Hyper 212 or Corsair H80

[TooNasty]

I'm building a new computer this winter and was wondering about cooling.
I keep my room very warm and have had temperature problems with my current PC.

I plan on overclocking an i5 2500k and was wondering if I should shell out
for liquid cooling or just stick with a Hyper 212.

Is the improvement worth the extra money?

[vesseblah]

H80 will not improve temperatures at all unless you're going to push the overclocking to the max. With just settling for average 4.5GHz it doesn't matter which cooler you choose. At extreme clocks and voltages H80 will give you better results.

On the other hand H80 is much easier to install and allows you to use any RAM sticks you want regardless of how stupid decorative fins those have, and you cant really overestimate the worth of those two little details. If you can spare the money H80 is clearly better, but for regular OC job it gives zero performance boost.

[McFrotton]

I you have the extra money go for the H80, its worth every penny, clean easy installation, REALLY REALLY neat inside the case, cool better than any air cooler but less than a 4 tube system, but maintenance free, when on balanced mode it is quiet and on prime blend test it NEVER goes above 50-55C, at 4.8-4.9 with 1.39V on Vcore it goes at 60-62C it is just amazingly cool, this + the hussle free ram stick problem that could occur is non existent.

[Deleted]

I'd suggest the Corsair A70. If you have money to spend however, and want a high performance cooler, better go for a NH-D14 or (if you really want a closed-loop cooler) a H100.

[McFrotton]

H80 will not improve temperatures at all unless you're going to push the overclocking to the max. With just settling for average 4.5GHz it doesn't matter which cooler you choose. At extreme clocks and voltages H80 will give you better results.

On the other hand H80 is much easier to install and allows you to use any RAM sticks you want regardless of how stupid decorative fins those have, and you cant really overestimate the worth of those two little details. If you can spare the money H80 is clearly better, but for regular OC job it gives zero performance boost.

Yes and no every 212+ at 4.5GHz run above 66C on majority of 4-12h benchmark while H80 runs at 55-60 max less heat means less CPU degradation means better long term performance.

[Deleted]

Yes and no every 212+ at 4.5GHz run above 66C on majority of 4-12h benchmark while H80 runs at 55-60 max less heat means less CPU degradation means better long term performance.

Well, you can't really compare that way because ambient temperature and fans used together with their speed/cfm (not to mention CPU type used for the test) makes a world of difference.

[McFrotton]

I'd suggest the Corsair A70. If you have money to spend however, and want a high performance cooler, better go for a NH-D14 or (if you really want a closed-loop cooler) a H100.

If he isnt going for push pull config with H100, the H80 will give overall better performance for a cheaper price. (yes even if the rad is thicker), I fyou go for an H100 buy 2 more fan and plan space for push pull config n your case

---------- Post added 2011-11-05 at 11:15 PM ----------

Well, you can't really compare that way because ambient temperature and fans used together with their speed/cfm (not to mention CPU type used for the test) makes a world of difference.

You are right on this point, but imo closed loop wc are efficient require less space which mean better overall aiflow in the case.

Oh if you decide to go with an air heatsink go with the NH-D14

[Deleted]

Well go noctua D14 or C14 ... much better than those H80 .

It has better performance , and lower noise.

Wc is for 1 of 2 things : to be a good performer ( forget all those pre assembled ones and build your own and that is costly ) or to be silent .
H80 fails in both when compared to good aircoolers like the noctua ones.

[Arisfarreach]

If you are okay with shelling out ~$90 for an H80, why not consider getting the NH-D14?

It's arguably the best non-custom liquid cooler on the market.

[Xuvial]

If you are okay with shelling out ~$90 for an H80, why not consider getting the NH-D14?

It's arguably the best non-custom liquid cooler on the market.

D14 isn't a liquid cooler o_O

But yeah as others have said, for a mild/moderate OC go with Hyper212+. For high/extreme OC's go with H80.
Both coolers will be affected by your ambient temps, it's not like watercooling is more effective in hot weather since you can't get the water any cooler than the room itself (you're still cooling the water using air, go figure :P). Same applies to air cooling.

Personally I'm going to shift away from the behemoth air coolers for future cooling needs. It's not just for RAM compatibility but overall tidy looks...and it makes sense your radiator/fins should be attached to the case, not hanging off your freaking motherboard. I already find my Hyper212+ overly large and obstructive.

[vesseblah]

If you are okay with shelling out ~$90 for an H80, why not consider getting the NH-D14?

It's arguably the best non-custom liquid cooler on the market.

C14 is actually better. Also, the H80 is about 1-2C behind it, so there's not much difference to be gained in performance, and whole lot more room around CPU to work with RAM and stuff.

edit:

Antec Kühler 920 is basically same as Corsair H80 with bit crappier installation bracket. Depending on local prices or availability it could be good choice instead.

[Arisfarreach]

D14 isn't a liquid cooler o_O

Never said it was.

It's arguably the best cooler on the market that isn't a custom-liquid cooling setup.

Better?

[vesseblah]

Better?

No.

Noctua NH-C14 is better. D14 dropped few spots from the top of the list this year.

[Arisfarreach]

No.

Noctua NH-C14 is better. D14 dropped few spots from the top of the list this year.

Was referring to my sentence structure.

Misinterpretations galore.

[Deleted]

But yeah as others have said, for a mild OC go with Hyper212+. For moderate OC's go with C14 or D14 . For high OCs build a custom wc.

H80 isn't a good choice . too much noise and less performance than a good aircooler.

the only wc systems that are worth it are quite expensive ( thermochill radiatorsss Ayooooo !! ) , I'v build a few and have some friends with them. unfortunatly in the overall they add so much to the expense that if you think of the whole pc , he would have been happyer with a better pc + D14 or C14 ( exept a friend that runs his wc for silence )

But even a good wc setup for silence costs a lot as big radiators are involved.

Go air cooling , avoid wc unless you want to do a "custom" wc as the best air coolers kill every brand "pre-made" wc system like the H80 in performance and noise and price.

[McFrotton]

C14 is actually better. Also, the H80 is about 1-2C behind it, so there's not much difference to be gained in performance, and whole lot more room around CPU to work with RAM and stuff.

edit:

Antec Kühler 920 is basically same as Corsair H80 with bit crappier installation bracket. Depending on local prices or availability it could be good choice instead.

edit: what do you mean 1-2C behind (do you mean coole ror hotter lol)

source please because here its not the case its better, but it all depends, personally I prefer H80 because it takes less place and its cleaner my GF got a noctua just because she doesnt want liquid in her comp both computer are identical and I have less heat on same OC my Vcore is higher than her Vcore, so get me a source that noctua is beter than H80 please both are comparable and NH-D14 is 94$ here I got my H80 for 85$.

H80 is a mid-range watercooler (do not compared it to full water cooling its not the same and its high range among closed loop WC) tight in with the H100.

While noctua NH-D14 is high end (like the best) air cooler you can get sure its goign to rock. But H80 is still very good.

[Drunkenvalley]

Noctua NH-C14 is better.

This is news to me and really requires a source.

The NH-D14 was still at the top, although it was being shared with the Corsair H100, Thermalright Silver Arrow, and one or two other largely inaccessible coolers.

[TooNasty]

Thanks for your advice everyone. Since I'm building in a Thermaltake Level 10 GT
I've decided to go with the Corsair H100. I thought the price difference between it
and the H80 would be more than it is.

[Drunkenvalley]

The Level 10 GT? White or black? :B

Also, mounting the H100 in the case should be a breeze. You can choose to place the bigass 200mm underneath or above the radiator, but either way you should be able to screw the rad onto it simply by removing the honeycomb mesh on the top. (There's a "button" on the back of the case holding it down, no screws.)

---------- Post added 2011-11-07 at 08:39 PM ----------

On second thought, I really recommend mounting the H100 underneath the 200mm, lest you have mounting screws that'll extend beyond the 30mm rad and 25mm fans to reach the 200mm.

[TooNasty]

I still can't decide between colors. I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with the Snow Edition.
It matches my car and I'm weird like that.