Question Do I need to replace the thermal putty on smaller components if I repaste the CPU and GPU?

[claytonscharf]

I just got a new ASUS Zenbook Pro 14 OLED and am looking to repaste it as the stock thermal paste wasn't the best. I have some Arctic MX6 I was planning to try on the CPU and GPU. I don't really want to replace the thermal putty on the surrounding components but if I'm going to take of the heatsink I might have to. There isn't much information on this online. Do I need to replace the thermal putty if it's brand new? If so, do I need K5 Pro or can I just use MX6?

 

[USAFRet]

Any interface you take apart needs to be redone.

However, I would question the need for doing any of this on a brand new laptop.

 

[claytonscharf]

Any interface you take apart needs to be redone.

However, I would question the need for doing any of this on a brand new laptop.

The thermal paste it shipped with doesn't appear to be very good or is in bad condition. During Cinebench R23 the CPU was hitting close to 100C and thermal throttling almost instantly. I could only barely squeeze out a score (multicore) of around 16200 on an Intel i9 13900H. Some people were able to get up to around 19000 to 20000.

 

[lvt]

Stock thermal paste (used by known manufacturers) is generally very good, just like the transmission oil on your brand-new car.

But if the laptop is 3yo or older you can repaste everything with the product of your choice.