Lets settle this once and for all. Best way to apply AS5?

w3bbo said:
The best possible contact is no thermal interface at all but unfortunately due to microscopic crevices in both the IHS and HS, thermal compound MUST be used to fill in those crevices. Notice I said fill in those crevices, NOT cake the cpu in the stuff as this will act as an insulator and will not conduct heat as well as metal to metal, even if a 'bond' has been made. A thin a layer as possible is what is required to get the best results (lowest temps) without leaving any gaps of air, which sadly a lot of people are finding when mounting a HS to a concave IHS such as some of the core2duo cpu's. In this case you either have to just put up with it and use a little more paste to fill that gap or lap the concave ihs until it is flat.

AS recommend a bedding in time of 200 hours before optimum cooling is reached. The difference however is very small with a drop in 1 or 2 degrees at best.

70-100c for an intel (c2d) is not acceptable and self hypnosis into that fact is reckless tbh. Sure, your cpu will shutdown but how many times will that happen before the cpu and system decides enough is enough and permanent damage is caused to both your cpu and your system(hard disks etc) due to immidiate shutdowns? Even if TM is disabled then running your cpu at 70-100c even if that is the load temp IS NOT GOOD for your cpu's health.
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You make many good points. I do think you are exaggerating the size of the gaps I am talking about filling with AS5 though. In reality the dishing in most IHS is under 1mm in depth across a small section of the IHS surface. It has to be very, very small or you couldn't lap it smooth sensibly. The TIM used by Arctic Cooling is very, very good indeed and would be within spitting distance of AS5 in terms of it's ability to conduct heat.

As for the temperatures, Intel guarantee each processor for 3 years running at 85C so running with CM1&CM2 enabled is perfectly fine. The system shuts down in a stable way - just like turning the system off in software. Before it does it just runs REALLY slowly - like you've switched back to an AMD system ;)

Running with TM1&TM2 turned off is likely to be catastrophic and if I implied anything else then I was completely wrong - but I don't think I did.
 
Put a very thin line in close proximity to the center of the heatspreader as depicted in red, like the photo at left. Be CAREFUL to apply the thermal compound in the CORRECT DIRECTION
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I'd just use this method suggested by AC guys. I will always mess it up if I try the credit card method.

Does anyone know if the X2's core orientation is the same as Intel's??
 
steve258 said:
I'd just use this method suggested by AC guys. I will always mess it up if I try the credit card method.

Does anyone know if the X2's core orientation is the same as Intel's??
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Split the cpu in half (not actually) horizontally (with the little gold arrow to the top left). One core is centered just below that line and the other is centered above it. If you put a BB sized amount on both those areas, and then put the HSF on and twist just a little bit, you should get a good bond. Generally, i spread a thin layer all over the IHS just so that the heat doesn't decide it wants to go to a different part of the IHS. But it's spread as thin as it will go.
 
Right, for me this is the best way that's worked so far:

Tiny blob in the middle, rice grain size (un boiled, maybe a little smaller than fried rice grains :D see a boiled rice grain is supposedly twice the size ;) ). Then use a credit card to spread half of it left, then the other half right. Then use the card to spread half of that line up, and the other half of that line down. Then just go over the whole lot a few times to get it as thin as possible using your card of choice! :cool:
 
This any good?

img0269zn6.jpg
 
I've never got the obsession with thermal paste appliance.

Seriously, anyway will do fine aslong as you have it thin and on the area where the heat will be generated.

I.e, a quad core has two places of generated heat, where as a single dual core has one.
 
I think the most efficient application would be not to use AS5 at all but to heat the copper heatsink until it becomes soft and then apply slowly in a complete vacuum to the exposed die of the chip. Once the copper part of the heatsink entirely surrounds the chip then allow it to cool. Repeat the process for the back of the motherboard.

Problem solved.
 
Chris Beard said:
I think the most efficient application would be not to use AS5 at all but to heat the copper heatsink until it becomes soft and then apply slowly in a complete vacuum to the exposed die of the chip. Once the copper part of the heatsink entirely surrounds the chip then allow it to cool. Repeat the process for the back of the motherboard.

Problem solved.
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I think we will all try that then. Much easier than applying AS5 :p
 
A thin strip down the middle, exactly what the instructions tell you to do. See here: http://www.arcticsilver.com/pdf/appinstruct/as5/ins_as5_intel_dual_wcap.pdf (these are instructions for a dual core Conroe CPU)

The problem I can see with the spreading method is that it doesn't factor in the possibility of a CPU surface that isn't 100% flat. With a thin line of the stuff, and applying the heatsink on top with a slight twist and pushing down will spread and fill the surface of the chip as evenly as it can, ensuring the best possible contact and therefore performance. Spreading thinly with a razor or old credit card won't allow for this as easily, so I would say this is an inferior method - certainly for Conroe chips anyway, as they are known to be slighty irregular when it comes to flatness.

:cool:
 
I applied a line down the middle then 1 thin line either side of it, so 3 in total. Sitting in bios t'other day CPU was idling around 26 oc.
 
Is paste so much better than pads?

I got pads from an industrial company recommended on the AMD website (free sample :D), and I've always used that. Never really gone down the OCing route, but I will be in the next few days when I get my new gear in.

Should I ditch these pads and go paste instead?
 
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