what are the best ways to apply thermal paste on a new cpu?

[maillet]

I'm concerned about the various methods everyone talk about. A dot of paste then let it spread by itself by mounting the heatsink on it? Spreading it evenly on the cpu with a credit card? I must admit that i got a little bit confused.

 

[13thmonkey]

you want to think of the amount of thermal paste as being a smear rather than a layer, so dot or line in the middle is normally best, anything else and you'll have too much, it's only to fill in surface features.

 

[maillet]

thanks it clarifies a couple things

 

[dark_globe]

everyone does it differently someone even do "X" on the cpu surface .
i myself am a fan of credit card method .

anyway if you don´t apply too much or too little thermal compound
the temperature difference between these methods would be negligible .

 

[maillet]

yea i was thinking of using the X method. i was really wondering about the crucial diferences between the "spread with a credit card method" or the "put a dot on the middle" way.

 

[maillet]

and what would be the very precise amount to use?