Best CPU Fan for around £50

MatthewC1991 · 30 Dec 2012 at 15:27

i use a Coolermaster HAF 912 Plus Case which i would say is medium sized, i have my CPU at 4.5ghz so need a good fan, that will fit in case

I like the look and review of the K2 but not sure if it would fit

doyll · 30 Dec 2012 at 16:02

Your case spec says 175mm CPU clearance. K2 only needs 160mm tall.

Ram height if over 48mm is only thing I can think of that might be an issue.

Jonny Chee · 30 Dec 2012 at 16:05

I just got this and it seems to do a very good job, so far: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-037-AL&groupid=701&catid=2330&subcat=

It's less than your £50 though.

doyll · 30 Dec 2012 at 16:26

Jonny Chee said:
I just got this and it seems to do a very good job, so far: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-037-AL&groupid=701&catid=2330&subcat=

It's less than your £50 though.

LOL Was going to suggest Matterhorn until OP asked about K2.

Matterhorn is a lot of cooler for £30.

Jonny Chee · 30 Dec 2012 at 16:46

doyll said:
LOL Was going to suggest Matterhorn until OP asked about K2.
Matterhorn is a lot of cooler for £30.

Would leave £20 change to be spent elsewhere.

doyll · 30 Dec 2012 at 16:53

More than that if OP is looking at K2.

Matterhorn is a lot of cooler for the money.

olivier renault · 30 Dec 2012 at 17:10

Quite tempted by the new single tower phanteks. They do good stuff, and the specs look attractive (copper plated, dual fan, small, light, 4 large heatpipes, looks like nice build quality), and they don't look bad themselves. I would buy one of them blind if I was making a build.

Hey, review...

doyll · 30 Dec 2012 at 17:22

Specs I've see say 4x 6mm pipes which is the smaller of normal size pipes.. the largeer being 8mm. Nothing great there. It is attractive but it's got lots of competition in it's size range... many that are cheaper too.

olivier renault · 30 Dec 2012 at 17:37

doyll said:
Specs I've see say 4x 6mm pipes which is the smaller of normal size pipes.. the largeer being 8mm. Nothing great there. It is attractive but it's got lots of competition in it's size range... many that are cheaper too.

Personally, if I'm aiming at a specific overclock target (4.4, 4.6GHz), I don't care so much about the raw performance, but the rest does come in handy (noise, size, mounting mechanism, build quality).

Oddly enough, I didn't follow my own rule with my TS140, which is a pain to install, and is quite big, but over-performs.

doyll · 30 Dec 2012 at 18:56

olivier renault said:
Personally, if I'm aiming at a specific overclock target (4.4, 4.6GHz), I don't care so much about the raw performance, but the rest does come in handy (noise, size, mounting mechanism, build quality).

Oddly enough, I didn't follow my own rule with my TS140, which is a pain to install, and is quite big, but over-performs.

As long as mounting mechanism does a good job I'm happy. In most cases I prefer over-performing coolers... Just means fan can be run slower so system is quieter.

Isn't it strange how Thermalright coolers look good, are great performers, mounting system works great too... but the actual assembly of their and install is not as straight forwards as some.