Choosing thermal pad

[Spy Boy]

Hey

I heard that thermal pads are superior than paste. But I am struggling with choosing one for my PC. My CPU is i5 8400. I tried to Google but couldn't find the answer...

[r.linder]

Thermal pads are a terrible replacement for paste on the CPU. Don't waste your time and money.

Just use ARCTIC MX4, it's a fantastic cheap paste.

[Omega]

That is incorrect, paste is better than pads. Paste is more suited for fulling up the small imperfections of the heatsink and heatspreader. Paste is also significantly thinner than pads, thus the heat needs to travel through less material before reaching the actual heatsink.

[Prof. Insanity]

Never heard before that Thermal pads are superior. I heard liquid metal is better than paste, but I can't recommend it since it comes with other risks.

[Cathulhu]

Wow, where did you hear that male cow excrement?
Sure, pads are easy to use, but thermal wise, paste is better if applied correctly.

[Spy Boy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Escorve:

Thermal pads are a terrible replacement for paste on the CPU. Don't waste your time and money.

Just use ARCTIC MX4, it's a fantastic cheap paste.

I don't know. People I know personally told that thermal pads are good :-0

[Spy Boy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Cathulhu:

Wow, where did you hear that male cow excrement?
Sure, pads are easy to use, but thermal wise, paste is better if applied correctly.

Is it difficult to change thermal paste?

[Spy Boy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Prof. Insanity:

Never heard before that Thermal pads are superior. I heard liquid metal is better than paste, but I can't recommend it since it comes with other risks.

I am not expert myself. Just saying what other people are saying

[Spy Boy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Omega:

That is incorrect, paste is better than pads. Paste is more suited for fulling up the small imperfections of the heatsink and heatspreader. Paste is also significantly thinner than pads, thus the heat needs to travel through less material before reaching the actual heatsink.

I have cpu cooler from Be Quiet! And I don't use overclock. But I neve changed the paste since buying cooler. It was in 2019 maybe... I guess I need to do it asap.

[Carlsberg]

Ursprungligen skrivet av NordicSpirit26:

I have cpu cooler from Be Quiet! And I don't use overclock. But I neve changed the paste since buying cooler. It was in 2019 maybe... I guess I need to do it asap.

Don't need to replace that after only 2 years unless as said above your having temperature issues.

[r.linder]

Ursprungligen skrivet av NordicSpirit26:

Ursprungligen skrivet av Escorve:

Thermal pads are a terrible replacement for paste on the CPU. Don't waste your time and money.

Just use ARCTIC MX4, it's a fantastic cheap paste.

I don't know. People I know personally told that thermal pads are good :-0

It's not ideal for CPUs because paste is just there to fill in gaps and improve conductivity, you don't need much, and pads are thicker.

Arctic MX4 will last 5 years on the IHS and its easy to apply. A big dot on the center or a big X is fine, but for best results, manually spread a thin layer across the IHS

[Fake]

Ursprungligen skrivet av NordicSpirit26:

I don't know. People I know personally told that thermal pads are good :-0

Do these people work for the Verge by any chance?

[Spy Boy]

Ursprungligen skrivet av Fake:

Ursprungligen skrivet av NordicSpirit26:

I don't know. People I know personally told that thermal pads are good :-0

Do these people work for the Verge by any chance?

No, mut be not lool

[Autumn_]

There IS one thermal pad that is good, Thermal grizzly Carbonaut.
It's almost as good as paste (lower end), doesn't have a life expectancy, is reusable, and shouldn't be hard to apply (easy to break if you're not careful.)

But generally, I'd say stick with paste.
Carbonaut is a decent choice though.

[invision2212]

removing thermal paste is rather easy. all you need is ISO alcohol thats better than 80%, a paper towel, and a smalll plastic scraper or tooth pick.

take off the cooler (look on youtube) now wet small sections of the paper towel with the alcohol and rub a bit off the paste off while constantly changing the part of the paper towel you are using so it doesnt smear and just repeat until its removed.

any hard residue spots that the alcohol didnt clean up can be removed with the plastic scraper or tooth pick.

look up on youtube how to apply thermal paste....i prefer the X method.

then you screw back on your CPU cooler.

[Soulreaver]

Like others already said. Thermal paste is super easy to use.

But tbh
you don't even need alcohol to get the old thermal paste off. Yes it is better. But if you don't have alcohol around it's no big deal. Just use paper tissues or toilet paper and clean it.

And the amount of thermal paste you need to apply is also very very forgiving. Big amounts and small amounts are pretty much equal in heat transfer performance. So watch a video to get an indication on how much you should apply and then just do it. If you are unsure do a bit more. It's okay.