Today, sales of the first AMD Ryzen 9000 processors with Zen 5 architecture begin, and it is quite expected that the first extreme overclockers to get their hands on them tried to remove the standard heat spreader cover in the hope of improving their results in this discipline. The scalping procedure has a high chance of failing, as can be judged from experience first experiment.
Image source: Tony Yu
Photos published by enthusiast Tony Yu show that his attempt to remove the heat spreader cover from one of the new AMD Ryzen 9000 family processors resulted in damage to the processor crystal responsible for input/output functions. In addition to this crystal, the processors of this family also have a crystal with computing cores on the substrate, which, judging by visual signs, was not damaged as a result of the attempt to remove the cover.
However, a large crystal with I/O blocks clearly shows a serious crack, and on the underside of the cover, a part of the surface layer of this crystal remains on the corresponding piece of solder. In such conditions, it is difficult to count on maintaining the processor’s operability, but such experiments always carry corresponding risks. Apparently, AMD uses a thermal interface in the form of solder when producing desktop Ryzen 9000 processors, which firmly connects the crystals to the heat spreader cover. Under normal operating conditions, this thermal interface works quite effectively, but overclockers who use extreme cooling methods and always strive to reduce the number of links in the heat transfer chain or improve their characteristics may try to remove it along with the cover. The main value of a specific unsuccessful experiment is to demonstrate the crystals of the Ryzen 9000 family processor without a cover installed on them.
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