Best Value Air Cooler

[hnosyalnif]

In the process of getting a new Sandybridge build. Will be going with the 2500k and will overclock it. I won't be going all out for a high one though, just a moderate one of around 4Ghz (to start might take it 4.5 depending on temps).

Was wondering what cooler you guys would recommend for this. Currently I have a Coolermaster Hyper 212+ in my head as the one I was going to use, having looked at both the Corsair A50 and A70. Will be getting Corsair Vengeance RAM and I have read of some of the issues of not much space between the RAM and the cooler (with Hyper 212). Will be getting a ASUS P8Z68-V Pro motherboard.

[Noxvayl]

You can orientate the tower differently to avoid blocking the RAM slots for rectangular towers.

I'd recommend these for below £30:
Enermax ETS-T40-TB - £29.98 (may want to use a different fan, perhaps an akasa apache)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 13 PRO - £24.83
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 PRO - £19.07 (I have this in the family PC and it's brilliant, easily able to handle moderate overclocks)

[hnosyalnif]

The hyper 212 is £22.43 at the moment, which so far I think is the best deal on offer from the reviews I have read. I will look into those other ones because I am a little apprehensive about the clearing for the RAM but I'm sure it would be fine either way.

How are those coolers size wise compared to the 212? Find it hard to tell just from pictures and measurements to how they would fit in my new build.

Cheers for the advice.

[Noxvayl]

The Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 is quite small. If you orientate it vertically(fan blowing to the left) then the fan can encroach the RAM sockets but is easily removed to allow easy installation of your RAM. If orientated horizontally(fan blowing up) it won't affect your RAM at all. I think the best option is horizontal orientation as it draws air away from components, especially good if you have vents at the top of the case as well.

For the others I think you'll need to take measurements of your motherboard and case and check for reviews that take pictures of the heatsink installed to see how the heatsink looks installed on a motherboard with RAM.

[hnosyalnif]

I haven't got the parts yet so can't take measurements yet, I have seen pictures of the hyper 212 on my motherboard with the RAM so I know it does fit.

In my thread on my full build the Corsair A70 came up which I had looked at as well. How would you say it compares (is going for about £27/28 on Scan).

[Noxvayl]

Because it comes with 2 fans in a push-pull configuration it does very well. That doesn't say much about it's performance in comparison because the other coolers weren't tested with a push-pull configuration. With a single fan the Enermax is just as good as the Corsair A70. If you get better fans(Enermax Magma or Akasa Venom/Viper) I think it would be better than the Corsair but that comes at an additional cost.

If you want a cheap CPU cooler I'd get the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7. If you want a performance cooler then you are looking at the Enermax ETS-T40 or Corsair A70 and something in-between would be the Coolermaster Hyper 212 or Arctic Cooling Freezer 13. Depends on how much you want to spend and what you would like the cooler to do.

[hnosyalnif]

Well it would only be for a moderate overclock and I would at that rate the A70 is probably better value as it would give me a little more overhead to work with for a small increase in price.

[EvanJackPenn]

I've heard bad things about the thermal compound that comes with the Corsiar coolers - apparently it's like play-doh. Also, the included fans aren't PWM.

[kalniel]

I've heard bad things about the thermal compound that comes with the Corsiar coolers - apparently it's like play-doh. Also, the included fans aren't PWM.

Neither is a problem - the thermal compound is very good apparently - yes, it's viscous, but if you use the right amount (barely any) it's fine. You can use voltage control on the fan on all recent motherboards so don't need PWM. It also comes with a resistor plug for older motherboards. My A50 is more than sufficient to cool an overclocked i7 950, so you wouldn't need to get the A70 for a much cooler sandy bridge. Even the artic cooling ones would probably be good enough, and are fantastic value for money.

[gwyn]

I have put this one on my 2500k:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/gelid...am2-am2plus-am

There are more powerful coolers, but if you want a decent cooler which is near silent, this does a great job.
If you can spend a little more, this is one of the best coolers iv used:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/be-qu...us-am3-754-940

Again, near silent, very well built and great cooling.

[Pob255]

The enermax cooler itself is basically identical to the hyper212+ just a different fan and I don't know what the mounting system is like.
A lot of people complain about the hyper212+ mounting system, personally I've never had any trouble with it, it's a bit fiddly, but I've never seen a bolt through system that wasn't.
Mount it outside the case and it's easy to do.

The arctic cooling mounting system is probably the easiest to use (note the new ACf7pR2 is not the same as the original push pin on the ACf7p)
The ACf7p is great for dual cores and narrower cases that cannot fit a 120mm fan based cooler
But on an overclocked quad core it gets loud esp under load
The ACf13p is a much better option for a quad core (or more) + overclocked cpu

The A50 is good value, but I'm not so sure about the A70
While fans can be voltage controlled voltage control is very limited as few 120mm fans can go below 5v and many cannot go below 6v, when they do the motor has issues and just cannot get the blades spinning.
Also you can get motor buzz when reducing voltages, all depends on the fan.

That's the big advantage of PWM you should in theory be able to drop the speed to 1/128th although few BIOS allow that level of control these days, you have to go back to the early 775 boards to find really good PWM control

EDIT: Actually at £28 the A70 isn't bad value now, it used to be around £35

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

For around £28 the A70 is quite decent value and is around £5 more than an A50. The actual heatsink itself is better,and the two 120MM fans at their lowest settings will still be better than the one fan on the A50 at high speed. The A70 with the fans on the lowest settings is a better cooler than the Titan Fenrir. On top of this you could remove one fan if the pair is overkill and run the single fan at lower speeds when compared to the A50.

[Pob255]

oh yes I stand corrected, while basically the same the A70 is a bit longer front to back and uses 4 heat pipes over the A50's 3 heat pipes.
The A50 seem to be the same as the original akasa nero

[dfour]

The Xigmatek CAC-SXHH6-U02 got a super review from frostytech and even entered tehre top ten heatsinks for inthel and at only £30 looks like a bargain.

[hnosyalnif]

Interesting points. For quiteness an A70 will be better as the fans will be running slower at similar temperatures to the A50 so for £5 it gives a lot more overhead.

Don't know much about the rest but leaning away from the 212 now. Will take a look at that one in the post above. Any more opinions on it?

Guess it comes down to a couple of things for me. Looking for the best cooling performance for £20-30 (ideally nearer £20). Quietness would be a bonus. I know the SB chips run cool anyway but I still rather have to much cooling than not enough...

What about this one: http://www.scan.co.uk/products/arcti...m2-am2plus-am3

[melon]

Because it comes with 2 fans in a push-pull configuration it does very well. That doesn't say much about it's performance in comparison because the other coolers weren't tested with a push-pull configuration. With a single fan the Enermax is just as good as the Corsair A70. If you get better fans(Enermax Magma or Akasa Venom/Viper) I think it would be better than the Corsair but that comes at an additional cost.

If you want a cheap CPU cooler I'd get the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7. If you want a performance cooler then you are looking at the Enermax ETS-T40 or Corsair A70 and something in-between would be the Coolermaster Hyper 212 or Arctic Cooling Freezer 13. Depends on how much you want to spend and what you would like the cooler to do.

Maybe its just me , but if your going to spend £££ on i2500k why wouldnt you spend 20 - 30 quid more and protect it with decent cooling system like the H60 ?

Am i overestimating the worth of having a good fan , because I just cant understand it personally .

If i have a cheap cpu or something far less I could see the point , but I just dont get it , unless someone is so desperate for i2500k they want a temp solution till they upgrade it.

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