I'd actually disagree and suggest Arctic TP-3 High Performance Thermal Pad instead. Its way more affordable and squishier than those boutique brands, so you wont risk poor core contact honestly.

I'm always a bit wary of those stiff pads too... one wrong move and your core temps skyrocket. Kritical Pads 20 W/mK Custom GPU Pads are probably your best bet because they're super squishy and wont stress the PCB. If you want a brand that's been around forever, Thermal Grizzly Minus Pad Extreme is great, though they can be pricey. Just prioritize that compressibility so you dont ruin the die contact.

Honestly, I'd go with Gelid Solutions GP-Extreme 12W/mK Thermal Pads for that RTX 3080. They are way softer than the Odyssey pads, so you wont have any issues with core contact pressure.

Like someone mentioned, those stiff pads are basically a death sentence for your core temps if you arent careful. I learned that the hard way with my last build... spent three hours meticulously cutting pads only to find out my core was idling at 60C because the sink was hovering a hair above the die. Totally annoying. I ended up switching tactics and went for reliability and ease of use over just the highest numbers:

• Laird Tflex HD90000 Thermal Pads worked wonders for me because they are designed to be super soft and dont dry out or leak oil like some of the cheap brands do.
• On the smaller VRMs and weird gaps, I actually gave up on pads and used Upsiren U6 Pro Thermal Putty instead. The putty is a game changer tbh because you dont have to worry about specific thickness measurements for every single component. It just flattens out to exactly what the card needs. My vram dropped from 102C to about 84C and it has stayed there for over a year now without any issues. If youre worried about the hassle of taking it apart again, go for something stable like the Laird stuff. It wont bleed all over your PCB in six months like the low-end stuff usually does.

Oh man, this brings back amazing memories of when my roommate tried to repad his GPU last summer! He was so excited to get those VRAM temps down but basically rushed the whole process. Here is how his wild DIY project went down:

• He didnt measure the thickness at all and just guessed the sizes
• He ended up using pads that were way too thick on the VRMs
• The heatsink bent slightly when he forced the screws back in
• The GPU die didnt even make contact with the plate It was a spectacular disaster! When we booted it up, the card instantly thermal throttled and shut down. We spent the next three hours scraping off squished silicone. It was a fantastic learning experience though!

> My main concern is the hardness of the pads. I've heard that if I get pads that are too stiff, like the Thermalright Odyssey ones sometimes are, they won't compress enough. Been thinking about your situation and honestly, I was pretty disappointed with the popular recommendations when I did my own 3080. Most of the high-performance pads are unfortunately way too stiff for real-world use. I had issues with mounting pressure using the Odyssey ones myself, they just dont squish enough for the core to actually make contact. If you want something that actually compresses properly, look at Iceberg Thermal DRIFTIce Thermal Pad 13 W/mK. They felt way more manageable and less like plastic than the others I tried. Another option is Thermalright Valor Odin Thermal Pad 15 W/mK which is much softer than their basic Odyssey line, though its not as good as expected for the high price tag. Quick tip: measure your specific card revision yourself because sometimes the online guides are just wrong about the 1.5mm vs 2.0mm spots and that half-millimeter will ruin your core temps.