How to cool the i9-9900k

[garyisbinary]

Okay first off, yes i know it is technically the "best gaming CPU", but isnt exactly worth the price difference of lower models. Im still gonna buy it because i have money in my budget for one so i might as well haha. Im trying to figure out what a good cooling solution would be as ive heard it gets REALLY hot. I currently am considering a Corsair H150i Pro. Is this good enough to cool this beast? or is there a better option?

 

[chemmajorp53]

Depends on if you want to overclock or not. If you're going to leave it at stock, I'd get something like a noctua nh-d15 or at a minimum a u14s because it will be pretty much dead silent all the time. If you want to push it to 5.0 on all cores like some reviewers are doing, probably an H115i or H150i would be alright, but it's still going to be hot. Because of the thick die and semi-subpar solder that intel's using (it's thick which is good for shipping but not as good for cooling), it will be very difficult to get low temps on a 9900k if you choose to OC it at all regardless of what kind of cooler you use because the cooling is limited by the thermal transfer in the chip itself.

 

[geofelt]

What will be your case?
How well you can cool any cpu or graphics card will be determined by the airflow capability of your case.
Liquid cooling is really air cooling.
The difference is where the radiator is located.

I am not a fan of aio cooling unless you have a small form factor case with restricted height available for a good air cooler.
A Noctua NH-D15s probably represents the top for cooling, even when overclocked.
It needs 160mm.
It will cool just as well in a good case, be quieter, cost less, be more reliable, easier to install and will not leak.
Lots to love.
Past that, the new s variants have been redesigned to clear tall ram heat spreaders.
They are also offset to clear graphics cards mounted in the first pcie x16 slot.

 

[garyisbinary]

What will be your case?
How well you can cool any cpu or graphics card will be determined by the airflow capability of your case.
Liquid cooling is really air cooling.
The difference is where the radiator is located.

I am not a fan of aio cooling unless you have a small form factor case with restricted height available for a good air cooler.
A Noctua NH-D15s probably represents the top for cooling, even when overclocked.
It needs 160mm.
It will cool just as well in a good case, be quieter, cost less, be more reliable, easier to install and will not leak.
Lots to love.
Past that, the new s variants have been redesigned to clear tall ram heat spreaders.
They are also offset to clear graphics cards mounted in the first pcie x16 slot.

Sorry for the late response, ill be building in a Corsair Obsidian 1000D

 

[vMax]

I would go the AIO route to get the very best out of the 9900K as it produces a fair amount of heat... A good 280mm AIO or 360mm AIO. I use the Corsair H150i Pro which is a 360mm AIO with the Mag Lev fans which run very quiet and it does a great job in cooling my 8700K overclocked to 4.9GHz. It is one hell of a CPU cooler.

 

[larrycumming]

If you can find one at MSRP then yes, I've seen these 9900k price jacked up to $900 tho I'd doubt if they'll sell at that price.

For that kind of price you can get a decent Xeon v3 with X99 mobo, which I've found are great alternatives if you know how to unlock all-core turbo

 

[garyisbinary]

i ended up deciding on a custom hard loop, since i redesigned my whole build idea. Thanks to anyone who helped! God i love this community

 

[The Original Ralph]

If you can find one at MSRP then yes, I've seen these 9900k price jacked up to $900 tho I'd doubt if they'll sell at that price.

For that kind of price you can get a decent Xeon v3 with X99 mobo, which I've found are great alternatives if you know how to unlock all-core turbo

i found them at Overclocker's UK (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/intel-core-i9-9900k-3.6ghz-coffee-lake-socket-lga1151-processor-oem-cp-65k-in.html) they're OEM units (ie delivered in trays, so no retail packaging) and only have one yr warranty (vs 3 yr for retail) but price was acceptable $620 USD after VAT was backed out, and $20 DHL delivery - ordered two days ago, current tracking has it in Cincinatti, OH with dlvry scheduled for Monday . Correction, just rcvd email, they're delivering today - 2 days total travel time

 

[normalnormgamer]

I bought my 9900k from Overclockers and it's an OEM. Was really nervous about buying it as you do get a shorter warranty but CPU's rarely die and I have no regrets with mine. I have only overclocked to a modest 5GHZ but I am happy with that. I am using the Corsair H150i Pro for cooling and my temps are really good. Gaming I very rarely hit 60C. With video rendering on Photoshop I hit 60 to low 70s.

 

[The Original Ralph]

I bought my 9900k from Overclockers and it's an OEM. Was really nervous about buying it as you do get a shorter warranty but CPU's rarely die and I have no regrets with mine. I have only overclocked to a modest 5GHZ but I am happy with that. I am using the Corsair H150i Pro for cooling and my temps are really good. Gaming I very rarely hit 60C. With video rendering on Photoshop I hit 60 to low 70s.

just curious, where on the planet are you - ie which side of the atlantic?

 

[normalnormgamer]

The UK.

 

[The Original Ralph]

thanks - i'm still looking to find one person in the US that has rcvd a 9900k - i couldn't believe newegg (US) when the CSR said they had a shipment of 100 units expected end of Nov

it may be Overclockers only had them cause they, as a mfgr, ordered OEM units