prolimatech megahalems vs Noctua NH-D14 vs CM Hyper 212 Plus

[jdhatt]

hi guys,

 

im building myself an i5 2500k sandy bridge rig for gaming. i'd like to know which cooler would be the best option for me. i prefer a quiet yet very effective cooling solution. if the prolimatech is what i should choose, anyone have any fans that they suggest to buy with it? once again, quiet yet effective.

[StoneBridge]

i have the hyper 212 plus (push/pull). and it has good preformance since its quite cheap, its barley hits 50c on my 1055t @3.75ghz 1.45v. now i dont know much about the two other coolers. but if your going budget, i would reccomend the 212 plus. =)

[GabrielT]

I have a 212+. They are very cheap and cool well. Not the quietest but not loud either.

[jdhatt]

I have a 212+. They are very cheap and cool well. Not the quietest but not loud either.

 

yea im highly leaning towards this cooler because of the rave reviews and the price. unless the other two are much better ill probably go for this

[Builderman]

Currently the new zalman 9900 max is at the top of the heap in air coolers. But that heap changes almost monthly. Check out this review testing it against the prolimatech & cm 212. http://www.maximumpc.com/article/reviews/zalman_cnps9900_max_review

All these coolers (including the noctua) run within 1-2 deg of one another when cooling 130watt i7 intel cpu's like the 970 & 990's. The lower wattage core i5's 95 watts will run even cooler. I build systems for a living & have used all these coolers & my results verify what your reading. Fact is any of these coolers will do a fine job of cooling your 2500k & for the money the cm 212 cant be beat. If you gotta have the best then go for the zalman but know that the difference in all these coolers is very slight. None will get you a better overclock than the other as they are all just to close in temps to make any real difference. Run the cm 212 & put the $30-$40 you save in cost into another part of your system.

[jdhatt]

anyone know how the COOLER MASTER R4-L2R-20AC-GP Blue LED Case Fan would be on the prolimatech?

[MercuryDoun]

anyone know how the COOLER MASTER R4-L2R-20AC-GP Blue LED Case Fan would be on the prolimatech?

 

It would work quite well!

 

I have a Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B coolers. Paired with 2x CM R4 red LED fans. Works GREAT! Althought my R4's are the slightly older 90CFM versions, where as most of the R4's now are the 69.69CFM(Lol CM you win for this). It will still work great because i only run the 2000rpm fans at about 1300rpms because of noise, and i still get the great temps below.

 

With my i7-930(which produces alot more heat than that i5-2500k your looking at) @ 4.0Ghz, i get idle temps of 34-38c and max temps of 70c. At 4.4Ghz which for my CPU requires a MASSIVe jump in voltage over 4.0, it still keeps it decently cool at about 82c. But when were talking the difference of 4.0Ghz @ 1.25v vs 4.4Ghz @ 1.43v there is a pretty hefty difference in temps.

 

Here are some things i think might help you decide.

 

Hyper 212+ = Cheapest, you add another fan for Push/Pull you wind up with one of the best bang/buck coolers on the market. The only way to beat its value is find a better cooler on a shell shocker or other amazing sale. If your on a budget, this is the HSF to get.

 

Megahalems = In its prime about a year and a half ago, it was THE BEST air cooler on the market, it was knocked of its high horse by its big brother the Super Mega. I think it beat it by like 2c? Lol. Paired with 2x high RPM/high CFM fans, its still an amazing cooler at an amazing price. Depending on the fans you purchase, its slightly cheaper than the NH-D14, but has slightly less performance.

 

NH-D14 = Despite what someone above mentioned about the Zalman 9900Max being the best cooler, its not. the NH-D14 is still to this day, the BEST Air cooler on the market, when i get a chance, ill come back with some reviews to prove as much. It doesnt always have the best idle temps, but it ALWAYS has the best load temps, and thats whats important. Not only is the the best performing air cooler. Its also, with a minor sacrifice in performance, one of the quietest air coolers on the market, simply use the low and ultra low voltage adapters to bring down fan speed and noise. Still offering performance well above that of the Hyper 212+ and being much quieter while its at it too.

[Waco]

I have a Megahalems that I'd be willing to part with for the right price. I only have the mounting hardware that came with it in the past though - I don't know what sockets it will fit past 775, 1156, and 1366. Are 1156 and 1155 the same in terms of mounting?

[camaro_dude15]

I have a Megahalems that I'd be willing to part with for the right price. I only have the mounting hardware that came with it in the past though - I don't know what sockets it will fit past 775, 1156, and 1366. Are 1156 and 1155 the same in terms of mounting?

 

 

yes the mounts are identical between 1155 and 1156

[IVIYTH0S]

I have a Megahalems that I'd be willing to part with for the right price. I only have the mounting hardware that came with it in the past though - I don't know what sockets it will fit past 775, 1156, and 1366. Are 1156 and 1155 the same in terms of mounting?

do this or get the 212+, it's very easy to cool a 2500K

[dihartnell]

I have a D14 on my AMD rig. Very quiet so can recomend. Also had the Megahalems on my old intel rig paired with Noctua NFp12 fans. Again worked really great and was silent.

 

Either is a great solution.

[El_Capitan]

I've used all three.

 

Ranked from best to worst:

Noctua NH-D14

Prolimatech Megahalems Rev. B

CM Hyper 212+

 

The Megahalems and Hyper 212+ can really shine if you put Noctua NF-D12 fans on them. They will perform just slightly below the Noctua NH-D14. The fans and a push/pull config matters quite a bit.