Advice on upgrading RAM and GPU on m15x

Hi everyone!

Am looking to do two upgrades - upgrading to 4GB of Ram (2x2GB), and upgrading from 8700mGT to the ATI 3870HD. I've ordered the graphics card already, and its arrived (hurray!), but havnt ordered the ram yet, as I cant decide between Crucial's 4GB kit ( http://www.ebuyer.com/product/142423) or Kingston hyperx ( http://www.ebuyer.com/product/146770), and was wondering which was better - or are they pretty much the same?

Second thing is upgrading the graphics card, this will be my first time upgrading a graphics card so sorry for the silly questions.

1) Looking at previous theads on thermal paste, it looks like arctic silver is the best, but I was wondering if it would be better to use the ceramic or silver based compound?
2) What prequations should I take to properly ground myself before installing the graphics card - Reading on alienware they suggest just touching the VGA port for a while (as the m15x doesnt have one I assume I should use the HDMI port). But I was wondering if I would benefit from a anti-static wrist band and clipping it to a USB port, or is touching the HDMI port good enough?

Thanks!

Chris.

 

The Kingstom RAM will likely be faster due to the timings but only by a miniscule amount. Seeming though as they cost nearly the same might as well go for it.

As for grounding yourself, I'm not really sure.

the silver based compound will perform better. However I would recommend Innovative Cooling Diamond paste, it's incredibly easy to apply and should perform better, and reaches max cooling after 2 hours curing compared to 200 hours for the Arctic Silver. Can be bought here:

http://watercooled-pcs.co.uk/en/thermal-compound/ic-diamond-7-carat-thermal-compound-1-5g-.html

Basically for the IC Diamond paste, apply a 5mm (pea sized) bead to the center of the GPU and put the heatsink on top, applying pressure firmly. Make sure the heatsink is in fairly tight to apply pressure on the paste, but not so tight that it damages anything. Wait 10 minutes (evaporation time) and then turn it on. Instructions can be found here: http://www.innovationcooling.com/applicationinstructions.htm

 

Brilliant, thanks evilcosair!
Compared the IC diamond paste to arctic silver - looks better so will probrably go for it.
As for cleaning up the thermal paste that is there already - I assume the arctic silver cleaner should do fine shouldn't it?

Anyone have any further ideas on how to ground myself?
Thanks