Need help picking CPU cooler

EvilOne

EvilOne

EvilOne

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I'm planing a new build with a i5-4690K on a Z97 Extreme4 motherboard. I'm using a ATCS 840 case so lots of room. I have 2x Noctua 120mm quote fans spare to mount on it. I will be doing some overclocking.

Ideally it needs to be able to mount both my 120mm fans. (need it quite!).
I'm not sure about ram hight clearance on the motherboard (not ordered yet).
Budget is around £40 but can go more if there's good reasons.
 
What C64 said. There are some very good and quiet coolers in the £50.00 range. Thermalrgiht TRUE Spirit 140 Power (6x 8mm pipes), TRUE Spirit 140 rev.A (offset base for better PCIe socket clearance), Macho variants (offset base for better RAM socket clearance), etc. are all as cool and quiet as NH-D14, and until a year or so ago the NH-D14 was arguable the standard coolers were judged by.
Too bad OcUK doesn't sell Thermalright anymore. :(
 
I'd recommend the Noctua NH-D15. It comes with 2 140mm fans, which are quieter than the ones on the D14 and has a space for one more fan. You might be able to mount one of the 120mm fans, but I'd recommend mounting those on the case. Here's the one I'm talking about.
YOUR BASKET
1 x Noctua NH-D15 Dual Radiator Quiet CPU Cooler with two NH-A15 Fans £77.99
1 x Noctua NF-A15 PWM Fan - 140mm £18.95
Total : £98.54.


It's a pricey solution, otherwise go for the NH-D14, a tad cheaper. Otherwise, if the budget is £40, I'd suggest:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Prolimatech Megahalems Rev C CPU Cooler £42.98

A very good cooler for your budget, supports 120mm fans so you can use those Noctua fans and it comes with 2 free fan braces to mount them.
 
There is also the Matterhorn Pure for £29.99.
https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-037-AL&groupid=701&catid=2330&subcat=2337
Great cooler for it's price.

I have NH-D15 and it's a good cooler, but is quite wide and can interfere with PCIe sockets .. and is rather over-priced compared to the likes of HE01, PH-TC14PE, NH-D14, and others with similar cooling ability. Some cool as well while others are only a few degrees warmer .. but £8-33 difference in price with PH-TC14PE coolng as well as NH-D15 and HE01 very close .. louder if pushed hard, but how often do we put extreme loads on our systems?
 
The d14 comes with 1x 120 and 1x Noctua NF-A15 I just think it is much better value because you can get one for £50 ish at the right times.
Only reason not to get one would be having tall ramsinks.The d15 is probably the exact same temps as the d14 with the same fan setup.

I prefer using 2x thermalright ty-140 fans on my d14 over the noctua's.
 
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