Top AM2+ Cooler?

[acer0169]

I'm hoping to build a new system in a couple of months, using a shiny new AMD Phenom chip and will need a good cooler.
I have no budget for the build, but the more I want to spend the longer it'll take me to save 😉.

I've looked at basic water cooling like the Big Water 760i, which some say does very well.. but others blame poor performance on the compact unit. I've also looked a little into building my own water system with custom blocks, pump etc and not buying a kit, but have strayed away from that slightly as this would be my first liquid-cooled build and god knows I'll kill something 😉.

So then I'm back to air, and have seen some insane coolers over the last few months. The Scythe Orochi and Ninja 2 both look amazing, but are HUUGE coolers and I'm worried that I could spend £50 on a cooler only to find it's just too big for the case or something.

So my question is a) for the latest quad cores should I go with water or air cooling? and b) what cooler, kit or setup would you recommend?

Thanks (Y)

 

[n3f0ur]

You don't need H2O if you don't overclock. If you want w/c, stay away from TT & Gigabyte w/c kits. They perform well, but may break down in 6-12 months. Consider this:

http://www.swiftnets.com/products/h20-220-APEX.asp

All you need is a large bottle of distilled water from a super market. Mix it with the green coolant in the photo. Best let it run outside the case with only a PSU for a few hours as a leak test.

If you want to cool both cpu & gpu & chipset:

http://www.swiftnets.com/products/H20-220-APEX-plus.asp

 

[Lee-m]

I use a very big Scythe cooler on my AM2 box. The size of the heatsink is only an issue because I use reaper ram which have there own heat sinks, making them tall.

If you avoid that problem, all will be well.

 

[acer0169]

Thanks for your comments.
I've actually seen the kits you've suggested n3f0ur before, but will have a closer look at them. I've seen several external kits which clip onto the rear case fan which I will look into as I will be overclocking (i'm hoping to buy a chip close to 2.5GHz and push for 3GHz).

I don't want GPU cooling etc as I'm buying two GV1000's for my 9800GT's when I get them. Just the CPU to be cooled.

 

[t0r012]

Thanks for your comments.
I've actually seen the kits you've suggested n3f0ur before, but will have a closer look at them. I've seen several external kits which clip onto the rear case fan which I will look into as I will be overclocking (i'm hoping to buy a chip close to 2.5GHz and push for 3GHz).

I don't want GPU cooling etc as I'm buying two GV1000's for my 9800GT's when I get them. Just the CPU to be cooled.

looking to get a 2.5 to 3ghz I'd say the stock cooler should work fine, better if you use a good thermal compound.

with such a mild OC goal just about any cooler should do fine, just check the reviews to make sure they cool better than stock.

 

[Kill@dor]

With 3GHz a stock cooler would be fine. Anything higher would require aftermaket cooling options.

 

[acer0169]

I don't even use a stock cooler on my current dual core. I like keeping all temps low, even if they are perfectly stable when high. Regardless, anyone have any further thoughts about cooling options?

 

[Kill@dor]

A bunch of fans...maybe a new case with a bunch of fans!! I have the NZXT Zero with about 8 fans...talk about overkill on air LOL ^_^

 

[acer0169]

Hehe, my current setup also has 8 fans :].

 

[Kill@dor]

You can actually get faster fans too...but you would have to be careful on the noise levels. The stock fans i got are very silent, but then again the work at very decent speeds. Changing the air flow in the case is a major +1. I have had mine coming in from top to bottom, and then changed it from bottom to top, and now i have it coming out the top and bottom front. That air flow works flawless for me.

Also, having it in a cooler spot works (i.e. near a window or sliding door) with plenty of space. Case is too big to fit in a work desk LOL...so full towers are +1 too ^_^

 

[acer0169]

I'm buying the new spedo case for this build.. along with a few more powerful fans. I use several 120mm Antec 3-speed fans, I don't mind about noise when the airflow they push is as high as it is.

I just know my current CPU cooler would not hold up against overclocking and gaming on a quad core when already my CPU can hit 55C-60C with a dual core.

I'm still looking into water cooling, it's new and scary but I like scaring myself with new builds. Each time going one step further and there's few steps bigger than that.

Would love to hear some peoples custom water setups and temps.

 

[Kill@dor]

For water cooling, i would look into Asetek!! They have a pre-built system that you won't need to mess with, just install in your case and off you go. Also, Noctua and Zalman are bada**