Cooling for CPU advice

[Nay]

Im so easily swayed when it comes to this lol
Gonna have to think about it between those 2! Thanks for all the advice, know between which ones itll be now. Gonna have to read up some more and hopefully manage to decide

Did the freezer 13 pro need me to remove the motherboard to put those things on on the backside?

 

[Phrost Phantom]

Hello!

I would really appreciate some advice on a new water cooling/fan for my cpu.

Im using the Phenom II x6 1090T, and the stock fan that comes with it is just too loud for me. I shouldve actually changed it a long time ago but ive been too lazy.
Other than that, the fan works quite well as in cooling down the cpu, but the noise is too much for me to take.

So i checked around a bit and i cant decide between water cooling or another fan that doesnt produce noise as a departing plane.
But i have no idea which one are good at what, the pros & cons, and would really appreciate some help and advice!

I checked some fans:
Noctua CPU-Kylare NH-U9B SE2
Noctua CPU-Kylare NH-D14
Noctua NH-C14 CPU

And also read people that recommended corsairs water cooling.

But once again i have no idea what to look at/whats better.

My main goal is basically to get a much more silent cooler, because this stock one is very very loud. But also one that that has good-great cooling ability.

Im looking at something thats around ~70$

Im using the Asus Socket AM3 (M4A785D-M PRO), which is quite tiny, and my case isnt that big either (looking to buy a new one though). My ram sticks arent low profile either, as i checked some fans, they seem quite giant and dont really know if it would fit either?

Thanks in advance!

From what I've heard and fallowed, there is no sense in getting a water cooler usless you get a h100 or the Antec 920 KUHLER. I got the 920 because my case doesn't allow for that dual radiator on the h100.

 

[Idontcare]

From what I've heard and fallowed, there is no sense in getting a water cooler usless you get a h100 or the Antec 920 KUHLER. I got the 920 because my case doesn't allow for that dual radiator on the h100.

Even then it is questionable whether you get an H100 or a high-end air like the NH-D14. I own both, the D14 is cheaper and gives me temps that are maybe 1-2C warmer than the H100.

 

[coffeejunkee]

NH-D14 shouldn't be blocking ram slots unless you have those silly tall ram coolers on your dimms.

Here's my D14 sitting over-top (plenty of clearance) my GSkill DDR3-2133 4GB sticks:

Figured OP might have the Corsair Vengeances with the tall heatspreaders, but the GSkills fit easily indeed. Still, it's a pita if one of those first 2 sticks dies, and the other a week later.

Instead, Noctua comes with adapters, so you can fix the speed, if necessary. If you choose the ULNA adapter, you will never hear the fan during your computer experience, it's much nicer than, say, to have an atrociously noisy fan coming down in revs, say CM 212+ (PWM fan).

D14 is the best air cooler, I've had. Even passively, it can dissipate quite a lot of heat on its own. Even though, I'm now running C12P SE14 (changed to a smaller case).

The build quality and the service is second to none.

Personally I don't like the adapters. If I spend $80 on a cooler I want to be able to use it to it's max potential, for instance during overclock stresstesting. It might get too hot with the 5V adapter and the 7V adapter is not quiet enough during idle for my liking. If you run stock this is less relevant, but in that case you don't really need it in the first place.

Now, some boards offer both pwm and dc control for the cpufan (Gigabyte, Intel) but largest manufacturer Asus' (and also Asrock, MSI) boards can only control pwm fans, and it's been that way for almost 5 years now. At first Noctua could at least say they didn't have pwm fans, but the socket 2011 NH-D14 does come with pwm fans so there's no reason for them to not put them on the normal model as well.

Unless someone has virtually the same CPU as you and overclocks to the same extent, I think the only answer to that is 'try it and see'.

There's the Freezer 13 Pro as well, but I was put off that one by the titchy fan at the base (which is supposed to cool the heat pipes and base quicker), because in my experience, titchy fans = premature failures and whiny noises, but I'm probably wrong in this case.

I think the Freezer 13 Pro will do well, notice it has 8mm heatpipes instead of the normal 6mm. I saw that small fan too but I would just not connect it, seems a bit useless.

 

[KingFatty]

I could see paying extra for water cooling because you want the neato aspect of having water cooling.

So don't get it just to gain a smidge more overclock, get it to have a neat hobby aspect wow factor.

Like buying a piece of art you hang on your wall. It's just cool, and you pay more for the coolness factor.

 

[FridayThe13th]

That being said I have a h100 and love it...

have you ever owned something other than a Corsair water cooling product?

Or any other product of water cooling period?

I could see paying extra for water cooling because you want the neato aspect of having water cooling.

So don't get it just to gain a smidge more overclock, get it to have a neat hobby aspect wow factor.

Like buying a piece of art you hang on your wall. It's just cool, and you pay more for the coolness factor.

I thought the point of water cooling was to provide low temperatures and low noise?

Guess it might be a noctuas, but i got no idea which one i should get.
how loud is the h100? Are the other corsairs ones loud?
It might also be that im traumazied by the phenom stock fan since it really can go through loud music if it runs on the max

Thanks

if you spend $100 to buy a corsair water cooling product, just spend the $150 and get a start up xspc water cooling kit, you can expand it and the good thing about it is its a real water cooling system instead of just a closed loop that your overpaying for.

 

[coffeejunkee]

Uhm I kinda agree with you but I don't really see why you would spent double the price of an air cooler that already costs double of what you really need. Sure you can expand it, but apart from the costs, real watercooling is just not very practical with all the maintenance required.

 

[Nay]

Thanks for all the help guys!
I think i will go with the d14, the h100 is a bit too expensive here, and the d14 seem to do really good according to everyones input and the tests u showed IDC and will prob last quite long!

 

[tweakboy]

You should be able to control the fan speed. I guess not. gl

 

[Arg Clin]

I'm on a C12P SE14 in my main rig, and an NH-L12 in my HTPC. Great coolers for noise sensitive people like me. A bit pricy though, but worth it IMO.

If you get something form Noctua and are willing to pay the price I don't think you can go wrong on performance/quiet really. The biggest concern is probably to find one that fits- I believe Noctua has some guides on their website for mainboard compatability.

 

[Nay]

oh yeah!
http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=compatibility_gen&products_id=34&lng=en
found this one. im using the M4A785D-M PRO, so hopefully it should work as it says

 

[Nay]

Finally, i got the d14 in the end!
i also bought a new case, so i had to take apart everything.

A bit off topic maybe, but when i got everything together, the pc would start but didnt boot, no signal to the screen.
Every fan is going but nothing else. Then i noticed the PSU had stopped working (fan didnt run). PSU worked perfectly fine before i took everything apart. Also none of the lights for power on etc doesnt go on.
So now i have no idea what to look at and whats wrong.

My specs again:
AMD Phenom II X6 1090T Black Edition
PowerColor Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5
If i got it right my PSU is:
Fortron ATX-400PNF
Power output 400W
Input voltage 220-240V ~ 5A, 50Hz

Could it be that output is too low to handle d14?

On another thing, for my graphic card i had gotten an extra cable to get more voltage to it. When i remove the cable from the graphic card the d14 runs a lot faster, than with. But still the PC doesnt boot anything.

Hope it wasnt too confusing, not sure how to explain as im clueless of what has happened.
Would appreciate your help once again!

Thanks

 

[Nay]

Here are some pics, sorry for the bad pics i couldnt take any better atm. I dont think ive forgotten to connect anything but still unsure, hence the stupid text boxes.

Thanks again

 

[Magic Carpet]

Personally I don't like the adapters. If I spend $80 on a cooler I want to be able to use it to it's max potential, for instance during overclock stresstesting.

If you can't use Smart Fan and are planning on 24/7 OC activies, just use as it is. At 12V they are still quiet fans.

It might get too hot with the 5V adapter and the 7V adapter is not quiet enough during idle for my liking. If you run stock this is less relevant, but in that case you don't really need it in the first place.

Of course you do, if your temps stay fine, there is no need to enjoy the higher acoustics.

Now, some boards offer both pwm and dc control for the cpufan (Gigabyte, Intel) but largest manufacturer Asus' (and also Asrock, MSI) boards can only control pwm fans, and it's been that way for almost 5 years now.

It's not brand dependent. My MSI Z77A-G43 can easily control both, while I agree some boards have these limitations (I had one Z77 (premium) model Gigabyte that refused to control voltage). In my experience, not a single MSI H/Z77/B75 board I have purchased had this limitation (I must have been very fortunate). Certainly, if you're the unlucky owner of a board that lacks such a basic feature, then you have to use a PWM fan instead or a separate fan controller.

At first Noctua could at least say they didn't have pwm fans, but the socket 2011 NH-D14 does come with pwm fans so there's no reason for them to not put them on the normal model as well.

And guess what? They didn't, until recently. The 2011 edition is simply their newest product. You can order PWM fans separately, though.

Personally, I still dislike the current implementation of a PWM fan, even if it revs up for a split of a second, it is still an annoyance in otherwise a totally silent system. Imagine, if your iPhone was making a sporadic noise during normal operation? Same thing.

 

[Nay]

Aghh, so i tried the paperclip method and my psu fan didnt start. So i tried connectibg the front case fan as well and that one started but the psu still wouldnt start. So from thos i can assume that my psu is totally dead and need to get a new one? If so what couldve caused it to stop working since it did just before i took apart everything?
Oh one thing though, after i got everything together in the new case+d14 the psu fan actually ran, however nothing did boot. Second time it stopped running. Did i do somethibg really wrong that couldve damaged it?

Another question is, since as i said avove, when i first tried to start the psu did run, but didnt boot - showed no signal to screen now if i get s new psu would that fix the issue?


Thanks in advance

 

[Magic Carpet]

Disconnect everything (unplug PSU cable for a minute), re-connect only motherboard (24 PIN) and CPU (4 or 8 PIN) cables. Re-seat memory sticks and video card. Power on, anything on screen?

 

[Nay]

Thanks for replying! Ill try do that when i get off class. I was just thinking if theres another way to test, because to unplug the d14 and the ram, i need to remove the whole motherboard out from the case, then d14 etc, a lot of hassle t_t
By unplugging the cpu, you mean to take it ouy from the socket?

----
Ok gof im so stupid, i plugged in for electricity to the motherboard but i didnt do the 4pin to the cpu... Im ashamed.

I guess the problem now is that with the paperclip test, my power supply fan does not snart, however current still going through since i tried a chassi fan through it.
This means ill hsve to get s new power supply?

 

[coffeejunkee]

If you can't use Smart Fan and are planning on 24/7 OC activies, just use as it is. At 12V they are still quiet fans.

Well, we must have different definitions of quiet. There is no way I'm sitting next to a NH-D14 all day with both fans at full speed, or any other cooler with 1350rpm fans for that matter. 300rpm, that's what I call quiet, and I can actually still hear that when it's quiet in the evening/at night.

Of course you do, if your temps stay fine, there is no need to enjoy the higher acoustics.

Look, I enjoy luxury and never penny pinch on a cooler, but there is just no way the NH-D14 (or the Phantek, or the Silver Arrow etc) is a good deal for any cpu running stock. There are plenty of alternatives that cool way more than necessary with very low noise at half the cost.

It's not brand dependent. My MSI Z77A-G43 can easily control both, while I agree some boards have these limitations (I had one Z77 (premium) model Gigabyte that refused to control voltage). In my experience, not a single MSI H/Z77/B75 board I have purchased had this limitation (I must have been very fortunate). Certainly, if you're the unlucky owner of a board that lacks such a basic feature, then you have to use a PWM fan instead or a separate fan controller.

Actually it is brand dependent, although I may be wrong about MSI. The thing is, almost no review ever mentions vital stuff like this, it's always: "oh yeah, there's a bunch of fanheaders too" but nothing about if they can be controlled, and if so, what kind of control, pwm, dc or both. So I have to search high and low, hope the manual contains any sort of information or base my knowledge on other peoples experiences, as described in this thread for example: http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2292328 in which the op clearly states his 3-pin fans are running full speed when connected to the cpu fan header on his MSI board. Maybe he missed some setting and I would be grateful if you could elaborate. What I can tell you is that my Asus board can only control pwm fans and it's been that way since their P35 boards (while my Asus 965 board did control both 3-pin and pwm fans).

And guess what? They didn't, until recently. The 2011 edition is simply their newest product. You can order PWM fans separately, though.

Yes, that's what I said? But as could be expected, the s2011 edition only fits on s2011 boards. 2 Noctua pwm fans will cost at least $40 extra.

Personally, I still dislike the current implementation of a PWM fan, even if it revs up for a split of a second, it is still an annoyance in otherwise a totally silent system. Imagine, if your iPhone was making a sporadic noise during normal operation? Same thing.

Annoying rev ups can be fixed by adjusting the fanprofile, while still giving you the option of going full out when needed. Using resistors disables any control whatsoever. We can argue all day but it's a simple fact you're giving up control. It's ok if you don't care about that but please don't present it as a perfect solution.

 

[Nay]

Finally got the PC up and running, my PSU had suddenly died doh...
So far, really happy with the d14 compared to the stock fan, finally im free from crap load fan noise. This one is really quiet and im not even using the uh... two extra things to make it more quiet and run on lower rpm.

Appreciate all the help once again, Thanks!

 

[Headfoot]

Used the Coolermaster Hyper 212+ over and over and I've been consistently impressed with how well it works for how inexpensive it is