Have compound, now what?

[arfcat]

I have some Artic Silver III and a few AMD Duron 950Mhz CPUs w/ retail heatsink ..

Can someone tell me what the setup proceedure is?

Just put some compound on the CPU core and install everything?
If CPU / heatsink is still in retail box and I am careful not to touch any surfaces, do I need to clean anything before installing? If so, is rubbing alcohol ok?

How much compound do I use?
Isn't there some kind of thermal phase-change compound on the heatsink already (under the tape?) .. is this ok? does it need to be removed first?

Obviously, I'm clueless .. appreciate your help.

Thanks.
A.

 

[mothman]

Here's a link to Artic Silver's Web Site...

Intructions

 

[arfcat]

I was hoping for a bit more than that mothman. Despite being extremely poorly written, those instructions don't answer some key questions --

If CPU / heatsink is still in retail box and I am careful not to touch any surfaces, do I still need to clean anything before installing?

Isn't there some kind of thermal phase-change compound on the heatsink already (under the tape?) .. is this ok? Should I use the Artic Silver in addition? Or does the existing compound need to be removed first? How do I remove it? If I leave it, and still use AS .. is this bad?

Is there a "drying" period, or can I just apply, build, and boot up?

Thanks for the help!
A.

 

[Mikewarrior2]

Yes, you have to remove the default Pad... use a Xylene based cleaner as per the Instructions on the arctic silver website.

If you leave it and apply the Arctic Silver, you will severely hurt your cooling.



Mike

 

[Metalloid]

AS will never dry out, so just build it and boot.

 

[FlowerMan]

<< I was hoping for a bit more than that mothman. Despite being extremely poorly written, those instructions don't answer some key questions --

If CPU / heatsink is still in retail box and I am careful not to touch any surfaces, do I still need to clean anything before installing?

Isn't there some kind of thermal phase-change compound on the heatsink already (under the tape?) .. is this ok? Should I use the Artic Silver in addition? Or does the existing compound need to be removed first? How do I remove it? If I leave it, and still use AS .. is this bad?

Is there a "drying" period, or can I just apply, build, and boot up?

Thanks for the help!
A. >>



You should clean everything just for the sake of cleanliness. Use Isopropyl Alcohol (70 or 91%). The pre-installed TIM should be removed, just as the AS3 instructions dictate. Scrape it off and use a residue-less solvent to clean it completely off (Goof Off and or IPA). If you use the TIM + AS3, you are an idiot. About the "drying period": "Due to the unique shape and sizes of the silver particles in Arctic Silver thermal compound, it will take a minimum of 72 hours to achieve maximum particle to particle thermal conduction and for the heatsink to CPU interface to reach maximum conductivity."

Nevin's instructions are "extremely poorly written"? I think you are an extremely poor reader and idiot