do i really need to clean the thermal paste with anything?

[EvgaLover]

Hello i just cleaned the thermal paste on mh cpu with a coffee filter without any alchohol or anything but it looks fairly clean so is the alchohol really nessesary?

 

[Gam3r01]

It makes the surface cleaner. It may look clean but there is sill some extra paste left over that you cant see. It wont harm anything, but it wont be the best performance wise.
Unless you OC I wouldnt worry.

 

[EvgaLover]

Like how much performance difference are we talking about?

 

[PCDave]

Like how much performance difference are we talking about?

Maybe 5 - 10c? It isn't anything huge- but if you really care about temps and are in a hot environment and a dusty environment- I'd recommend cleaning it off with Isopropyl Alcohol (70% or higher).

That- and if you're overclocking, which temps mean a lot.

 

[Gam3r01]

Oh not even close to 5. If you are using the same paste it wont make almost any difference.
I would say 1-3 at most.