How much thermal paste is too much / too little?

[Frankenstyle]

I went to reseat my processor and switch out my heatsink, and when I went to re-install everything, I wasn't sure how much thermal paste to use. I did one line down the middle of the processor. Is that too little?

 

[airblazer]

Depends on what thermal paste you use and what processor you have.
If it's a quad-core and artic silver 5 you used, the one line in the middle is grand.

 

[slickku]

try both cases ... little and alot and see what difference in temps are..

with my TR120 ultra a bit more as5 helped by about 6 degrees

 

[aziraphale]

You just need very little. Usually less is better.

 

[cyberjock]

/sigh

USE THE SEARCH FEATURE!

There's 4!!!! posts on tomshardware.com asking about damn heatsink cooler glue! Why is nobody looking before asking!?

http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_instructions.htm

 

[UncleDave]

don't forget to lap the new heatsink

 

[Frankenstyle]

Thanks everybody, I do have a q6600, so I think I'll try and add a little more grease and see what happens.

/sigh

USE THE SEARCH FEATURE!

There's 4!!!! posts on tomshardware.com asking about damn heatsink cooler glue! Why is nobody looking before asking!?

This is the only kind of message I've ever seen you post, ever. Everything we've ever wanted to know is probably archived somewhere on this site. You wining about the reposts all the time, doesn't make me even think twice about searching for an old post.

If someone was someone was posed with the option to ask someone something and get the answer easily without searching compared to researching it, they would obviously just ask, and you want to know the best part. I wouldnt mind telling them once, twice, or a hundred times if I knew the answer they were looking for. My point is, some people like to help out other people, makes them feel good, so if nobody ever posted here, and all the information was found by searching, I don't think it would be a very "happening" community.

Quit spamming the boards with your complaining.

 

[jsc]

I am in the process of changing my HSF to an TR Ultra120 Ext. The base on mine definitely was not flat. I hand lapped to 1500 grit on plate glass.

Comment about Uncle Dave's advice: Check the base of the heatsink first. If it is flat, there's no need to do anything.

I did some experimenting with AS5 and the heatsink pressed onto the glass. Looking from underneath, I was able to see how different patterns of application spread under pressure. Based on that, I have decided to divide the CPU surface into four quadrants and apply a barleycorn sized dab in the center of each quadrant.

 

[MadHacker]

Thanks everybody, I do have a q6600, so I think I'll try and add a little more grease and see what happens.



This is the only kind of message I've ever seen you post, ever. Everything we've ever wanted to know is probably archived somewhere on this site. You wining about the reposts all the time, doesn't make me even think twice about searching for an old post.

If someone was someone was posed with the option to ask someone something and get the answer easily without searching compared to researching it, they would obviously just ask, and you want to know the best part. I wouldnt mind telling them once, twice, or a hundred times if I knew the answer they were looking for. My point is, some people like to help out other people, makes them feel good, so if nobody ever posted here, and all the information was found by searching, I don't think it would be a very "happening" community.

Quit spamming the boards with your complaining.

I have to agree with cyberjock and disagree with you...
If everybody spent some time researching then we wouldn't have to answer the same questions over and over and over again.

Maybe you are happy being a parrot...
Or maybe your skills are so weak that all you can do is answer the same questions over and over and over again.

If people did some research... then perhaps the questions we would be answering would be new ones, with new ideas.

So I guess we are both spamming the board because your post... as well as mine has nothing to do with the OP's question

My 2¢

 

[Guest]

Well put yourself in some of these poster's shoes. They're frustrated. They've just spent a lot of money trying to learn to put together their new system. It's not working as they expected it. So when they being to search for information, they are already frustrated. And when you're frustrated, its harder to stop and read through every post you see on the search here or google trying to find the answers. So people give up and ask.

I've done it, many people have. That being said I wish the boards weren't flooded with so many repeat posts, but give them a little slack.

That being said, Frankenstyle, I've seen you post in at least three different threads asking about this. All I know about applying AS5 is what I learned on their website. Typically, lesser is better. One small line across the middle. A lot of these people read most of the boards, there's no need to post the same question in so many threads. Also, if someone is giving you good information in a thread, shoot them a PM, maybe they'll get on IM or something to help you out.

 

[Frankenstyle]

So I guess we are both spamming the board because your post... as well as mine has nothing to do with the OP's question

My 2¢

The original poster's question was mine, and it topic would have stayed true to the question had cyberjock not lent us his 2¢.

I don't mind answering the same questions over as long as there is someone to ask it. If you prefer to answer more difficult questions be my guest, don't waste our time by complaining, just chuckle to yourself and say, "looky there, that question again, there's no need to click on that hyperlink because I already know the answer." Then you can move on and we will all be very happy.

By the way for those of us on the topic of heatsinks and thermal jelly. It appears that even if you simply put a thin line down the middle, the whole thing will spread out when you install everything, so it probably doesn't matter that much, but it's still probably a good idea to do it the way the manufacturers say, they have mo money to do the research that we can gather from our observations.

Case Closed

 

[MadHacker]

well since your are the original poster and since this case is closed then you won't mind me hijacking this thread...

why didn't you just use the search feature... that is what it is there for...
enquiring minds want to know...

 

[slyck]

Seems the problem is a forum can be either
1) enthusiast talk with new thinking/discussion always providing new info
OR
2) help newer users with their 'easily found through a search' type of problem. stuff thats already been talked bout and rehashed, well documented info

this forum tries to be both. theres your friction. just my 2cents

 

[Gh0stDrag0n]

RTFM

 

[MadHacker]

Seems the problem is a forum can be either
1) enthusiast talk with new thinking/discussion always providing new info
OR
2) help newer users with their 'easily found through a search' type of problem. stuff thats already been talked bout and rehashed, well documented info

this forum tries to be both. theres your friction. just my 2cents

well what happened to the enthusiast talk...
I use to see it a lot here...
I guess all the posts about is this a good video card.. or rate my system nubee stuff just taken over...
unless someone puts their foot down and tells people to use the search feature... it is there for a reason...
all the good posters that had good ideas... will get pushed away... that is what i would like to see not happen.

how many new thinking/discussion threads have you seen pop up in the last week??? month?
heck of a lot less then what there was last year...
but I guess the mods don't care... all they want is the posts...
more posts get made... more people to see their advertising... more money he company makes...
sad

 

[Guest]

You know what. I agree with that 100%. The majority of posts anymore and all rate my new rig and first time build questions. And it is getting redundant to the point that the boards are almost not worth checking anymore.

 

[MadHacker]

One option would be that when everyone asks a question that is already been answered 100 times over is just to POLITLY remind them to use the search feature. Cyberjock had it right.. and got dumped on...
perhaps a little bit of tact would have been beneficial... but I have never been good at tact either.

Frankenstyle apparently doesn't care that these dumb redundant post are driving the enthusiast chat away...

 

[Gh0stDrag0n]

well what happened to the enthusiast talk...
I use to see it a lot here...
I guess all the posts about is this a good video card.. or rate my system nubee stuff just taken over...
unless someone puts their foot down and tells people to use the search feature... it is there for a reason...
all the good posters that had good ideas... will get pushed away... that is what i would like to see not happen.

how many new thinking/discussion threads have you seen pop up in the last week??? month?
heck of a lot less then what there was last year...
but I guess the mods don't care... all they want is the posts...
more posts get made... more people to see their advertising... more money he company makes...
sad

Everyone worth their salt went to a better place to "talk shop", all that are left here are noobs with a few (and I mean few) who actually know what they are doing.

 

[MadHacker]

I have been reading TomsHardware for almost 10 years.. and been reading this forum for about 3...
I'd rather see the noobs get reminded of the search feature and TOLD to use then see this forum completely go to $h!t.

I have been on a few forums where every time you start a new thread it has a pop up to remind you to use the search feature.
I thought it was annoying... but seeing how the noobs NEED to be reminded of this feature to stop these annoying threads.
but I guess I'm just talking out of my a$$ because the mods will probably treat me like $h!t and ban me for complaining...

 

[Frankenstyle]

If this is such a noob forum, what are you doing here. Apparently you don't like it, so go somewhere else to cry about it. There is still insightful chatter here, not necessarily this thread, so I beg the question, why have you come here? You can't "politely" remind someone that something has been asked by barging in and criticizing them for asking a question, even if it has been asked a million times before.

There is a whole section dedicated to new system builds, if you don't like that kind of stuff I recommend you stick to a different area.

I have gone back and looked at other posts about this topic, using the search function I might add. Oh how I missed it the first time, I must be blind. None of the topics that I read answered all of my questions, and in more cases than not, the latest post on the topic had been weeks ago. I don't know about you, but I don't hunt through the mass postings I've made in the past to see if anything new or relevant has popped up since.

It seems to me that if you don't like a topic, you can move to the next one. I'm pretty sure you weren't dumped on this topic and can never leave, so if you don't have any real input go find a new topic.

Not every question is going to have a cool scientific background, or overly technical answer, and that's life, so take the good with the bad, and keep your personal problems to yourself.

 

[MadHacker]

If this is such a noob forum, what are you doing here.

It wasn't always... guessed you missed that in the previous posts.

Apparently you don't like it, so go somewhere else to cry about it.

your right I dont like it... but unlike you who would prefer to cry about something...
I'd like to try to improve it.

There is still insightful chatter here, not necessarily this thread, so I beg the question, why have you come here?

I agree there is still some insightful chatter here. but not as much as it use to be.

You can't "politely" remind someone that something has been asked by barging in and criticizing them for asking a question, even if it has been asked a million times before.

Why not? and I didn't barge in here. Cyberjock did. and then you dumped on him.
I thought he was right but just lacked tact. but decided to defend him.

You say I can't "politely" remind someone to use teh search feature... how else will noobs learn to use it?

If you have a better idea I am open to it...

There is a whole section dedicated to new system builds, if you don't like that kind of stuff I recommend you stick to a different area.

I just look at latest posts on tomshardware main page. I don't go digging into the forums much unless i'm searching for something.

I have gone back and looked at other posts about this topic, using the search function I might add. Oh how I missed it the first time, I must be blind. None of the topics that I read answered all of my questions, and in more cases than not, the latest post on the topic had been weeks ago.

because a post was made a month ago or even a year ago doesn't make the post useless. Noob questions have been answered over a year ago... and in most cases the asnwer is just as valid then as it is now.

I don't know about you, but I don't hunt through the mass postings I've made in the past to see if anything new or relevant has popped up since.

try "Enable the mail notification of this thread" so I get notified when someone posts in a thread that i have posted in.. No hunting needed.

It seems to me that if you don't like a topic, you can move to the next one.

i was just glancing at the posts... it isn't the topic that I found anoying, it was the way you treated cyberjock.

I'm pretty sure you weren't dumped on this topic and can never leave, so if you don't have any real input go find a new topic.

nope I do leave. but the emails i get remind me that someone has posted and i read them.

Not every question is going to have a cool scientific background, or overly technical answer, and that's life, so take the good with the bad, and keep your personal problems to yourself.

well aparently I'm not the only one with this "personal problem" how many people does there have to be to have teh same problem before it isn't personal any more.
Cyberjock as well as deuce271? don't think that is personal anymore.

If all this discussion leads to one more noob using the search feature, then this whole discussion was worth it...
If you dont feel that way... well there isn't anything keeping you in this thread. as you did say earlier that this was a cosed case.

 

[byrddogg77]

OMG don't use a line of greese. WTF. Evenly distrubute it with you finder, make sure it is all covered evenly, the mount the heatsink/fan. If you use to much, it will heat up and turn to liquid and it will get into the socket on the motherboard which will break your MB, and likely fry your CPU.

Less is better, run off is Game Over.

 

[wrath64]

people, please stop it! Frank use the search button before asking if it doesn’t satisfy you, then ask, also google it. If People are seeing the same redundant question, just don’t go into the thread. Why are people arguing about this? And seriously, if people are getting mad about the same question needs to get a life, and see some sunlight for a change.

 

[MadHacker]

people, please stop it! Frank use the search button before asking if it doesn’t satisfy you, then ask, also google it. If People are seeing the same redundant question, just don’t go into the thread. Why are people arguing about this? And seriously, if people are getting mad about the same question needs to get a life, and see some sunlight for a change.

who is mad...
I just said it was anoying...
who is arguing?
I'm just discussing it...

 

[aziraphale]

MadHacker; I guess it is time to let go. No one should waste this much time on a futile thread. There's just no point to it.

So please stop feeding troll-noobs here, or I'll have to unsubscribe from this sad thread