Question Which AIO should I get?

Aug 23, 2020
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Hello everyone, I could either get this AIO Barrow LTCPR-360 CPU or I could get a Silverstone PF240. The Barrow one is 360mm and almost the same price as the PF240 but I don't know the brand and if it is high quality or not? I really want it because its 360mm for almost the same price. Can someone guide me? Thanks.
 
To my mind, the best aio is NO aio.

What do you need to cool?
What is your case?

AIO coolers all seem to come from a couple of parts makers and only differ in cosmetics.
Still, if you insist on going the aio route, buy the one which looks like it can give you the best support if anything goes wrong.
 
Aug 23, 2020
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To my mind, the best aio is NO aio.

What do you need to cool?
What is your case?

AIO coolers all seem to come from a couple of parts makers and only differ in cosmetics.
Still, if you insist on going the aio route, buy the one which looks like it can give you the best support if anything goes wrong.
My case is Thermaltake V200 and my Cpu Ryzen 5 3600. I want an AIO mostly for looks. And another reason is because my current air cooler is very loud
 
My case is Thermaltake V200 and my Cpu Ryzen 5 3600. I want an AIO mostly for looks. And another reason is because my current air cooler is very loud
AIO coolers offer far superior cooling than AIR coolers and are reliable and make less noise. They have decent warranty with the correct unit and rarely fail. And yes they look cool.
Air coolers put strain on the MB and look ugly.
Anything less than a 240mm twin rad and AIR coolers are just as good.
 
Your processor is not an overly hot one.
Your case is a very nice one and entirely suitable for an air cooler.
A air cooler with twin radiators will be about as effective as a 240 aio cooler.
You have 160mm available which will fit many coolers.
Air will be cheaper as a rule.
The specs of your case seem to allow only a 240 or 280 aio, not a 360 aio.
https://www.newegg.com/black-thermaltake-v200-tg-rgb-edition-atx-mid-tower-chassis/p/N82E16811133390

Mounting a aio is a bit of catch 22.
If you mount it to draw in fresh air, your cpu will be cooled the best, but the heated air will be used to cool the motherboard and graphics card.
OTOH, if you mount it to exhaust hot air, your cpu will not be cooled as effectively.

---------------------------------- bottom line --------------------------------------
If RGB winky blinky appeals to you, by all means buy such a cooler.
 
Aug 23, 2020
32
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Your processor is not an overly hot one.
Your case is a very nice one and entirely suitable for an air cooler.
A air cooler with twin radiators will be about as effective as a 240 aio cooler.
You have 160mm available which will fit many coolers.
Air will be cheaper as a rule.
The specs of your case seem to allow only a 240 or 280 aio, not a 360 aio.
https://www.newegg.com/black-thermaltake-v200-tg-rgb-edition-atx-mid-tower-chassis/p/N82E16811133390

Mounting a aio is a bit of catch 22.
If you mount it to draw in fresh air, your cpu will be cooled the best, but the heated air will be used to cool the motherboard and graphics card.
OTOH, if you mount it to exhaust hot air, your cpu will not be cooled as effectively.

---------------------------------- bottom line --------------------------------------
If RGB winky blinky appeals to you, by all means buy such a cooler.
I will mount the AIO to pull in fresh air so in the front. https://www.thermaltake.com/v200-tempered-glass-rgb-edition.html in this website it says that my case supports up to 360mm in the front. I already have a Snowman M-T6 air cooler which is fine in terms of temps but is very loud. I want a silent and fancy cooler which basically is an AIO and also if 3 120mm fans fit in the front why wouldn’t a 360mm radiator fit?
 
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Looking at your link, there is apparently a difference between the 2020 version of the case which supports a 360 aio and and previous versions which is limited to a 280.
Possible reason might be the clearance needed to mount a 360 cooler was limited before and has been fixed with the 2020 cases.

As to noise, it comes from fans running at high rpm.
900 rpm is quiet and 1200 is usually not objectionable.
I do not know what the rpm of the fans used in your candidates is, but 1500 rpm and up would be noisy.
HWmonitor should be able to tell you what the rpm of your current cooler fan is so you can judge.
 
Aug 23, 2020
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Looking at your link, there is apparently a difference between the 2020 version of the case which supports a 360 aio and and previous versions which is limited to a 280.
Possible reason might be the clearance needed to mount a 360 cooler was limited before and has been fixed with the 2020 cases.

As to noise, it comes from fans running at high rpm.
900 rpm is quiet and 1200 is usually not objectionable.
I do not know what the rpm of the fans used in your candidates is, but 1500 rpm and up would be noisy.
HWmonitor should be able to tell you what the rpm of your current cooler fan is so you can judge.
Its running at 1000 RPM but its super loud for me. At least after the Wraith Stealth its very loud. But I just couldn’t understand why a 360mm AIO can’t fit when 3 120mm fans can fit isn’t it the same thing?
 

Phaaze88

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But I just couldn’t understand why a 360mm AIO can’t fit when 3 120mm fans can fit isn’t it the same thing?
Negative.
3x 120mm fans = 120 x 360 in perimeter
A 360mm radiator is typically wider and longer than that - by how much may vary with the manufacturer. It's not unreasonable for a 360mm radiator to be 125 x 405 in perimeter, and not fit in some chassis.
 
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Some fans are less efficient and louder than others.
Noctua makes some of the best. They are quieter and move more air than most.
Larger 140mm fans will move more air at lower rpm than 120mm fans.
I might have suggested to you a Noctua NH-D15s which makes virtually no noise and would cool better than most 240 aio coolers in your case.
Unfortunately, they use a fan that is beige in color and does not have rgb colors.
You can buy a black shroud to hide the beige, but no light show.
I had a usb extension with pulsating RGB and it drove me nuts.
Needless to say, I am not a fan of the current RGB fashion.
 
Aug 23, 2020
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Some fans are less efficient and louder than others.
Noctua makes some of the best. They are quieter and move more air than most.
Larger 140mm fans will move more air at lower rpm than 120mm fans.
I might have suggested to you a Noctua NH-D15s which makes virtually no noise and would cool better than most 240 aio coolers in your case.
Unfortunately, they use a fan that is beige in color and does not have rgb colors.
You can buy a black shroud to hide the beige, but no light show.
I had a usb extension with pulsating RGB and it drove me nuts.
Needless to say, I am not a fan of the current RGB fashion.
Id rather look at dirt instead of the Noctua D15. Anyway though my current cooler actually has a weird and loud noise, not the usual loud fan noise . So it is the minimal usual fan noise which is not disturbing me + a sound like what a mosquito makes which is terrible. Before I had a wraith stealth and it didn't have this mosquito noise. The noise seems to come from the exhaust fan of the case or the exhaust fan of my new CPU cooler I don't know which one though. Do you have any idea what this noise could be? Here is what it sounds like https://streamable.com/3h5qri I am sure its either coming from the case exhaust fan or the cooler itself didn't have this issue with the stock cooler I am guessing the cause of this noise is the rear fan of my cooler always runs at %100 percent speed while the front fan adjusts itself and due to both fans running at different speeds an airflow difference happens and this sound occurs ( I am not sure of this but could be the reason)
 
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Aug 23, 2020
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Then change out the fan. Cheap fans can be unbalanced and create harmonics that are unpleasant.

Sounds like you are going to replace the cooler, regardless.
I changed the RPM to 700 and the mosquito sound was still there at 1500 RPM the mosquito sound was still there and it was as intense as when it was at 700 RPM so nothing changed. It is probably the fans. Thanks for the help