Question Seeking (budget) upgrade to i5-13500's stock cooler

[PlayerDot]

The last components for my new PC are being delivered as we speak and I can't wait to try it!

There's just one problem: I thought the stock cooler may be enough for gaming, but after reading a few reviews and watching some Youtube videos of tests done with this cooler, it looks like it's probably better to start looking at aftermarket coolers to prevent overheating, thermal throttling, and allow my CPU to run at its full capacity. I don't want another situation like I had with the Ryzen 5 2600 where my CPU ran at a comfortable... 95°C right out of the box.

Here is my full build if you are curious (except the GPU: I'm using the RX580 while waiting for the new cards to be released)

The case is large enough to fit some serious radiators, but those tend to be more on the expensive side, and more of a hassle to install, so I'd just like to go with a simple air cooler.

Socket support: LGA 1700
CPU cooler max height: 185mm (as per case specifications)
Taking up a bit of RAM clearance shouldn't be that much of an issue since I'll only be using 2x16gb RAM, which is recommended to go into slots A2/B2 anyway.

Ideally I'm looking to get a cooler under €50, but this is the first time I'm looking into aftermarket coolers and I have no idea what kind of cooler I'd need for the i5-13500 for a smooth peak performance that won't set my PC on fire.

Any suggestions would be very much appreciated!

 

[Lutfij]

Nice build, though one thing your PCPartPicker URL shows the location to be USA...where are you located?

Perhaps see if this is in your budget;
https://pcpartpicker.com/product/kt2WGX/id-cooling-se-226-xt-682-cfm-cpu-cooler-se-226-xt-black
?

 

[Lafong]

A case that wide will accept virtually any air cooler.

The right choice might depend on a comparison between your aversion to noise versus your fear of "high" temperatures. Which way would you lean?

I think that is a pretty good case for airflow, so I don't think a 13500 would require a high end cooler.

I think Deep Cool makes some suitable inexpensive coolers. Scythe should have some also; maybe a Noctua if you can stretch your budget a bit.

 

[Bob.B]

The last components for my new PC are being delivered as we speak and I can't wait to try it!

There's just one problem: I thought the stock cooler may be enough for gaming, but after reading a few reviews and watching some Youtube videos of tests done with this cooler, it looks like it's probably better to start looking at aftermarket coolers to prevent overheating, thermal throttling, and allow my CPU to run at its full capacity. I don't want another situation like I had with the Ryzen 5 2600 where my CPU ran at a comfortable... 95°C right out of the box.

Here is my full build if you are curious (except the GPU: I'm using the RX580 while waiting for the new cards to be released)

The case is large enough to fit some serious radiators, but those tend to be more on the expensive side, and more of a hassle to install, so I'd just like to go with a simple air cooler.

Socket support: LGA 1700
CPU cooler max height: 185mm (as per case specifications)
Taking up a bit of RAM clearance shouldn't be that much of an issue since I'll only be using 2x16gb RAM, which is recommended to go into slots A2/B2 anyway.

Ideally I'm looking to get a cooler under €50, but this is the first time I'm looking into aftermarket coolers and I have no idea what kind of cooler I'd need for the i5-13500 for a smooth peak performance that won't set my PC on fire.

Any suggestions would be very much appreciated!

Consider testing with the stock cooler.
Run your stuff and watch the temps.

I would not pay too much attention to temps while running benchmarks unless benchmarks are your normal stuff.

 

[PlayerDot]

Consider testing with the stock cooler.
Run your stuff and watch the temps.

I would not pay too much attention to temps while running benchmarks unless benchmarks are your normal stuff.

Good point. I don't think I'll be doing anything too heavy right off the bat, so if the temperatures get high despite the relatively low load, and it barely changes with the side panel open, it's probably the CPU cooler's fault.

Nice build, though one thing your PCPartPicker URL shows the location to be USA...where are you located?

Perhaps see if this is in your budget;
https://pcpartpicker.com/product/kt2WGX/id-cooling-se-226-xt-682-cfm-cpu-cooler-se-226-xt-black
?

Right now I'm buying my parts in Austria. That looks like a good suggestion, but I can't find the brand on amazon.de or any of our store's websites. Looks like the DeepCool AK620 it often gets compared to is a bit over €70 here.

A case that wide will accept virtually any air cooler.

The right choice might depend on a comparison between your aversion to noise versus your fear of "high" temperatures. Which way would you lean?

I think that is a pretty good case for airflow, so I don't think a 13500 would require a high end cooler.

I think Deep Cool makes some suitable inexpensive coolers. Scythe should have some also; maybe a Noctua if you can stretch your budget a bit.

I'd like a reasonable balance between noise and temperature; most of all I want enough of an improvement over the stock that justifies the purchases in the first place.

I found a few promising DeepCool and Scythe coolers. Noctua already blows the budget quite a bit. Obviously all of the $50-ish coolers are €70-80 here.
It looks like the Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 variants also get recommended often and sell for around €50 here. Are those comparable to the coolers you had in mind?

Realistically, how much of an improvement should these coolers be over the stock?
What should a good "normal" temperature be when I'm gaming? I don't expect that I'd ever push the CPU to its absolute maximum possible load, either.

 

[Lafong]

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/be_quiet-pure-rock-2

The above Be Quiet is rated highly and maybe within your budget; compare it to the Thermalright Peerless.

I fumbled around at Amazon.de. Had trouble navigating and sorting. Not sure what the price is in Europe, but maybe under 50 Euros?

Temp tolerance, "normal", etc are rather personal. Some people would be highly concerned at 60 and others would be indifferent at 80. You get to decide what is "too hot" and make your own inferences about the consequences.

 

[PlayerDot]

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/be_quiet-pure-rock-2

The above Be Quiet is rated highly and maybe within your budget; compare it to the Thermalright Peerless.

I fumbled around at Amazon.de. Had trouble navigating and sorting. Not sure what the price is in Europe, but maybe under 50 Euros?

Temp tolerance, "normal", etc are rather personal. Some people would be highly concerned at 60 and others would be indifferent at 80. You get to decide what is "too hot" and make your own inferences about the consequences.

The cooler looks good. There's a site that compares basically all German/Austrian sellers' and Amazon with each other ,and it looks like it's around €37-42.

As for temperatures: with 'normal' I was thinking more in terms of not throttling performance under load, while also keeping temperatures low enough that your CPU isn't degrading (much?) faster. I don't really know what a good rule of thumb would be.

 

[Lafong]

The cooler looks good. There's a site that compares basically all German/Austrian sellers' and Amazon with each other ,and it looks like it's around €37-42.

As for temperatures: with 'normal' I was thinking more in terms of not throttling performance under load, while also keeping temperatures low enough that your CPU isn't degrading (much?) faster. I don't really know what a good rule of thumb would be.

I'm no expert, but it seems that the better the cooler, the higher the CPU will clock before it throttles. If you add enough load, I guess the CPU will throttle regardless of cooler.

You can always de-tune the CPU in the BIOS to produce less heat, but you might balk at that also, in the name of wanting maximum performance. Something's gotta give and you get to decide priorities. No doubt you'll learn a lot in experimentation and evaluation after it is all assembled.

I wouldn't agonize much over it. There's a limit to what you can do at a given budget. You can drive yourself crazy with over-analysis, indecision, doubt. Do a reasonable amount of research and look at reviews as best you can and go with it. I'd worry more about quality control and DOA parts. Not much you can do about that either.

 

[PlayerDot]

I'm no expert, but it seems that the better the cooler, the higher the CPU will clock before it throttles. If you add enough load, I guess the CPU will throttle regardless of cooler.

<...>
I wouldn't agonize much over it. There's a limit to what you can do at a given budget. You can drive yourself crazy with over-analysis, indecision, doubt. Do a reasonable amount of research and look at reviews as best you can and go with it.

I was just curious if there's an easy way to tell whether a cooler should provide adequate performance for my CPU. For example, if I expect my CPU's TDP at full load to be 155W, would I ideally only need a cooler with that range of cooling performance?

 

[Lafong]

All other things equal, buying a cooler with a higher range of performance than "needed" would allow you to spin the fans relatively slow and thereby produce less noise. That might mean a lot to you or be of very little importance.

But you are restricted by budget regardless. At least I thought so.

Without getting into what "adequate" means. Or what your upgrade plans might be over the next few years. Or whether you are going to be hitting 155 watts 10 seconds a day or 10 hours a day. Or your room temperatures. Or your general anxiety level over temps of X or noise of Y. Or case fan setup.

And on and on and on.

The practical differences between the better coolers at a specific price point are minimal. Some might be easier to install than others, but that's a one-time thing.

Maybe you would put a lot of stake in random anecdotes.....that might drive you toward a specific cooler. I don't know.

Not sure what you might gain by another 100 hours of research. It sounds like you've got a good ear to the ground regarding reviews and prices at your location. You may well be subject to your own second-guessing regardless of your choice...justified or not.

 

[PlayerDot]

But you are restricted by budget regardless. At least I thought so.

You make good points, but the reason I lay out a budget isn't out of necessity.
Anxiety and uncertainty is more about getting the best bang for the buck, and wondering if the extra bang is even necessary. I would rather not spend €200 on a radiator when a €50-70 air fan would be more than enough, if you know what I mean. If the stock cooler kept the CPU under 70°C while I'm gaming, I'd consider even that good enough.
It's the same reason I wouldn't get dual 4090's just for watching Youtube, when some crappy used €40 GPU would do the job.

I live in a relatively temperate. In winter I'd say it can reach min -10°C and in summer max 35°C. It's relatively dry here.

Tomorrow I should get the case, do a bench test, and then see where I go from there. I didn't yet because, well, I don't really have anywhere to put the completed caseless setup, and wouldn't want to have to take everything apart just to put it back together 2 days later.

 

[PlayerDot]

Here's an update: I built my PC, got it to post, and installed Windows 10 on it.
My setup ran surprisingly cool and silent most of the time in the few hours I spent on testing it (temperatures between 30-50°C) but damn, as soon as I install anything or run anything more demanding, that stock cooler turns into a jet engine with how much noise it's producing, and temps have spiked up to 75°C even while running at only 75W.

So, I will probably look into one of those Pure Rock 2s! Thanks everyone.

 

[Lafong]

Not surprising.

Any fan running above 1000 is likely audible at 3 or 4 feet.

The fan on the stock cooler looks to be maybe 80 or 90 mm in diameter, so it has to spin fast to accomplish much.

If your budget will tolerate it, maybe even look for a cooler with a 140 mm fan rather than 120, but the Pure Rock should certainly be an improvement if it isn't running at 2000 rpm or something like that.