Cooling Overclocked 2500K: Hyper 212 vs. More Expensive Aftermarket Coolers

[Madmick]

The 2500K has a reputation for being a beast OCer with claims of up to 5Ghz reached. My question is: what's the practical difference in terms of OC performance for this chip when it's cooled by the most popular aftermarket coolers on the market that cost $30 (the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro and the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus) versus the more expensive ones (for example, the $70 Zalman CNPS9900MAX-B)?

Airflow and fan size seem to be variable between coolers of different cost. Typically it seems the more expensive ones use better metals and/or have larger fan sizes that will probably last longer, but I was curious if this made a difference concrete enough to justify the difference in price. Within the context of an overall performance-class gaming build, $40 isn't a great deal, but it can be construed as significant if you consider it's money not being devoted to a better case/PSU/GPU.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

You'll need water cooling or at least a d14 for 5ghz.
The hyper is only good until 4.2-4.4 then it gets toasty

 

[Madmick]

You'll need water cooling or at least a d14 for 5ghz.
The hyper is only good until 4.2-4.4 then it gets toasty

Which fan has the best expected OC in the $30-$60 range? It appears the Zalman CNPS9700 is the most popular cooler at this "mid" level. How does it do? And how reliable is Cooler Master for the rebate on the Hyper 212 Plus? I've read a lot of complaints at NewEgg and elsewhere about rebates never being issued.

 

[_Rick_]

The Thermalright HR-02 Macho is a good entry level high-end heat-sink-fan combination.
Cooling performance similar to a D14, but half the price, and only marginally more expensive than a 212.
I'm running a Scythe Yasya, which is largely sufficient for my loads, at a 4.0/4.2/4.4 turbo OC (or something like that, can't recall exactly). Going beyond that usually requires some voltage bumps and quickly gets into the land of diminishing returns, but the Yasya could probably deal with another 20W without getting too loud.
The pre-built liquid systems have little advantage, unless you inverse airflow in your case to a back-front setup, so that you have fresh air streaming over the radiator. Water cooling (unless you have a 240mm+ radiator and thus increase cooling surface dramatically) has no benefits over an air cooler, if it sucks in the same warm air. In fact, a heat-pipe will be more effective.

 

[Madmick]

Water cooling (unless you have a 240mm+ radiator and thus increase cooling surface dramatically) has no benefits over an air cooler, if it sucks in the same warm air. In fact, a heat-pipe will be more effective.

Good to know. I don't particularly want to buy a case specifically for the two rear 120mm fan ports to support the Corsair Hydro 80/100, and I also live in a climate where it gets exceptionally hot in the summer (the high usually falls between 110F-115F).

Perusing this subforum, I found a link to this site and this chart FTW:
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2665&page=7

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Which fan has the best expected OC in the $30-$60 range? It appears the Zalman CNPS9700 is the most popular cooler at this "mid" level. How does it do? And how reliable is Cooler Master for the rebate on the Hyper 212 Plus? I've read a lot of complaints at NewEgg and elsewhere about rebates never being issued.

Every rebate is a hit or miss. Usually takes months to get money back.

The Macho is nice.

 

[Madmick]

Let me refine my question.

Right now the 2550K is $230 at Tiger Direct (and I pay no tax or shipping). The 2500K is $220 right now, but I've seen it at $211 on Amazon (where I also pay no tax and no shipping). Thus, a difference of $19. The Thermalright HR-02 Macho is $53 at Amazon. The Hyper 212 Plus is $27. Thus, a difference of $26.

$19 vs. $26: that's about equal. So which would produce higher OC performance? I'm assuming the 2500K with the HR-02 Macho, but I thought I'd ask.

 

[_Rick_]

The Amazon price of the Macho seems somewhat inflated. Using shopping.google.com there are offers at lower prices. In Europe it's routinely available for less than 35 euro, incl. 19% VAT (excl. shipping) at reputable e-tailers. On the other hand, Thermalright seems to have only mediocre market penetration in the US. Newegg doesn't carry the HR-02, even though it's listed as partner, and similar for a number of other "partners".

 

[T_Yamamoto]

The 2500k and 2550k are the same except the 2550k has a crapped out igp (aka nonexistent)

 

[blastingcap]

A 212+ (or better yet a 212 EVO) should be enough for a pretty high overclock. Assuming you are using nothing worse than the paste that comes with the 212+/Evo, and have good case airflow, of course. Imho there is no point in getting any other air cooler because the ones that are significantly better than the 212 evo will cost WAY more... and at that point you may as well go water-cooling instead. But that comes with its own set of problems.

If you need more than what a 212+ out of the box will give you, try getting a second fan (the Blade Master 120mm fan is an exact specification match for the 212+ fan in the box). Apply some gaffer's tape to create more of a wind tunnel effect if you want. Even if you just slap another fan on there and do nothing else, it should drop your CPU temps by another few degrees depending on the rest of your setup.

 

[kbp]

If your ambient temps are that HOT, on air you better get a D-14.

 

[blastingcap]

If your ambient temps are that HOT, on air you better get a D-14.

I'm pretty sure his ambient, i.e., ROOM, temperature is lower than the outside temperature during the hottest part of the day. And wattage, not cooling method, determines how much the room as a whole heats up.

 

[Madmick]

A 212+ (or better yet a 212 EVO) should be enough for a pretty high overclock. Assuming you are using nothing worse than the paste that comes with the 212+/Evo, and have good case airflow, of course.

The Arctic 5 Silver Thermal Compound is only $6 at Amazon. I intended to use that. Is the quality of thermal paste really that substantial?

If you need more than what a 212+ out of the box will give you, try getting a second fan (the Blade Master 120mm fan is an exact specification match for the 212+ fan in the box). Apply some gaffer's tape to create more of a wind tunnel effect if you want. Even if you just slap another fan on there and do nothing else, it should drop your CPU temps by another few degrees depending on the rest of your setup.

Is the Evo also upgradeable to 2 fans? I'm not seeing that feature on the NewEgg product page or Cooler Master's home page for it, but the Evo has nearly the exact same dimensions as the Hyper 212 Plus:

Fan= 120 x 120 x 25 (exact)
Heatsink= 120 x 79.7 x 158.5 (Plus= 120 x 80 x 159)

 

[Madmick]

Also, what difference is there between these two fans aside from the fact the first is a PWM? I'm assuming this first one is the one you meant since it appears to be a duplicate of the fan that comes with the Hyper 212 Plus:
Cooler Master Blademaster PWM 120mm R4-BMBS-20PK-R0 Silent Airflow Case Fan
Cooler Master 120mm R4-C2R-20AC-GP Case Fan

 

[T_Yamamoto]

PWM= you can control it. it has a 3pin and a 4pin.

 

[_Rick_]

The Arctic 5 Silver Thermal Compound is only $6 at Amazon. I intended to use that. Is the quality of thermal paste really that substantial?

According to my experience and what I've read, only if the original material/application is atrocious, will a re-application provide significant gains.

 

[blastingcap]

Also, what difference is there between these two fans aside from the fact the first is a PWM? I'm assuming this first one is the one you meant since it appears to be a duplicate of the fan that comes with the Hyper 212 Plus:
Cooler Master Blademaster PWM 120mm R4-BMBS-20PK-R0 Silent Airflow Case Fan
Cooler Master 120mm R4-C2R-20AC-GP Case Fan

212 EVO can use 2 fans in push-pull configuration same as the 212+. They are almost identical heatsinks, the main difference being the flatter bottom. The 212+ uses a single Blade Master 120mm fan (600-2000rpm) and you can easily buy another for about $10. The 212 EVO has a slightly different fan which is more powerful. There is no easy way to buy an identical second fan because most stores don't carry it and it's out of stock at cooler master's website. Personally, I hold little hope of it coming into stock again, so if you have a 212 EVO you should just get the regular Blade Master 120mm fan (600-2000rpm) and a Y-splitter like http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812200991 (you can find cheaper ones on ebay or amazon, though I would go for a sleeved version at least). Plug both fans into the splitter, plug the splitter into your mobo's 4-pin CPU fan connector. Even though they are different fans, they have identical rpm profiles and should be close enough in airflow (about 77cfm vs 83cfm or something like that) for the mismatch to not matter too much. In fact that is exactly what I plan to do with my setup in the future.

You don't need a splitter if your mobo has two 4-pin CPU fan connectors, which is rare.

Heck, even if your mobo has only one 4-pin fan connector and everything else is 3-pin, you could in theory get away with connecting one of the push-pull fans to a 3-pin connector and then adjust fan profiles in BIOS or software to try to sync it up with the fan on the 4-pin connector, but I don't want to mess with that and would rather just have both on the 4-pin so both of them spin at the same RPM at all times.

As for Arctic Silver 5, that's old school and slightly dangerous to use--if you get any outside the intended surface, it may short circuit your board because it's conductive. It isn't any worse than the paste that comes with the 212+ or 212 EVO, though, and may be a little better. But time has marched on and something like MX-2 is better than AS5 and just as cheap. Mwave.com has a sale on MX-2 right now, 4 grams for $4 incl. free shipping or something like that. MX-4 is supposed to be slightly better than MX-2. Once you go higher than the MX-2 and MX-4 league,h the bang for buck starts going down. That didn't stop me from buying some expensive Prolimatech PK-1 tonight, but I'm more than a little pissed at my temperatures right now and am doing everything short of getting a new CPU and new heatsink. I may even tape a 140mm fan in my 5.25" cage to assist in sucking cold air from the front of the case directly into the path of the 212 EVO.

I do not intend to post further in this thread, but I'm sure others can help you if you have further questions.

 

[Charlie98]

I have a 212+ on my 2500K with a push/pull fan setup and it works, but in my experience, is only working marginally. My idle temps are in the mid to upper 30C's and in regular computing (not gaming) usually hits 50C; all only with a 4.1GHz OC. I have fans galore in my big, open HAF922, but in a room that averages 80F (and a little higher in the summer) that's about all I can get.

I may have a hot/marginal CPU (I've never been able to get it over 4.3GHz without stability problems) or it may be my choice of mobo (or combination therof.)

I don't think the 212+ (or EVO) is the most efficient design, there is supposed to be a better one coming from CoolerMaster with wider spaced fins on the heat exchanger. More space between the fins = more air flow = better cooling; and the way the fans are attached on the 212+ there are huge gaps between the fan and the exchanger.

 

[SZLiao214]

The 212+ just does really well against the sub 30 dollar price range for coolers.

The one standout i see especially if you care about noise is the hr-02 macho. If you are in the USA you can only order it from one place for 40+10 shipping.

Depending on your case you might need anything else for 4.5-4.6 which is where i had kept mine with decent temps on the 212.

If your case can handle the big ass cooler then i strongly recommend the hr-02.

 

[LxMxFxD4]

My question is: what's the practical difference in terms of OC performance for this chip when it's cooled by the most popular aftermarket coolers on the market that cost $30 (the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro and the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus) versus the more expensive ones (for example, the $70 Zalman CNPS9900MAX-B)?

About 6 degrees C.

Visit www.frostytech.com for a list.

The best sub $30 cooler is the Xigmatek 1283 series, including the $25 gaia. If you want silent performance and fans that last 3+ years 24/7, this is the route. Xigmatek won't mail you a rebate without a ton of hassle but if you're willing to pay retail, its the route to go.

 

[billbobaggins87]

2500k and the 212+ or evo....and there are Countless articles on the $/temp ratio/value on that specific chipset

 

[VirtualLarry]

I also live in a climate where it gets exceptionally hot in the summer (the high usually falls between 110F-115F).

I sincerely hope that you aren't actually living in those temps. (I hope that you have A/C.)

Otherwise, I would worry about cooling yourself, before you worry about your PC.

 

[DrewSG3]

I sincerely hope that you aren't actually living in those temps. (I hope that you have A/C.)

Otherwise, I would worry about cooling yourself, before you worry about your PC.

no kidding

my 212+ keeps my 4.2 2500k cooled in the low 40s

 

[Quake6]

And what about load temperatures?