mx-2 is not as efficient as mx-4 and arctic silver 5. provided application is more important that content , you can expect upto 2-3c higher in temps , now as for overclocking i use msi afterburner, it gives me all the necessary details and options i want. replacing thermal paste is actually quite easy, the i7 mobile series from intel (unlike their desktop counter-parts ) comes without the heat spreader and look alot like a small rectangular box called a die.. made form metal... unlike the i5 series which looks more like a perfect square. to apply you new thermal paste , you first need to get that old material off . try and clean most of it using some cotton swabs(if its still a liquid) or you might have to use some isopropyl alcohol to get the chucks to come off..once a cotton swabs get dirty,switch it for another one and repeat this process until the die looks like a mirror. there should be no particles of dust what so ever, the same has to done to the heat-sink where the die comes in contact with . do not use any sharp objects such as knives etc, which are known to create even bigger grooves in the heat-sink which means its less effective at removing heat or crack the die at which point the cpu is basically broken. once the cpu and heat-sink are completely cleaned, let then dry out for about 2 mins..since your using alcohol it will dry up in no time. now in this period there is a chance that dust may have gotten on you cpu and heatsink so make sure to run some microfiber cloth over them..now you only want to apply little as possible ..because adding too much can cause the thermal compound to act more like an insulator rather that actually transfer the heat. so if you have a i5 or less or any cpu that looks like a box, them apply a small pea shaped amount in the middle or if the cpu looks like a rectangle, put the thermal compound in a line running perpendicular to the cpu. don't go all the way to the edges .. just a mini meter behind or 2.. otherwise it just becomes excess and falls outside the contact area. once applied re-seat the heat-sink flat onto the cpu or you might cause the thermal compound to run off the one side and only cover half the area its supposed to. once applied flat, follow the order of screws mention on the heat-sink itself or if its really old, go in a diagonal application to make sure the compound spreads out evenly across the cpu. your done. (PS:- you can use mx-2 if you have no other compound to use...like i said application method is more important that the type actually used . but i you want the best performance then go get the ones ive mentioned forehand. cheers! oh and if any more questions feel free to ask!
EDIT:- unlike mx-4, arctic silver 5 has a week long (200hrs) curing time during which you can expect the temps to drop another 3-5c but arctic silver lasts upto 2 years ... where as mx-4 there is no curing time and you get the lowest temps possible from the beginning but after a year or so the compound starts to go bad and harden up. so personally i recommend AR5. cheers!
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