PC Building

[Vynski]

I have been partial to Air cooling over Liquid based on cost / performance / life.  

When I first began looking at liquid systems, I had an AMD FX 9590 Black Edition 220W CPU and Corsair Vengence 2133 RAM.  I also have a physical Scythe temp monitor on components that needed monitoring.  The base clock is 4.7GHz, but I overclocked it and ran stress test while monitoring temperatures.  At times I saw this CPU hit clock speeds of 5.2GHz.  I kept it cool with a Zalman CNPS9900 cooler, (photo in a recent posting).  Not once did I see temps go above max temps (57C on the 9590).  Although I also ran 5 case fans, (4 intake, 1exhaust) in a full tower case.  

I quit overclocking several years back and now I use it on my desktop Ryzen 7 2700 in a Corsair 540 AIR case with 4 140mm fans.  For air cooling the case size is the major concern.  Lots of open space and fans to bring in cooler air and remove hot air.

The life expectancy of the AIO coolers is very disappointing at 5-7 years, especially for the price.  Research will show that their +5C - 10C edge decreases significantly after 2 - 3 years.  That is why I chose air cooling then and will continue in the future since I no longer overclock anything, just not worth the hassle.  Remember AIR MOVEMENT is critical and you won't get that in a mini or mid case.

So what ever you choose in your build just enjoy it!🤗🤗

[johnnyenglish]

I've always been on Air except one time when I Tried an AIO. It went bad, real bad, had a leak. I said "not going that way again!"

Well... now I'll just bite my tongue because I bought last year a Ryujin 240 AIO.

But to be honest, I bought because It was really cheap, like this cheap cheap. With an OLED screen, Noctua fans and VRM fan to keep the airflow on the board, vrm and ram. Its been actually pretty good.

Even use Youtube to GIF converter to give that extra personal touch.

Ryujin Video 

But to be honest its hard to beat a Noctua Tower Air Cooler.

[MADZyren]

I've used both. The problem is, people usually buy watercoolers for CPU's, which do not really benefit from them (except maybe Intel 12&13Th gen and maybe 7950X). Where watercooling shines is cooling a GPU. No more fans spinning and slowing and spinning and slowing. Of course same applies to CPU, but if you have even a half decent CPU cooler, you'll hardly hear it from all the GPU fans.

With water, if you have a large enough radiator, fans can spin really slow and make hardly any sound and your temps are still great. Problem is, while case brands often advertise how large and many radiators you can install, it's almost never quite true. For instance they can say you can put one in front, and one in roof (may others elsewhere), but in reality installing one often blocks you from installing another one or one has to be quite small, so rather just get one huge one right from the beginning. a 420 or 480 should do the trick and if you need even more, simply dedicate that behemoth to GPU and get some basic AIO for your CPU. Makes maintenance easier too.

If you get a water cooler, get it for silence or because you have an extremely power hungry component, which can't be cooled with air. Wasting money for watercooling trying to overclock further is futile and pretty much never worth it compared to using the same amount of money to faster components.

But for someone who enjoys a computer that sounds whisper quiet even when running heavy loads, a water cooled system (not just CPU) is an awesome thing.

[Vynski]

I'm 50% deaf anyway so I hardly notice the fans. Isn't that a laugh.

[CN50]

That's the only time don't care how loud the fans sound.   I am as well starting to get hearing loss in one ear. 

[Vynski]

I have hearing aids, but hate those things.  The first time I ever used them was at an all school reunion several years ago.  They bring "surround sound" to a whole new level.  I was hearing everything and could not understand one word my friend was saying, and she was right across the table from me.  

[MADZyren]

I don't use need those yet, but know people who do and to my understanding, you learn to separate voices over time. Your brain adjusts. I can be wrong.

[Vynski]

But I don't have that much time left!  

73 but healthy.

[cpurpe91]

I have only used an AIO once for my current CPU. I used air until then and to be honest it doesn't perform much better than air with a temperature difference from 5C - 7C difference. I am going to be upgrading soon and I am hoping the CPU that is on its way won't get too hot. I gave away my Noctua NH-C14S so if it happens that my new CPU does get into the 80C range I will be getting a Dark Rock Pro 4. The only concern I have is my ambient temp being 25C - 30C in the summer, and I don't know how well it will work out with either solution air or liquid. For me the choice between air or liquid is just very up in the air and I will have to do much more research to find the solution that works best in my situation. 

Currently I run a 3700X at stock speeds with a Corsair H100i Elite Capellix 240mm AIO, with temps rarely going above 65C during daily use, and hitting about 73C during Cinebench. It works out... for now. 

[Vynski]

That is a very nice cooler.  Have you checked out the specs on the NH-D15,  I was looking at a Corsair AIO and upon a lot of research was very disappointed in not so much the performance, but in the life span (5-7 yrs) and the deterioration of performance over that life span.  I would truly like to see a head to head matchup with the AIO you have and the NH-D15 over a period of say 4 years.  I can't justify the cost with the life span for the performance.  No more than I use my Ryzen 9 3900X, heck I'm still using the Wraith Prism on it, but I also have 4 140mm case fans in a Metallic Gear Neo Cube.  No overclocking of course except XMP enabled.

Glad you mentioned the ambient temps.  The Zalman CNPS9900 Copper I have, with numerous fans in a full tower case, on that FX9590 kept ambient temps at exactly what you posted 25C -30C.

Last comment; 

My wife is constantly on to me saying "can't you turn that darn thing down".  If you can see my speakers you can see what I'm talking about.  Check out one an @amber post on mouse pads and you will find a photo of 4 Sansui SP2000 speakers controlled by a Sansui AU999 amp.

[TR2]

I was just going to post a new thread when I saw this. I just upgraded a system and had the stock air cooler on a AMD Ryzen 5 3400G. Then fan noise was pretty bad and has been since I built an htpc with it. I swapped it with a 120 Thermaltake AIO. The idle temp is almost the same but with cinebench the AIO is 10 to 12 degrees cooler. I have not used the Noctura air cooler but I have used the Coolermaster hyper 212 and I have to say I will take the less noise solution. The up and down revving of the cpu fan is really annoying. I know the AIO changes fan speed but it is really not noticeable. I do not overclock.

[benroots]

It sounds like you have had a positive experience with air cooling and have found it to be a cost-effective and reliable solution for your needs. Air cooling can indeed be a practical choice, especially if you are not overclocking your components and have a well-ventilated case with sufficient airflow.

Liquid cooling, on the other hand, can offer advantages in terms of thermal performance and can be particularly beneficial for overclocking enthusiasts or individuals with high-end, power-hungry CPUs. It can provide more efficient heat dissipation and potentially lower temperatures compared to air coolers. However, as you mentioned, liquid coolers may have a shorter lifespan and their performance advantage may decrease over time.

Ultimately, the choice between air cooling and liquid cooling depends on individual preferences, budget, and the specific requirements of your system. It's great that you have found a cooling solution that works well for you and that you no longer feel the need to overclock. Enjoy your system and its reliable cooling setup!

[BigAl01]

For my recent computer builds, I mostly use AIO coolers.  They are quieter and I have yet to see one fail.  When I build a new machine as my main computer for daily usage, I use it for 1-2 years before building a new one with the latest technology.  The older machines basically become another gaming computer on my LAN and they don't see much use - a few LAN parties during the year and perhaps monthly Windows updates / Norton updates.  They are off otherwise and maybe that's why I still have a few computers running that I built over ten years ago.  The older ones of course used air cooling (Zalman and other brands) and I don't think I ever destroyed a CPU due to over-temperature abuse or over-clocking beyond reasonable levels.

Here's a 2012 build using a Zalman CPU cooler.