Help with CPU cooler choises

[Jorund]

Hello, first post here.

 

I'll get quickly to the point since these kind of questions are proberly asked over and over..

 

I'm planning to get a new pc case since my current one is damn noisy and broken. (Thermaltake v9) And after a long research I've ended up at getting the CM 690 II Advanced.

So now to my question, What would be the most appropriate CPU cooler for this case that would make me happy to dispose my AMD stock cooler ?

 

I'm planning to go for a Red/white/black theme without leds, so I was quite drawn by the new Tt Frio, but I'm afraid it's to big or heavy for my new mid case.

 

I really would appreciate any suggestions about this matter.

 

Cheers, Jorund.

 

*Edit: Air coolers only.

Edited September 2, 2010 by Jorund

[Imagine]

I would recommend the Noctua NH-D14 but you mention issues with weight and size (LOL) So I'd say a Noctua U12P-SE2 would probably be your next best bet. By the way which CPU are you cooling I don't think you mentioned.

[ccokeman]

The Noctua is a great choice but does not fit in the color scheme. The FRIO is not bad and meets that color requirement. The FRIO cools as well as the Noctua but is much louder while doing it. You could always paint the Noctua fans to get you to your color scheme!

[anna1239]

I also encountered this problem, but do not know how good and a later.

dofus kama

http://www.ok1225.com

[mpj]

You could also consider replacing the fans on a higher end HSF to match your color scheme, but obviously this is going to cost you a couple extra bucks. Not sure what your budget is, but its an option I suppose.

[Jorund]

Thank you all for the replies.

 

I would recommend the Noctua NH-D14 but you mention issues with weight and size (LOL) So I'd say a Noctua U12P-SE2 would probably be your next best bet. By the way which CPU are you cooling I don't think you mentioned.

 

Yeah, I've already wandered upon this brand, they indeed seem to be high quality, I'll keep that one in mind, I like the push/pull config. And indeed, my apologies! It's a Phenom II x4 940 black edition (not overclocked yet) on a Asus M4A78 Pro.

 

The Noctua is a great choice but does not fit in the color scheme. The FRIO is not bad and meets that color requirement. The FRIO cools as well as the Noctua but is much louder while doing it. You could always paint the Noctua fans to get you to your color scheme!

 

Yeah, I've read about the frio being loud, what a shame because it looks like such a nice cooler. Anyway painting? It's a possitiblty, i'll keep it in mind.

 

You could also consider replacing the fans on a higher end HSF to match your color scheme, but obviously this is going to cost you a couple extra bucks. Not sure what your budget is, but its an option I suppose.

 

That's a good idea, but lets say we're talking about replacing the fans on the Noctua U12P-SE2, would it matter what kind of fans I would choose? I took a closer look at the Noctua and saw it has 4 little clips/brackets to hold the fan down against the heatsink, so any 120 fan should fit right?

[Jorund]

Btw, with the question if the Noctua U12P-SE2 would fit in the CM 690 II Advanced I ended up through google here: CM 690 II A review - page 4@Neoseeker

It's a review of the CM case but also it is shown that the Noctua U12P is installed, with images. I quote from this page:

 

I used the Noctua NH-U12P heatsink and while it did fit without issues, it's about as big as you can go in this case. It also made it impossible to install a fan in the top opening on the inside of the side panel.

 

Noting that this is the normal discontinued version I compaired the measurements with the SE2 version and they match perfectly except that the newer one has got 2 fans instead of 1.

So it's good to know I won't have a problem with fitting it.

 

Done with that I read this in the specifications of the U12P-SE2; Fan compatibility: 120x120x25mm / 120x120x38mm

So I suppose any fan that falls within these specific sizes will fit on the heatsink?

 

Cheers, J.

[Jorund]

Any opinions about the Spire Thermax Eclipse II? It seems like a good preformer and fits the color theme but a bit more noisy then the Noctua.

[Speedway]

Just curious, I know you said air coolers only, but have you considered the Corsair H50. I know it's not air, but it is a self contained, hassle free, no maintenence water solution. Very quiet and easy to install! It will also compete will all of the high end air coolers! Might want to check it out!

[Jorund]

Just curious, I know you said air coolers only, but have you considered the Corsair H50. I know it's not air, but it is a self contained, hassle free, no maintenence water solution. Very quiet and easy to install! It will also compete will all of the high end air coolers! Might want to check it out!

 

To be honest with you, I never really took a look at this cooler, and I must say that I'm quite impressed! It looks quite neat and not so space consumign like those huge heatsinks of aircoolers. Thanks for showing this. I'm gonna check up the size of that radiator and pump/heatsink to see if the size is any trouble for the cm 690 II advncd, but I doubt it.

 

Cheers, j.

[Speedway]

To be honest with you, I never really took a look at this cooler, and I must say that I'm quite impressed! It looks quite neat and not so space consumign like those huge heatsinks of aircoolers. Thanks for showing this. I'm gonna check up the size of that radiator and pump/heatsink to see if the size is any trouble for the cm 690 II advncd, but I doubt it.

 

Cheers, j.

 

 

No problem! It really is a great cooler, I used it before I went full blown water cooling and loved it! I had my i7 930 running @ 4.2GHz stable with a push/pull fan setup on the radiator! When you add the 2nd fan, you do of course increase the DB, but you can also do some reasearch on quiet fans to make up for that if it is a concern of yours! But, if you decide to go with the H50, you will be a happy!

[Jorund]

No problem! It really is a great cooler, I used it before I went full blown water cooling and loved it! I had my i7 930 running @ 4.2GHz stable with a push/pull fan setup on the radiator! When you add the 2nd fan, you do of course increase the DB, but you can also do some reasearch on quiet fans to make up for that if it is a concern of yours! But, if you decide to go with the H50, you will be a happy!

 

Wow, that's again impressive.. I've been doing a bit of research about the H50 and some people are complaining about it taking hot air IN the case instead of out with a pull/push config. And now that I'm looking a bit at the cm 690 II a, there is really a lot of fan option and I think I'll let it take in and blow it upwards with 2 fans from the bottom and 2 on the top since heat rises..

 

Anyway, sorry going a bit of topic! A few questions about the H50; It comes with 1 fan included, is it possible to mount 2 fans on it? I know it's possible, I've seen it on youtube, but I mean without any modding? And as for my second question, do you recommend any good fans that would be ideal for this cooler instead of the rather noisy and boring looking corsair fans?

 

Cheers, J.