A few months ago, we tested seven methods for applying thermal compound in order to determine which was the best.
At the time, we concluded that a small dot in the center of the CPU is the best method to apply thermal compound. But this conclusion may be applied only for the hardware we used, and, since we ran our tests using a CPU cooler with a mirror-like base, we couldn’t extrapolate that result for coolers with different characteristics, such as direct touch heatpipes coolers.
In those coolers, there are gaps and irregularities on the base of the cooler which may need a different quantity or procedure to apply thermal compound. That’s why we are testing again. This time we will try to answer the question, “What is the best way to apply thermal grease on direct-touch heat pipes CPU coolers?
Full story at Hardware Secrets.