Question about pre applied thermal paste

hello, i just bought an athlon x4 640 cpu, it has a thin layer of thermal paste already applied on the bottom of the heat sink. i was wondering if that is enough, should i buy some new thermal paste and apply it myself??

the layer looks pretty thin and i moved the heat sink a tiny bit when i tried to install it

Reply to sapped

A high quality thermal paste can lower temps as much as 6 or 8 degrees over stock in some cases. I like IC Diamond after some testing I have both read about and participated in through these forums.

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index. [...] itstart=12

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index. [...] mitstart=6

This made my graphics card run 6 degrees cooler at load and 4 at idle.

http://www.heatsinkfactory.com/ic- [...] pound.html

You are fine with stock paste if you will not overclock.

Message edited by anort3 on 12-08-2010 at 08:06:02 AM

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

It tends to not be bad as it was before, but given how cheaply thermal paste can be picked up, simply remove it and apply some tx-2 or somrthing.

Reply to amdfangirl

Different type of thermal paste requires different ways to put, some requires it to be squirted a lot and some needs it to be applied in a thin layer.

Arctic MX-2 works great. Reduced the max temp for my AMD Phenom II X4 925 around 11C. And you just need to use a little bit. And it says it has a 8 year durability (not sure if its true or not, but well, at least it says so...).

Just make sure if you want to add a new thermal paste, clean the old one properly and make sure its super clean

Reply to servarus

Believe it or not, that thin film of paste is all you really need. You shouldn't have much of the stuff on your CPU. I agree with anort. You are fine with the stock paste and fan as long as you don't mind the noise and are planning on monster overclocks. (very mild ones should be ok, but the noise will be worse then it should be.) Grab an aftermarket heatsink if you want bigger overclocks or quieter fans. Stock fans tend to use 80mm or 92mm fans, while many aftermarket ones use 120mm.

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Reply to 4745454b

alright guys thx for the reply, i was actually afraid to use it just then but now i guess i can go enjoy quad core gaming, after i install my new gfx card

Reply to sapped

If you do use aftermarket compound then clean the old stuff off with a soft cloth and some rubbing alcohol.

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

i know i don't plan to overclock but how often should i reapply the paste,
also how often should i do maintenance on the inside of the comp
i was shocked today when i removed the cover of the case, everything inside was covered by dust, can barely identify the fans and stuff, i tried to clean it with tissues as best as i could before plugging in the new cpu

how often should i clean it and with what tools?

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to sapped

Thermal paste should last years. Use compressed air to blow out your case every few months. DO NOT vacuum it . It can create static electricity.

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

I read : after every 1 year but that varies from maker to maker and OC to OC

Message edited by Lutfij on 12-08-2010 at 10:24:21 AM

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Reply to Lutfij

I have used Artic Silver Ceramique quite a bit and it lasts years. I have to believe that the IC products do as well due to their extreme density.

Message edited by anort3 on 12-08-2010 at 10:48:54 AM

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

Hmmm, hey can you hook me up with ICD24 on a uk site? I can;t seem to find any store that deals with them. The one place i did find it, still has it sold out...

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Reply to Lutfij

Try "ebuyer" its the newegg of the uk lol

Reply to CsG_kieran_2

did that along time ago...its nothing close to newegg. I have arctic cooling's MX-4 but wanted to try out ICD24 - darn thing didn't even show up in my mail (during that worldwide tests for ICD)

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Reply to Lutfij

Sorry man but IC Diamond can be hard to find even here in the States. I did get mine for testing though Try and contact IC directly. Bet they can tell you where you can find it locally.

Message quoted 1 times

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

sapped wrote :

i know i don't plan to overclock but how often should i reapply the paste,
also how often should i do maintenance on the inside of the comp
i was shocked today when i removed the cover of the case, everything inside was covered by dust, can barely identify the fans and stuff, i tried to clean it with tissues as best as i could before plugging in the new cpu

how often should i clean it and with what tools?

If you don't remove the heatsink from the CPU the thermal pad/paste should continue to work as normal. It very rarely if ever breaks down.

Reply to joefriday

anort3 wrote :

Sorry man but IC Diamond can be hard to find even here in the States. I did get mine for testing though Try and contact IC directly. Bet they can tell you where you can find it locally.

hmmm, yeah good idea! But man, are they expensive tubes or what? :whistle:

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Reply to Lutfij

They make several products as well. The IC Diamond 7 is much cheaper.

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

:na: i'd want the ICD24...this is one case i'd pay more for the lil thing

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Reply to Lutfij

It's good stuff. You just have to read the results from all the forums they did the giveaway on. My GTX460 runs 1C cooler overclocked to 821/1642/2000 than it did stock before IC Diamond 24.

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

Yeh i read them...kept up to date with that atleast. Thas good considering the hot GTX was OC'ed. Thas why I'm eager to get it...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh the OC'ing blisss :lol:

Reply to Lutfij

Here ya go

http://www.innovationcooling.com/dealers.htm

http://www.chilledpc.co.uk/shop/pr [...] 31b4c27422

Message edited by anort3 on 12-08-2010 at 10:22:24 PM

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

hehehehe - thas the site and its been out of stock ever since the competition started(i thought why wait when i can buy it) :lol: next thing you'll know i'm dealing with a Libyan to smuggle it to my doorstep

Message edited by Lutfij on 12-08-2010 at 10:54:07 PM

Reply to Lutfij

LOL. :lol:

------------------------------ i7 2600K @ 4.5/P67A UD4/Scythe Mugen 2 Rev B/OCZ Vertex 2 120GB/2xWD 640 Blacks/Antec 1200/Samsung 23in LED LCD/EVGA GTX 460/2x4GB GSkill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 7-8-7-24/Windows 7 Ultimate x64/Corsair 750TX
Reply to anort3

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