Recommended CPU Cooler i7-4790K

Havenost

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Aug 16, 2014
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So I bought a i7-4790K about 2 months ago for gaming and video rendering. It works fine under normal use and gaming with the stock cooler.

But whenever I try to render videos or compress them using programs like handbrake that puts it under 100% load it gets up to 194 F (90 C) and this is with around 75 F (24 C) ambient temperatures. So my CPU always freezes after about 1-2 minutes of rendering.

So I am looking for better cooler, is there any cheap ones that you would recommend that can handle full load for like 2-3 hours of video rendering in like 100 F (38 C) ambient. Cause I live in California and my house's AC is broken.

I was considering either getting a Corsair H60 or H80i cause my case can only fit 120mm fans. Or should I get some air coolers instead? Because I read reviews about liquid coolers springing leaks, or the coolant evaporating. I know Corsair is super reliable but I do know it is inevitable for liquid cooling systems to eventually somehow have all of its coolant evaporate.

So my budget is somewhere between $60-90.

Is there any major benefits of me getting a liquid cooler like the h80i considering how hot the ambient temperatures are? I don't really plan to overclock more than the basic like 4.4 ghz, so if there is a air cooler cheaper than the prices of the H60 or H80i that can perform on par with them in the situation I described then please recommend.

I have a:

i7-4790K
XFX Radeon HD 7850 2GB Core Edition
Asus Z97-AR
COOLER MASTER Elite RC-310-BWN1-GP
CX-600M

Thanks!
 
At $60, the Phanteks PH-TC14-PE Air Cooler .... no CLC made today can beat the Phanteks at comparable noise levels

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=PH-TC14-PE&N=-1&isNodeId=1

At $90, the Cryorig R1 Ultimate Air Cooler .... no CLC made today can beat the Cryorig at any noise level.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA4UF1H68938

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The H212 is only $20 but there's 2 current threads on the boards here where peeps damaged their mobo / cpu installing it..... very easy to break something if you overtighten. The Phanteks will give you 7-10C more cooling over the Hyper 12 ... the Cyroig another 2-3C over the Phanteks
 
Cooler master 212. This is the old version but it is on Sale for $20 AR.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

The new evo version is $30 usually though.

this is good enough if you are not overclocking.

btw its way better than the intel stock. Of course if you splurge on a h100 that would be even better. Not worth it imo since your goal seems to be to prevent overheating at stock speeds.
 
I personally won't take the chance with liquid cooling unless it's a block for my GPU. I purchased a Noctua NH-U14S and I am very pleased. Huge upgrade of my stock cooler. Should run you 80-90 bucks. Worth it IMO. Noctua is well known for their quality and they even come with great thermal paste.
 
1. You don't have 8 slots if you have a 4790k

RAM CLEARANCE

The R1’s design and use of the slim profile XT140 fan, allows the R1 to stay clear of the RAM section for the majority mainboards. For a few X79 mainboards and the few mainboards which place their RAM slot too close to the CPU zone will cause the front fan to overlap the first RAM slot. In this case the R1 will allow for all standard non-heat spreader RAM, and RAM with heat spreaders within the maximum height of 40mm.

2. Do you have those tall, toothy heat sinks or normal 40mm RAM ? Compatibility list

http://www.cryorig.com/comp_list_detail.php?id=3###

3. The R1 universal doesn't hang over RAM slots See pic at bottom of page
http://www.cryorig.com/r1-ultimate.php

 


1. I should of made my point a little clear. That MOBO has 8 slots, and it looks wider and larger than my MOBO.
2. I have the XMS CMX4GX3M1A1600C9. They don't have the tall heatsinks, but ultimately the ram isn't the issue, I think that cooler would hit overlap with the back i/o pannel, and my ram.
3. They probably haven't updated the compatibility list for the new Z97s but I think the Z97-AR would on there considering its a pretty small board.