what the best cooling system for $100?

[sadonhonghun]

i running my quad core at a regular speed. I aslo want to know how to overclock and try it for myself.is $100 kinda cheap for a cooling system? which one is better, the cooling fan one or the water cooling one? thank you

[Hunain]

By saying a cooling system, I assumed you wanted a water cooling kit...but yes Air cooling will do the job, depends on which QUAD core are you running? Which motherboard? What is your expected OC going to be? Which PSU are you using? What case?

[Aez]

For 100 dollars any water cooling will be worse than high end air, get a thermal right ultra 120 extreme and a decent fan, that should come in at under 100.

[Thorsson]

Aez is correct. However the high end air coolers are pretty big. What case/mobo do you have?

[Webby]

Aez is correct. However the high end air coolers are pretty big. What case/mobo do you have?

But a full water cooling setup isn't exactly small.

Personally if you only have $100 I would not be looking at watercooling you are going to need 3x (at least) that to get a decent system. Air cooling you should be looking at a Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme, Thermalright Ultima 90 (smaller but still good performance) or a Scythe Ninja these are all proven to be good coolers on overclocked Q6600.

[sadonhonghun]

i have Apevia Black X-Cruiser Case ATX Mid-Tower Case with Clear Side
asus p5b premium vista edition
quad core q6600 2.4ghz
700watts power supply.
i never overclock before. i'm really new at this!! i'm hoping to learn something from here. by the way thanks for all those answer!

[Thorsson]

As I feared, you have a case that is not very wide and probably has poor airflow. Neither watercooling, nor top aircooling is going to be available to you in that particular case.

Water looks difficult apart from some low-end solutions or external resirators, and you might find either difficult to fit within budget.

On air, the Arctic Freezer Pro might fit. You need to measure - from top of chip to sidepanel, and whatever restrictions you have in width and depth from your case, mobo, RAM and Video card. You are going to still be restricted though, as case airflow is not going to be stellar.

P.S. what's your power supply? It's not about claimed power, but about efficiency and stability, esp. on the 12V rail(s). An inefficent PSU is going to make cooilng the CPU harder, and may even make WC a bad option even in a better case.

[sadonhonghun]

i have an ITZ 700 Watt ATX Power Supply. so what you trying to say is that with $100. i can only stick with the arctic freezer pro for this case. should i spent a little bit more to get better choice. i dont know if it worth putting let say$150 on the cooling system or not? cause i don't or say never overclock before and don't know if i can do it or not..

[sadonhonghun]

what's that you look in for when it come to buying a computer case? how can you tell if it's a good case or not?

[Hunain]

You mostly have heard a good name and buy it, like I am recommending you the Antec 900. A good case should have enough room for everything you have and expansion capabilities. Should have designs for water cooling if you think you could go that way.
Should not be too cramped, should have enough Fans to have a good airflow, intake fans and exhaust. Should have a windowed sidepanel etc etc...

[hermeticist]

Providing Anandtech are honest & do their testing properly, I was pretty surprised to see how well a Freezer 7 Pro does:

AnandTech: Arctic Cooling Duo: Alpine 7 & Freezer 7 Pro Attack Value

[Thorsson]

That Anandtech result is at odds with elsewhere on the noise side, but I think they have a noisy setup to start with, so maybe the differences are not noticeable. Certainly it's very good value and it is an option where you can't fit the bigger HSFs.

As for the case, it's all about:
1. Ease of build - so things like drive rails, removable motherboard trays, are a plus, and cramped insides are a no-no.
2. Airflow - Bigger fans are better and usually a front door reduces intake. However on cases like the Antec 900 you do have to watch for dust, many buy filters for the 120mm fans, and it is recommended to cover the big mutha when switched off.
3. Noise - again bigger fans have the advantage (they spin more slowly), but some cases have additional sound baffling, like the Antec P182. Here, front doors are (usually) an advantage.
4. Features/Size - this is very much a personal thing. Some like windows and lots of lights, others like understated elegance. Some may need bays for 10 HDDs. Some may want pre-drilled watercooling holes. The more things you want, the harder it may to find and the more you may have to pay. Oh, and check where the external ports are: on the top is good if it sits under your desk, but not so hot if it sits on top of it.