[SOLVED] CPU Water Cooling for New Build

[derekullo]

I plan on making a new computer in a few months and for the last 20 years I have only done air cooled builds.

I figure it is time I dip my feet into water cooled CPUs.

I plan on using this computer for rendering, gaming and watching anime and so the cooler can't be crazy loud.

The CPU will be either a AMD 3950X or Intel i9-Whatever the highest cpu clock is at the time.

I have been looking at the Corsair All in one coolers.

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categ...uid-CPU-Cooler/p/CW-9060033-WW#tab-tech-specs

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categ...uid-CPU-Cooler/p/CW-9060032-WW#tab-tech-specs

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categ...uid-CPU-Cooler/p/CW-9060031-WW#tab-tech-specs

I am interested in how to read the tech specs and how they relate to cooling performance.

Should I be paying more attention to static fan pressure or Fan Airflow?

The H100i appears to be a great deal louder than the H150i, but most of the review sites seem to praise the H100i.

Are there any sites I can read that can break this down for me?

 

[WildCard999]

If your looking for a quiet system with an AIO be prepared to replace the stock fans. I had a H100i that kept the CPU well within safe temps even with a overclock however the fans were pretty loud.

 

[Eximo]

Why the h115i gets more praise for silence. Larger fans are generally quieter.

Static pressure fans are designed with radiators in mind, so airflow doesn't matter all that much. As long as there is some to get the heat moving. More is more effective, but higher static pressure means more airflow at lower speeds, effectively.

There are certainly more fancy options out there. All copper radiators, expandable loops / quick disconnects. And there is always custom parts and building it yourself.

Not sure there is a singular place that discusses all this stuff in detail. Most you'll tend to find are CPU cooler round ups.

Keep in mind that some of the largest air coolers offer similar performance to all in one coolers.

 

[Karadjgne]

For most 240mm and a few 280mm, their performance and capabilities equal the large aircoolers. The only advantages are in most 280mm and the 360mm aios have far greater capacity.

Most ppl don't get that performance and capacity are 2 seperate things, they latch onto temps as a whole. Which is misleading. For example, the NH-D15 not only is a 250w capacity cooler, it's also very efficient, so will get lower temps than other 250w coolers, including many larger AIO's at anything below 250w. It's only when you get close or over that 250w number that efficiency goes out the window, and the big AIO's are still way under wattage, so temps are lower. On a 250w i9 9900k, the NH-D15 with 50% load might see 60's, a 360mm 70's, but at 100% the NH-D15 is in the 90's and the 360mm in the 80's.

Since almost all games can't push a 100% load on a 9900k, it puts the NH-D15 as a viable cooler, based solely on its efficiency.

Same goes for any cpu, it's the output wattage that's going to determine the size cooler needed, but mostly any cooler larger than that stands a chance of being quieter as it's efficiency vs capacity will mean lower fan speeds.