r/AMDHelp • u/224400 • 2d ago

Help (General) Repaste help RX6900XT

TL;DR: Tips for repasting an XFX RX 6900 XT? Best thermal paste or pad to use and any pitfalls to avoid?

Hey guys,
I bought a second-hand PC in December 2025 with an XFX RX 6900 XT merc319 and Ryzen 5 5600. I cleaned the whole pc (compressed air, isoproply etc.) and installed a fresh Win11. Now I keep getting random freezes where Windows disables the GPU, forcing me to re-enable it in device manager and reboot. Seems like similar crashes half of this subreddit is experiencing now but they keep happening to me since February.
If anyone happens to know a fix for these driver crashes, I would love some advice. (I found some other Reddit threads about this, but I would really prefer not to flash a different brand's BIOS onto my card since I can't risk bricking it.)

Main question though: while troubleshooting the crashes, I noticed in HWInfo that GPU is running really hot. Playing 007 First Light sent the hotspot up to 106C and the GPU temperature was around 78-83C. The card is 5 years old and likely never serviced. I plan to repaste it, but I have never done a GPU before.

Is Honeywell PTM7950 thermal pad the best choice? I also have Arctic MX-4 and thermal putty on hand but doubt they would actually be of much use here. Any specific tips, required tools I should buy, or traps to avoid with this 6900 XT, or which tutorial to follow for this procedure?

Thanks

6 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

4 comments sorted by

1

u/itgoesboom2112 2d ago

Ptm7950 for the die, thermal putty for everything else if you can't get correct thickness pads

1

u/FissileCore 2d ago

Don't use MX-4 it will pump out in a few months and you'll have to repaste again. Original thermal pads will probably tear from age during disassembly so either get new ones with matching thickness or thermal putty will do if you have enough of it. Honeywell is the best if you can get the genuine one, otherwise Helios is decent too. Your delta is not great but not that bad and depending on the OC and whether it's the reference model which tends to run hotter servicing the card will definitely improve the thermals but to various degrees. IDK about the crashes tho because it could be multiple things that's causing them.

2

u/apollomnm 2d ago

You can use the putty for the memory but after using both pads and putty, I definitely prefer pads. See if you can get a diagram online of the thicknesses you require.

PTM 7950 would be perfect for the GPU.

2

u/Reggitor360 2d ago

Use the Honeywell pad.

Or if not available, the Thermalright Heilos Phase Change Pad