Small cpu cooler? Downdraft air vs water? Lian Li PC-V650

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brutalizer

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I am going to buy one of the smallest ATX chassis out there, the Lian Li PC-V650. It is very small, but can still house very large graphics card, 7 disks, etc. It is discontinued but can still be found.

There is a problem with this cramped space, the cpu cooler will easily hit the PSU, just like this picture shows:
http://www.overclockers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/lianli_pcv650-59.jpg
This pic is taken at the lower 10% on the page here:
http://www.overclockers.com/lian-li-pcv650-minitower-case-review/

Therefore I need a smaller cpu cooler. Someone said "Downdraft air cooler" like the Noctua NH-C14, NH-C12P SE14 or NH-L12 will fit. I should avoid Tower type upright coolers, I was told. Also, the Corsair H90 water cooler will fit, because it is very small. But, I am hesitant to water coolers, how much of a pain is a water cooler? Do I need to fill up water all the time, etc?

So, do you know of a good downdraft air cooler, and a good water cooler? What cpu cooler would you have bought with this case?
 
What CPU are you using? Wouldn't the stock cooler on any i3+ almost certainly fit?
 
I will be using Xeon Haswell E3-1245v3. I would like a silent cooler, not the stock cooler.
 
Not meaning to sound combative, but have you run the CPU + HSF in the case yet? The SB+ stock HSFs are pretty darn quiet; my 2500k stock HSF produces less noise than my previous system's Zalman cooler. I can't hear the CPU HSF over my video card (which also is not a loud fan).

I would still strongly recommend at least giving the stock cooler a shot; you might find it suits your needs perfectly.

Otherwise, your best bet might be a simple closed-loop liquid cooler; the block will most certainly fit in the space of concern.
 
teh_chem said:
Not meaning to sound combative, but have you run the CPU + HSF in the case yet? The SB+ stock HSFs are pretty darn quiet; my 2500k stock HSF produces less noise than my previous system's Zalman cooler. I can't hear the CPU HSF over my video card (which also is not a loud fan).

I would still strongly recommend at least giving the stock cooler a shot; you might find it suits your needs perfectly.

Otherwise, your best bet might be a simple closed-loop liquid cooler; the block will most certainly fit in the space of concern.
Click to expand...
I havent bought the case yet. I am trying to find a good and silent cpu. Maybe the stock cooler is quiet, but I have bad experiences of stock coolers. I am also sensitive to sound. I cant hear my PC today, I need to look at the light to know if it is on or off. That is how I want it. So if the stock cooler is just slightly audible, I will want to rip apart the entire PC and rebuild it again. That takes time and energy. So I will just be safe and buy a good silent cooler.

You suggested a "simple closed-loop liquid cooler", can you give an example? I never had a liquid cooler. Wouldnt it be easier with an air cooler?


Sonsonate,
I never thought of turning the cooler 90 degrees. Do you think even I could do that? I am not good at building PCs.

Do you have a suggestion of a good silent small cpu cooler that would fit?
 
brutalizer said:
I havent bought the case yet. I am trying to find a good and silent cpu. Maybe the stock cooler is quiet, but I have bad experiences of stock coolers. I am also sensitive to sound. I cant hear my PC today, I need to look at the light to know if it is on or off. That is how I want it. So if the stock cooler is just slightly audible, I will want to rip apart the entire PC and rebuild it again. That takes time and energy. So I will just be safe and buy a good silent cooler.
Click to expand...
Fair enough, I wouldn't want to deal with the re-build. But you don't have to completely build the system to test the cooler first to see if its up to your liking. With the severe subjectivity, I can't really say. No idea how close you are to your computer, or what cooler you have. But I can say that the i5 cooler is literally the quietest cooler I've used (including aftermarket ones), and far quieter than any stock cooler I've ever had. The only real down-side is they can't help much with overclocking. But since you're not going to overclock, that's why I recommended at least giving it a shot. I probably wouldn't be as adamant about trying it if you didn't have the space requirements you do; but I can't think of a comparable air cooler that will fit in that space and also be quiet.

But even closed loop water coolers will have fans; I don't know how objectionable you'd find them to be. The Corsair H60 will fit the space requirements; but I can't comment on its noise because I haven't personally used it.
 
Look for a Thermalright Ultima 90. A smaller version of the TRUE 120 and nearly as good.

I believe it's discontinued but you can find them new several places still and on ebay.
 
brutalizer said:
-snip-


Sonsonate,
I never thought of turning the cooler 90 degrees. Do you think even I could do that? I am not good at building PCs.

Do you have a suggestion of a good silent small cpu cooler that would fit?
Click to expand...

Well, my question to you is: what cooler do you have now? If you have none and you want to make it easier for yourself, get a downdraft cooler or a smaller cooler or maybe an AIO cooler like the other folks are saying because I, for one, can't tell you what will fit turned 90 degrees or not. My line of thought was If you already own a tower-style cooler, I'd try it and see how it works once you have the case.

To answer whether or not you can turn a cooler around -- sure, you can. Most coolers show you in the manual how you can orient 'em. So far, most of the coolers (on Intel platform, can't speak for AMD stuff) I've owned allow you to turn 90 degrees to have air exhausting out the top of your case.

As for the AIO watercooling, it's a no-hassle affair because it's sealed, and you'll only have to mount the block to the CPU and install the heatsink and fan.
 
I have no cooler now. I am going to buy a new computer, everything from scracth. I am not good at building computers and dont know anything about coolers.

I will check up all your suggested coolers. Keep em coming, folks! :)
 
brutalizer said:
I have no cooler now. I am going to buy a new computer, everything from scracth. I am not good at building computers and dont know anything about coolers.

I will check up all your suggested coolers. Keep em coming, folks! :)
Click to expand...
I think they were asking what cooler do you have in the computer you mentioned that you couldn't hear when it was on.
 
brutalizer said:
You suggested a "simple closed-loop liquid cooler", can you give an example? I never had a liquid cooler. Wouldnt it be easier with an air cooler?
Click to expand...

Simple closed loop liquid coolers are fully enclosed water loops that require no maintenance and can be installed right out of the box. They come with a pump that mounts on the cpu, and pipes that lead to a radiator. All pre-filled, just install and go, just like an air cooler. You'll never have to re-fill them.

Here are some good examples:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0036012&IsNodeId=1&name=Liquid Cooling System

I've personally used the H50 and H100i. The H80i would be a perfect choice in that small case.
 
teh_chem said:
I think they were asking what cooler do you have in the computer you mentioned that you couldn't hear when it was on.
Click to expand...
I dont know. It is is a big tower cooler, quite good when I bought it 4 years ago. I have a Intel Q9450 and 8 GB RAM. Right now I can not hear if my computer is on or not. I need to check the lights. Id like it that way.


Jo3f1sh said:
The H80i would be a perfect choice in that small case.
Click to expand...
Ok, that sounds great. Here I have a concrete example for the Lian Li chassis. Anyone seconds that cooler? If several people thinks it is ok, I might go for it. Would the H90 be better?

Thanks guys. I am noob. :)
 
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The H80i should be more than enough for this CPU. Even an H50 would work just fine. I've even used far less capable Corsair H40s on Xeon E5-2650 chips which are 95 watt TDP, without issue. All the while they have been folding@home running at 100% utilization and barely breaking 55 degrees celsius with fans running at 1500 rpm.

Now you're not a noob :)
 
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