Connecting the heatsink to the CPU

Powerslave · 06-01-2005, 09:49 PM

Alright, I know for sure now, im building my own pc

I know how to do everything except, attatching a heatsink to a CPU, so how is it done?

-Is thermal compound required?

-Does the thermal compound act as a glue ?

-If so, how do i know how to attach it right?

and one more question..Should I use a stock heatsink, or spend more money for one of those thermaltank ones?
Will the upgraded heatsink keep the case cooler?

Thanks,

powerslave12

Wayniac · 06-01-2005, 10:17 PM

There have been other threads about this, so you can do a search too.

Yes, you'll want thermal compound, preferably Arctic Silver 5. Put just a small dot in the middle and put on your heatsink and twist about 1 degree in each direction and let the heat from the CPU spread it out over time. It is not a glue, just a medium for the heat to go through in the open spaces where the heatsink and the processor do not directly touch.

The extra money put toward a different heatsink is usually a good idea if you're overclocking, but your regular one that came with the processor should be fine for just running at the regular speed.

Powerslave · 06-01-2005, 10:33 PM

So how exactly does the heatsink become attached?

Wayniac · 06-01-2005, 10:40 PM

er... it just touches it? There should be hooks or something that attach to a plastic thing on a motherboard or something like that. The actual heat sink just sits on the CPU, but the clips on the side are what pulls and holds it down.

Powerslave · 06-01-2005, 10:44 PM

Ah , i see, Thanks Wayniac, i was just unsure about this, since it will be my first time building a comp, so it's pretty simple eh?
Thanks again

Wayniac · 06-01-2005, 10:46 PM

Yeah, you'll want Arctic Silver 5 though. It has small particles of silver in it for better heat transfer. The method I told you about applying it is exactly the way that their site tells you to do it. When you put your dot on, make it a little smaller than the size of a pea. It'll spread enough to cover the actual processor (which is really just a small chip under the metal that you see).

Powerslave · 06-02-2005, 02:27 AM

Do I spread it myself, or does it eventually become spread out?

Wayniac · 06-02-2005, 02:32 AM

Depends, with some you spread it on your own a little. With Arctic Silver 5, it'll spread by itself. You just apply a little, twist in both directions 1 degree and call it good. The heat will do the rest.

charles_scott · 06-02-2005, 02:37 AM

When they first started selling AS5 i remember there site saying to spread it out your self.... Maybe they changed it a litte???

Wayniac · 06-02-2005, 10:13 AM

They did... search for the site on tech-forums. Now they want you to just put a dot on because it'll spread to the open parts and the parts touching the CPU will not be interfered with... which is what you want.

However, if you did spread it out, I don't think it'd ruin anything. I spread mine out before I knew I wasn't supposed to, and everything runs fine.

06-01-2005, 09:49 PM	#1 (permalink)
Powerslave Banned Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,265	Connecting the heatsink to the CPU Alright, I know for sure now, im building my own pc I know how to do everything except, attatching a heatsink to a CPU, so how is it done? -Is thermal compound required? -Does the thermal compound act as a glue ? -If so, how do i know how to attach it right? and one more question..Should I use a stock heatsink, or spend more money for one of those thermaltank ones? Will the upgraded heatsink keep the case cooler? Thanks, powerslave12

06-01-2005, 10:17 PM	#2 (permalink)
Wayniac Ultra Techie Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 826	There have been other threads about this, so you can do a search too. Yes, you'll want thermal compound, preferably Arctic Silver 5. Put just a small dot in the middle and put on your heatsink and twist about 1 degree in each direction and let the heat from the CPU spread it out over time. It is not a glue, just a medium for the heat to go through in the open spaces where the heatsink and the processor do not directly touch. The extra money put toward a different heatsink is usually a good idea if you're overclocking, but your regular one that came with the processor should be fine for just running at the regular speed. __________________ AMD Athlon 64 3000+ socket 939 @ 2.3 GHz MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum motherboard EVGA GeForce 6800 GT 2 GB DDR 400 (PC 3200) (2 x 1 GB sticks) (Dual Channel) DVD player and seperate DVD RW drive Floppy Drive 80 GB Western Digital Hard Drive 500 watt power supply Sound Blaster Audigy Logitech 5.1 surround sound speakers SAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T LCD monitor Aspire X Navigator Case

06-01-2005, 10:40 PM	#4 (permalink)
Wayniac Ultra Techie Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 826	er... it just touches it? There should be hooks or something that attach to a plastic thing on a motherboard or something like that. The actual heat sink just sits on the CPU, but the clips on the side are what pulls and holds it down. __________________ AMD Athlon 64 3000+ socket 939 @ 2.3 GHz MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum motherboard EVGA GeForce 6800 GT 2 GB DDR 400 (PC 3200) (2 x 1 GB sticks) (Dual Channel) DVD player and seperate DVD RW drive Floppy Drive 80 GB Western Digital Hard Drive 500 watt power supply Sound Blaster Audigy Logitech 5.1 surround sound speakers SAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T LCD monitor Aspire X Navigator Case

06-01-2005, 10:46 PM	#6 (permalink)
Wayniac Ultra Techie Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 826	Yeah, you'll want Arctic Silver 5 though. It has small particles of silver in it for better heat transfer. The method I told you about applying it is exactly the way that their site tells you to do it. When you put your dot on, make it a little smaller than the size of a pea. It'll spread enough to cover the actual processor (which is really just a small chip under the metal that you see). __________________ AMD Athlon 64 3000+ socket 939 @ 2.3 GHz MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum motherboard EVGA GeForce 6800 GT 2 GB DDR 400 (PC 3200) (2 x 1 GB sticks) (Dual Channel) DVD player and seperate DVD RW drive Floppy Drive 80 GB Western Digital Hard Drive 500 watt power supply Sound Blaster Audigy Logitech 5.1 surround sound speakers SAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T LCD monitor Aspire X Navigator Case

06-02-2005, 02:32 AM	#8 (permalink)
Wayniac Ultra Techie Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 826	Depends, with some you spread it on your own a little. With Arctic Silver 5, it'll spread by itself. You just apply a little, twist in both directions 1 degree and call it good. The heat will do the rest. __________________ AMD Athlon 64 3000+ socket 939 @ 2.3 GHz MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum motherboard EVGA GeForce 6800 GT 2 GB DDR 400 (PC 3200) (2 x 1 GB sticks) (Dual Channel) DVD player and seperate DVD RW drive Floppy Drive 80 GB Western Digital Hard Drive 500 watt power supply Sound Blaster Audigy Logitech 5.1 surround sound speakers SAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T LCD monitor Aspire X Navigator Case

06-01-2005, 10:33 PM	#3 (permalink)
Powerslave Banned Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,265	So how exactly does the heatsink become attached?

06-01-2005, 10:44 PM	#5 (permalink)
Powerslave Banned Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,265	Ah , i see, Thanks Wayniac, i was just unsure about this, since it will be my first time building a comp, so it's pretty simple eh? Thanks again

06-02-2005, 02:27 AM	#7 (permalink)
Powerslave Banned Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1,265	Do I spread it myself, or does it eventually become spread out?

06-02-2005, 02:37 AM	#9 (permalink)
charles_scott Wizard Techie Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 3,418	When they first started selling AS5 i remember there site saying to spread it out your self.... Maybe they changed it a litte??? __________________

06-02-2005, 10:13 AM	#10 (permalink)
Wayniac Ultra Techie Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 826	They did... search for the site on tech-forums. Now they want you to just put a dot on because it'll spread to the open parts and the parts touching the CPU will not be interfered with... which is what you want. However, if you did spread it out, I don't think it'd ruin anything. I spread mine out before I knew I wasn't supposed to, and everything runs fine. __________________ AMD Athlon 64 3000+ socket 939 @ 2.3 GHz MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum motherboard EVGA GeForce 6800 GT 2 GB DDR 400 (PC 3200) (2 x 1 GB sticks) (Dual Channel) DVD player and seperate DVD RW drive Floppy Drive 80 GB Western Digital Hard Drive 500 watt power supply Sound Blaster Audigy Logitech 5.1 surround sound speakers SAMSUNG SyncMaster 710T LCD monitor Aspire X Navigator Case

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