Corsair H50 vs. Coolit Freezone... Any Idea?

[negreac]

I've been looking at getting a cooling system for the PC I'm building and was pretty set on getting the H50 (primarily cause I can't fit the air cooler I want in my case) but I came a across a good deal on an original CoolIT Freezone (not the Elite). Unfortunately since these systems came out about 2 years apart from each other its hard to find any comparisons. From what I understand the two should be pretty comparable in cooling power but I cant be sure of that since it's hard to find much solid information on the Freezone. So I figured some of the gurus on here might have a better idea of the differences between the too as far as cooling capability. I've also read that the max wattage cpu the coolit cooler should be used on is 125w but haven't been able to find such a figure for the H50. I'm running an AMD Phenom II x4 (125w) CPU. This somewhat worries me since I do plan to put a moderate overclock on it. I'd really like to be in the 3.8 to 4.0 range and I'm trying to accomplish this without dumping a ton of money on a full blown watercooling system (aka under $100). Any info/thoughts are appreciated.

 

[Shadow703793]

Between the two, I'd get the H50 due to quality.

Btw, is this an HTPC? If not, why not swap out the case and put in a good air cooler like the Core Contact Freezer? And yes, a full blown WCing system will set you back $200-250 just for the CPU.

 

[Conumdrum]

If you get the H50 and make sure you use room air INTO the rad, and possibly replace the fan that came with it with a higher speed fan you should be okay. People do put a H50 on an i7 at 200 watts or so and it works okay, just as well as a TRUE or meglahem etc. And your chip would be fine with either of them.

 

[negreac]

I actually already ordered the case (Azza fantom 900). It just seemed like the best option for me (the only thing it's missing is an eSata port). I had been looking in to getting the HAF but in the end I decided I didn't want a full size tower and wasn't pleased with a couple of the astetic features of it. If it came down to the 2 coolers being even as far as cost and cooling power goes I would probably go with the CoolIT purely for astetic reasons but I'm beginning to think the H50 might have better cooling ability, that and I'm not 100% sure I'll be able to get the CoolIT in my mid case with everything else I'm cramming in there. Was hoping someone would be able to tell me for sure that one or the other had better cooling ability. Just to give you a quick rundown here is what I have (I've already acquired 90% of it):

Case: Azza Fantom 900
MB: MSI 790fx Gd70
GPUs: 2 Saphire HD4850s
CPU: AMD Phenom II 955 X4 BE
CPU Cooler: Corsair H50???
RAM: Corsair Dominator DDR3 4GB (2x2GB) 1800mhz
TV tuner: Asus EHD3-100 Dual Tuner
HDs: 2 Seagate 1TB 7200.12 (Raid 0)
RAM cooler: OCZ dual fan cooler
PSU: Kingwin Mach 1 1000w
Blu Ray: Lite-On IHES208-09 combo drive
DVD-R: 3 Lite-On IHAF424-08
TP: Arctic 5

Webcam: Logitech Quickcam Orbit
Mouse: Logitech MX Revolution
Keyboard: Logitech G15 (ver. 1)
Printer: Brother MFC-6490cw All-in-One
Accs: ATO 5.25 Drawer

Also a couple blue/UV cathodes just for shits and giggles

I'll also be adding a wireless card and SSD in the not too distance future. I have yet to pick my speakers and monitor. I have a couple ideas though. All of this stuff is the culmination of over a month of planning and replanning, this is my first build and I want to make sure i do it right, and preferably without going broke. Granted some of this stuff I just happened to find a killer deal on and couldn't pass it up and it wouldn't have been what i chose if I was buying retail. I've actually found that reacquainting myself with all the hardware was the easy part, it's all the damn software that's been eating up most of my time. Anyway, now I'm just rambling, but yeah if anyone can tell me for sure which one has better cooling properties it would be much appreciated.

 

[Shadow703793]

^ That case should be big enough to put a Core Contact Freezer or a TRUE 120 in there, so imo, go air cooling.

 

[Conumdrum]

Yep, a CCF or TRUE is just as good for cooling as the wanna-be watercooling setups. The H50 installed like I mentioned is just as good as the above air coolers.

BTW, the Freezone has had issues like TECs melting the cheap plastic mounts, TECs dying etc. It's not well made. The Boreas is the only one that can cool well, but it's like $300.

 

[negreac]

^ That case should be big enough to put a Core Contact Freezer or a TRUE 120 in there, so imo, go air cooling.

I don't think so. I read here:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/269980-31-help-build-worked-doesn

that this guy had interference with his Dark Knight in an AZZA Fantom which is 159mm tall. The CCF may fit at 155mm but the True 120 is a full 161mm so I highly doubt that would fit. I think it's primarily because there is interference with the giant side fan on the AZZA fantom. It's hard to know for sure since not too many people have the AZZA.

 

[Shadow703793]

^Wow... amazing what a few mm difference could do eh?

 

[negreac]

Indeed