Like the M1 owners really need to squeeze the extra juice 😂
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
2020 Air Heatsink Modification Thread
- Thread starter ilikewhey
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This would be amazing to see, to be able to get pro performance without the extra cost and touch bar would be great
Thats exactly what happened with my MBA i5 mod, im getting scores comparable to that of the i5 MBP!
Hey I got the i5 too and just ordered some stuff, which thickness thermal pad did u get? 1mm or 1.5? And does it really get too hot or nah? Thanks!
I used the 1mm but 1.5 should also work!
It does occasionally get hot to the pont where you should avoid exposure to bare skin but I really dont mind considering the incredible gains!
Also, since the mods the highest temps I got were 88c when before it would easily reache 100.
It does occasionally get hot to the pont where you should avoid exposure to bare skin but I really dont mind considering the incredible gains!
Also, since the mods the highest temps I got were 88c when before it would easily reache 100.
Apologies for tuning in 94 pages in, but did anyone ever do a heatsink mod that involves a headpipe that at least connects to where the fan is blowing air out of the machine?
I recognize that with the M1 Air out now, maybe effort isn't focused on this anymore. But, for what it's worth, I think that this is a very cool thread (pun partially intended) and I applaud the effort to fix Apple's terrible thermal design on the 2018-2020 Intel MacBook Airs.
I recognize that with the M1 Air out now, maybe effort isn't focused on this anymore. But, for what it's worth, I think that this is a very cool thread (pun partially intended) and I applaud the effort to fix Apple's terrible thermal design on the 2018-2020 Intel MacBook Airs.
Thanks to this thread I also did the cpu copper shim heatsink modification on my MBA i5/8/256. And I’m very happy with the results (Geekbench score is attached), especially with the fan barely running even under heavy load. Thx a lot 🙏🏾
But I just noticed that my MBA is very wobbly because the bottom left foot of the base is not touching the table (almost two credit cards fit under it; tested it on several plain surfaces). I can’t tell if it was like this before the mod (just got it a couple of weeks ago and haven’t used it a lot since then).
Has someone else noticed this after the mod (or even before), maybe due to the thermal pad pushing against the base cover?
But I just noticed that my MBA is very wobbly because the bottom left foot of the base is not touching the table (almost two credit cards fit under it; tested it on several plain surfaces). I can’t tell if it was like this before the mod (just got it a couple of weeks ago and haven’t used it a lot since then).
Has someone else noticed this after the mod (or even before), maybe due to the thermal pad pushing against the base cover?
Attachments
Last edited:
What probably happened if you didn't push the clips down that are in the middle of the computer's button case. Try to push down in the middle from diffrent angles and you should hear 2 poping or snapping sounds and that means that it is properly on.
I was having a general clear out / tidy up recently and came across a set of Electronic Bathroom Scales. These were an inexpensive set we purchased years ago from Tesco. They're the sort with a LED Display mounted in a heavy Glass base, with the load sensors being mounted in the four corner mounted feet. After I stripped out the electronics for recycling I realised that the scales were the perfect size and height to act as a laptop stand for my i5 2020 Air.
I'd done the Shim and Thermal Pad Mod on my i5 Air and the glass platform seems to be an excellent heat sink.
My M1 Air arrived on Monday and I'm delighted with it, like many others I've wondered about modding the M1 but didn't want to open it up as it just flies through everything as it is.
Curiosity got the better of me for a non invasive mod so I've done the following: I purchased a 40mm computer cooling fan, one that is powered by USB and has a built in 3 speed controller. I've mounted this to the base of the scales where there is an opening where the original display was fitted. I stuck the controller to the base with a "Command" sticky pad.
The base of the air sits over the aperture and the small fan blows air up through the hole and across the base of the Air.
Not sure how effective it is but I ran 3 x 10 minute Cinebench R23 tests consecutively with no pause and got scores of 6772, 6779, 6718.
As I said, this was all a bit "Heath Robinson" and done purely out of curiosity, I've no idea if the figures are good, only that they are streets ahead of my i5 Air. I can't see me having a use for the Mod but it was a fun project.
I'd done the Shim and Thermal Pad Mod on my i5 Air and the glass platform seems to be an excellent heat sink.
My M1 Air arrived on Monday and I'm delighted with it, like many others I've wondered about modding the M1 but didn't want to open it up as it just flies through everything as it is.
Curiosity got the better of me for a non invasive mod so I've done the following: I purchased a 40mm computer cooling fan, one that is powered by USB and has a built in 3 speed controller. I've mounted this to the base of the scales where there is an opening where the original display was fitted. I stuck the controller to the base with a "Command" sticky pad.
The base of the air sits over the aperture and the small fan blows air up through the hole and across the base of the Air.
Not sure how effective it is but I ran 3 x 10 minute Cinebench R23 tests consecutively with no pause and got scores of 6772, 6779, 6718.
As I said, this was all a bit "Heath Robinson" and done purely out of curiosity, I've no idea if the figures are good, only that they are streets ahead of my i5 Air. I can't see me having a use for the Mod but it was a fun project.
Attachments
Unfortunately this didn’t help. Seems that the unibody of my MBA was not plain from the beginning, because when removing the thermal pads from the heatsink the issue still exists 🧐. Let’s see what the Apple support has to say about this.
Do you run the test from a cold start? Are you sure other apps are not running in the background?
And did you just do the copper shim mod or also the thermal pad on the heatsink mod as well?
Test is from cold start with no apps, just copper shim no thermal pad. Fan rarely kicks in now and I only get to 100C on rare occasions, but no insane performance boost like I expected tbh. Not sure if I should open it up and reapply thermal paste when I get my thermal pad or not.
Wouldn’t open it up just yet. Add the thermal pad mod first and see if that results in a better performance.
Hi again, everybody!!! Maybe you don't remember me ... I'm the one who started to disassemble and apply mods of all kinds on the i5, until he passed away ... I have managed to sell it for € 350 which gives me the opportunity to buy the new M1 Air. BUT THIS ONE WILL NOT DISASSEMBLE IT ... hahahahaha
Similar situation here. I did wonder if Apple might have tweaked the settings in Big Sur?
Did the thermal pad mod, and reapplied thermal paste as it wasn't properly spread. Single core is still the same, multi-core went up a bit, around 400-500 more.
Thermal gains are really good tbh, idle at 50 C, and at maximum load it never exceeded 88 C, and usually was around 75-80, fan never kicked on. Fired up Hollow Knight (game), fan never kicked on and temps stable at exactly 81 C.
Thermal gains are really good tbh, idle at 50 C, and at maximum load it never exceeded 88 C, and usually was around 75-80, fan never kicked on. Fired up Hollow Knight (game), fan never kicked on and temps stable at exactly 81 C.
Last edited:
Due to events ^, all I have to say now is:
Last edited: