Question I'm looking for a CPU cooler for an i7- 8700k

[marcplante]

I'm building a somewhat compact Gaming PC to sit by my TV. It will run HD Homerun client for TV tuning as well as some VR games (Beat Saber, Half Life, Lone Echo, more as they come) as well as driving Assetto Corsa with VR goggles. I see this rig getting maybe 5-10 hours of action a week. Not heavy gaming, but VR driving at 90 fps can be taxing.

I have an Inwin 301c https://www.in-win.com/en/gaming-chassis/301c/
with an i7-8700k (Not overclocked) and an RTX 2080. an M2 drive and 4 sticks of RAM. The case has 2 fans in front and one in the back as well as open space at the bottom. I've never used. The machine will be on its side. I've never used water cooling and wonder if something like a coolermaster 212, Arctic 12 or some other smallish air cooler will be OK with all of the case cooling going on. I've got budget to go to something more powerful if needed, and I suppose I could try water cooling, but it sounds a but messy to have to maintain.

Recommendations?

Thanks

 

[UsandThem]

Why not something like the Noctua NH-U12S?

Your case supports up to 160mm tall coolers, and that Noctua would fit (158mm), and it will provide strong cooling for that CPU.

Otherwise, you want to stay smaller for whatever reason, something like the Noctua NH-U9S would work good. It doesn't cool as well as its bigger counterpart, but it is smaller at only 125mm. It will still keep your temps fine for that CPU. Both coolers are usually priced the same ($60), so if you don't mind having a larger cooler, I would personally go with the NH-U12S.

 

[marcplante]

Thanks. The one thing I need to double check is ram clearance with both banks full. I might need to consider one of noctuas c class coolers (NH-C14S).

 

[UsandThem]

Thanks. The one thing I need to double check is ram clearance with both banks full. I might need to consider one of noctuas c class coolers (NH-C14S).

That's a good cooler as well, although that style doesn't cool as well as the traditional towers do. That said, it will be more than enough for your CPU and will be quiet.

I almost bought that cooler though when I built my current build as it really cools off the socket/VRM areas, but I decided to go with NH-D15S which is way over-kill for my CPU. However, it was less expensive than the NH-C14S at the time as well.

 

[marcplante]

Actually that is going to be too tall. I'll try the u line. Thanks for dialing me into the Noctua products. I just need to figure out the best form factor. I suppose they have a product finder. I'll do more digging tomorrow after work.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

Get the best noctua that u can afford. The noctua will last u longer than your cpu. My d14 has been Through 3 builds already since 2010

 

[marcplante]

I picked up a NH-U14S today and it seems like a really tight fit. I'm going to step down to the 12 to get a little more room for the video card. Turned one way it collides with the RAM. Turned the other way, it sticks pretty close to where the video card will sit when I get it tomorrow.

 

[UsandThem]

I also have the U14S in one of my PCs as well, and it clears the first PCIe 16x. It's not much clearance, but it does fit. That model shows it's taller than the clearance provided by your case.

Noctua maintains a motherboard compatibility chart for all the various motherboard models, and it will warn you if it's going to run into slot or RAM clearance issues.

https://noctua.at/en/nh-u14s/comp

Just go to the service section.

 

[marcplante]

Thanks that worked. I can run the video card in the second slot. Don't think I'll be going SLI anyhow. Actually. Looking at your case comment reminded be too double check that clearance. I'm stepping down to the 12 which should be fine.

 

[DigDog]

non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.
non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.

 

[marcplante]

It came without a cooler. So....Any nominal cooler will work fine?

 

[UsandThem]

non-overclocked CPUs do not need aftermarket coolers.

But people, like me, who value silence do.

 

[UsandThem]

It came without a cooler. So....Any nominal cooler will work fine?

Don't use an OEM Intel cooler for your 8700k or you're going to have a bad day. The "k" CPUs are mostly 95w TDP, while those crappy all aluminum Intel coolers are rated for 65w TDP. Plus, even some 65w CPUs don't give all their performance when used with a stock Intel cooler. Tom's did a review on it, and found a person lost performance using the included cooler.

 

[DigDog]

But people, like me, who value silence do.

do you value silence at $70 ?

also, you know that a 8700k without overclock can simply be undervolted a bit, and voila', same result with stock cooler. OR, or, you know, buy a 212. Really, there is no need to splash on a Noctua unless you are going for +voltage +speed.
Besides, it's the GPU that's gonna be making most of the noise.

 

[UsandThem]

do you value silence at $70 ?

also, you know that a 8700k without overclock can simply be undervolted a bit, and voila', same result with stock cooler. OR, or, you know, buy a 212. Really, there is no need to splash on a Noctua unless you are going for +voltage +speed.
Besides, it's the GPU that's gonna be making most of the noise.

The 8700k does not come with a stock Intel cooler. Intel only includes them on locked 65w CPUs, and it has been that way for many years now.

Concerning Noctua coolers, if you're not a fan their of aftermarket coolers, cool.

However, I am and even though their coolers are not cheap, they can be used in multiple builds. Their build quality is a lot higher than say a Cooler Master 212 (I've owned one of those in the past). As far the GPU being the most noticeable source of noise, many cards don't turn on their fans until they hit 60 degrees. Depending on the ambient temperature, I can play hours of Civilization 5/6 without the fans coming on.

 

[DigDog]

... i did not know that.
I do think that the noctua are just overpriced. Good coolers, but dayum.

 

[DigDog]

Damn i googled it. You are right. Wth the 3700x comes with the wraith prysm and intels come with nothing.
Ok then i guess a noctua could be a sound investment.

 

[UsandThem]

... i did not know that.
I do think that the noctua are just overpriced. Good coolers, but dayum.

I think most motherboards are overpriced when most just add a little more plastic and RGB, but we all determine if it's worth it.

Damn i googled it. You are right. Wth the 3700x comes with the wraith prysm and intels come with nothing.
Ok then i guess a noctua could be a sound investment.

I understand that not everyone wants to spend that much on a cooler, but they aren't bad compared to products like custom water loop or an AIO, which easily exceed $100. Noctua sends new mounting hardware free of charge when AMD or Intel changes the socket, so a person can buy one and use it for a very long time as the only thing that really can go wrong with it is the fan dying. And then it's as simple as replacing the fan. With something like an AIO, a person has to deal with possibly replacing the liquid, or having something like the pump dying.

Even the Intel CPUs that come with a cooler, the coolers are all aluminum and pretty bad. I bought a i5-7500 for my youngest son's computer, and it constantly was spinning up and down to keep up with the temps, and it was noisy. Those little fans produce a unique sound signature.

Back when Intel used to make their coolers with a copper core, they were pretty decent. Not great, but not bad for a stock cooler. However, the last 4-5 years, I've only seen the all aluminum variety offered. I've even seen AMD has gone all aluminum on some of their lower end CPUs with the Ryzen 3000 series, and it seems like they aren't as good as the previous versions. Copper is a superior metal for heat, but costs more than aluminum, so it's simply a cost saving measure.

Here's an interesting read on the included coolers from both AMD and Intel: https://www.techspot.com/review/1900-intel-vs-amd-stock-cooler/

 

[dlerious]

Concerning Noctua coolers, if you're not a fan their of aftermarket coolers, cool.

My last couple were Noctua (NH-D15). Before that I used Thermalright ( did buy a True Spirit same time as NH-D15).

 

[H T C]

Get the best noctua that u can afford. The noctua will last u longer than your cpu. My d14 has been Through 3 builds already since 2010

I've been using my NH-C14 since 2011 IIRC. Even though it has been discontinued for many years, they still sent me an AM4 mounting kit for free when i provided them with the necessary info.

Currently with my 2600X CPU.

I have an even older NH-C12P cooler that i'll request the AM4 mounting kit for, if i ever need it: it's currently being used with my sister's 7850 APU.

OFF topic: is it just me or whenever i try to bold a specific part of text, like the bit in your reply that i quoted, it bolds everything after that, forcing me to un-bold it and, even then, adding more text will also be bolded? And it's not only when bolding stuff: just added the link to "necessary info" above, and it turn to a link everything after that, forcing me to remove all of it.

 

[JEDIYoda]

https://www.amazon.com/Zalman-92mm-LED-CNPS9500A-LED-CU/dp/B000C0V5RU

 

[UsandThem]

Zalman was the " " back in the day, and I imagine almost all enthusiasts owned one of their models. That said, they really dropped the ball when they were way ahead of their competition (very much like Antec did).

The downside to their coolers though if the fan died, you were pretty much forced to buy an entire new cooler. That's what I like about most modern after-market coolers. If the fan dies, you simply just buy a replacement fan (usually 120mm or 140mm), which can be had for next to nothing if the person doesn't want to go premium.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Zalman was the " " back in the day, and I imagine almost all enthusiasts owned one of their models. That said, they really dropped the ball when they were way ahead of their competition (very much like Antec did).

The downside to their coolers though if the fan died, you were pretty much forced to buy an entire new cooler. That's what I like about most modern after-market coolers. If the fan dies, you simply just buy a replacement fan (usually 120mm or 140mm), which can be had for next to nothing if the person doesn't want to go premium.

I have used their coolers exclusively for ages! But you are correct about the fan! At one time I had a collection that encompassd one of every cooler that Zalman ever made! It was quite the sight seeing all that copper, eye candy!!
I also found the Zalman multi-fan spped controller to be a real nice piece of equipment!
Those were the days!! The golden days of computing!! lol

 

[UsandThem]

I have used their coolers exclusively for ages! But you are correct about the fan! At one time I had a collection that encompassd one of every cooler that Zalman ever made! It was quite the sight seeing all that copper, eye candy!!
I also found the Zalman multi-fan spped controller to be a real nice piece of equipment!
Those were the days!! The golden days of computing!! lol

Definitely

Pretty much all the air coolers back then were small little squares, but Zalman hit the scene with some crazy designs that really caught your eye.

 

[LOUISSSSS]

do you value silence at $70 ?

also, you know that a 8700k without overclock can simply be undervolted a bit, and voila', same result with stock cooler. OR, or, you know, buy a 212. Really, there is no need to splash on a Noctua unless you are going for +voltage +speed.
Besides, it's the GPU that's gonna be making most of the noise.

yes