Does i7 980x need custom cooling?

[davidstrongarm]

Hi,

I'm going to purchase a computer with a CoolerMaster 932 HAF case and an i7 980x CPU. I'm not planning on overclocking any components. Will the stock cooling be ok?

And for future reference, what is generally an acceptable upper temperature limit for the CPU under heavy load? Roughly 70c degrees?

I live in Australia, and it can get damn hot here in the summer, but I'm buying a high quality case and as I said, no overclocking.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
Cheers.

 

[khon]

You'll be fine, the stock cooler for the i7-980X is actually pretty decent.

 

[OCGuy]

Yes, Intel would not ship out a $1K CPU under warranty with a cooling solution that will damage it.

Now a conspiracy theorist might think they will cool it just enough so that it fails right after 3 years

 

[davidstrongarm]

Great, thanks for the quick responses guys.

 

[Gorthan]

I'm not familiar with the 980X cooler (no new toys on my desk for a while) but I would at least run a test in summer to check. I live in Perth and my i7 920 at stock was throttling itself under load with the stock cooler during summer (~35C ambient). I have plenty of airflow in my case etc, so I would recommend loading up the CPU in summer and see if you're comfortable with your temps. I ended up install a Noctua on mine as my intention was to overclock anyway.

Not quite the same as from what I have seen the 980X cooler is much better than the 920, but probably still worth checking it out in summer.

 

[davidstrongarm]

Ok thanks Gorthan. I'll keep my eye on the temps, especially on those 35+ degree days D:

 

[Rifter]

if its better than the other i7 coolers then it will be ok, if its not then buy a new one. but really who is going to buy a $1000 CPU and not put a top tier cooler on it for 40-60$ on it anyways.

 

[Scali]

Yes, might I suggest one of these:
http://www.corsair.com/products/h70/default.aspx
Very easy to install liquid cooling solution.

 

[davidstrongarm]

...but really who is going to buy a $1000 CPU and not put a top tier cooler on it for 40-60$ on it anyways.

Well that is kind of my original question - is a CPU cooler really needed if I'm not overclocking and using a high quality case which I'll clean regularly, or is it just a gimmick?

But you're right, it's not that much extra money to spend...

 

[Scali]

Well that is kind of my original question - is a CPU cooler really needed if I'm not overclocking and using a high quality case which I'll clean regularly, or is it just a gimmick?

Under normal circumstances, a stock cooler will always be enough. The system is literally guaranteed to work with the stock cooler (assuming your case also meets the design specs, but most cases do).
Ofcourse 35+C room temperature is not considered 'normal circumstances'. The cooling solutions are designed to operate at around 18-25C room temperature (since most offices, server rooms etc have air conditioning, that is a reasonable requirement).

I don't know if it will withstand 35C, but as said above... if you're spending THAT much money on a CPU, you might as well put a decent cooler on it. At the very least it will be more silent than the stock cooler.

 

[Gorthan]

Under normal circumstances, a stock cooler will always be enough. The system is literally guaranteed to work with the stock cooler (assuming your case also meets the design specs, but most cases do).
Ofcourse 35+C room temperature is not considered 'normal circumstances'. The cooling solutions are designed to operate at around 18-25C room temperature (since most offices, server rooms etc have air conditioning, that is a reasonable requirement).

Agreed on the normal circumstances, ideally you don't want to run without airconditioning if possible.
Sadly when renting in Australia you don't always get airconditioning. Gotta scale back the overclock in the summer if I don't want to roast myself :\

davidstrongarm, you'll probably be looking at around $60 minimum to get a decent cooler over here. My Noctua U12 cost me over $100 and I don't think they've dropped too much. That is the high end of the scale though Damn good but, even with those ambients (which quickly rose after turning the PC on) when I had my 920@4ghz it only hit the high 70s at 100% load on 4 cores. I couldn't stand the damn heat though and turned the O/C down in summer. Winter's a different story, load is around 40-45 and idle is 30.

 

[balane]

I haven't used it but the stock Intel heatpipe cooler looks pretty good to me actually.

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/1245/2/

 

[davidstrongarm]

Thanks for all the input guys.

If I do decide to go with a CPU cooler, how do these selections look:
CoolerMaster V6GT CPU Cooler
CoolerMaster V8 CPU Cooler
CoolerMaster Hyper N520 CPU Cooler

Water cooling is just a bit too fancy for me, not to mention more money than I'd like to spend.

 

[faxon]

Yes, might I suggest one of these:
http://www.corsair.com/products/h70/default.aspx
Very easy to install liquid cooling solution.

the cooler on the 980X is about as good as that thing actually. the only logical upgrade path from the stock cooler would be if you wanted something quieter or better, and the only way you are gonna get something better thats worth the money is if you already have a better air cooler or you go to a custom water loop.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2960/4

in the reviews i have seen, this thing actually outperformed a noctua NH-U12P with the fan set to high.

 

[balane]

Here's a couple of reviews of Intel's DBX-B cooler. I must say, I'm impressed. I think I'd like to get my hands on one and use instead of my Scythe Mugen 2.

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/foru...ulftown-six-core-32nm-processor-review-3.html

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/1000

It even has a blue LED fan, lol. That's nuts for Intel.

 

[Scali]

the cooler on the 980X is about as good as that thing actually.

True, I forgot that they had this mega-hip cooler for the new Extreme Editions.

 

[ElFenix]

Thanks for all the input guys.

If I do decide to go with a CPU cooler, how do these selections look:
CoolerMaster V6GT CPU Cooler
CoolerMaster V8 CPU Cooler
CoolerMaster Hyper N520 CPU Cooler

Water cooling is just a bit too fancy for me, not to mention more money than I'd like to spend.

outside of the hyper 212 most coolermaster heatsinks are regarded as garbage. the scythe mugen 2 can be had with a fairly good fan for under $40, and is a pretty top performer per silentpcreview's tests.


the 980X cooler is completely dependent on a terribly loud fan for its performance. put a quiet fan on it and the heat sink is revealed as a hunk of crap.

 

[Ben90]

Are you sure you don't have a bad mount Gorthan? My ambient inside will get over 30*C yet under IBT it struggles to get over 80*C.

Maybe you got cursed and got a really leaky chip or something also, from my experience the stock Bloomfield cooler is decent enough for ~4ghz overclocks with no HT as long as you don't run distributed computing or IBT.

 

[Gorthan]

Are you sure you don't have a bad mount Gorthan? My ambient inside will get over 30*C yet under IBT it struggles to get over 80*C.

Maybe you got cursed and got a really leaky chip or something also, from my experience the stock Bloomfield cooler is decent enough for ~4ghz overclocks with no HT as long as you don't run distributed computing or IBT.

Should probably clarify, 35C was the ambient temp outside the case. Inside was much higher, not only that but 35C is the lower end of the scale for me in summer, 40+ is common.That and I do run hyperthreading with distributed computing as well. It was more of a test to see how the stock HSF performed before I put on the Noctua.

 

[DrMrLordX]

There are only a few coolers on the market that will have a solid chance to out-cool the DBX-B, since, according to that review at hardwaresecrets that balane linked, the DBX-B is only narrowly defeated by a Megahalems with a noisy-ass FM123 strapped to it (read: a better fan than what the Megahalems has at stock).

Of course, the DBX-B's fan manages to be even noiser than the FM123 at full tilt.

You could probably do better than the DBX-B if you got a Megahalems, Venomous X, NH-D14, Arrow, or possibly others. But it would take some effort to do so, and I think it's been fairly well-demonstrated that you're going to have to bring the noise to beat it (just not necessarily as much noise as the DBX-B brings on its own).

the 980X cooler is completely dependent on a terribly loud fan for its performance. put a quiet fan on it and the heat sink is revealed as a hunk of crap.

The DBX-B probably needs a fan with good static pressure to perform. Put 2 GTs on there (36 dBA) or 2 San Aces on there (41-42 dBA) and it should do quite well.

That being said, using anything but the default fan on the DBX-B suggests that it might be better to go with an aftermarket cooler that might make even better use of fans such as the ones I mentioned above.

 

[ehume]

C'mon. HAF-X. i7-980. You have room for a Noctua NH-D14. You can fuss around, but nothing beats it for quiet cooling.

 

[davidstrongarm]

I can find plenty of good reviews of the DBX-B, and I can't find any bad ones, just a few bad comments here and there.

I think I'll settle with the stock cooler, I've got an HAF case, I'm not overclocking, and I'll keep a close eye on the temps during the summer.

 

[faxon]

C'mon. HAF-X. i7-980. You have room for a Noctua NH-D14. You can fuss around, but nothing beats it for quiet air cooling.

fixed. turn down 3 good fans to 5v and slap em on an MCR320, will outcool any air cooler on the market. run those same fans up to 12v when you really need to and its probably still gonna be quieter than your PSU :awe:

 

[RaistlinZ]

I think you should be fine if not overclocking.

But it does beg the question why not spend a few bucks more on a higher end HSF when you're spending $1,000.00 on the processor alone - especially if it gets to 35-40C daily temps there.

I dunno. If you're going to buy something that expensive you should also want to make sure it's well cooled/protected, especially in your hot environment.

 

[aigomorla]

the 980X requires LN2.

The theoretical load heat value is that of DOOM2 BFG cannon.

If you dont get an after market sink, the cpu will melt though your motherboard and though the case like acid blood from aliens.

(sarcasm)



OP, stock settings, the stock sink is always acceptable.
Unless were talking about extreme ambients.

believe it or not... at stock gulftown is actually cooler then bloomfield.