Whats better? Closed loop cooling or Air cooling?

[dfsa90]

Im looking at the H80 or the H100, but Im not sure how much of an improvement they would do to a Hyper 212+ on a Phenom II X4 B55 at 3.3 GHz. My ambient is about 90f-95f everyday all day.

 

[$hawn]

I'd prefer to keep it simple with Air Cooling.....@3.3GHz u really don't need the trouble of setting up a liquid cooling system

 

[dfsa90]

I'd prefer to keep it simple with Air Cooling.....@3.3GHz u really don't need the trouble of setting up a liquid cooling system

Its closed loop, No maintenance needed. Just mount it and screw the rad on the the back fan

 

[amuffin]

You won't get that much of an improvement.

 

[dfsa90]

Would a better option be the noctua nh-d14?

 

[JKatwyopc]

IMO, closed loop water cooling systems are better than air cooled but only marginally. I personnally use two loops one for my graphics and another for my CPU. I've noticed a drop in tempuratures but it was not nearly what I had expected.

The most important consideration with choosing a closed loop water cooler is the space requirement. The Radiator takes up quite a bit of space and it can be difficult to get it installed in a case that doesn't have a lot of leftover space. An Air Cooler can have the same issue but since it just happens to sit in the space that is right above the CPU most cases can accomodate it more easily. Of course an air cooler will never develop a leak and destroy your sensitive electronics.

 

[dfsa90]

IMO, closed loop water cooling systems are better than air cooled but only marginally. I personnally use two loops one for my graphics and another for my CPU. I've noticed a drop in tempuratures but it was not nearly what I had expected.

The most important consideration with choosing a closed loop water cooler is the space requirement. The Radiator takes up quite a bit of space and it can be difficult to get it installed in a case that doesn't have a lot of leftover space. An Air Cooler can have the same issue but since it just happens to sit in the space that is right above the CPU most cases can accomodate it more easily. Of course an air cooler will never develop a leak and destroy your sensitive electronics.

Im using the HAF 912, Im pretty sure theres room for a H100 on the top or an H80 on the bottom

 

[InvalidError]

The main problem with closed-loop systems is that they either contribute to higher case interior temperature due to the radiator pre-heating intake air or attempt to cool the radiator on exhaust using pre-heated case air. This likely contributes a fair amount to why even the best closed-loop solutions are barely on-par with the best air-coolers.

For best liquid-cooling results, having the radiator outside, completely decoupled from the case's airflow should help considerably.

 

[dfsa90]

So, What would you guys suggest?

 

[amuffin]

NH-D14.

 

[JKatwyopc]

What he said. Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO is also very good.

 

[InvalidError]

What he said. Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO is also very good.

Yup, almost as good as the Noctua for less than half the price.

The Noctua's split tower design makes quite a bit of sense since it distributes heatpipes more evenly across the fins, gives the pipes more exposure and the mid-mount fan re-mixes air so airflow that had little contact with fins through the first tower will at least contribute to cooling the rest of the airflow before going out into the second tower. With 212-style towers, heat pipes are lumped together at either end of the fin stack which reduces the pipe's exposure to "fresh" air and leaves the middle of the fins under-used.

We will probably see more split-tower type designs in the future, it is the logical next step for that sort of design.

The next step beyond that might be liquid closed-loop within the tower itself.

 

[dfsa90]

Yup, almost as good as the Noctua for less than half the price.

The Noctua's split tower design makes quite a bit of sense since it distributes heatpipes more evenly across the fins, gives the pipes more exposure and the mid-mount fan re-mixes air so airflow that had little contact with fins through the first tower will at least contribute to cooling the rest of the airflow before going out into the second tower. With 212-style towers, heat pipes are lumped together at either end of the fin stack which reduces the pipe's exposure to "fresh" air and leaves the middle of the fins under-used.

We will probably see more split-tower type designs in the future, it is the logical next step for that sort of design.

The next step beyond that might be liquid closed-loop within the tower itself.

Thanks for the info guys!

 

[dfsa90]

Best answer selected by dfsa90.