H50 for i5? Or is there a better alternative?

tommytinkle · 3 Nov 2010 at 16:20

Hey,

I've clocked my i5 to 4ghz today without a clue what I was doing to be completely honest. Temperatures are far too high however, on the cheap cooler I currently have.

Would I see massive benefit from a h50 or something similar? Spec me some cooling please people?

Thanks

Liampope · 3 Nov 2010 at 16:34

I have a H50 and it's great. You have to really want/appreciate the elegance and compactness to make it worth the money, as performance wise it's no better than the top end air coolers, and probably a little noisier (though i can't hear mine).

My i5 isn't a real gem and needs 1.375V under load for 4GHz so gets quite toasty. H50 keeps it to a max of mid 80s running max stress IBT in a warmish room with case sides on. As above this is achievable for less money with high-end air coolers, but personally i prefer the sight of the little H50

.

tommytinkle · 3 Nov 2010 at 17:44

Hey mate,

Food for thought, but I want something that gives great cooling performance and lowish temps. If the h50 can do that, then its for me..... just gets me wondering if there are better air coolers out there :confused:

Yellowbeard · 3 Nov 2010 at 18:42

With the correct installation, a good case, and 2 good fans, the H50 can be the equal of pretty much any air cooler made. You'll get varying opinions of course but, it is a solid cooler and should be a great improvement over a "cheap" air cooler.

Tealc · 3 Nov 2010 at 18:48

If you want the best temperatures and cooling then you have to spend more.

Prolimatech Megahalems, Thermalright Silver Arrow and Noctua DH-14 are the top end air coolers and offer the best cooling this side of custom water cooling. They do this by sheer size of the cooling fin array that they have. Be aware though that they are expensive, when you factor in fans, and won't fit all RAM configurations. I may have neglected to mention some air coolers that are competitive here.

H50 is a good cooler. H70 is better at cooling but much noisier (2 x 2000rom fans).

M1k3H · 3 Nov 2010 at 19:31

Tealc said:
If you want the best temperatures and cooling then you have to spend more.

Prolimatech Megahalems, Thermalright Silver Arrow and Noctua DH-14 are the top end air coolers and offer the best cooling this side of custom water cooling. They do this by sheer size of the cooling fin array that they have. Be aware though that they are expensive, when you factor in fans, and won't fit all RAM configurations. I may have neglected to mention some air coolers that are competitive here.

H50 is a good cooler. H70 is better at cooling but much noisier (2 x 2000rom fans).

+1 on those air coolers mentioned above. Also check your case if it does indeed fit them.

tommytinkle · 3 Nov 2010 at 20:22

I have a reasonably large silverstone case, its been that long that I've had it - the model escapes me. Eitherway its semi old and weighs a tonne!

I think perhaps the h50 might be a smart move, but then I like the idea of the traditional heatsink! Decisions :confused:

tommytinkle · 4 Nov 2010 at 17:37

Hey,

From what I've read on a few review sites its looking like the air coolers are better than the h50? I'm not convinced which way to go yet as the NH-D14 is very expensive! Is this cooler worth the extra money over a h50 or a megahelm cooler?

Thanks for the help

timbo2410 · 5 Nov 2010 at 10:47

H50 is great but when coupled with a push pull fan arrangement it can drop your temps by around 15 degrees (in my case). For the size and cost it's a great cooler.

Legend · 5 Nov 2010 at 11:52

I second the above. Great cooler for what it is, simple to fit, compact and not THAT noisy. I did swap the fan on mine for a slightly quieter one though. My temps idle at mid-30's on an overclocked i5 760 @ 4ghz. I'm happy with it.

tommytinkle · 5 Nov 2010 at 15:22

Legend said:
I second the above. Great cooler for what it is, simple to fit, compact and not THAT noisy. I did swap the fan on mine for a slightly quieter one though. My temps idle at mid-30's on an overclocked i5 760 @ 4ghz. I'm happy with it.

Hey,

What are your temperatures fully loaded? What settings did you use for that overclock?

Thanks.

Legend · 5 Nov 2010 at 15:49

I bought the pre-overclocked bundle from OCUK, so can't comment on settings unfortunately. My temps get into the 70s with Prime95 running. Not seen them go over 75 but i've not run it that long admittedly.