Looking to get First CPU cooler

[JayMiller8080]

Well, as the title suggest, I am preparing to buy my first CPU cooler. I built my first computer back in January and it has been running great. Now I'm looking to getting into some overclocking and more advanced concepts. I know that for overclocking it's pretty much a necessity to have an after market CPU cooler, so I come seeking advice.

First, is there a difference between a Heatsink and a CPU cooler? I hear these terms a lot, but don't know if there's a difference.

Second, I seem to remember being interested in buying a Dark Knight a while back. I know it would look great and fit with my current set up, but I don't know if it's what I need or not. Any opinions on it?

Any other advice/tips would be greatly appreciated! I'm just a noob.

EDIT: Also, before I even get started on anything more advanced, I'd like to make sure things are running fairly smoothly to begin with. I recently got CPUID Monitor, yet I don't really know what temperatures/values everything is supposed to be at anyway. Here's a shot of my last check. Does everything look okay? What things should I really keep an eye out for? I've heard core temperature, for instance, is more significant that CPU temperature. Again, any help is greatly appreciated. Just trying to learn as much as I can.

 

[iFargle]

Question.. You're using an i7 920 and a GTX 260 on a 1024x768 screen?

Most people would recommend a Megahalems CPU cooler with two fans mounted to it

Newegg.com - Prolimatech Megahalems Rev.B CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

a heatsink is the large metal chunk that sits on top of a CPU or other processor / chip that draws heat away from the device into the fins of the heatsink.

A CPU Cooler is a combination of a heatsink and a fan, a heatsink alone, or a waterblock for watercooling. Much more general of a term than heatsink.

I have no idea what you mean by a Dark Knight, so someone else will have to answer that question

 

[S0ULphIRE]

^ it's a type of cooler, e.g. like a megahalem

The TRUE series are great choices, along with the Megahalems. Noctua has also released another cooler too, lemme find what it's called.
edit: it's the NH-D14. and man it is MASSIVE! lol
here's a review: http://www.overclockersclub.com/reviews/noctua_nhd14/

 

[JayMiller8080]

Question.. You're using an i7 920 and a GTX 260 on a 1024x768 screen?

Could you elaborate on why that's weird please? haha I wish I knew why. In my defense, however, I blew all of my money building the computer itself. When I was finished I just found the best monitor around the house that I could. I'd really like an explanation though for why that seems odd. If I'm holding my system back, or stressing it too much I'd like to know.

And yeah, the Dark Knight is just a specific CPU cooler that I've heard great things about.
Heres the link: Newegg.com - XIGMATEK Intel Core i7 compatible Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

 

[orihS ‪‪‪Shiro]

Could you elaborate on why that's weird please? haha I wish I knew why. In my defense, however, I blew all of my money building the computer itself. When I was finished I just found the best monitor around the house that I could. I'd really like an explanation though for why that seems odd. If I'm holding my system back, or stressing it too much I'd like to know.

And yeah, the Dark Knight is just a specific CPU cooler that I've heard great things about.
Heres the link: Newegg.com - XIGMATEK Intel Core i7 compatible Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

Buddy, you would notice 20 worlds of difference if you invested in a 22"-24" monitor with a resolution of 1680x1050, 1920x1080, or 1920x1200

I'd say it's better to build a mid end computer and get a high end monitor, than build a great computer and get a low end monitor...
Why have all that graphics power, if you're not even using it?

(I recommend this bad boy.)
Newegg.com - AOC 2236vw Glossy Black 22" 5ms Widescreen LCD Monitor 60000:1 - LCD Monitors

 

[JayMiller8080]

I don't really know why, but I guess I just didn't think the difference would be THAT huge. I suppose I'll be holding off on the CPU cooler then. Any other recommendations for monitors? I do a lot of gaming. I was reading another thread about gaming monitors a few days ago, and there's quite a lot to take into consideration.

As far as the numbers though, did all the temperatures and whatnot seem normal?
I'll put my system specs in my sig soon enough.

 

[Slaymate]

Your temps look a little warm to be at an idle. What are they at under full load?

You can download LinX here.
http://www.youwatched.com/datajay/linx(0.64).7z

 

[JayMiller8080]

Your temps look a little warm to be at an idle. What are they at under full load?

You can download LinX here.
http://www.youwatched.com/datajay/linx(0.64).7z

I don't really know what would qualify as "full load" but I think when I took that screenshot I had WoW running, and had just been fooling with Nvidia Precision. The temps now have all seemed to drop by about 3-4 degrees across the board.

Also, whats this link? 0.o

 

[Muffin Man]

the link is to download the program that slay suggested, linx, which is meant to stress your cpu (full load).

post another pic with hw monitor while you have linx running so we can see what your load temps are like.

 

[JayMiller8080]

I can't do anything with that link. I don't know what program to open the file up with. Any suggestions?