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  1. Member
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    Hi guys I so need to ask you especially who play games on pc, how do you apply the thermal paste to the processor? CPU and GPU both ? I mean, I put the size of a rice on the middle or center of processor, I have and Intel i7, I know there´s some people recommend to apply the thermal past spreading it on all processor surface and other people says not to that and recommend that I use the rice on the middle?

    I so wish how do you apply the thermal paste?

    Thank You in advance
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  2. I'm a Super Moderator johns0's Avatar
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    The rice size is a bit too small to cover all areas,what i do is make a small x going in the middle,i don't worry about the gpu unless it's really heating up bad.
    I think,therefore i am a hamster.
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  3. Watch the videos!

    You only need a very small amount, applied as a single "dollop" in the center of the chip. It is a bad idea to spread it because you will not get it even. By contrast, if you follow the instructions given on most sites to only apply a single blob in the center, when you latch the heat sink onto the chip, that pressure will ooze the paste quite uniformly over the chip. If you aren't certain that this is so, try it once and then remove the heat sink to see the results. Use a little isopropyl alcohol to remove the paste you just applied, and then apply a little more or a little less, depending on whether the stuff made it all the way to the edge, and then fasten the heat sink "for real."

    [edit]And, of course, use good paste:

    ARCTIC MX-4 - Thermal Compound Paste
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    I bought a tube of Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, which came with an applicator tip, for my CPU. I applied it using the first method shown in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRytGgmdeQM However, I applied a thinner layer of thermal paste and left a bare margin at the edge of the CPU. I don't have a discrete GPU.
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    Thank You guys I tell you I have Arctic MX4, Arctic Silver 5 and recently I get Gelid GC Extreme, from all those which one you heep ?
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    Arctic MX-4 and Gelid GC Extreme are supposed to be easy to apply and are said to offer slightly better performance than Arctic Silver 5.
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    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post
    Arctic MX-4 and Gelid GC Extreme are supposed to be easy to apply and are said to offer slightly better performance than Arctic Silver 5.
    I tried GC Extreme with an intel processor with stock cooler and GC Extreme values was the same, maybe -1 or +1 compare with MX4 using rice method


    I usually use the syringe so I can push for get the quantity that I need, GC Extreme comes with a spatula that is maybe difficult or not to easy for apply on procesor what do you think?
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    Originally Posted by BlurayHD View Post
    Originally Posted by usually_quiet View Post
    Arctic MX-4 and Gelid GC Extreme are supposed to be easy to apply and are said to offer slightly better performance than Arctic Silver 5.
    I tried GC Extreme with an intel processor with stock cooler and GC Extreme values was the same, maybe -1 or +1 compare with MX4 using rice method


    I usually use the syringe so I can push for get the quantity that I need, GC Extreme comes with a spatula that is maybe difficult or not to easy for apply on procesor what do you think?
    MX4 and GC Extreme are supposed to offer almost identical performance.

    I had trouble spreading Thermal Grizzly with the hard plastic spatula that came with the first tube that I bought. The applicator on the second tube that I bought had a flexible spatula tip which was much easier to use (shown in my video link). If the rice grain method is easier for you and produces good results, then use it.
    Last edited by usually_quiet; 8th Nov 2020 at 21:03.
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  9. I used Arctic Silver 5 for years and only recently switched to MX4.
    Results are practically identical. A reasonable amount should suffice...if it starts flowing beyond and over the CPU's heat spreader, you've added too much.
    Heat and clamping pressure will do most of the work for you.
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  10. aBigMeanie aedipuss's Avatar
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    i use the spread it yourself method with a plastic glove and a finger. the diamond based thermal compound i've been using doesn't spread very well with the rice grain in the middle using the light pressure from the hsf.
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    "a lot of people are better dead" - prisoner KSC2-303
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  11. With the Arctic Silver it used to be (back in the day) polish the base of the heatsink, place a small blob of paste in the centre of the heatsink, put your hand/finger inside a plastic bag and spread the blob of thermal paste across the whole base of the heatsink - really work it in. Then put another small blob of paste on the CPU/GPU and fit the heatsink as instructed. Then, ideally, run the device hard, continuously, for 3 days to allow the thermal paste to cure. And don't forget to replace the paste at least every two years . . . With the Silicone based thermal pastes - like MX2 - you could just put a blob on the CPU/GPU, fit the heatsink and forget about it. The polishing and 3 day curing might have given you a slight advantage of maybe 2 - 5 degrees.

    I'm sure that some of the modern thermal pastes - and with CPUs and GPUs being FAR more efficient and not generating nearly as much heat as they used to - have done away with the need to do most of this stuff. Large enough cases and decent airflow are still of huge importance IMHO.
    "Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle." - Captain Malcolm Reynolds
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  12. Yup I use Arctic Silver 5 or I've used the Noctua brand stuff that came with my cooler, both have worked well. I was taught in school to apply just a little small bead. When you tighten down the cooler, it will spread it out. Too much and it's just a waste or you'll make a mess.
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  13. Member Ennio's Avatar
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    Yep, I let the tightening pressure spread out the paste.
    Covering the whole heatsink up front can cause permanent tiny airpockets due to air not being able to escape.
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  14. That's why you needed to work it in well. Plus, I would imagine the polishing of the base of the heatsink would reduce the possibility of air pockets . . . ? And the paste is still a viscous liquid when the heatsink was fitted so, I would argue, you can't be any worse off than just putting a grain of rice sized blob on the CPU/GPU and fitting the heatsink . . . ? Anyway, that's how we used to do it, and then (often) over-clocked the heck out of those suckers!
    "Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle." - Captain Malcolm Reynolds
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  15. Member Ennio's Avatar
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    It's in the manual placement of the heatsink on the CPU. At least, I do this by hand. You're never gonna be at a perfect straight angle when you mount it.
    Once there is "touchdown" in the middle, the force will spread the paste towards the outside, pushing out air. I do agree that you don't want to use paste that is too thick. You don't want to have to put everything in a vice to be able to spread it
    When covering the total area with paste up front there's already the chance of air pockets between the paste and the treated area.
    But what is more concerning to me, is the "rough" surface of the paste itself on the "clear" side. I think there is no paste applicator in the world that would leave a perfect flat surface on the topside.
    Therefore, IMO it's better to let the heatsink do the work for you with the tightening downforce.

    FWIW, I've been doing this for years and when removing the heatsink every now and then, I can see the paste had no trouble to spread totally over the cooling area.

    Of course, everybody has his own way of doing things. And, as said earlier, by all means try out different ways, take it apart again and see for yourself.
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  16. I too have been doing this for years, and the method I described was one that was common with overclockers and, so far, I've never fried either a CPU or a GPU so . . . (I still have a 2.4GHz Intel Core2Quad upstairs that's been overclocked to just over 2.9GHz for the past 11 years. It's running the latest version of Win10 and gets used most days. It will run at about 3.2GHz but you start to get a bit of corruption during mpeg2 encoding using HCEnc, so I've dropped things down a bit and it's fine . . . )

    Anyway, as you so rightly say, "everybody has his own way of doing things".
    "Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle." - Captain Malcolm Reynolds
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  17. Member Ennio's Avatar
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    Yeah, it has to feel good, right? Knowing myself and thus being afraid I would fry my CPU by turning up voltages too much or whatever, I only let the tool that came with the mobo do some overclocking. Not to crazy though. But, I had my Intel i7 2600K running @ almost 4400 Ghz for years and years. It has never exceeded 60 degrees (Celcius). I do have a Noctua DH-14 mounted from day one.
    Now I run it at stock speed. Together with the same Z77 mobo it still is the base of my pc . Being over 8 years old, I don't want to hurt the old girl anymore She has to last at least till mid next year. Then I'm sort of planning to put something new together. I'm not the guy that wants the newest hardware every year, so the next build will have to last for years again...
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