Anybody else using Intel stock cooler with their Kaby Lake CPU?

[UsandThem]

I recently updated by son's computer with an i5-7500 CPU. Since there is no overclocking, I just installed the included cooler. However, the thing spins up and down so frequently, it sounds like one of the old Delta fans that kind of sounded like a vacuum.

I replaced it with a stock Intel cooler from a Haswell CPU (E97379-001) with a copper core and much denser fins. It is much quieter, but surprisingly runs a little warmer than the all aluminum cooler (E97379-003).

So, did my Kaby Lake CPU come with a defective cooler, or are they just louder due to less fins and all aluminum construction?

 

[BonzaiDuck]

In your experimental comparison, are you sure that roughly equivalent fan-profiles or "curves" were used? The shortcoming of the copper-core Haswell cooler defies logic. And what do you mean by "a little warmer [than]"?

 

[UsandThem]

In your experimental comparison, are you sure that roughly equivalent fan-profiles or "curves" were used? The shortcoming of the copper-core Haswell cooler defies logic. And what do you mean by "a little warmer [than]"?

I read a review where they tested the thermal paste that comes pre-applied from Intel versus after-market paste, and they found the Intel paste cooled better by 2-3 degree C.

So basically at idle it is around 3 degrees C warmer, and at load it is like a 1 degree C difference. The CPU fan is set to normal in the BIOS, so it's not that. Since there are more fins, and they are thicker, with the whole copper heatsink being much heavier than the all aluminum one, I can only guess it just holds a little more of the heat. The temps aren't really a concern as it keeps the temps well under their thermal limits, it's just the fan on the aluminum version can be heard speeding up and down every time core usage increases. It's rather annoying.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I read a review where they tested the thermal paste that comes pre-applied from Intel versus after-market paste, and they found the Intel paste cooled better by 2-3 degree C.

So basically at idle it is around 3 degrees C warmer, and at load it is like a 1 degree C difference. The CPU fan is set to normal in the BIOS, so it's not that. Since there are more fins, and they are thicker, with the whole copper heatsink being much heavier than the all aluminum one, I can only guess it just holds a little more of the heat. The temps aren't really a concern as it keeps the temps well under their thermal limits, it's just the fan on the aluminum version can be heard speeding up and down every time core usage increases. It's rather annoying.

I'm pretty sure that you could custom fit an aftermarket fan to a stock Intel cooler. It's just tedium, but I've thought of several ways to enhance airflow with larger fans on those sinks. There would also be ways to dampen the noise. There might be fans of the same size that are more quiet, give as much in CFM airflow etc. and can be jerry-rigged to the cooler in some neat way.

With this, you're looking to find last grains of rice in the form of lower dBA within the case. Your remarks about the stock thermal paste raises another thought, because I've worked with those stock coolers. I'm fairly confident that the paste they used in the test would perform worse than nano-diamond paste. I'm even more sure that you could probably shave about 2C degrees from peak package temperature by lapping the processor's heat spreader. Of course, as I remember (and could be wrong), there is no nickel-plate on the copper stock heatsink core. Then again, if there is nickel-plate, lapping it off would give you another 2C degrees.

But your main complaint is a matter of dBA, so I would focus on those solutions -- or just find a Hyper 212 EVO cooler for the lowest price.

 

[shortylickens]

Hell no.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B015E14J9M/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[UsandThem]

But your main complaint is a matter of dBA, so I would focus on those solutions -- or just find a Hyper 212 EVO cooler for the lowest price.

Well, the Haswell Intel cooler is decently quiet, and what I have expected from Intel over the years. It was just the Kaby Lake version that was louder, so I was just curious in case someone asked about their noise levels in the future here.

I have Noctua coolers in my other two more demanding computers, which are of course quieter and offer superior cooling compared to stock Intel fans. However, since the i5-7500 CPU is a 65w unit, I didn't feel the need to spend extra for an after market cooler.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

. . . and . . . of course . . . shortylickens has another proposition with the Arctic AiO. For $68.

Personally, I don't think I'm too tolerant of noise in my computers, but some folks are downright unreasonable. I have a noise meter, and I'm often surprised that what my ears think is "near-noiseless" clocks in at 32 to 35 dBA. It's like the old saying about "the eye of the beholder," or in this case, the ears. Does it annoy you? Or -- would the noise be embarrassing for you when you have a visitor? I don't think my visitors would hear anything.

And I've built at least a few systems that use the stock coolers. If you can't overclock the processor, and if the processor temperature is healthy across a range of CPU usage loads, then -- there you are.