Opinions on cooler for a Ryzen 3900X?

[Euphonium]

Ok, to weigh in.

I have the 3900X on air cooling using a be quiet Dark Pro 4.

I have that in a be quiet case with two input fans at the front and one at the back. I also have internal polythene sheet baffles so that any turbulence in the back to front ventilation is reduced.

The result is a CPU which performs in the 35 to 50 degree range in everything except extreme bench-marking, which really isn't an everyday occurrence, when it can hit 90-ish.

Where as I've got a chip that idles at 50-60'C and hits 95'C when given any challenge (normally Handbrake but also hits 85+ gaming) with the Wriath Prism cooler even after replacing the thermal grease and making absolutely sure the heatsink is well seated :-(

My case airflow is 2x140mm fans in at the front, 1x140mm fan out at the back. The upper front fan is almost level with the exhaust fan. The lower one is set with it's top about level with the top of the graphics card so in theory it is sending cold air to the GPU fans.

No need for the expense and hassle of an AIO, in my humble opinion!

The more I'm reading about AIO coolers, the more I'm leaning towards getting the Noctua NH-D15

[kalniel]

I have a 9900k so can't give a specific recommendation, but it's a pretty warm running chip by all accounts and the trick I use (and have done for most previous builds) is pairing an OK tower heatsink with an oversized fan. There are several 140mm fans which have 120mm mounting points. You have to check RAM clearance, but I've not had any issues, possibly because I'm not using super thick towers - currently a coolermaster 212X. The extra airflow over and around the whole heatsink makes an enormous difference to temperatures - and when the fan does spool up it's much quieter.

[DanceswithUnix]

Adapters for oversize fans was always something I expected to 3d print, but so far haven't tried. A 200mm fan strapped to a Wraith cooler could be interesting

[kalniel]

Adapters for oversize fans was always something I expected to 3d print, but so far haven't tried. A 200mm fan strapped to a Wraith cooler could be interesting

Good shout! Adapters seem like a good fit for 3d printing - I want a bike pump clip that mounts on the bottle cage mounts in-line. So far you can only buy offset ones but it'd be great to have a minimal weight in-line one. I can't quite justify the cost of a 3d printer just for that though

[DanceswithUnix]

I can't quite justify the cost of a 3d printer just for that though

Yeah, it's a hobby. My printer has probably saved me hundreds by printing items, shame it must have cost me over a grand

Mind you when I bought my printer the cheap printers were all dire (and a fire risk) so I ended up with an expensive Prusa.
These days the Ender 3 can be had rather cheaply and give decent results, whilst it isn't as versatile as the Prusa it should be able to knock out a 200mm fan adapter.

[Euphonium]

I've gone ahead & ordered the Noctua. it'll be interesting to see how much difference it makes

[ik9000]

I've gone ahead & ordered the Noctua. it'll be interesting to see how much difference it makes

which one? I use the NH-U14s. Happy with it, but you'll want to set the fan profiles carefully for optimal noise

[Euphonium]

I got the NH-D15. I was in a kind of go big or go home mood, and I frequently max out my PC for days at a time with Handbrake or folding@home.

I installed it last night and gave it a quick test - idle temps in the low 40s (was 50+), folding temps 85'C @4GHz (was 95'C @3.8GHz) so I'm happy. It's also much quieter at 100% than the Wraith Prism was.

I've put the Prism on my son's R5-3600 and that's now running ~10'C cooler under a folding load too.

[Spudbynight]

Sorry to be late.

Personally I would go with air over an AIO.

A friend of mine is using a Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 with a 3950X with great results. That is, he gets boost for longer but hasn't had much luck with overclocking - his temps are nice though. In my personal opinion the AMD coolers are all right across the board. You will get better temps elsewhere, but the overclocking on Ryzen 3 isn't amazing from what I have seen.

[Froger007]

I would stay with aircooling. Have a look at Be Quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 CPU Air Tower Cooler. Now available for around 70.

[yippyUK]

The Wraith Prism is fine if you're not planning to overclock your CPU. If I had to choose I'd go for the Noctua NH-D15, you won't find any better air cooler then this.