Air cooler v AIO water cooler

[doyll]

A AIO cooler is generally quieter (I don't know why the above say different as the pump is near silent) has an edge on performance and looks better imo. At the price of the current AIO solutions air cooling seems a thing of the past.

I'd keep your current cooler as a backup and go for another AIO.

Sorry, but AIO are not generally quieter. At least not in my experience and reviewers in general.

And air coolers are still cheaper than AIO, cool as well or better, cool better at same noise levels, and we don't need a backup coolers in case they fail.

Air coolers are definitely not "a thing of the past." Not even close.

 

[ttaskmaster]

Sorry, but AIO are not generally quieter. At least not in my experience and reviewers in general.

^ This.
I proudly have one myself, but it's still by FAR the noisiest thing in my nine-fan case!

Top end air coolers are about as good as (and a couple slightly better than) an AIO. I would always go with a Noctua, myself.
Air coolers ARE quieter.... mostly.

Mid-low end air coolers are utter crap compared to AIOs, even with good fans, which is where the AIO comes into play.

AIOs are for people who want less space taken up and decent cooling power overall, bordering on an average watercooling loop but without the hassle of assembling it yourself.
AIOs are mostly worthwhile if you get one in a deal - I got mine for about half the price of a Noctua cooler, so it'd have been silly not to!

But if you want great cooling and low noise, a custom water loop is your best bet and, given the price of some AIOs, you're about halfway there already!

 

[Rroff]

A AIO cooler is generally quieter (I don't know why the above say different as the pump is near silent) has an edge on performance and looks better imo. At the price of the current AIO solutions air cooling seems a thing of the past.

I'd keep your current cooler as a backup and go for another AIO.

You can get pumps near silent but its far less straight forward than with a decent air cooler.

It helps a lot if the AIO has pump control but even then its somewhat luck of the draw and a bit down to the specifics of the case and mounting especially orientation.

 

[Bluntwrapped]

Sorry, but AIO are not generally quieter. At least not in my experience and reviewers in general.

And air coolers are still cheaper than AIO, cool as well or better, cool better at same noise levels, and we don't need a backup coolers in case they fail.

Air coolers are definitely not "a thing of the past." Not even close.

I guess its down to personal experience but I never found either of the AIO coolers to be noisy at all. that was starting with a Corsair H50 as well. Sure you have the added noise from the pump but unless you fire your ear right up against the side of the case you shouldn't be hearing it.

I've been watercooling for years, moved from AIO to custom and I'll not look back now. From an aesthetic and hobby perspective air cooling is a thing of the past. I'm not saying its worthless because it's really not, just in terms of visual appearance/performance AIO cooling has the edge, at least in my opinion.

Another bonus is air coolers generally dump a lot of hot air inside the case that has to be dealt with good airflow, while AIO's can be used as the exhaust directly.

 

[Hagar]

I guess its down to personal experience but I never found either of the AIO coolers to be noisy at all. that was starting with a Corsair H50 as well. Sure you have the added noise from the pump but unless you fire your ear right up against the side of the case you shouldn't be hearing it.

I've been watercooling for years, moved from AIO to custom and I'll not look back now. From an aesthetic and hobby perspective air cooling is a thing of the past. I'm not saying its worthless because it's really not, just in terms of visual appearance/performance AIO cooling has the edge, at least in my opinion.

Another bonus is air coolers generally dump a lot of hot air inside the case that has to be dealt with good airflow, while AIO's can be used as the exhaust directly.

Like you I have had experience with water loop, AIO and air cooling. The latter for 20 years. I have had mixed experiance with all three, mainly good, but I will say that for sheer bullet proof simple cooling an air cooler is unbeatable against an AIO.

Air coolers do need airflow and your point re exhaust with an AIO is well made. However unless your graphics card exhausts directly outside, you do need a seperate exhaust or deal with the component heat through the rad in addition to the CPU.

AIO's / WC does look better if you want to see your internals through a window, no argument.

For lack of paranoia of things going pear shaped, I'd recommend air alone in most situations. I have never had a fan failure, I have had one wc pump and one AIO pump fail, both almost new.

 

[doyll]

@ttaskmaster
I agree with everything .. BUT comparing AIO and even more so CLC coolers to custom loops is like comparing a moped to a race bike, both have 2 wheels and handlebars, but that about it. In other words no comparison.

Custom loops cool way better than any AIO .. mainly becuase they almost always have more radiator area, better waterblocks and pumps that move way more water.

@Rroff
Case airflow is critical for all systems, not just those with air coolers. Reason is many do not have motherboard waterblocks or HDDs, RAM, audio cards, etc. with waterblocks, and all of these plus more need airflow to stay cool.

I build quite a few systems and 3-5 warmer is the most air inside of case going to any of the components is warmer than room. Most good cases have good airflow with a couple of good fans with automatic control so they cycle with CPU and GPU coolers supplying air as needed.




As for looks, I prefer air coolers to most H2O, even many custom loops. Only the straight lines and 90* bends of rigid tubing really look good to me.

 

[MrMD]

Buy a cheap basic 120mm heatsink like a 212 or summit and a Noctua F12.Combine them and you have excellent cooling and silence for less than £40

Aio's are sham for CPU cooling,louder and more expensive than top end air solutions,more points of failure,often questionable build quality and at best a few degress better cooling.

The worst thing for me with AIO's,they often ship with absolutely awful fans,with stupid high rpms and noise,awfull thing to do for products at the £100 mark

 

[dacads]

No need to buy another fan, I have the 212 Evo and stock fan is fine silent in both idle and load. Only problem now is with silent case fans as well I've detected another noise Possibly HDD and/or PSU. I'm not that bothered though but I can see people with paranoia or other reasons might want a completely silent PC

 

[Rroff]

@Rroff
Case airflow is critical for all systems, not just those with air coolers. Reason is many do not have motherboard waterblocks or HDDs, RAM, audio cards, etc. with waterblocks, and all of these plus more need airflow to stay cool.

I build quite a few systems and 3-5 warmer is the most air inside of case going to any of the components is warmer than room. Most good cases have good airflow with a couple of good fans with automatic control so they cycle with CPU and GPU coolers supplying air as needed.

More than just about airflow i.e. some AIOs will be quite happy mounted with the radiator at the top above the pump, others will be quite noisey - while you might then find them quiet if mounted in the front below the pump and/or vice versa.

Then you have stuff like vibrations, etc. with some cases you might never get an AIO truly quiet while in another case it might be a totally different situation.

 

[cactusweasel]

a high end air cooler should always beat a AIO watercooler.

And will usually be quieter too.

 

[greymack]

Cheers for the responses guys always good to get different points of view.
One thing to mention is the aesthetics, this is not an issue for me as i have purchased a fractal design Define R5 with no side window so whatever way i go it won't be seen.

I have purchased a second case fan for the front of the case, these fans are 140mm and rated well when it comes to noise. There's also a 140mm rear fan to exhaust the heat.

I'm still leaning on the noctua or dark rock 3 air cooler though when it comes to cooling.
As I said previously i had a corsair H60 and never had any issues, maybe a slight buzz from the pump but it never failed. The main inconvenience for me was the radiator constantly required cleaning as it got bunged up with dust very quickly.

 

[ttaskmaster]

The main inconvenience for me was the radiator constantly required cleaning as it got bunged up with dust very quickly.

Did you have the fans pushing air through or pulling it?
Pull usually traps a LOT less dust.
But solving this is relatively easy - Just a quick monthly blast out with an air duster can and a ½" paintbrush!

@ttaskmaster
In other words no comparison.

Ja, that was what I was saying, pretty much.
But still, with the cost of some AIOs, you are starting to reach the point where it'd be more cost-effective to go custom, which is why I mainly advocate AIOs if they're on sale and you're on a budget...

 

[greymack]

yeah i had it pushing, not ideal but it suited my old case better.

 

[Trunkey]

Those big air coolers look like they place a lot is weight on the mobo? Never used one do they come with an equally large rear side mounting support?

 

[Karateyid]

Had a noctua dh14 and just switched to a gtx100i and temps are lower. I can hear the pump whirring but it's not hugely noticeable and I can put it into quiet mode when not aggressively gaming. Will be interesting to see what it's like on newer chips. An investment to grab a skylake set up when they launch

 

[doyll]

Those big air coolers look like they place a lot is weight on the mobo? Never used one do they come with an equally large rear side mounting support?

Yes, they are heavier than stock coolers, but the only times I know of that they did any damage is when computer was dropped or fell off of desk .. and then they are not the only thing that breaks. There is a much greater chance of GPU damaging PCIe socket than the biggest CPU cooler. CPU has a big base on back of mobo to support the mounting. PCIe has nothing. Only thing helping support it is the screw at top of opening in back of case.

 

[Trunkey]

Yes, they are heavier than stock coolers, but the only times I know of that they did any damage is when computer was dropped or fell off of desk .. and then they are not the only thing that breaks. There is a much greater chance of GPU damaging PCIe socket than the biggest CPU cooler. CPU has a big base on back of mobo to support the mounting. PCIe has nothing. Only thing helping support it is the screw at top of opening in back of case.

I guess the plumbing from the AIO would add support to the card dependant on rad placement, but not in the same leagues acrylic which is a whole different argument.
A recent article in PC Format claimed liquid cooling was outselling air cooling at 3:1 I think it said.

 

[doyll]

3:1 .. That's very hard to believe. Do you remember what month and what article that was in?

 

[Trunkey]

About four months ago, I'm at work now I will dig it out this evening and post what it says.

 

[Trunkey]

It was an editorial piece in the issue where they did AIO group test think it was called the rise of the liquid cooler.