3950x cooler options

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 01:11

Hello,

I have all my parts ready to go on my new build finally. Only part missing is the cooler.

I never used an AIO and i am a bit worried to use one due to noise, potential leaks, or degradation after a few years.

I have my current pc since 2008 with a Scythe Ninja 2 and even the fan is working fine, although i added one half way through to make a push pull.

I need as much silence as possible but obviously to get out as much as possible from the processor.

I was leaning towards the D15 for air cooler but i have 2x16 trident z neos and i think the cooler will cover them which is a bit of a shame. Also I cannot find anywhere how well the 3950x goes with clocks and this cooler.

On the AIO end i am clueless.
Is it still the norm to avoid asetek made pumps? I saw the arctic freezer II 280 which i believe would fit in my c700p which supposedly has a good pump but is there anything else recommended?

Any ideas on the matter feel free to recommend

random_matt · 6 Dec 2019 at 06:13

D15 is not enough in my opinion, get at least a 240mm AIO. Your worries are completely OTT, perfectly safe.

deFiniLoGy · 6 Dec 2019 at 07:10

If D15 is not enough, a 240mm will most certainly not be enough under sustained load either - it’s well established that D15 (and most other similar design) dual tower coolers are on par if not exceed the performance of a 240.

to outperform them you need at least a 280.

Joxeon · 6 Dec 2019 at 07:39

The D15 should be fine unless you plan on doing a heavy all core OC with like 1.4v. Doubt it will run any hotter than the 3900x as it is a top bin and will use less voltage.

Ross Thomson · 6 Dec 2019 at 08:56

The 3950x actually runs a bit cooler than the 3900x as it uses less voltage. a D15 would cool it fine

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 10:32

Thats what i thought. So far D15 seems to be better than a 240 AIO. But also AMD recommends 280 or above AIOs. I was looking at the Arctic Freezer II 280 because it actually is getting very good reviews but of course no one has reviewed both to compare results. Warranty for the Arctic is also 2 years but not sure if they cover leak damage etc.

In fact so far i haven't found anyone reviewing the D15 with the 3950x, I only saw a youtube video with a D15 setup and how good the processor is but no proper thermal tests etc.

Any aio recommendations?

Relentless81 · 6 Dec 2019 at 10:44

apostolis_kt said:
Thats what i thought. So far D15 seems to be better than a 240 AIO. But also AMD recommends 280 or above AIOs. I was looking at the Arctic Freezer II 280 because it actually is getting very good reviews but of course no one has reviewed both to compare results. Warranty for the Arctic is also 2 years but not sure if they cover leak damage etc.

In fact so far i haven't found anyone reviewing the D15 with the 3950x, I only saw a youtube video with a D15 setup and how good the processor is but no proper thermal tests etc.

Any aio recommendations?

If I were you and I wanted an AIO I would probably go with the Arctic but I would some kind of reassurance on their warranty first. I still cant find anything and their standard warranty for air coolers is ten years so why is it only two years for the AIO?

Failing that I would go with Corsair as their warranty is clearly stated and is five years on Hydro products but in my experience the fans are awful

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 10:59

Relentless81 said:
If I were you and I wanted an AIO I would probably go with the Arctic but I would some kind of reassurance on their warranty first. I still cant find anything and their standard warranty for air coolers is ten years so why is it only two years for the AIO?

Failing that I would go with Corsair as their warranty is clearly stated and is five years on Hydro products but in my experience the fans are awful

I was set for corsair but all the reviews don't praise them. I was looking at the 115i platinum I think and there were reviews that the D15 actually does better and you don't have to worry about AIO issues. Also the prices on AIOs are getting stupid, going the nvidia and apple way

doyll · 6 Dec 2019 at 15:09

apostolis_kt said:
Hello,

I have all my parts ready to go on my new build finally. Only part missing is the cooler.

I never used an AIO and i am a bit worried to use one due to noise, potential leaks, or degradation after a few years.

I have my current pc since 2008 with a Scythe Ninja 2 and even the fan is working fine, although i added one half way through to make a push pull.

I need as much silence as possible but obviously to get out as much as possible from the processor.

I was leaning towards the D15 for air cooler but i have 2x16 trident z neos and i think the cooler will cover them which is a bit of a shame. Also I cannot find anywhere how well the 3950x goes with clocks and this cooler.

On the AIO end i am clueless.
Is it still the norm to avoid asetek made pumps? I saw the arctic freezer II 280 which i believe would fit in my c700p which supposedly has a good pump but is there anything else recommended?

Any ideas on the matter feel free to recommend

First off, CLCs are a sub-group of AIOs. CLCs are factory sealed with no way to perform repairs or maintenence. AIOs that are not CLCs have fill port, threaded fittings and copper radiators so they can be maintained and repaired as needed. CLCs are the absolute cheapest water cooling made, and while AIOs are better they are still much, much cheaper than custom loop cooling (what many of us call real water cooling).

AIOs and CLCs are no better than top tier air. Top tier air coolers don't come with high-performance fans, but if hi-performance fans are added to top tier (and to case) they are easily as good and often better than any AIO/CLC is. At similar noise levels (high performance fans) top tier air will cool as well or better than AIO or CLC. Shortly after Thermalright TRUE Spirit 140 Power came out we tested NH-D14 and it with same hi-performance fans Silver Arrow SB-E Extreme uses .. TY-143 2500rpm 130cfm (quiet up to 1300-1400rpm, very loud at 2500rpm). Keep in mind case needs same kind of hi-performance as used on cooler or cooler is forced to re-used it's own heated air and resulting CPU temps to up at same rate as air temp into cool (10c warmer air into cooler give 10c higher CPU temp at same fan speed). D14 and TRUE Spirit 140 Power (Silver Arrow SB-E & IBE Extreme too) give about 8-9c lower temps at 2500rpm than at 1200rpm on i7-920 @ 4.3Ghz. TRUE Spirit 140 Power is still if not the very best one of very best and definitely the lowest priced at about £50.

What it all boils down to is a good air cooler with case setup to supply components with air less than 5c above room temp will cool as well or better than any AIO or CLC an lasts way longer with lower maintenance. Cases with good airflow and good intake filters need no exhaust fans at all and if filters are hoovered every time room is components stay clean for years .. only maintenance is regularly cleaning filters.

CLCs most common failure are pumps .. typically 2-5 years and they die.
Most CLCs cost more than top tier air coolers, even if a couple good case fans are added to cooler cost.
CLCs typically make more noise than air cooler (pumps are usually audidble even at idle).

Some (maybe many) hardcore custom loop owners have or are changing to air for ease of maintenance and cost.

If you want long term dependablity with low maintenance, air cooling it the only way forward.

I can give you links to how airflow works and how to optimize case airflow. It's not hard to do.

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 15:32

doyll said:
First off, CLCs are a sub-group of AIOs. CLCs are factory sealed with no way to perform repairs or maintenence. AIOs that are not CLCs have fill port, threaded fittings and copper radiators so they can be maintained and repaired as needed. CLCs are the absolute cheapest water cooling made, and while AIOs are better they are still much, much cheaper than custom loop cooling (what many of us call real water cooling).

AIOs and CLCs are no better than top tier air. Top tier air coolers don't come with high-performance fans, but if hi-performance fans are added to top tier (and to case) they are easily as good and often better than any AIO/CLC is. At similar noise levels (high performance fans) top tier air will cool as well or better than AIO or CLC. Shortly after Thermalright TRUE Spirit 140 Power came out we tested NH-D14 and it with same hi-performance fans Silver Arrow SB-E Extreme uses .. TY-143 2500rpm 130cfm (quiet up to 1300-1400rpm, very loud at 2500rpm). Keep in mind case needs same kind of hi-performance as used on cooler or cooler is forced to re-used it's own heated air and resulting CPU temps to up at same rate as air temp into cool (10c warmer air into cooler give 10c higher CPU temp at same fan speed). D14 and TRUE Spirit 140 Power (Silver Arrow SB-E & IBE Extreme too) give about 8-9c lower temps at 2500rpm than at 1200rpm on i7-920 @ 4.3Ghz. TRUE Spirit 140 Power is still if not the very best one of very best and definitely the lowest priced at about £50.

What it all boils down to is a good air cooler with case setup to supply components with air less than 5c above room temp will cool as well or better than any AIO or CLC an lasts way longer with lower maintenance. Cases with good airflow and good intake filters need no exhaust fans at all and if filters are hoovered every time room is components stay clean for years .. only maintenance is regularly cleaning filters.

CLCs most common failure are pumps .. typically 2-5 years and they die.
Most CLCs cost more than top tier air coolers, even if a couple good case fans are added to cooler cost.
CLCs typically make more noise than air cooler (pumps are usually audidble even at idle).

Some (maybe many) hardcore custom loop owners have or are changing to air for ease of maintenance and cost.

If you want long term dependablity with low maintenance, air cooling it the only way forward.

I can give you links to how airflow works and how to optimize case airflow. It's not hard to do.

Thank you for the info its highly detailed and roughly what is on the back of my head. Ram is arriving tonight and will need tonight to order the cooler, i might give the arctic cooler a try and maybe in the future once it goes bang ill get an air cooler of that time. I just want to be able to see the fancy Tridents as well.

doyll · 6 Dec 2019 at 16:02

apostolis_kt said:
Thank you for the info its highly detailed and roughly what is on the back of my head. Ram is arriving tonight and will need tonight to order the cooler, i might give the arctic cooler a try and maybe in the future once it goes bang ill get an air cooler of that time. I just want to be able to see the fancy Tridents as well.

TRUE Spirit 140 Power is wide and tall but does not block RAM. Center CPU to front of fan is 53mm, fins reach 77.5mm toward PCIe and is 171mm tall. if you tell me what motherboard you have I can tell you how close PCIe sockets are to CPU center. I can't give more info on open forum as OcUK does not allow us to post competions' name or links. Drop me a trust message if interested.

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 18:11

doyll said:
TRUE Spirit 140 Power is wide and tall but does not block RAM. Center CPU to front of fan is 53mm, fins reach 77.5mm toward PCIe and is 171mm tall. if you tell me what motherboard you have I can tell you how close PCIe sockets are to CPU center. I can't give more info on open forum as OcUK does not allow us to post competions' name or links. Drop me a trust message if interested.

Its the X570 Aorus Master.

I have clicked on trust

doyll · 6 Dec 2019 at 19:59

apostolis_kt said:
Its the X570 Aorus Master.

I have clicked on trust

TRUE Spirit 140 Power will fit with about 5mm of clearance to near side of PCIe but there is only 51.7mm center CPU to near side of RAM sockets and front of fan is about 52.5mm from center CpU, so fan may not fit on front of cooler. but it can be mounted on back of cooler pulling air through and cool just as well.

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 20:26

doyll said:
TRUE Spirit 140 Power will fit with about 5mm of clearance to near side of PCIe but there is only 51.7mm center CPU to near side of RAM sockets and front of fan is about 52.5mm from center CpU, so fan may not fit on front of cooler. but it can be mounted on back of cooler pulling air through and cool just as well.

Thanks for the help. I will look into it, although i am leaning toward the arctic cooler 280mm for price and apparently has really good performance.

doyll · 6 Dec 2019 at 21:59

apostolis_kt said:
Thanks for the help. I will look into it, although i am leaning toward the arctic cooler 280mm for price and apparently has really good performance.

It's your decision to make. Just remember an air cooler will still be cooling like it did when new 10, even 20 years from now with fan and mount upgrades. The Arctic will last a few years, maybe a few more, maybe less and it will die. Keep some sort of air cooler handy so when it does die you have something to replace it with because when pump goes there is no circulation so no cooling until cooler is replaced.

apostolis_kt · 6 Dec 2019 at 22:34

doyll said:
It's your decision to make. Just remember an air cooler will still be cooling like it did when new 10, even 20 years from now with fan and mount upgrades. The Arctic will last a few years, maybe a few more, maybe less and it will die. Keep some sort of air cooler handy so when it does die you have something to replace it with because when pump goes there is no circulation so no cooling until cooler is replaced.

The main concern I have is leaks. Dont want pc to get destroyed because of water hence why I don't go for a custom water cooler. If pump dies ill go get a different one and most likely will also never touch the aios again.. the cooler you posted woyld be nice not sure how much it would handle 3950x with oc

wazza300 · 6 Dec 2019 at 22:46

D15 is a good cooler,theres one with the cut out on the heatsink to clear ram? But you use a 120 mm fan

The bigger the aircooler the better imo,plus you get a little vrm cooling aswell from the fans unlike an aio

deFiniLoGy · 7 Dec 2019 at 02:15

Do consider the height of the True Power 140 and make sure it is compatible with your case first.

D15S single fan mode also does not block ram, or use a second 120mm which also have good compatibility but you won’t see the the RAM per se.

apostolis_kt · 7 Dec 2019 at 09:22

The case is the cooler master c700p, I think there is plenty of space for a beastly cooler, but yes the ram part is the concern. Also the x570 master has the only rgb on the vrm part so that would be blocked I believe if I put the second fan on the other side.

Relentless81 · 7 Dec 2019 at 09:34

I wouldn't bother with the 140 Power, I was very close to ordering one but didn't for the following reasons

Not easily available

They don't respond to customer queries in my experience

Fitment is risky

Fitting kits Inc aren't clear I found it difficult to understand what's Inc if you was to buy from a well know etailer

Other etailers sell them but I've never used them

If thermalright sorted their UK marketing out, made the products clearer and more easily available then I would be interested but they don't seem interested in it