Noob Q: Do I need Thermal Paste?

[LeftyAce]

I know I need it, but did it come with the cpu? I got a retail AMD 64 cpu from newegg. Theres a sticky square of something on the bottom of the heatsink, but the instructions say "You must apply thermal paste". The stickey stuff is in a square the size of the processor. Is this pre-applied thermal paste?
Sorry for the noob question, Im kinda nervous not to screw anything up.....first build, lots of $$$$, etc.

[Mr.Ferrari]

No you dont need any additional thermalpaste. Just put that heatsink on top of the proc and your ready to go.

[flanzig1]

Retail CPUs that come with heatsink has a thermal pad on the heatsink, so, yes the sticky stuff is the thermal compound. The instructions are probably generic for either OEM or retail packaging.

[LeftyAce]

Thank you! Sorry for the noobishness.

[jayb1234]

There should be a thin layer of plastic over the thermal pad. Remove that before installation.