[SOLVED] Best cooler for a MSI Z270 SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard?

[JayTee3]

This motherboard: https://au.pcpartpicker.com/product/gGtWGX/msi-z270-sli-atx-lga1151-motherboard-z270-sli



My cooler currently ( Build list here https://au.pcpartpicker.com/user/deadboom/saved/CH6Xbv ), the CRYORIG M9i 48.4 CFM CPU Cooler doesn't fit properly, and im having cooling issues.

Maybe I should of read this before I bought it. But anyway. What's a good cooler that ACTUALLY FITS in the case? And thats also <$100 AUD and is above 130W (this is a 110W cooler and my CPU is 130W i think so i want to upgrade my cooling there too)

 

[JayTee3]

My current cooler doesn’t sit on the cpu correctly, recording temps of 100 degrees while gaming and 66 idle. I’ve remounted it 4 times, re-thermalpasted 3 times and nothing. The cooler doesn’t fit the mobo. IT FITS THE CASE BUT NOT THE MOBO.



I also tightened it as much as i could... and it doesn't effect the ram. I've put it on 3 times myself and got a computer person to do it as well. Still doesn't work.



As for the 130W bit, I don't mean the CPU is 130W, I mean this:

"the 7700k is a 91W processor that intel specifies a 130W cooler for."

and "That's a 120W cooler according to Cryorig (that'll be generous I expect). the CPU is a 130W cpu from a cooling standpoint according to intel, and that's just to let it boost properly."



So basically I just want a CPU cooler that fits lmao and is more powerful

 

[Phaaze88]

"the 7700k is a 91W processor that intel specifies a 130W cooler for."

Yeah, because the boneheads at Intel apply their TDP ratings for their cpus running ONLY at base clocks for some stupid reason...
That 130w cooler thing is for Intel's own reference models.

ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO
Cooler Master MasterAir MA410M or Hyper 212 Black
be quiet! Dark Rock Slim or Shadow Rock Slim

 

[JayTee3]

Yeah, because the boneheads at Intel apply their TDP ratings for their cpus running ONLY at base clocks for some stupid reason...
That 130w cooler thing is for Intel's own reference models.

ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO
Cooler Master MasterAir MA410M or Hyper 212 Black
be quiet! Dark Rock Slim or Shadow Rock Slim

I'm currently close to picking a Cryorig H7, someone recommended a Thermalright Macho Rev.B 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler but for the price difference the H7 is much better, well the h7 is much better in almost every aspect too.

Thoughts on the H7?

 

[oldcracc]

The H7 isn't a bad cooler, but I'd personally recommend the BeQuiet Dark Rock 4, or coolers such as the Noctua NH-D15/D14 although they can get a bit pricey, they would definitely keep your system nice and cool.

 

[Phaaze88]

I'm currently close to picking a Cryorig H7, someone recommended a Thermalright Macho Rev.B 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler but for the price difference the H7 is much better, well the h7 is much better in almost every aspect too.

Thoughts on the H7?

Wow.
The Thermalright Macho Rev. B(there's also a Revision C) is certainly a better cooler, but there's more than a significant price difference between them.
The H7 covers 140w of heat, the Macho Rev. B does 240w.
The problem here is that the little ol' 7700K doesn't push anywhere near 240w of heat, even when overclocked, which would put it closer to 150w.
You want to have SOME headroom, but that much is a waste of money; the Macho B wouldn't perform any better(maybe 1-2C) than a cheaper 150w cooler on that cpu. A cooler doesn't show it's real muscle until you're actually pushing it.

If you want to OC the 7700K, I think the H7 cuts it a little close.
The Shadow Rock Slim and Hyper 212 would be better options while not breaking the bank either.

The H7 isn't a bad cooler, but I'd personally recommend the BeQuiet Dark Rock 4, or coolers such as the Noctua NH-D15/D14 although they can get a bit pricey, they would definitely keep your system nice and cool.

Those are just as overkill as the Macho B. The 7700K doesn't pull anywhere near the amount of heat those monsters are designed to handle, and thus they barely outperform cheaper coolers.

 

[JayTee3]

The Thermalright Macho Rev. B(there's also a Revision C) is certainly a better cooler, but there's more than a significant price difference between them.

Really? When I was comparing the two I found:

• The cryorig can go faster (330-1600 compared to 300-1300) RPM
• The Thermalright is taller though.
• The cryorig has a lot lower noise level (dB) low end but has a higher high end
• The thermalright fits more CPU sockets
• Thermalright = 6 ratings 5.0 stars
• cyrorig = 258 ratings, 4.7 stars

Cyrorig: $80 (w postage) vs Thermalright $102.23 (w postage)

So $22.23 difference for a less reviewed one, maybe quieter, and faster one, but not as tall and fits less cpu sockets

Maybe I just didn't look at the watts (140w vs 240w) cause that isn't shown on the pc part picker page. So that's my fault if so.

I saw HDP for the H7 at 140w, so u are correct and amazon doesn't have a description for the item so apart from the info from pc part picker (and amazon is the only seller of the thermalright in Australia) I couldn't see the HDP, even if I google HDP for it nothing comes up But I trust that you're correct.

 

[JayTee3]

ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO
Cooler Master MasterAir MA410M or Hyper 212 Black
be quiet! Dark Rock Slim or Shadow Rock Slim

I was also suggested that Arctic freezer in my other thread. So that one looks pretty promising. Doesn't break the bank either.

 

[Phaaze88]

The cryorig can go faster (330-1600 compared to 300-1300) RPM

Fan rpm plays a minor part in regards to air coolers. It's the heatsink; that's the bulk of the cooling performance.
Basically, the larger the heatsink, the greater the cooling capacity. The Macho is a good deal larger than the H7.

The Thermalright is taller though.

It still fits in your case. The Meshify C supports cooler heights up to 170mm.
The Macho B is 162mm, Macho C is 158mm, H7 is 145mm.

The cryorig has a lot lower noise level (dB) low end but has a higher high end

I don't even know why that lower number is there. Any fan can do that if set that way in the bios.
The high number is all that matters; it's the noise level of the fan(s) at max rpm, and no one's going to run them like that normally.

• Thermalright = 6 ratings 5.0 stars
• cyrorig = 258 ratings, 4.7 stars

Don't base your judgement off of ratings from just one site... those are worthless anyway.

amazon doesn't have a description for the item

Amazon never was very good about that. I got the Thermalright info from here: http://www.thermalright.de/en/cooler/42/macho-rev.-b

The Macho is overkill for your 7700K anyways and breaks the bank, so skip that one.

 

[JayTee3]

Amazon never was very good about that. I got the Thermalright info from here: http://www.thermalright.de/en/cooler/42/macho-rev.-b

The Macho is overkill for your 7700K anyways and breaks the bank, so skip that one.

Thanks man, just don't know which one to pick,

• $81 for the ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO
• CoolerMaster MasterMA410M ---$89
• Hyper 212 Black ---- $59
• be quiet! Dark Rock Slim --- $89
• Shadow Rock Slim ---- $65

In terms of looks the CoolerMaster MasterAir looks the best cause of the RGB, but which is the best in terms of cooling do you think?

 

[Phaaze88]

7700K = 140w: https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/does-anyone-know-how-much-w-the-i7-7700k-uses.3060743/

• $81 for the ARCTIC Freezer 34 eSports DUO [210w]
• CoolerMaster MasterMA410M ---$89 [I couldn't find the exact TDP rating for this one, but going by this review, it appears to be another 200w cooler.]
• Hyper 212 Black ---- $59 [150w]
• be quiet! Dark Rock Slim --- $89 [180w]
• Shadow Rock Slim ---- $65 [160w]

#1 pick = Shadow Rock Slim
The Arctic Freezer 34 DUO would be runner up, even though I know I wouldn't need a cooler of that capacity for a 7700K, but that price makes it a competitive option over the Masterair and Dark Rock Slim.

 

[JayTee3]

The Arctic Freezer 34 DUO would be runner up, even though I know I wouldn't need a cooler of that capacity for a 7700K, but that price makes it a competitive option over the Masterair and Dark Rock Slim.

Is it bad to go overkill? Considering I have ambient room temperatures of 25-38 degrees in Australia in a cabin I wouldn't mind going overkill for the Arctic lol

 

[Phaaze88]

Is it bad to go overkill? Considering I have ambient room temperatures of 25-38 degrees in Australia in a cabin I wouldn't mind going overkill for the Arctic lol

Some headroom is perfectly fine, and is ideal. But when it's overdone, all we as users gain from it is smaller wallets...

For example, someone using an I5-8400(I THINK it's a 120w cpu) is deciding between a 60AUD Hyper 212(150w) or a 125AUD NH-D15(~250w).
Say they get the Hyper 212, set it up, run some games, stress tests - the run around... cpu doesn't see more than 70C in the worst case scenario. Pretty good.
But then they want the big one, because they heard it was one of the top coolers, awesome temps, etc, - so they have to have it!
They get it, set it up, run the routine... worst case is... 73C?! Why? What went wrong?

Nothing is wrong - and someone else can explain it better than I can - it has to do with the cooler's capacity. The Hyper 212 was more than adequate for that cpu.
Coolers don't show what they're really capable of until you're actually pushing them. An NH-D15 is better suited for Intel's space heaters like the 8700K/9700K/older X-series cpus. Most of these, which a Hyper 212 would throw in the towel on. It simply can't handle the heat.


If you're not put off by the $16 higher price, go for it. It may come in handy for the next cpu upgrade, should it turn out to be a mini heater XD

 

[JayTee3]

If you're not put off by the $16 higher price, go for it. It may come in handy for the next cpu upgrade, should it turn out to be a mini heater XD

$16 isn't much and it seems a good price for the watts. So as long as it doesn't record higher temps than the rock slim then I think it may be my choice :C

 

[JayTee3]

Some headroom is perfectly fine, and is ideal. But when it's overdone, all we as users gain from it is smaller wallets...

Nevermind, it look like shipping chose for me lmao

 

[Phaaze88]

O_O'