Questions about low-profile cpu coolers

[Anton Hunter]

Hi everyone! I'm a relative newbie; so, I hope you'll be patient with me... 😛

I have just bought all the major components for a Gaming build.

My new gaming build components are:

AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor

Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard

G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory

Asus Radeon HD 7770 2GB Video Card

Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive

Samsung SH-224BB/RSBS DVD/CD Writer

Thermaltake SMART 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply

Logitech Wireless Combo MK260 Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse

Creative Labs Recon3D PCIe 24-bit 96 KHz Sound Card.

My next upgrade will be to add another HD 7770 for crossfire and add another 16 GB of Memory.

Now, I'm researching as much as I can concerning CPU cooling; and, I am finding that information is hard to come by where it concerns the use of larger side-blowing heat-sink/fan combo's versus the use of low-profile down-blowing units. I'd like input from those of you who have more experience and knowledge about which is a better choice for over-clocking...

AND, I'd like to know what you think about Scythe Big Shuriken 2 ver B and Cooler Master GeminiII M4.

 

[Guest]

When I was shopping for heat sinks, the best resource I found was frostytech.com. It exists solely to review and test CPU coolers and some GPU coolers.

Gemini II M4:
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2709

Big Shuriken:

http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2425

AMD temps list with many other heat sinks for comparison, each one the review is about is highlighted in blue:

http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2425&page=4
http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2709&page=4

The only reason, really, for using a low profile HS is when you have a very small case and even the stock heat sink won't fit. Both of those HS are about the same as a stock AMD HS, in fact, the Cooler Master might even perform a bit worse even on a high fan setting. The best performing ones are the tower style that blow air through it from the sides. The low-profile ones blow air up and away from the CPU. I have a Hyper 212 Evo. It is a tower HS and performs almost as good as a closed loop water cooler with a small radiator such as the H60. Almost as good, but it is less than half the price @ $30.

 

[DarkSable]

This is for gaming?

Adding more ram is not an 'upgrade.' Anything more than about 8GB is pointless, and even that doesn't give any benefit unless you have photoshop running while you're gaming.

Also, crossfiring 7770s is not a good idea - it will produce a HUGE amount of heat, and will give way worse performance with way more issues than, say, a single 7970.

Finally, if you have room for a crossfire setup, why do you want a low profile unit? A tower-style cooler will beat it by at least twice the performance.

 

[Anton Hunter]

Thanks JMAN9295 for the links...They are very informative.
I'm thinking that if the stock heatsink and fan that come with a CPU are sufficient minus OC'ing; then it makes sense to me that a heatsink like the Big Shuriken 2 with 140mm down-blowing fan should work for some OC'ing. Like I said, though, I'm a newbie and am simply wanting to grasp why low profile units aren't regarded as adequate to the task. I have been looking at the tower coolers too, including the hyper 212 you mentioned; but, I have questions about their' weight putting stress on a mobo. Are these reasonable questions or are such concerns unnecessary?

 

[DarkSable]

Thanks JMAN9295 for the links...They are very informative.
I'm thinking that if the stock heatsink and fan that come with a CPU are sufficient minus OC'ing; then it makes sense to me that a heatsink like the Big Shuriken 2 with 140mm down-blowing fan should work for some OC'ing. Like I said, though, I'm a newbie and am simply wanting to grasp why low profile units aren't regarded as adequate to the task. I have been looking at the tower coolers too, including the hyper 212 you mentioned; but, I have questions about their' weight putting stress on a mobo. Are these reasonable questions or are such concerns unnecessary?

The hyper 212 isn't going to give any sort of stress - that only comes from something as large as, say, a Noctua D14.
Also, a downdraft heatsink, because it doesn't have nearly the surface area of a tower heatsink, isn't nearly as good for overclocking. (The rig I'm typing this on has an updraft GeminII which I'm replacing with watercooling, because it doesn't perform even 3/4 as well as a Hyper 212 EVO at keeping the rig in my signature cool.)

 

[Anton Hunter]

Hi DarkSable. Acually, I will be gaming, yes,; but, I'll also be adding MIDI software and other music producing/ cd recording stuff.
I have read conflicting reviews concerning the Radeon 7770. I chose the 2Gb unit because it seems to eliminate many problems the 1Gb versions have encountered. A couple of guys, on the forum have expressed how a crosfire of the radeon 7770 2Gb card are having rave results. I guess I'll find out; but; right now I am mainly interested in understanding the CPU cooling apparatuses available and WHY tower coolers are better than down-blowing units. ( I want to specify that there are some units that really do blow downward, not upward...and it seems to make sense to me that that kind of setup should work really well.) Maybe I'm getting caught up in technical details instead of just buying what I need and getting on with playing. I sometimes do that! lol

 

[DarkSable]

Hi DarkSable. Acually, I will be gaming, yes,; but, I'll also be adding MIDI software and other music producing/ cd recording stuff.
I have read conflicting reviews concerning the Radeon 7770. I chose the 2Gb unit because it seems to eliminate many problems the 1Gb versions have encountered. A couple of guys, on the forum have expressed how a crosfire of the radeon 7770 2Gb card are having rave results. I guess I'll find out; but; right now I am mainly interested in understanding the CPU cooling apparatuses available and WHY tower coolers are better than down-blowing units. ( I want to specify that there are some units that really do blow downward, not upward...and it seems to make sense to me that that kind of setup should work really well.) Maybe I'm getting caught up in technical details instead of just buying what I need and getting on with playing. I sometimes do that! lol

A tower cooler gets the heat away from the motherboard, and has WAY more surface area to get rid of heat with.

I can tell you from extensive personal experience with both types of coolers that a tower cooler will be about twice as good as a comparable low profile cooler.

 

[Anton Hunter]

Thanks DarkSable. I appreciate the reads I've done on the hyper 212 eve and am leaning toward it on the practical side; but I'm still intrigued by stats I've read about Scythe's developments in some of their units...just an undying curiosity I guess.
Thanks to you guys for your input. I think I'll do as you have suggested...and go with one of the hyper 212 units.

 

[DarkSable]

Trust me, I understand. It's the curse of a tech nerd. 😛

Really what it comes down to is what you're using the computer for - if you just wanted a quieter stock cooler, downdraft coolers are amazing - same for if height is of a concern. If it isn't, then you're gimping yourself, since they tend to be a little more expensive for worse performance.

 

[Guest]

Thanks DarkSable. I appreciate the reads I've done on the hyper 212 eve and am leaning toward it on the practical side; but I'm still intrigued by stats I've read about Scythe's developments in some of their units...just an undying curiosity I guess.
Thanks to you guys for your input. I think I'll do as you have suggested...and go with one of the hyper 212 units.

If you are trying to decide between an Evo or a Plus, the Evo has a better surface contact area. It costs $10 more, but as frostytech always points out in their reviews, this contact area with the CPU is one of the most important parts of the HS. You can see from this pic that the exposed heat pipes are closer together, have a more refined finished surface and the aluminum block they sit in is thicker. All of those improvements give the Evo 3-4c more cooling than the plus. Everything else appears identical:

 

[Guest]

(double post)

 

[DarkSable]

^ That's very good to know, I didn't realize that.

I thought the only difference was the better fan on the EVO.

 

[Guest]

^ That's very good to know, I didn't realize that.

I thought the only difference was the better fan on the EVO.

Yeah, that pic actually convinced me to buy the Evo when I was trying to decide. Someone posted it on Anand tech. Notice the thick grey lines of thermal paste in between the pipes. Those are deep grooves which means less contact area with the CPU. Also, it is suspected that those grooves cause distortion in the flatness of the block because of the two different metals (copper and aluminum) added to the stress caused by the area heating up to very high temps then rapidly cooling. The design of the Evo is supposed to solve both issues.

 

[DarkSable]

Makes sense. I usually recommend the EVO since it's easier than my old solution of a 212+ with aftermarket fans, but that's pretty cool.

(Not that it matters for myself; small form factors can be a pain like that. Work's been long today, though - I've finally got all my watercooling parts waiting at home for me.)

 

[Anton Hunter]

Yeah...I agree. Looks like EVo is the way to go! Thanks again guys, I do appreciate your input.