I5-2500k OC Fan

[Edsterr]

I will soon be getting an intel i5-2500k and overclocking it to about 4.5-5GHz. I've also been looking at several fans to go with it, but am undecided on which to go for. So far I've looked at; the Corsair H80, the Noctua NH-D14, and the Zalman CNPS9900-MAX. I will be using a standard Asus P8Z68-V mobo, w/ 8Gb (2x4Gb) of GSkill ripjaws, and therfore don't want the cooler to take up all the room.

Just wanted to know what your opinions are on these coolers and if you have any suggestions for any other fans. My budget goes up to £60 and height isn't much of an issue (with fans of up to 165mm tall being able to fit in my case).

 

[1adf1]

im also interested in this so bump

 

[Celegorm]

I use this one to O.C my i7-2700k. Got it up to 4.0 and still idles around 30. Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7

 

[Edsterr]

I use this one to O.C my i7-2700k. Got it up to 4.0 and still idles around 30. Newegg.com - COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler Compatible Intel Core i5 & Intel Core i7

I did look at that that, but I've seen people on other forums say that you can get a better cooler, so long as your willing to spend the extra money (which I am).

 

[OhSnapWord]

I'm running this:
Newegg.com - Antec Kuhler H2O 620 Liquid Cooling System

Added a second fan to it and my chip never gets above 50c. I have an 1100T @ 3.8GHz.

 

[Edsterr]

I'll check it out and edit this later with my opinion

 

[1adf1]

im looking at this any one know if it ok or are there alot better Zalman CNPS9900A

---------- Post added at 02:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:39 PM ----------

Zalman CNPS9900A-LED PWM Socket 1156 1366, 775, AM2.. | Ebuyer.com

 

[Edsterr]

I've been looking through some more forums and I've come up with some ups and downs to water-cooling and air-cooling. Remember, these are just my thoughts, don't start getting angry if you disagree

Water-cooling

It is (usually) the best form of cooling
It doesn't take up nearly as much room as a fan does
They are easy to install/fit (sometimes)

It needs to be custom made to produce the best results
It is more expensive than its air-cooling equivalent.
It can be really noisy

Air-Cooling

It is much cheaper than WCing
Good quality fans are quiet
They are much more common, and thus you have more choice

Most (good) fans are massive
They're usually not as good as custom WC
The greater choice makes it harder to choose a good fan

To conclude, WCing is great, if you are willing to either make it yourself, or spending an awful lot of money. Air cooling however is a lot cheaper and still gives reasonable cooling. As I'm still new to building I think I'll just stick to fans, but WC is a possibilty for the future.

 

[Edsterr]

I've narrowed it down to two coolers; the noctua nh-d14, and the zalman CNPS9900-MAX. Does anyone have either of these or have any experience with them. Any first opinions would be very helpful.

 

[Edsterr]

*First-hand opinions