links in the description.
I hope this video was useful for you, if you have some ideas for other tests with game
consoles - you can write them in the comments. You were on howfixit and see you next time.