Need HSF suggestions: OC i7-920 on Air

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thatsright

Diamond Member
May 1, 2001
3,004
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Setting up a new rig with i7-920 Retail CPU. I would like a modest overclock from 2.66Ghz to 3.2 minimum. But I don't want to spend more than $50 for a third party HSF combo. Can anyone recommend something this inexpensive they have used, or highly rated cooler in this price rage?

BTW, not sure how this limits my OC, but I have a Antec 550w BasicP PS. Along with:
-2 SATA drives in RAID 1
-PATA drive
-2 Optical Drives
-Mobo & 3 dims x2 GB of PC1333 DDR3
-Mid range Vid card that does not need power connection.

Given the above, will this hurt my OC potential?
 
Rubycon

Rubycon

Madame President
Aug 10, 2005
17,768
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I did 3.6 with a 940 on the stock cooler. It would hit 95C with HT on prime 95 small FFT. If you're just gaming and not loading everything to MAX it's actually fine. Idle will scare you (mid 50's) but it's really OK until you can get a better cooler.
 
Markfw

Markfw

Moderator Emeritus, Elite Member
May 16, 2002
26,424
15,546
136
I can't see why you would get a top of the line CPU, but cheap out on the cooler. Megahalem is $62 at svc.com. So for $12 more you can have the best air.

That less than 12 pack of good beer.....
 
Rubycon

Rubycon

Madame President
Aug 10, 2005
17,768
485
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Markfw900 said:
I can't see why you would get a top of the line CPU, but cheap out on the cooler. Megahalem is $62 at svc.com. So for $12 more you can have the best air.

That less than 12 pack of good beer.....
Click to expand...

Doesn't include a fan though...;)

And some REALLY value their beer! :D
 
C

Carmen813

Diamond Member
May 18, 2007
3,189
0
76
cusideabelincoln said:
Cooler Master Hyper 212+

Look for it. Great bang for the buck.
Click to expand...

I just installed this on my i5, and it's pretty great. It was only $29.99 at newegg, though they come and go out of stock pretty often.

I haven't overclocked my i5 yet but my CPU is sitting at 50C at 100% load (1 hour) so far. My case also currently lacks any intake fans, so this is pretty nice.
 
N

nyker96

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2005
5,630
2
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depend on budget: $30s hyper 212 plus, 40s Mugen 2, 50s and above TRUE/ProMeg.
 
dank69

dank69

Lifer
Oct 6, 2009
36,577
31,343
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Add $35 Cogage True Spirit to your short list, it includes the fan. 4GHz stable for me.
 
T

thatsright

Diamond Member
May 1, 2001
3,004
3
81
Markfw900 said:
I can't see why you would get a top of the line CPU, but cheap out on the cooler. Megahalem is $62 at svc.com. So for $12 more you can have the best air.

That less than 12 pack of good beer.....
Click to expand...

OC'ing the system is far down on the list of things I want to do with the new rig. Thats why I'm not being too aggressive about it. I'll take what I can get above stock and not get too greedy after that. Just that it makes sense to put a better 3rd party HSF on before I close up the case....so I'd like toget something decent/cheap before sealing it all up.
 
exar333

exar333

Diamond Member
Feb 7, 2004
8,518
8
91
The stock cooler will keep decent temps up to about 3.2ghz; after that, it just gets too hot for my liking. I would suggest keeping it at 3.2 if you don't want to buy another cooler, otherwise, there are a lot of options in the posts above that would fit your needs and get you between 3.6-4.0ghz.
 
W

wheels

Member
May 6, 2001
160
0
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I think you should go for the Conage True Spirit. Great price and would keep you cool and quiet, also leaves you room to OC even higher if you decide.
 
Tristor

Tristor

Senior member
Jul 25, 2007
314
0
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For the price pop an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro on there with some Masscool Shin-Etsu G751 thermal paste. It'll run you under $40 all together, includes the 92mm fan already mounted with the HSF, and should keep you around 70C peaks at 3.6GHz in Prime95 Small FFTs.
 
Markfw

Markfw

Moderator Emeritus, Elite Member
May 16, 2002
26,424
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Tristor said:
For the price pop an Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro on there with some Masscool Shin-Etsu G751 thermal paste. It'll run you under $40 all together, includes the 92mm fan already mounted with the HSF, and should keep you around 70C peaks at 3.6GHz in Prime95 Small FFTs.
Click to expand...

I have one of those. It can't even keep an E6300@3.2 better than 70, an I7 would probably hit 95 !
 
manimal

manimal

Lifer
Mar 30, 2007
13,559
8
0
I Agree with mark the acfreezer would be seriously overmatched. The true spirit or a megahalem are worth it.
 
C

Carmen813

Diamond Member
May 18, 2007
3,189
0
76
neutralizer said:
Recommended here. Great hsf for the value. Installation instructions are terrible, but love the look and design and it's still light.
Click to expand...

The 212+ installation instructions do indeed suck, but coolermaster has a video on their website you can watch that makes it cake.
 
Tristor

Tristor

Senior member
Jul 25, 2007
314
0
71
Markfw900 said:
I have one of those. It can't even keep an E6300@3.2 better than 70, an I7 would probably hit 95 !
Click to expand...

I've used several of them, they're great for the money. Main thing to remember is to check flatness and lap if necessary (probably necessary). Nice little heatpipe tower though for ~$30.
 
dank69

dank69

Lifer
Oct 6, 2009
36,577
31,343
136
Computer Bottleneck said:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/coolers/display/coolermaster-hyper-cogage_7.html#sect0

That cooler does well against Hyper 212 in this comparison.

$35 with fan sounds a really good value.
Click to expand...

I find it very odd that they say adding a 2nd fan to it doesn't make a difference. The tower is a bit on the slim side, which is nice since it doesn't block any RAM slots. I guess 1 fan can easily move maximum effective air through it.

I've always wanted to add an extra fan to mine for push/pull, but it didn't come with a 2nd set of clips. Perhaps I shouldn't even worry about it.
 
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