What's the best way of putting it on a CPU? Should I coat it on the heatsink or directly to the processor? (AMD 3200 939 Socket) Cheers
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"There comes a time when you look into the mirror and you realize that what you see is all that you'll ever be. Then you accept it... or you kill yourself. Or you stop looking into mirrors."
- Londo Mollari, Babylon 5

If you haven't chosen any yet, i'd strongly suggest arctic silver, best thermal condictivity, works a treat, but, when you remove the old paste, do try to not touch the cpu with your fingers, the oils on your digits will denote the effect, and use something like pure alcohol to remove the old paste with a LINT FREE cloth, not sure if you already new that, but alot of people don't when applying TP, anyways, yeh, apply to the heat sink in the centre, like a large pea and squash down so that you know how far its spread.

hope that helps

Sam

Cheers!
_________________
"There comes a time when you look into the mirror and you realize that what you see is all that you'll ever be. Then you accept it... or you kill yourself. Or you stop looking into mirrors."
- Londo Mollari, Babylon 5

Physically touching the CPU will not affect it at all (so long as you are earthed) and the best way to apply the paste (in my experience) is to the CPU itself.

1) You know that it is on the right place
2) You can get the right amount of paste on it

Provided you spread just a thin layer onto the cpu (too much excess is never good) and the heat-sink is clean you wont have any problems.

Also worth noting that most pastes are also electrically conductable so too much can spread onto pins/components/etc and cause short circuits.

a water cooled system...expensive option..lol

Crikey, that's mad lol, they are well small these days, but thats HUGE!!

that is the kit, it goes inside i beleive the pc case

but if its a retail or new amd processor thermal paste may not be needed do u see a small square of powdery metal on the heat sink

well that melts and acts like thermal paste

and the guy who mentioned acrylic silver is 100% right