Heatsink Compatability Question

[Unknown-One]

Trying to figure out the largest / quietest heatsink I can get away with. I currently have:

- Asus P8Z68V-Pro/GEN3 motherboard
- Four sticks of Corsair Vengeance RAM
- Xigmatek HDT-S1283 heatsink

The Xigmatek works because it's thin enough that, even with the fan mounted, it doesn't overhang the RAM slots. Sounds like I need something similar again (or a cooler with a lot more clearance so).

Any ideas or suggestions on this one?

 

[=Gunslinger=]

The Corsair H-series all-in-one watercoolers would be quiet and also not cause any clearance issues.

 

[Unknown-One]

Sorry, but Corsair Hydro series coolers have left me consistently unimpressed. Every single time I've used one and attempted to make it a low-noise solution, performance falls off a cliff.

I tried to replace my Xigmatek HDT-S1283 with a Corsair H80 already. By the time I lowered all the fan / pump speeds to the point where it was as quiet as my old heatsink, temps were WORSE than the HDT-S1283...

I'd basically have to go with an H100 to break even, but the H100 doesn't mount correctly in a Fractal Design R3, so that's not an option either.

What I really want is an upgraded tower cooler. It can be taller and/or wider than the HDT-S1283, just not much thicker (otherwise it'll run into the RAM unless it has some serious mobo clearance under it).

 

[MacLeod]

That's weird. My H100 cools this 8150 at 4.5 and 1.425V on the lowest speed setting. My rig is quieter than my wife's running the stock AMD heatsink. Maybe you got a bad one.

 

[Unknown-One]

I said I tried an H80, not an H100.

H100 can't be mounted in my case, the mounting holes in the radiator don't line up with the dual-120/140mm fan holes on the top of the case.

Keep in mind, when the system is idle, the lone 120mm fan on my current heatsink spins down to 600 RPM and is dead silent. It's REALLY tough to get two fans + a pump to run slow enough to get down to that low of a noise level. When you run an H80 or H100 that slow, their efficiency plummets, performance tanks, and temperatures skyrocket. They end up being worse than most air coolers...

 

[Faethon]

Double (or triple) post sorry. When i was trying to send, it seemed it was stuck, so i clicked more times.

 

[Faethon]

Double post, sorry.

 

[Faethon]

I tried to replace my Xigmatek HDT-S1283 with a Corsair H80 already. By the time I lowered all the fan / pump speeds to the point where it was as quiet as my old heatsink, temps were WORSE than the HDT-S1283...
.

Xigmatek is really good with noise. I don't know if by heatsink design or by fan manufacturing, but it's true. I also like low noise and my Xigmatek Balder with the fan at 1700 is inaudible. What i hear is a 1100 side case fan... On the contrary, the Scythe Rasetsu, probably due to different fin placement, was audible already at 1400 rpm. At 1700 rpm was very audible. At 1950 rpm, it was irritatingly loud.

Of course the case design itself affects the acoustics, but still...

 

[kasakka]

You don't mention what case you're using as that will usually be the biggest limitation. Just use low profile memory or remove the RAM heatspreaders altogether (or remove the extra spikes sticking off them) and most big coolers should fit fine as long as you can cram them in your case.

 

[MacLeod]

I said I tried an H80, not an H100.

H100 can't be mounted in my case, the mounting holes in the radiator don't line up with the dual-120/140mm fan holes on the top of the case.

Keep in mind, when the system is idle, the lone 120mm fan on my current heatsink spins down to 600 RPM and is dead silent. It's REALLY tough to get two fans + a pump to run slow enough to get down to that low of a noise level. When you run an H80 or H100 that slow, their efficiency plummets, performance tanks, and temperatures skyrocket. They end up being worse than most air coolers...

Ah, didn't know youre going for silent running. Yeah a H cooler wont be for you then. Mine is pretty damn quiet and is quieter than my Hyper 212 I had before it which is impressive considering what its having to cool.

 

[Unknown-One]

You don't mention what case you're using as that will usually be the biggest limitation.

Yes I did... third post in this thread. Everything is in a Fractal Design R3

Just use low profile memory or remove the RAM heatspreaders altogether (or remove the extra spikes sticking off them) and most big coolers should fit fine as long as you can cram them in your case.

Like I said in my first post, I already have the RAM. I'd really rather not modify it...

So...nobody has any suggestions for a tower heatsink that wont interfere with Corsair Vengeance modules?

 

[Unknown-One]

Xigmatek is really good with noise. I don't know if by heatsink design or by fan manufacturing, but it's true. I also like low noise and my Xigmatek Balder with the fan at 1700 is inaudible.

Not a fan of Xigmatek fans, honestly... I usually toss them out immediately and install a Nexus RealSilent or Scythe Slip Stream (SY1225SL12LM-P)

I'm using the Scyth Slip Stream on my HDT-S1283 right now. Switched from the Nexus because I needed a PWM fan for auto-speed-control on my new motherboard.

 

[Faethon]

Not a fan of Xigmatek fans, honestly... I usually toss them out immediately and install a Nexus RealSilent or Scythe Slip Stream (SY1225SL12LM-P)

I'm using the Scyth Slip Stream on my HDT-S1283 right now. Switched from the Nexus because I needed a PWM fan for auto-speed-control on my new motherboard.

I have the Nexus as case fan in 3 builds, it's quiet and cheap. But a bit weak for my taste for CPU cooler. The Rasetsu has a slipstream but higher speed. For me it was annoying over 1400 rpm. I use Kama Flex 1000 rpm, quiet too for case fan.Personally i can't complain about the Xigmatek fan on the Balder. But i never used other Xigmatek fans.

 

[Unknown-One]

Sorry about the bump, but I'm still having a hard time tracking down a good replacement / upgrade. Suggestions welcome...

Only thing I've found so far that's guaranteed to work is the Noctua NH-U12S or the Noctua NH-U14S, I just wish you could get them without the fans, since I'll just be swapping them for quieter ones anyway.


It's really a shame Noctua's 140mm fan ended up being so difficult to work with. If you really want to run it quietly, you have to get it down to ~600 RPM, but it refuses to spin-up at that setting. You have to spin it up at 1000 RPM and then throttle it back. It's just too much of a pain to work with...

 

[doyll]

NH-U14S has PWM fans. My experience is they are not a problem starting. I'm running 5 PWM fan in my main case idling 660-700rpm and never have any problems with them starting when turning on computer. Yes, if I unplug one while system is running and plug it back in it won't re-start but never a problem when booting system or during normal operation.

I'm not sure you have enough room to set a 140mm fan on/over your RAM in R3. I know I couldn't in my R2.

 

[Unknown-One]

I'm not sure you have enough room to set a 140mm fan on/over your RAM in R3. I know I couldn't in my R2.

Might want to look up the NH-U12S and NH-U14S, they're Noctual models designed specifically NOT to interfere with RAM slots. They're both slim enough that they wont overhang the RAM at all, so there's no need to rejigger the position of the fan.

 

[doyll]

I measured 50mm clearance from center of CPU.. and I could be off by 1mm. NH-U14S spec is 51mm, so would be a tight fit. X58A-UD5 has 6 RAM slots so end up closer to CPU socket than most.

I use low enough profile RAM it's not a problem for me to put140mm fans on top of them, but thanks for the thought.

 

[Unknown-One]

Looks like you're on Socket 1366, which might explain the space issues. Sounds like 1366 allowed the RAM slots to be closer to the CPU socket.

The NH-U12S and NH-U14S were designed with Socket 1155 and Socket 2011 in mind, and as far as I can tell, neither cooler interferes with the RAM slots on either socket.

 

[Unknown-One]

Well...since nobody really got back to me on this, I went ahead and picked up a NH-U12S

Just got here today, I'll report back with any improvements.

 

[shadowsnkx]

Sorry, but Corsair Hydro series coolers have left me consistently unimpressed. Every single time I've used one and attempted to make it a low-noise solution, performance falls off a cliff.

I tried to replace my Xigmatek HDT-S1283 with a Corsair H80 already. By the time I lowered all the fan / pump speeds to the point where it was as quiet as my old heatsink, temps were WORSE than the HDT-S1283...

I'd basically have to go with an H100 to break even, but the H100 doesn't mount correctly in a Fractal Design R3, so that's not an option either.

What I really want is an upgraded tower cooler. It can be taller and/or wider than the HDT-S1283, just not much thicker (otherwise it'll run into the RAM unless it has some serious mobo clearance under it).

Have you tried running the cooler fan off of a separate fan controller? I generally have better results and can max the fan out when I want to. If you pair it with a server style fan, your machine will cool were effectively.

 

[Unknown-One]

Just got the Noctua installed... not terribly impressed so far. Seeing idle temps of 48c, using the Noctua fan that came with the heatsink spinning at 600 RPM.

Hopefully it's more impressive when I put the processor under load, because otherwise Noctua is getting shamed by an HDT-S1283 (which costs less than half of what a NH-U12S goes for).

Have you tried running the cooler fan off of a separate fan controller? I generally have better results and can max the fan out when I want to. If you pair it with a server style fan, your machine will cool were effectively.

Doesn't really matter what you run an H80 off of, it's hard to make 2 fans and a pump quieter than one 120mm fan running at 600 RPM.

From what I've found, you need an H100 just to break even with the noise-to-performance ratio of a good single-tower air heatsink when dealing with low-load or idle conditions.

 

[Unknown-One]

Under load the Noctua instantly shot up to 70+c and the fan was forced all the way up to 100% (a very loud and annoying 1400 RPM). Total crap...

At this rate the Xigmatek is going to be re-fitted (it's really hard to find a cooler that beats it, apparently...)

 

[Direfox]

I have to say my Xig is one of the best coolers I have ever had. I'm not running it as quiet as you are, but can barely hear it and overclocked temps max out at 60-62c. Stock under load is about 55.

 

[Unknown-One]

Yeah, its been a great cooler. I have one of the oldest ones, and I've kept it across 4 motherboards.

Only reason I replaced it is because the rubber fan mounts have long since turned to dust (I've been using zip-ties instead) and it felt like it might have been letting me down a little bit as far as load temps go.

Now I'm not so sure... this Noctua is turning into a massive disappointment. My last hope for it is a re-mount and using my old Scythe fan (SY1225SL 12LM-P) rather than using the included Noctua fan (which I can now hear ticking away at 1400 RPM, making it even more annoying)

 

[Unknown-One]

Re-mounted the Noctua and tried using my previous fan. The new fan made it quieter under load conditions, but otherwise the results are identical. Final verdict?

Side panel closed, single fan, auto fan speed:
Idle: 47c
Load: 75c

I decided to try going for broke, so here's side panel open, dual fans at 100% fan speed (way too loud to consider for day-to-day operation). The air coming out of the heat-sink assembly was barely above room temperature, which makes me think the heat-pipes simply can't get heat away from base plate quickly enough to be of any use. Ram all the air you want through this thing, it's not going to get much better:
Idle 40c
Load: 69c

Edit: and results are laughable when I crank my overclock up from 4.2GHz to 4.7GHz, load temperatures hit 90c almost instantly.

So... that's going back to Amazon as a failed experiment. Doubly disappointing, because not only is the heatsink itself a let-down, but not even the (very expensive) Noctua fan included with it could out-do an old Scythe...

Still looking for suggestions on an upgraded cooler. There has to be SOMETHING that can beat an HDT-S1283...

Edit2: I had considered modding my case to fit an H100 for a moment... then I re-read some reviews like this one, where the H100 gets its ass handed to it by a regular tower heatsink like the Thermalright Archon which sustains better temps at much lower RPM (and without a pump).