Yes, contact the frame.
Yes, contact the frame.
I purchased one for my 12400. It isn’t essential, but I appreciate having it. It enhances the paste layout. Updated on May 1, 2025 by leclod
It could be irrelevant overall, relying on chance. Even in ideal cases saving a few degrees Celsius won't impact performance much unless you're pushing the overclock limit, particularly with an i3. It's wiser to invest $20 in an i5 14400 rather than an i3 and a contact frame.
However, with an i3 the temperature only becomes relevant if it reaches 100°C. Performance won't be affected until thermal throttling occurs. In that scenario, the problem is likely related to airflow or the cooler rather than a simple contact frame adjustment.
Might have overlooked this part... I expected the i9-13900K to perform better due to its higher heat output compared to other LGA1700 chips. I placed it on an Asus TUF Gaming Z690 Plus WIFI DDR5 board and used DeepCool’s AG620 air cooler. The outcomes were disappointingly flat; no noticeable boost in cooling performance was observed. The cooler stayed properly in contact, yet temperatures remained unchanged. All tested thermal setups produced identical results within measurement error. I was somewhat let down since the i9-13900K can be challenging to keep cool under certain conditions.
My experience suggests otherwise—I was initially using Intel ILM. After switching to a contact frame, I had to remove it several times, and the paste flow each time turned out smooth, unlike before. In my opinion, the damage isn’t permanent (even without prior experience, it seems clear). Edited May 1, 2025 by leclod
It looks odd that Linus hasn't ever made a video about contact frames or shared his thoughts, despite the LGA 1700 socket being introduced a few years back. This topic keeps sparking widespread discussion across platforms like Reddit, Tom's, and YouTube. Most other popular PC tech channels have already addressed it.