Water or Air cooling?

[Lachlan Ryan]

Hello guy's, this is my first time on this website and I need an answer to one small problem, water or air cooling?

I'm currently in the process of building a desktop and I'm wondering what would the best cooling system, here are the models of my options;

Enermax ETS-T40-TB CPU fan cooler

or

Asetek 550LC Liquid Cooling CPU Cooler.

So guy's, any suggestions?

 

[RookieOfTheYear]

Are those your only two options?

 

[Axedavid201]

Most people won't need a water cooler. The cooler depends on the TDP of your CPU. So my question is, what CPU do you have?

 

[Lachlan Ryan]

This is the exact name of my CPU, AMD FX-8320 3.50 GHz Eight-Core AM3+ CPU 6MB L2 Cache & Turbo Core Technology.

 

[mathard99]

you probably won't need water cooling. reason is that most people get water cooling to do whats called "Over clocking". this means that they increase the operating frequency of the processor or CPU beyond what it was designed for. for example, this specific processor you chose was designed for 3.5 ghz. but when someone over clocks it, they increase it beyond 3.5. this means that the CPU temperature rises and the operator risks frying his CPU. that is why people get water cooling, for better cooling performance.

the choice is up to you, its not my computer

 

[darkstaride]

I recommend air, because if you made the mistake it might leak out. But it's up to you, if you have a very strong PC and needs a ton of cooling. I'll would choose Air.

 

[rubix_1011]

Almost every liquid or watercooling solution doesn't leak when installed/implemented and kept up as designed. All in one units rarely leak these days, but regardless, it is still something to consider. Custom watercooling doesn't normally have this issue either, but poor or neglectful installation can and will cause a problem.

The question isn't as simple as 'Do I need watercooling' because only you can know this answer. It isn't about 'need' because stock coolers work fine at stock speeds. Even moderate overclocks can be handled by $30-$50 air coolers. Higher overclocks will need a better cooling solution, but cooling isn't often the limiting factor for overclocking...it is the limitation of the hardware (CPU, RAM, motherboard, power supply) as well as skill of the person doing the overclocking.

Your best benefit will be to learn what you need and why and the best way to implement that solution. I'd strongly suggest taking all advice you get with some skepticism as there are many hundreds of solutions, each with benefits and drawbacks....find what is best for you.

 

[rpjkw11]

I've never tried water cooling simple because air cooling with a Phanteks TC-14PE, Noctua NH-D14 and -15 has always yielded acceptable temperatures with moderate overclocks. I like simplicity with fewer parts to fail. I've overclocked my i7 5960X to 4.3ghz @ 1.265v. While 4.5ghz @ 1.30v was stable, but my conservative nature disliked the higher temps so I opted for 4.3ghz. If, or when, CPUs generate so much heat that WC is an absolute necessity, I'll stay with air cooling unless I decide to try more aggressive overclocking. Either way, I appreciate having a choice.