HELP me choose a fan for Athlon XP1600+??

[LordSwedish]

Lo all.

I'm planning to go with an MSI K7T266 PRO2 motherboard with the VIA KT266A chipset (very cool chipset
An AMD Athlon XP 1600+ OEM, and 256MB DDR333 PC2700 OCZ Tech ram.

Probably an Enermax SX1030 case.

I need help deciding on the friggin cooler for the CPU. I know I'll have to put some Artic Silver II on it....
But there are so many coolers/fans.

Which is the most quiet out there but the best air flow for overclocking?

 

[Egrimm]

Hmm, seem to be a nice system (same mobo and cpu as my main rig).
You don't need the OCZ PC2700 ram, the mobo can only use PC2100 except when you oc the fsb, and much of the cheaper ram can run just as high, example: my pc2100 Kingston Value Ram (2x512mb) runs 157mhz without any problem, haven't tried higher. And I've heard some pretty bad things about that brand.

Back to the question, you need a good hsf. Let me take my own rig as a good example again: the Alpha PAL8045 is one of the two best heatsinks out there (the other is the SwiftTech MC462A), pair it with as loud (=performing) fan you want and you've got a great cooling solution.

 

[PCHPlayer]

If you get the Alpha 8045 you have your choice of fan. Since the 8045 is a great heatsink you can choose the level of noise that you are comfortable with. I have the 8045 with a Panaflow fan. It is very quiet and my temps are around 95-100 F. I don't overclock, so you may want a fan with more RPM/noise if you want to push your CPU.

 

[Morse]

the alpha 8045 with a 53cfm mechatronics fan from www.coolerguys.com is a good choice

 

[punkrawket]

what if the alpha 8045 doesn't fit your motherboard like me and my GA-7DXR (without slight "modding")??
i'm thinking the 6xxx alpha would work, am i thinking right? also, i have a vantec copper 6035 does anyone know if this is a nice cooler for the XP, i'm sure it will work, but i like low temps

 

[SonofVengeance]

Yeah that Vantec Cooler will do and keep you pretty cool with an XP.. It can Keep a 1.4 T-bird to acceptable temps, the only thing about it with its stock Delta Fan its a tad bit loud.

 

[PhiI2e]

Go copper. SK6 w/60mm 38cfm Delta, and my case temps are 35-37 idle and 40c fulll load. Got the same chip and case as you (431w Enermax), but I have 4 case fans also.