Best cpu cooler for OCing i7-4770k and haswell asus z87-a motherboard??

[Vwey]

Hi, I'm trying to find the best cpu AIR cooler for my new computer as I replaced my 5+ year old pentium 4. I bought this i7-4770k bundle from tigerdirect. I don't want to use liquid cooler because of potential leakage and it's more expensive than air coolers. I planned to use this system for live streaming and for gaming.

Link to the bundle i bought:http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=8680903&RSort=3&csid=ITD&body=#CustomerReviewsBlock

Computer Spec:
Intel Core i7-4770K Processor 3.5Ghz
Asus Z87-A Socket 1150 Haswell Motherboard
Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB Desktop Memory Module
Gigabyte Nvidia Geoforce GTX 550ti 1gb graphic card
Ultra LSP Series V2 550-Watt Power Supply (I have a spare 600w PSU as well if the 550w PSU is not sufficient enough. http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3255393&CatId=1483)
Cougar Steel Gamer Case with a 120mm fan
500gb maxtor HD
2tb seagate HD

In the future I probably plan to OverClock the i7-4770k. I read some post on this site stating that 4.4ghz is the safest OC for this cpu? I don't mind 4.4ghz OC, but if it possibly can go higher then that's great. I would just like to have the OPTION to go higher that's all.

I've done some research on this site and read many post from people with the same problem as I am. I see many people going back and forth with some of the air cooler they advised.

Thermaltake NiC C5 (CLP0608) 120mm Untouchable CPU Cooler
Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO CPU Cooler
Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm PWM Fan
Phanteks PH-TC14PE

Most I see people advised to get are the NH-D14 and CM Hyper 212 EVO coolers.

All in all I would like to know:
-which one is better for cooling OC 4.4ghz or higher
-with all the other specs I listed for my computer
-good enough cooling power for streaming and gaming
-life span of the cooler.

Also would like to know if there are other air coolers better than the ones I listed out there that I don't know about. My price range will most likely be $30-60, but depending on the results I might go higher.

Thanks in advance

 

[sweenytodd]

I would get the Noctua NH-D14 or Phanteks PH-TC14PE for overclocking the i7. 212 Evo is good for its price, but the cooling capacity is just not enough for Haswell.

 

[IDontUnderstand]

I would just go with 212 EVO since it's the cheapest one for about $30 and performs really really really well. It's one of the top CPU cooler even when competing against liquid. In addition, if you care about the noise if it happens to be loud when you need it to spin at like 70%, you can always swap the fan out with Noctua, Cougar, or Corsair fans. Furthermore, you can make it push and pull if you add another fan to the other side.

Price for
CM 212 Evo: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2
Noctua NH-D14: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/noctua-cpu-cooler-nhd14
Phanteks PH-TC14PE: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-cpu-cooler-phtc14pe

On a side note, I am kind of concerned for your GPU if you ever plan on using it.

 

[Vwey]

I would just go with 212 EVO since it's the cheapest one for about $30 and performs really really really well. It's one of the top CPU cooler even when competing against liquid. In addition, if you care about the noise if it happens to be loud when you need it to spin at like 70%, you can always swap the fan out with Noctua, Cougar, or Corsair fans. Furthermore, you can make it push and pull if you add another fan to the other side.

Price for
CM 212 Evo: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2
Noctua NH-D14: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/noctua-cpu-cooler-nhd14
Phanteks PH-TC14PE: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-cpu-cooler-phtc14pe

On a side note, I am kind of concerned for your GPU if you ever plan on using it.

What's wrong with my GPU? I do plan on using this GPU from my pent 4 comp.

 

[IDontUnderstand]

What's wrong with my GPU? I do plan on using this GPU from my pent 4 comp.

Oh you're good if you're not using it with the i7-4770K, cuz it would bottleneck the CPU by loads if you plan on gaming.

 

[Vwey]

So does that mean i have to get a better GPU to be stable with the 4770k build?

Picking a good CPu cooler is depending on their RPM and air flow(CFM) correct? the higher the better?


On this post Bonecrushrr said his NH-D14 couldn't get 4.4ghz without hitting high 80's temp.
http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-1975472/cpu-cooler-intel-core-4770k-haswell.html.

I know it's not much of a difference betweeen 4.3ghz and 4.4ghz. I just like to know I have the option to go higher without overheating with a good air cooler

 

[IDontUnderstand]

RPM and CFM is more related to the fan than anything else. In my opinion, the main part of an air CPU cooler lies in the heatsink. If you actually think about it, you can replace the fan to pretty much anything, but when you buy a air CPU cooler, the heatsink is never gonna change. Therefore, you're buying for a quality heatsink, which is a lot harder to measure other than reputable reviews.

I would like to link you to http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2764&page=5

Going back to the GPU thing I was talking about, I was just trying to say that GTX 550 Ti will not be sufficient for any serious gaming as you are pairing it up with a serious CPU, so I thought you might have expected to have some serious gaming or professional production experience with that GPU.

 

[Vwey]

RPM and CFM is more related to the fan than anything else. In my opinion, the main part of an air CPU cooler lies in the heatsink. If you actually think about it, you can replace the fan to pretty much anything, but when you buy a air CPU cooler, the heatsink is never gonna change. Therefore, you're buying for a quality heatsink, which is a lot harder to measure other than reputable reviews.

I would like to link you to http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2764&page=5

Going back to the GPU thing I was talking about, I was just trying to say that GTX 550 Ti will not be sufficient for any serious gaming as you are pairing it up with a serious CPU, so I thought you might have expected to have some serious gaming or professional production experience with that GPU.

That link looks very informative.

 

[RobCrezz]

I would just go with 212 EVO since it's the cheapest one for about $30 and performs really really really well. It's one of the top CPU cooler even when competing against liquid. In addition, if you care about the noise if it happens to be loud when you need it to spin at like 70%, you can always swap the fan out with Noctua, Cougar, or Corsair fans. Furthermore, you can make it push and pull if you add another fan to the other side.

Price for
CM 212 Evo: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2
Noctua NH-D14: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/noctua-cpu-cooler-nhd14
Phanteks PH-TC14PE: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-cpu-cooler-phtc14pe

On a side note, I am kind of concerned for your GPU if you ever plan on using it.

What's wrong with my GPU? I do plan on using this GPU from my pent 4 comp.

Its just low performance, compared to your CPU. i.e games will still be held back by the 550 ti performance.

 

[Vwey]

I've read that Phanteks TC14PE is pretty good. It's slightly better than nh-d14 except for the noise which is a little louder than the nh-d14.

If i get the Phanteks TC14PE how many ram slot will it take up?

and for the sake of it just in case I changed my mind and get nh-d14 instead, how many slots will nh-d14 take up as well?

I will be using Patriot Viper Xtreme 8GB Desktop Memory Module http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=8033818&CatId=4534. Will my memory fit with any of those coolers?

 

[IDontUnderstand]

Looks good to me
http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=compatibility_ram_gen&products_id=34&lng=en

 

[Vwey]

so i bought the phantek cooler and I haven't test it yet because i encountered a problem. My PSU cord seem to be touching the pipe on the cooler. Will that cause a problem?

I cant even put my gpu card on the 1st slot because the psu cord will be touching the mobo heatsink as well so I put the gpu on the second slot. Any suggestions?

 

[IDontUnderstand]

Always put the GPU in the first slot if possible, other ones will reduce it's potential.
Use cable ties and tie the CPU power connectors to the case, where it doesn't interfere anything.

 

[Vwey]

What's wrong with my GPU? I do plan on using this GPU from my pent 4 comp.

Oh you're good if you're not using it with the i7-4770K, cuz it would bottleneck the CPU by loads if you plan on gaming.

Hey you said my GPU will bottleneck my CPU does that usually cause monitor flickering? I tried both 60 and 75 Hz on my monitor at 1280x1024 but I am still getting flickering.

Btw the phantek Ph-TC14PE didn't work out because newegg never gave me a 3pin PWM adapter to fully test out this fan. On the bios fan display it says the fan spins at only 580RPM. WIth 3 replacements they still never gave me that 3pin PWM adapter so now I'm getting a refund and looking into buying something else.

right now I realy need help with this monitor flickering problem