Is the Arctic Silver CPU thermal paste worth buying?

[Brytech]

Okay I heard that the Arctic Silver thermal paste is the best out there, but what I'm wondering if I should buy some.

Reason why is I'm buying the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO and it came with thermal paste. Is it good if I use that? Or should I pick up the Arctic Sliver?

One more question, since this my first time cleaning a cpu should I also pick up the Arctic Silver cleaning kit?

Thanks!

 

[neieus]

I don't know if I would say it's the best out there as there are multiple brands to choose from and some times the one they provide with the cooler is good or better. I would say that artic silver is one the more popular brands out there.

 

[unksol]

AS5 is a waste of money. There have been superior cheaper products for about a decade and I wouldn't bother with it. It simply costs too much for how it performs.

And the cleaning kit is a joke. All you need is rubbing alcohol and a paper towel

 

[bignastyid]

AS5 is a waste of money. There have been superior cheaper products for about a decade and I wouldn't bother with it. It simply costs too much for how it performs.

And the cleaning kit is a joke. All you need is rubbing alcohol and a paper towel

Actually the cleaning kit does very well when cleaning old dried up thermal grease(usually the cheap stuff OEMs use) that alcohol has a hard time with. A for the AS5 itself I agree that there a better solutions, If you buy a cooler from one of the bigger brands the stuff that comes with it is usually equal to better than AS5 even after the AS5 cures.

 

[Gam3r01]

For recently used paste the cleaning kit isnt necessary, however for very old OEM paste (IE the paste from a dell dimension 2400) the kit does a better job at de-gunking than alcohol.

As for the paste itself, AS5 is still a good paste, but there are better without cure time such as Arctic MX-4.

 

[Karsten75]

Here are more than you ever wanted to know about thermal paste.

Thermal Paste Comparison, Part One: Applying Grease And More

Thermal Paste Comparison, Part Two: 39 Products Get Tested

 

[Brytech]

AS5 is a waste of money. There have been superior cheaper products for about a decade and I wouldn't bother with it. It simply costs too much for how it performs.

And the cleaning kit is a joke. All you need is rubbing alcohol and a paper towel

Actually the cleaning kit does very well when cleaning old dried up thermal grease(usually the cheap stuff OEMs use) that alcohol has a hard time with. A for the AS5 itself I agree that there a better solutions, If you buy a cooler from one of the bigger brands the stuff that comes with it is usually equal to better than AS5 even after the AS5 cures.

So do you think the stock thermal paste will be just fine? Thank you for answering the part about the cleaning kit. The thermal grease on the stock cooler is still pretty fresh, only about 2 months old and I never turned it on.

So do you think the stock thermal paste will be just fine?

 

[neieus]

I would suggest use the stock paste and if it doesn't perform the way you expect then order some or just order some for in the event you need to replace the paste later on.