“Too Much Thermal Paste” - Benchmark of Thermal Paste Quantity

We've all seen people say "that's too much thermal paste." Most the time, it turns out, they're wrong. This test benchmarks thermal paste application methods.
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Article: www.gamersnexus.net/guides/33...
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Our testing today focuses on thermal paste application quantities -- not necessarily application methods -- and looks at pea-sized dots vs. thin spread vs. larger blobs. Thermal paste application is much debated among KZbin commenters, and we think a lot of that is because it's something everyone has experience with. Our Modmat still has application guidelines on it, but those conform to simply whatever covers the IHS most efficiently. As far as quantity, as long as it's enough to cover everything, you're good to go. We even referenced Luke's LinusTechTips video from ages ago, which also tested this same comment.
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 - The Best Shot We've Ever Taken
03:22 - Testing Methodology
05:49 - The Big Blob Test
07:14 - The Thin Spread Test
09:18 - The Pea-Sized Dot Test
10:18 - The Too-Much Test
11:25 - Average Core Temperatures
13:35 - Temperature Over Time Comparison
14:03 - Conclusions from These Tests
16:34 - Recapping Previous Content
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Editorial, Testing: Patrick Lathan
Editorial, Testing: Steve Burke
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[@GamersNexus]

You might also like our most recent HW news video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pmGblGuJgMRge9E Article: www.gamersnexus.net/guides/3346-thermal-paste-application-benchmark-too-much-thermal-paste Grab a brand new GN cobalt blue beer glass: store.gamersnexus.net/products/cobalt-blue-tear-down-logo-pint-glass-libbey-17-oz Have you seen other really frequent comments on YT that you think might be overblown? Let us know. We might test it.

[@noenken]

0:02 Huh, I'm more used to videos where that happens at the end. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@AliceCarlyJ]

Gamers nexus. How difficult is it too clean out the socket after you put the thermal paste on it or does that mean that motherboard is now useless?

[@zangetsu6638]

please don't forget the IPC video!!!

[@GamersNexus]

Alice- That board was already dead, so no harm done.

[@sinnison23]

Hey, I just wanted to point out that I noticed the "Pea Size" graph was repeated for "Too Much" ( 10:51 ). Or rather, I should say that the "Too Much" graph was mislabeled, not that it was repeated. They are distinctly different graphs.

[@element1192]

I bought the whole tube I’m gonna USE the whole tube

[@aps-c1766]

Zero waste money

[@AVI-yc9og]

You are a god...

[@saba_0001]

Lol

[@daa2622]

@@ActuallyAero T

[@unboxthedog3330]

T

[@forestflame172]

I think the suicide rate just went up from the intro

[@revelationsix]

Did they not think to provide a mental health warning?! WHAT WERE THEY THINKING!?

[@Cheepchipsable]

You could hear the heads exploding.

[@Daffmeister187]

I just went into cardiac arrest, nearing rigor mortis.

[@rodzila8314]

Totally man! that cpu is totally going to melt with so little thermal paste!!

[@Iamnicknow]

I was about to puke

[@desmond3245]

There's only one major downside of too much paste: It's a real pain to clean up the mess next time you want to replace or reseat your cooler.

[@TheAechBomb]

can confirm, used just about a whole tube my first cooler install

[@James-wd9ib]

reseating coolers is for the weak

[@legendofman12]

@@James-wd9ibwut

[@NuisanceMan]

It also costs more.

[@SupraSav]

@@James-wd9ibDried out paste 🥶

[@FeebleAntelope]

0:02 - Me: Okay, seems like a lot there, but I'm a newb. Maybe they know something I don't. 0:06 - Uhhhhh.... 0:15 - Ohhhh, ISWYDT 0:25 - Make. it. stopppp. 0:28 - Spit take, dead

[@xler3441]

Jesus loves you so much and He is waiting for you with open arms, please accept Him in your heart and life while He is near

[@blumac9801]

Don’t put too much CPU on your thermal paste

[@solace512]

thanksshould i put it on the dimm slots to cool my ram

[@LCST237]

@@solace512 are you dumb? Rams doesn't need that much cooling or else they'll freeze. It's better to put it in the pcie lanes

[@DanielBoos]

Why

[@enjuakahoshich.6982]

Also apply it in the ports of your sata cables so that not only data is transferred but also the thermal paste itself getting you twice the performance

[@alieu5225]

Lucas Costa calm down somebody didn’t take their pills this morning

[@StevenMussels]

Every now and then i come back to watch the intro to this, just to make myself feel something again

[@mustafam3285]

Steven I know that exact feeling. It is the reason I watch cringe compilations.

[@JAYCOUNT]

You Ok bro?

[@StevenMussels]

@@JAYCOUNT 2020 has been rough

[@kawzmOS]

Lots of love from SoCal! Hang in there, fellow earth human! ❤️

[@nandoman4769]

Pain

[@handlesarefeckinstupid]

Years ago (circa 2005) me and a workmate wondered about this. We decided to research it using a sheet of glass that we machines and drilled holes in to accept a cpu and cooler (upside down) so we could physically see what the paste did. We found that it took surprisingly little to get an even film.you dont actually want a thick layer, it is only there to transfer the heat to the cooler. We also found that the CPU lid and cooler heatsink plate flatness was a factor. Bored engineers do weird things.

[@rysterstech]

Weird tests can leave to great discoveries. Thomas Edison discovered electrons completely by accident in a vacuum tube

[@450AHX]

@@rysterstech Edison had nothing to do with the discovery of the electron.

[@chipsalom]

I did this back in college to illustrate how different pastes, grease, etc spread. The easiest time beginners had was a pea size, and the tightening of the heatsink mount went smoothest with mid viscosity. Not too thin nor thick. At higher skill, lower viscosity, spreading just an almost imperceptuble amount seems to have the most predictable results in my experience. You don't need crazy mounting pressure, and it'll cover without worrying about it or overflowing. You know you have coverage, and just add barely enough pressure to make solid contact. No need to crank it to get the spread 🙂

[@jimmymullen453]

Engineering 101: Use as little material as possible to fill any microscopic air pockets between surfaces. In a perfect world of flatness, thermal paste wouldn't exist. 😉

[@TheActionBastard]

"Named the Edison effect, what Edison really discovered was that “electrons” could be literally boiled off the hot filament and collected by the wire. Electrons were not specifically named as such at that time, and would not be so until 1897 (J. J. Thomson)." I had to google that... and I had no idea until today. So he did have something to do with it, just... he didn't do the whole thing.@@450AHX

[@WarpRulez]

It's always surprising how little is actually needed. Every single time I need to apply thermal paste I get the strong instinct to put a bit more, because that tiny half-pea just doesn't seem even close to enough, and I get the feeling that it won't spread to the whole heatspreader. But I quiet that instinct and put just that very small amount, and what do you know, the next time I remove the heatsink, the entire heatspreader has indeed been covered by the paste. You really don't need much.

[@riks081]

Hey i feel you. I usually put one more micron on, not for any other reason but to make myself feel comfortable 😂

[@maboleth]

I never applied the paste externally. I always use stock coolers that ship with the CPU. Those have like a tiny strip of paste on it and I never experienced any problems. If AMD thinks that's enough, it's enough.

[@KingOfJonnyBoy]

@@maboleth In my experience those can actually tend to have excess.

[@no_misaki]

@@maboleth I'd agree with you if red or blue's stock coolers were any good. You're better off with a janky paste application on any aftermarket cooler than a perfect spread on a wraith prism.

[@AParticularlyConcernedCitizen]

This is why you use the power of the mini spatula to alleviate your fears.

[@Ed-tc2pg]

You're on the verge of putting to much on it.

[@brienbirdwell]

Most underrated comment on this video

[@Chaosdude341]

v e r g e

[@xIronMikex]

Fuc*ing brilliant. Thx 4 the laugh

[@Webberjo]

too*

[@MrHasie]

What you did there, I see it.

[@ishaanpahuja6075]

Putting thermal paste on the socket gets the best thermals because it probably won’t even boot

[@deluxesofa]

Its so cold that it even won't boot

[@AFlyingSwive]

well you're not wrong

[@Olfan]

It stays at exactly ambient no matter what you do.

[@packlord2192]

Most thermal paste is non-conductive, so it should still boot, just like the mineral oil pc builds.

[@deluxesofa]

@@packlord2192 r/woooosh

[@priestofsyrinx6681]

The Verge saw this and went "Yes"

[@Dave995544]

I really appreciate how high quality and professional the videos are on this channel.

[@srinagrao1]

The Verge took the intro seriously 😂

[@Kenmanhl]

The intro made me think of the Verge immediately :) The conclusion of this video is that it's really not worth worrying about when you have too much. Oh, well. It was still good laughing at the Verge

[@HEricW.77]

The point is they take anything seriously no matter how obviously ridiculous it is lol

[@azuldream]

you missed the point the issue was he added 3rd party paste when the AIO block already had pre-applied TIM. so yeah you look just as stupid for not getting it

[@shadowxxe]

Christopher their thermal paste application was idiotic not only can it spill over the socket the way the applied it ment that they were a lot of air bubbles causing higher temps

[@TheRealFobican]

The Verge is at The Verge at becoming at The Verge of being The Verge on The Verge.

[@68sixgun]

I use toothpaste. Consequently my cpu has never had a cavity.

[@mschmolzer99]

Just be aware that it dries out much faster than thermal paste

[@iClone101]

@@mschmolzer99 /r/woooosh

[@user-sg1lq8qx7g]

@@iClone101 its not entirely a r/woooosh moment, it is possible to use toothpaste as thermal paste, however its only a "last resort" method

[@twinrixone5295]

toothpaste was used in a few tests before

[@therealcat5794]

@@iClone101 the wooooosh thing is annoying and it doesn't even apply here

[@Neil_MacGregor]

At the risk of bricking a cpu, it would have been nice to add a ‘no paste’ metal-metal control.

[@Tuchik123]

comp wouldnt stay on, it would overheat too quickly

[@angrydragonslayer]

@@Tuchik123 properly lap both ihs and cooler and it'll be comparable to a mid-tier paste

[@tylermitchell185]

@@angrydragonslayer Depends on the quality of the heatsink manufacturer.

[@jdatlas4668]

Unlike in the past you can’t actually burn out a modern CPU like this, they usually know how to protect themselves, they’ll just throttle or turn off. You could totally do it like two decades ago though.

[@angrydragonslayer]

@@jdatlas4668 you still can, you just gotta try really hard

[@MD_Builds]

wholy crap the trolling in this intro... its relentless! "Stop, hes already dead!"

[@Lukiel666]

If the thermal paste manufacturer contacts you to thank you for your support, then it's too much thermal paste.

[@copycatshinobi6920]

Lukiel666 total savage hahahahah

[@JohnDoe-wf6vn]

Lukiel666 lol

[@jamesp5644]

Thermal Grizzly just sends you a letter asking if "you alright fam?"

[@TheRealFobican]

It sure got a lot of thermal paste over the boards here. *Insert Loud Nigra*

[@TonytheGr8]

Lukiel666 lol 😂😂

[@jocopowell]

I don't use thermal paste. I underclock my i9 to 66 mhz and it runs just fine.

[@mrnobody4147]

of course it will do the job,if you dont gaming at the edges the cpu is just fine even without thermal paste.but if you overclocking and play hungry games yes its needed but again doesnt mean the pc will burn if you dont apply thermal paste.but it is good to apply.also is good for the companies to worry too much and go buying expensive thermal pastes...

[@promethean44]

My government teacher has the same last name :D

[@atodaso1668]

I take it you follow the verge? make sure you cap your frame rate as well, don't want them getting too high.

[@rpgamezzz270]

@@atodaso1668 ikr? Why have unlock fps in competitive games? It's useless for quick reaction

[@Rj-to8qm]

@SilentGhilly you can get thermal paste for like 5 bucks

[@Chris-ly8wt]

If you're curious how different application patterns look, you can test the thermal paste spread using glass or a plexiglass sheet that will allow you to see without removing the cooler plate.

[@THE-X-Force]

Just make sure to torque it down to the same pressure as whatever cooler would.

[@Chris-ly8wt]

@@THE-X-Force well yeah

[@derekp6636]

pretty epic and still on point for 2021, repasting old thermal does seem to help more than the method of application.

[@npnstuff]

The human eye cannot see above pea size thermal paste.

[@gordongoodman8342]

Lies.

[@Nadae27]

@@gordongoodman8342 Mate, it's a proven fact

[@packlord2192]

... Therefore we will make a F***ing sunami outta this paste Bi**ch!!! Why are we doing this!? FOR SCIENCE!!!

[@EvoVFX]

@@packlord2192 you are definitely like 9 1. You cant spell 2. You censor your own comments 😂

[@jerry6187]

@@EvoVFX wut thu hel mann he cn spel just as gud a me

[@JarrodsTech]

RIP that socket

[@GamersNexus]

That entire board was already dead!

[@Judge_OnYouTube]

Thermally, it now performs really well.

[@ScanXn]

Gamers Nexus I was like nooooo the socket is ruined... oh he probably used a bad board

[@spinkick9270]

Gamers Nexus thought as much. Nobody wants to kill hardware even if it was free.

[@JarrodsTech]

I figured, still a bit painful to watch 😛

[@volvagia6860]

This continues to pop up in my suggestions and I keep watching it! I can't get enough of the first minute, cracks me up every time!

[@carnsoaks1]

The delta in results could be due to shifting magnetic resonance in the earth's crust due to changing magma densities. The resulting gravimetric changes also dilate time and shorten rulers. So that's gonna play a SMALL PART too.

[@nikpap95]

AHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHA

[@exMuteKid]

This is just flat out wrong, that's not how time dilation works, and also I'm almost certain the mass of an object in space is what's directly correlated with the force of gravity, NOT magnetic fields! Density IS NOT THE SAME AS MASS!! The magma's density may change but the total mass of earth does not therefore gravity remains the same

[@JorgieTV01]

😂😂😂😂

[@stewiepid4385]

Addendum: The coriolis effect.

[@eachone9220]

@@exMuteKid whoosh? Or did I whoosh myself.

[@minecraftermad]

Just take a large tub of thermal paste and dip the whole motherboard in it just to be sure

[@tibinicle]

jklw10 Why are we still here? Just to suffer? Every night, I can feel my leg… and my arm… even my fingers. The body I’ve lost… the comrades I’ve lost… won’t stop hurting… It’s like they’re all still there. You feel it, too, don’t you?

[@minecraftermad]

Oh boy do i

[@rubberguard83]

Lol.

[@imacrazyguy5831]

My eye just twitched a bit.

[@minecraftermad]

you should get some thermal paste for that

[@TheAbsoluteWorst2021]

Steve is the most nonchalant, decisive, cool, calm, and collected pseudocomedian I have ever seen on KZbin. This guy literally has me dying laughing at least once in each of his videos whether it's him being absolutely blown away by someones stupidity, or his mind numbing solutions to poor product design, "And this is how you remove the tempered glass side panel insert." *tips pc until panel falls out face first onto table* *camera facing smile*

[@ITn1njas]

I love your channel! So much detail and helpful info. Thank you for your diligent testing methodology and informative content.

[@michaelcorcoran8768]

I wish there were people who cared this much about evidence in the world of social sciences on KZbin. If you can even call it that.

[@anonamouse5917]

You were being to stingy with the paste in the intro. 1 tube = 1 CPU. Simple.

[@whiteoscreen2383]

Wrong you need a bucket for one CPU ...... XD

[@samohraje2433]

Nope you'll need 2 tubes 1 for cpu and the other one for LGA or PGA socket

[@MrDuck-oi3qc]

First time I build a pc a spend a whole tube.

[@legoivan44321]

No, its 1 CPU = 3000 tubes

[@BM1620]

No ya got it all wrong, it's one tube per core, I used 12 tubes on my 3900x and it was the perfect amount 😆

[@CraftComputing]

Brilliant. Also, that was way too much in the AMD socket. You need an even amount on both top AND bottom for even heat dissipation.

[@homemedia4325]

What IPA would you use on the IHS? ;)

[@pawala7]

Also needs more liquid metal on the Intel socket. Cause it won't be compatible with any future chips anyway.

[@hi-friaudioman]

Craft Computing great channel BTW! I've seen a few of your vids. I'll throw a sub your way.

[@tmi1234567]

Craft Computing I'm crying im laughing so hard.

[@ohiohouston3560]

And filling the spaces between the backplate and mobo drops at least 30c alone

[@Robert-zx2df]

The bigger issue here is the way you have your paper towel roll. It's on the wrong way. Should go on water fall style

[@wyterabitt2149]

It does.

[@killerbung]

He has it the correct way; cats are less likely to un roll it that way.

[@ronniekregar3482]

NOOOOOO......UNDER!!! I hate people that roll their paper towels and toilet paper over the roll, you have no place on this earth.

[@IkethRacing]

I think the "too much" crowd is from the old Arctic Silver 5 days. That paste was very thick and hard for the cooler to squeeze all excess out the sides.

[@smallmoneysalvia]

Beautiful application of thermal paste there. Almost no need for a cooler with the sheer amount of thermal mass.

[@TheSergio1021]

Thermal Mass is the name of my next album

[@bazzti6645]

Actually that amount of paste *insulates* the heatspreader therefore making it even hotter. That's not how thermal paste works

[@smallmoneysalvia]

No of course more is better why else would they call it THERMAL paste?

[@RandomHandGum]

Bazz Ti wooosh

[@sauercrowder]

This is a great idea. Why not just build our own heat sink

[@aaronken7708]

Just thought I'd share this guys, but I applied the amount shown in the video's intro and now my Ryzen 1700x is a 2700x. Thank you.

[@chebs9642]

I downloaded 400gb ram so suck it

[@WolfieHDDd]

I built a $1000 setup to play battle toads. Shut mouth

[@dreadfulbadger]

I put a bunch of thermal paste on my 1050 ti and now its a 1080 ti.

[@andrew2180]

Same

[@RankOneCasual]

I'm shocked by these results. I've only been able to upgrade my soundcard into a surround sound system with paste.

[@Autotrope]

The information density in these videos is off the charts. I have to keep pausing to take it all in!

[@joshkelly531]

I absolutely love the sass here…it was deserved and GN definitely delivered

[@ChaeDoc]

One problem i've had finding out how much thermal paste to apply is getting a visual example. People always try to describe how much to apply but no one i ask is able to show me, so i'm really happy that right at the top of the video you provide an example rather than make me watch the whole 20 minute video.

[@d-o-n-u-t]

Wait *_w h a t_* no stop

[@CelestialShock]

ChaeDoc i heard it was the size of a grain of rice

[@auturgicflosculator2183]

I love the guy writing a book in the replies to this comment on wanting a visual example.

[@epiccollision]

Jonathan Marus you know we are watching an actual test...

[@TheGauges420]

@@auturgicflosculator2183 he gave him a visual example, a US dime. Cant picture anything in my head *besides* a dime when I read 'US dime'...

[@achintya5265]

Gamers Nexus intro: *exists* The Verge: Write that down. Write that down.

[@haka8702]

I would have loved to see a "too dry" one, like when you let it try while working on the PC and so it can not spread that well

[@IkethRacing]

thermal paste dries in hours? more like years

[@charles-antoinemartel-roy]

Yeah from experience, the worst part about leaving thermal paste out in the open while you work on a PC is the risk of dust getting stuck in the paste, which could *in theory* make the thermal paste less effective. But then again, unless you're working on a PC in a sawmill, I can hardly imagine *that* much dust getting stuck there.

[@kennethhester7476]

I wasn't sure how much thermal paste to add, but after 30 seconds of watching this vid, I saw how much and where to apply it, So I saw no need to watch the rest of the video. Thanks GN!

[@anchorbubba]

Steve, we need to have a talk...

[@dark_taco]

C_minus Straight up 😂😂😂

[@rmendoza720]

So I think this is Gamers Nexus way of politely saying STFU about thermal paste

[@diamondsondemand3467]

Lol

[@robertharris6092]

its the mature way of saying to STFU. By proving them wrong.

[@marshingo5262]

No shit

[@akaMyThought]

Lol, yup

[@ethelryan257]

Ya think? Yeah, enough with the basement dwelling couch potato know-it-betters.

[@EhNothing]

This is truly the greatest intro ever shot. It'll never be topped.

[@Mineav]

Love the intro, because I always use a LOT of thermal compound right inside the CPU socket before I put the actual CPU in there. The CPUs never get above 0 degrees. Of course, they never actually start up or work for some reason, so there's that... Maybe I didn't use enough thermal compound?

[@peppers7774]

If it's stayed at 0°c in a abient temp room then you need to turn the heating on

[@Mineav]

@@peppers7774 I like to keep it chilly inside the room. I have pet penguins.

[@loweffortgaming2593]

Didn't use enough. If you had, it would have worked fine and used the mainboard as the heat sink.

[@randytrashcan]

Yeah man, you need more paste if the CPU isn't working properly. I typically apply a bit of water as well to ensure there's great connectivity. No more than a cup of water, though. Usually half a cup works best for me.

[@armanke13]

Try tooth paste

[@kevinparcour8950]

When he put that much of a thermal paste on the intro i was like "haha thats really bad couldn't get any worse" and then he put it on the socket

[@armyofninjas9055]

That intro was amazing lol. It didn't get me until you stream paste all over the pc to slop some on the socket lol.

[@Face_RC]

This video is the gift that keeps on giving.

[@MichaelMolli]

I'm missing "not applying any paste" in the charts.

[@heutemalnicht]

Basically worse than any application method. Jay did a video on this.

[@EVPointMaster]

Might only work with a lapped CPU and cooler

[@Ammothief41]

Heat sinks probably don't sit flush against the heat spreader so it's cheap and easy to use goop to bridge the gap.

[@mahatmagandhiful]

I'll be honest, those first thirty seconds got my eye twitching.

[@SunCityGamer]

mahatmagandhiful me too!

[@permagrin8742]

I’ve never built a pc before. Studied it since I want to someday. I was like WTF! Yes I knew it was a spoof just before he transitioned to the other board. But only just before.

[@SalemTechsperts]

4 years later and I'm battling the entirety of TikTok on one of my videos where I spread a thin layer from a Kryonaut Extreme jug before installing a heatsink.

[@brine1986]

This classic video still being recommended after 4 years :)

[@tiyawn29]

Once when i was a kid i decided to clean my PC. So i did! I pretty much disassembled the whole thing into pieces,without really knowing what each part meant. I was just confident in my visual memory to mount every part where it belongs. So at one point i removed the CPU cooler,and i was like; damn,that is a lot of "dirt" between that cooler and CPU. So i "cleaned" it! Only after a couple of years i accidentally found out that,THAT "dirt" was actually meant to be there and that it was thermal paste. Looking back now,i still have no idea how that CPU survived all those years,but it did! And i used to play A LOT,every single day.

[@XxSoulStealer1997xX]

Let's be real though, that thermal paste was probably already due a change. I haven't seen thermal paste that looks like dirt. Now I'm imagining that the paste was there for so long that is started to be cooked by the actual heat giving that weird dirt color 😂. Glad everything turned out alright for ya.

[@angstyxxo1232]

How does this not have more like xD that’s beautiful!

[@p0xygen]

@@XxSoulStealer1997xX as a kid a weird white paste seems like dirt probably

[@mordofable]

really depends on what CPU it was. when I was young my cpu fan broke. I didn't have any money, so I just took it off... along with the heatsink... because I didn't know any better lol. I just thought to myself "Maybe it'll be fine without it" so I tried it, and it worked. Only on a couple games I played did the computer lag. so I took the side of the case off, kept the computer on its side, and pointed a window fan at it xD that surprisingly helped cool it enough that the games stopped lagging, so that's how I ran my computer for more than a year. It was a celeron 850 - very weak.

[@tiyawn29]

@@mordofable if you beat the crap out of me😅 i still couldn't tell you exactly which one was. Only thing i know is that it was some dual core pentium

[@gallantghost483]

Thousands of voices cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.

[@mrmeval1]

Thousands of threads cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. There fixed it for you.

[@obvious_humor]

Steven Ross-watt issa star wars reference

[@Tyrael1701]

Best intro ever. Love dragging the line across the case :)

[@_specialneeds]

I know this video is 5y old but "paste whisperers" had me rolling😂. Good video.

[@boiledelephant]

Every basic nerd building their first gaming PC: "I'mma spend $20 on thermal paste, it's got actual SILVER in it" "I'mma spend $20 on a no-brand PSU, it says it's 900 Watts!" Priorities, lads.

[@Adinda.1407]

@RectalDiscourse sorry i don't get it

[@budiisnadi]

@RectalDiscourse so it exploded once, and you still use it?

[@CrashForce]

RectalDiscourse so you kept using the PSU despite it doing the very thing it’s not supposed to do which is shoot sparks out of the rear?

[@jayyhick65]

RectalDiscourse you didnt have to say that last part. Christ is good

[@emjay9280]

Q-Tech!

[@sLaMz1o1]

I guarantee some noob is going to watch just the intro, pause the video and say okay I know how much

[@bprincepandey]

ROFL 😂😂😂😂

[@Muslimman570]

Lol

[@rohanjose4967]

So You've created lava

[@ashupashu5559]

@@rohanjose4967 It is a nice light colored lava that will be good objectively. It is a nice light colored lava that will be objectively and factually 2 good.

[@ashupashu5559]

@@roycastanon5754 LPL/LOL.

[@naminova]

Thank you for this video. It's my first time building a PC, and people make out "not enough thermal paste" and "too much thermal paste" as something that'll just ruin the whole thing. I was super nervous! But I feel more confident now, I'll just do what I feel is right and it'll probably be okay.

[@mastigoz]

Dude I literally got goosebumps watching the first 40 seconds of the video.

[@bjd4]

that's why i use CPUs made of thermal paste

[@gfjfjufidi2880]

bjd4 so like every CPU? They all have thermal paste inside them.

[@sik3xploit]

@@gfjfjufidi2880 Nonononono. Thermal paste is being used as materials to make all of the CPU.

[@cloudftw113]

There are a weird a lot of people who cannot detect sarcasm or humor in general in this comment section as a whole.

[@reppy0757]

@@cloudftw113 You gotta be fucking me. I think you're just being a total butthurt douchebag. #YouAreFakeNews

[@miikey_lol]

@@reppy0757 he really isnt, he's just saying the truth

[@EnvAdam]

That intro is hilarious, I love your hater trolling.

[@solocamo3654]

When I'm having a bad day I just watch one of these and all is well. Intro already turned my day around.

[@EnvAdam]

GN trolling is the best way to bring your mood up. pff whos need therapy when you have GN videos.

[@sumwunudontknow]

Just recently subscribed to this channel, could not agree more.

[@StaticVapour590]

It was damn cool in my opinion

[@Zarcondeegrissom]

yeah, on par with Jayz2cent's thermal paste vid as well, that was great. Just keep piling it on, it's non-conductive, lol. And for the non-conductive paste in the socket, well, what's the difference between non-conductive silicon based thermal paste, and silicon dielectric contact grease, nothing, lol. The worst it will do is keep the contacts from oxidizing as fast in the socket.

[@pv8685]

thank you very much for doing this test! you are awesome guys!

[@GlennMcGrewII]

It's interesting to see that the big blob scored the best on this video and the previous one you showcased here.

[@RayZin]

0:28 That’s when my soul left my body

[@durasvve]

lulz, thanks eye can relate to the feels - also, should be further up iMO

[@iamvigant]

I laughed out loud at that point

[@SylvanasWindrunnerResurrected]

I had a NDE

[@fizzarolli5416]

I literally had a jaw dropping reaction when he did this. The poor board. Probably it was broken anyways but still, you don't need to disrespect the dead like that. This physically hurt.

[@aidenbuchler1379]

To be honest, it kind of looked like an older board, anyways.

[@Jdawg33198]

_Still too little thermal paste_

[@benmckenna968]

Way too little thermal paste. It is only enough when it covers the power button on the case

[@lalilulelothepatriots514]

Triggered Omastar LOL

[@icanrememberthis]

Anything less than a thermal paste bukkake is too little.

[@DylanTK]

^ hahaha

[@SuperBrainAK]

yep till it gets to the top of the ram cuz that needs cooling also.

[@Kinzokugia]

My blood pressure spiked watching that first segment

[@johnmijo]

I had to come back and watch this CLASSIC again, thanks again Steve for setting the Thermal Pasty BOIS straight :p

[@volvo09]

Way too funny :) Btw, you're doing your thermal paste wrong, just wanted to let you know.

[@dchilo]

Those first 40 seconds. OMG. I felt very anxious.

[@deadfool5345]

I tried the pee amount but it splashed everywhere in the case

[@ethancj5072]

Smol pee not big pee

[@nuanil]

pea, not pee

[@deadfool5345]

I think this is where I went wrong 😬

[@sakethkanumuri1280]

nuanil r/woooosh

[@Ouroboross-]

Saketh Kanumuri This is KZbin you idiot why the fuck are you using Reddit tags??

[@MrReese]

I only came across this now, still very very helpful. The more you know!

[@JamieNemeth]

Thank you for the reassurance! Even I've attracted the "too much thermal paste" comment on my much smaller scale (in fact, they said "way too much thermal paste", which, erm, I think you've redefined!) I started with a pea-sized dot, on my new aftermarket cooler, and when I started it up, under medium load the thermals just didn't feel right: they were higher than with the stock cooler, and fluctuating more. I wanted to be more scientific in my testing, but didn't want to push things with the best PC I had at the time, so I just powered down and re-did the paste straight away. I'd never owned a cooler with copper heatpipes before, and when I pulled it off, it was the opposite problem to gaps in IHS coverage: the IHS wasn't too badly covered, actually, but the paste had gone in the gaps between the pipes on the cooler, and left a lot of the heat pipe area untouched (there were four heat pipes, and I'd have said only two had anywhere near a significant amount of paste on them.) I found advice that, in this instance, you should apply a small amount of paste linearly on each pipe, which seemed to make intuitive and logical sense. So I did that, and got the "way too much" comment. But the thermals are much better and much more well-behaved, so...yeah...I'm happy...even happier after watching this video! (Besides, even if there was too much, it was a mere fraction of a tube...and I'd gained experience of what would happen to the excess paste, anyway...it'd probably end up 'safely' in between the pipes!)

[@UHPhilipA]

I can feel everyone’s cringe when he moved to the other board. Lol

[@Pazo139]

It was hilarious

[@ralzr.4450]

i think my vision turned into white noise for a second

[@TezzyRs]

I literally gasped

[@EperkeDashh]

It was probably a dead board

[@du39104]

I literally had a stroke by witnessing that movement.......

[@Britec09]

This debate never seems to go away and has been around for years.

[@Britec09]

I agree, these type of myths will run and run.

[@madmax2069]

Britec09 yup, and it's annoying as hell they continue on even with proof against their claim.

[@timothyandrewnielsen]

I am that person. Now let's debate what the best method is.

[@madmax2069]

himynameistim it's a moot point debating now due to the videos he has done providing the different methods.

[@timothyandrewnielsen]

Best method is thing layer.

[@andrewrangel8277]

I had an ex gf break up with me because I apply too much toothpaste onto my toothbrush. True story.

[@tokiomitohsaka7770]

That joke at the intro reminded me of that old Tek Syndicate video of Logan putting toothpaste instead of thermal paste and also on the socket. It was hilarious!

[@thijsbrundel3076]

I remove the silver thing on the cpu and apply it right to the cores!

[@Kuri0]

@Martin M laptop's lol

[@adamthomas6643]

There are people that do it

[@adamthomas6643]

Windforce Yeah of course, plus you gotta take off the retention mechanism so it’s a little sketchy when taking it off lol. And I remember the days! I used to chuck my CPUs in the vice to keep it steady and cut the ihs off with a razor blade, oh how times have changed.

[@adamthomas6643]

Josh12342 Do you mean the IHS?

[@adamthomas6643]

Josh12342 I’m aware but if you’re gonna act like a smartass might as well use the actual name for it...

[@judestubbs]

Just upgraded my I5-9600k to an I9-9900k and I thought I put on too much paste (went for a larger pea slightly spread). After I tightened aio then pulled it off to see 2 small streaks pushed out I looked up this video. Cleaned off the 2 small streaks and tightened it back down. It’s running great. You rule Nexus. Thanks for putting up with the internet and doing what you do.

[@jatyin117]

What are your temps? I idle in the mid 40's. My i5-8600k used to idle in the 30's.

[@judestubbs]

@@jatyin117 even under heavy load never over 70C, my idle is in the high 40s

[@jatyin117]

@@judestubbs Damn, mine at 100% load puts me at 85c. I do have XMP enabled though, if that matters at all. I heard that can raise temps a bit.

[@judestubbs]

@@jatyin117 idk, but I have it enabled as well. I believe XMP only affects your RAM speeds but I’m not sure.

[@ghimmy47]

Old video, but I did stop worrying about it DECADES ago. Still using Artic Silver 5 and thin, even cover with a credit card. Always worked. Never saw a dead cpu.

[@tomghzel]

I would like to see a 'no thermal paste' for reference

[@NaptownClassic]

Was thinking the same.

[@hughmungus2946]

*cpu explodes*

[@LuisGalindo0]

Jay had no thermal paste on this challenge: kzbin.info/www/bejne/goC4aniXa5WNsMU

[@dcngn_]

im currently running a 2500k with the original intel cooler and without thermal paste lol. I also use the integrated GPU, as my actual GPU broke. Playing league of legends my temps are around 90-99 degrees.the heat spreader has been ground flat when I bought it, not sure if it makes any difference.

[@tomghzel]

@@dcngn_ stock has thermal paste on the back of the cooler already right? Some sort of.

[@philscomputerlab]

This was both, entertaining, and really useful.

[@aarongarza4769]

PhilsComputerLab Phil watches GamersNexus as well!? I knew there was a reason I subbed to both channels.

[@blakedmc1989RaveHD]

nice to see ya here as well Phil :P

[@skyelark155]

And stupid

[@arib9877]

Amazing data collection! Thank you

[@matthewcurry3565]

When someones sarcasm can actually trick me for a few seconds before the obvious is displayed I enjoy it thoroughly. Thanks gor the laugh, and great vid as usual.

[@oldrandomcomputing6247]

That intro was genuinely difficult to watch. Send help.

[@trantuong789]

Watching it make my soul hurt a little. Probably gave my unconciousness an idea for a new nightmare too...

[@deStRuktOnXBL]

Ibuypower team took notes from the intro and went to work lol, I've heard most of thier stuff prior may 2019 sometimes suffered performance from over amounts of thermal paste.

[@FSM_Reviews]

"Help" [SEND] FORWARD DRAFT DELETE

[@Kerouha]

Watch it the second time, it should help.

[@TheUnrealPancake]

10:19 Ahhhh, I see you guys even tested "The Verge" method even before it was named that. Great job! :)

[@fizz9698]

I'm dying lmao

[@CaveyMoth]

You not icing a cake! It look like a stop sign!

[@DDRWakaLaka]

people seem to forget that the verge one didn't just use too much paste, they left the pre-applied stuff on the AIO cooler and just slapped it on top!

[@powalovesmusic]

@@DDRWakaLaka this, lmao "since usually the pre-applied paste is not enough...."

[@geonerd]

I saw the thumbnail and came here just to read (or make) comments like this! :)

[@CrassSpektakel]

There is another technique for apply thermal paste: rice on chess board. In that case you put several very small droplets across the CPU, barelly the size of rice corns. I use a 3x3 pattern for small CPUs like Socket 11xx and up to 7x5 for Socket 3647. I usually make the middle drop quite a bit larger than the rest but way below pea size. This techique usually coveres the whole die pretty good and is quick to apply. From educated guesswork I would say you can use less thermal paste than with most other techniques.

[@argh1989]

There are probably a bunch of other techniques out there. Personally I went with the X-method, so basically drawing a diagonal cross. I think for a given amount of paste, that is the best shape to ensure it spreads out into all the corners, while having the lowest risk of getting air trapped.

[@sauercrowder]

That seems very likely to trap air when it spreads. Much more so than a single application in the middle.

[@lupercalrising2208]

Lol I was cracking up watching all that paste pile up and then audibly gasped when they moved over to the other set without stopping hahahaha 😆 🤣

[@NickCharles]

I'd just like to say that, even a year later, this remains my absolute favorite intro of all your videos. Thank you for this absolute fucking gem of an intro.

[@alextimmreck2891]

Oh the intros you can make when you have plenty of dead motherboards

[@Krigalishnikov]

One more now

[@daffabarin8664]

@@Krigalishnikov including the verge's

[@paulluce2557]

Check out Dennis from Linus Tech Tips...

[@TH3C001]

I can’t stop coming back to this video for the intro alone. Sure LTT is entertaining, but Gamers Nexus, when they feel like being funny, can be absolutely hysterical 😂 I’ve had some of my best laughs on this channel.

[@hamdanali2036]

man why are your videos to this day still twice as long as they need to be

[@GodlikeIridium]

I love watching this video again every year xD With thermal paste it's like with flux when soldering: Not enough is possible! Too much is not! (Except for liquid metal but that's a niche case exception).

[@Hezzadude12]

Thermal paste directly into the socket? Dennis from LMG would be so proud

[@oldrandomcomputing6247]

Instructions unclear. Got thermal paste in my eye.

[@scottmurphy4946]

Now you can OC your eye above 2020

[@oldrandomcomputing6247]

@@scottmurphy4946 No optical throttling here...

[@towsif_8_128]

Human eye can see only 1000 fps at 37 degree celcius temperature with no cooler, now you can overclock it as much as you want.

[@alex1.2]

Instructions unclear. Managed to water cool my house with thermal paste and have now got it up my nose

[@humorss]

pro gamer always put proper cooling in their eyes.

[@OlSmokey304]

5 Years later this intro is still gold 🤣

[@professorh8398]

The first part of this video needs to be a Short 😂 So funny.

[@crashbandicoot5636]

This is by far your most painful video, even to this day. It's an absolute masterpiece.

[@jrno93]

I submerge my mobo in liquid cooled liquid nitrogen. Cpu won't boot but at least the Temps are low

[@geoffhart]

www.pugetsystems.com/submerged.php

[@TheAdatto]

How do you liquid cool liquid nitrogen?

[@NJ-wb1cz]

@@TheAdatto Cool liquid nitrogen is already liquid, you don't need to liquid it further.

[@TheAdatto]

@@NJ-wb1cz duh. That's why i commented

[@NJ-wb1cz]

@@TheAdatto i bet your liquid nitrogen is uncool and solid though

[@snaplash]

I made a spreader tool from a piece of hacksaw blade. I heated it, hammered the set out of the teeth, and sanded the sharp points off. Mounted it on a handle, and used it like notched tile adhesive spreader. Today, you could probably make a better one with a 3D printer. Also, you could use 1/2" clear acrylic plastic in the shape of a heat sink plate (with hold-down mechanism) to see exactly how it spreads. You could them use a micrometer to measure the actual thickness of the film by measuring the thickness of the sandwich and subtracting the plastic thicknesses.

[@pseudologue5965]

It's been 5 years and I still come back to this video just to watch that intro

[@cough_sneeze]

Intro reaction: Aaaaaaaaahhh. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[@giddeonlazarus2093]

Lmao that avatar

[@Dorraj]

I was dealing just fine when putting it over the IHS, but once he started pouring it out into the socket, I started losing it

[@cy-one]

The intro made me physically uncomfortable.

[@Olivia-W]

Yes. When he did that to the socket, something... broke... inside of me.