Corsair Factory TIM vs Arctic SIlver 5

I re-set the block on my h110i the other day. Socket temp seems down from 68 to 65c, core temp up from 58 to 65c(p95 20min mark). Ambient temps same. Is the temp difference that big after burn in? If applied properly AS5 should produce better temps than stock TIM, even before it's had time to cure? Seems like I should pull it and start over. Should I tint the heatsink and cap, like arctic silver suggests? A grain of rice dollop right in the center should be good, right?

Most of the time, the difference in temps is more due to a better TIM application and mount then the actual TIM itself. If you look at reviews the difference between the very best and worst is like 6-7c. As far as application goes, for my Fx chip I do an X about the size of a small piece of rice. For my newer intel chips a dot in the middle works just fine. The Corsair TIM is decent so you may not see any difference between it and the AS5.

There are many pastes that have been around for years that are better than AS-5 by more than a few C. Just wanted to toss that out there.

Last I checked the roundups.. like 3c separated the common pastes from worst to best.
http://overclocking.guide/thermal-p...d-with-air-cooling-and-liquid-nitrogen-ln2/6/

I consider 'a few' to be four to six (then several)

Although I'm not getting crazy higher temps, I didn't expect to see anything but the same or slightly better. First attempt was pea sized, second was half that(core temp actually went up here) today it's a grain of rice. We'll see what happens. I've run my fans 50% at idle, p95 for 30min, then idle for 30. Repeat a couple times then power down for an hour. Doing that 4-5 times a day, and have not seen improved temps. I'm thinking the lid corners look to be slightly curled up, and that having thicker paste layer fills the void. Gonna let this run for 2 days before I consider trying again.

I use the line method with arctic ceramique