Opened up my PS3 and reapplied heatsink paste


Recommended Posts

Just a friendly topic to say I finally cracked open my PS3 Slim tonight, cleaned out the dust, and then put new paste on my heatsinks. I have to say the default application from Sony in the factory is weak - I redone mine with IC Diamond 7.

Seems to be running a little quieter, but that will probably be mostly to do with dust clean out.

Wasn't a hard job at all, simply a little time consuming to take it at a slow pace.

yeah it's really simple. how old is your slim? it takes a few years for that stuff to dry up.

About 2 years (maybe 2.5-3 years actually?). It wasn't half dried up, crumbling and looked like a pretty uneven application to start with.

edit: The PS3 Slim was bought about 2 months after the US launch, whenever that was - It's a US console imported to UK.

I've noticed recently my slim has started to make a slightly different noise from the fan, which I'm sure is dust build-up causing a slight imbalance. Been meaning to give at a clean, might crack it open this weekend. Any idea what size the fan is? I might consider replacing it entirely for a quieter PC fan if it's not too incompatible.

  • 2 weeks later...

Hmmm, after reading this thread, think I might just clean my PS3's just to clean them.

However the other part of me is thinking just leave well enough alone, as they both seem fine. I do also usually blow compressed air on them at least once a month, if not more frequently.

I've had my PS3 for a long time, 3 years perhaps, and there was very little dust in mine. It was a bit of fun to take it apart and have a look around inside, but it was entirely unnecessary for the amount of dust I removed. My fan also looked as if it was brand new. I must take better care of my electronics than I thought I did :laugh:

I have a near launch PS3 (roughly March '07) and the first time I had cleaned it out was maybe a year ago and it was surprisingly clean in there. There's a decent amount of spacing between the fins on the heatsink that it doesn't clog with dust really at all. If you used compressed air that will clean it out just fine, and going any further would likely not be worth the time/effort. I also keep my apartment a lot cleaner than most, if not everyone I know, so maybe that plays some sort of role as well.

I had taken mine apart because the fan was starting to ramp up quicker than it used to, so figured that I'd give it a good cleaning as it had been a while. Turns out it wasn't really dirty at all inside but the thermal paste was pretty dried up (and I ended up sanding down the heatsink further as it wasn't as flat as I would've liked, but that's me being a bit OCD). Definitely noticed a difference afterwards but I'm quite sure it's because of the better thermal contact with the CPU/GPU as the previous paste was kind of crappy.

  • 4 weeks later...

I've read there's no real point replacing the heatsink paste because the chips don't even touch the heat plate. Sure cleaning the dust out is fine but unless you pull the heat plate off the processor and GPU (which is really dangerous) there's no benefit to replacing the paste cause there is even more paste underneath the heat plate.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
  • Posts

    • Google reportedly limited Meta's Gemini access over limited AI compute by Karthik Mudaliar Google is reportedly limiting Meta's use of its Gemini AI models after Meta tried buying more computing capacity than even Google could supply. According to the Financial Times, Google told Meta in March that it could not provide the full Gemini capacity that Meta had requested. This shortfall even disrupted and delayed some of Meta's internal projects. Due to this, Meta even told its employees internally to use AI tokens more efficiently. Meta wasn't the only one to get hit by this sudden refusal by Google; even other customers were affected. But Meta was hit harder because of its unusually high demand for Google's models. The move from Google makes it evident that companies all over are in limited supply of both infrastructure and compute. Alphabet said in April that Google Cloud revenue grew 63% year-over-year to $20 billion in the first quarter, helped by enterprise AI infrastructure and AI solutions. In pursuit of more compute, Meta had earlier signed a multi-billion-dollar AWS agreement as well as a large AMD GPU deal for AI data centers. But the crunch would be short-lived as both Meta and Google have also ramped up infrastructure investments heavily. Meta said in November that it was committing more than $600 billion in the U.S. by 2028 for AI technology, infrastructure, and workforce expansion. In the first quarter of this year, Meta also raised its expected capital expenditure for 2026 to a range of $125 billion to $145 billion, citing higher component pricing and additional data center costs for future capacity. However, this doesn't make the company immune to the current dependence on outside suppliers. Meta has also spent many years promoting Llama as an open-weight alternative to closed models from Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic. But if the reported reliance on Google's Gemini models is severe enough for internal work to get impacted, then it looks like even frontier labs and Big Tech aren't fully self-sufficient. Source: Financial Times
    • I like to reminisce about the good old days, way back in autumn 2025 when building a gaming machine was fun and the drives were about $150 when you caught a deal. Yes duh, back in the day we had it gone. Then baby Skynet came along, hiding in AI datacenters demanding more processing power until it reached singularity. End of a not totally fictional story.
    • My experience in the past with older Windows 11 builds was not great on unsupported machines but I recently used Rufus to put the latest build on a older 5th Gen Core Thinkpad T that we upgraded with a SATA SSD and 8GB of RAM four years ago when hardware was reasonable and it seemed pretty fast and solid. Customer is very happy with the performance and will probably get four more years out of that venerable laptop that he loves so much. Another customer just retired his Dell Studio laptop from 2009 running Windows 10. It got an SSD over 10 years ago and did everything he needed it to for 17 years but he also retired last year and is happy doing everything on his iPad now.
    • Apple's newest AirTag 2 gets first big discount by Taras Buria In late January 2026, Apple introduced its second-generation AirTag trackers, bringing a refresh to the old model that has been on the market for half a decade. Now, you can get these new trackers at an all-time low price, thanks to the first big discount that brought the price down by 17% on Amazon. While the second-generation AirTag looks identical to its predecessor, it packs meaningful upgrades inside. The second-gen ultrawideband chip works 50% farther than the original AirTag, allowing you to detect lost items in a wider range. In addition, the second-generation AirTag features an upgraded Bluetooth chip for extended range and a significantly louder speaker (up to 50%) so that you can hear it better when locating a lost item. Note that the second-gen AirTag only works with iPhones and iPads that run iOS/iPadOS 26 and newer, so you need a compatible device to use the tracker. Like the original AirTag, the AirTag 2 is available in two packs: one and four pieces. Both are now available at a notable discount on Amazon, and you can purchase them using the links below. Apple AirTag 2 tracker - $24 | 17% off on Amazon Apple AirTag 2 tracker (four-pack) - $89 | 10% off on Amazon Good to know This Amazon deal is U.S.- specific and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
    • I've been on Deezer for over a decade, but glad that Tidal joined them in fighting AI slop. Can't stand such takes as Spotify's: "Spotify's CEO recently pushed back against listeners who call AI music "slop," urging people to stop using the term and instead embrace the creative potential of AI music."
  • Recent Achievements

    • Reacting Well
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Week One Done
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Year In
      BA the Curmudgeon earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Conversation Starter
      rosiecharles earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • First Post
      KMilenkoski1202 earned a badge
      First Post
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      536
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      267
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      150
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      98
    5. 5
      macoman
      66
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!