Phenom II 945 Cooling (Hyper 212 or Corsair H60)

bigweavy · Mar 20, 2013

My Phenom II X4 is starting to show its age with my games. I'd like to start getting some serious OC's but can't really go too far with a stock cooler. I am on a budget and wouldn't like to spend more than $50 for a cooler. I've browsed around and found a Corsair H60 liquid cooling and a Hyper 212 for 55 and 25 respectively.

I idle around 46C, which is pretty darn high as is. So what I'm asking is what type of temperature differences will I see between the two? Just how big is the 212 (I have a midsize)? Are they both relatively easy to install? What type of maintenance will be required for the Corsair? My case has 2 top and 1 rear fan (all 120mm), which would be ideal to place the radiator on? Will the 25 extra I'll be spending be worth it in water cooling?

I'm basically looking for arguments to push me one way or another. Total water and aftermarket fan newbie here.

ikes9711 · Mar 20, 2013

The H60 will be worth the money in terms of temps you will get. The watercooler is low maintenance and I would recommend installing it in a top fan slot.

Orlean · Mar 20, 2013

Is it a Hyper 212 Plus or 212 Evo ?

Regardless of which model it is the 212 cools pretty much on par with a H60 for half the cost so in my opinion no the extra $25 spent is not worth the money.

http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2705&page=5

blazorthon · Mar 20, 2013

The H60 will not cool much better, if better at all, compared to a Hyper 212 Plus or EVO. Compared to the smaller and weaker Hyper 212 rather than the Hyper 212 Plus or Hyper 212 EVO, the H60 would have a decent cooling advantage, but the price difference is huge and there are many cheaper coolers that are better. For example, the current version of the Zalman Optima cools better than these coolers and it's priced similarly to the Hyper 212 Plus and Evo coolers, while being slightly smaller, so it's easily one of the best options around that price point.

kiezz · Mar 20, 2013

i wouldn't get a h60 either i'd go for a thermalright true spirit 120M http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-098-TR for £25 it will be a better performer than a h60

xFriarx · Mar 20, 2013

I would say go with the Hyper 212, or one of the other air coolers others have posted. I had a 212+ that cooled my 3.9ghz oc'ed 1st gen 965BE marvelously. I don't recall exact temps but it was a hell of a lot better than the stock cooler, something like high 40's/low 50s at load compared to 60-70+ with stock, and idled sub/low 20s - not 100% sure though, its been a while. IMHO the H60 is not worth it, ever. To many better performing, not to mention cheaper, air coolers out there.

bigweavy · Mar 21, 2013

Well the options are Hyper TX3, Hyper 212 Plus, Hyper 212 Evo, and of course the H60. The reason I'm considering the H60 is of course my midsize case and the fact that my computer sits rather close to a vent and can get excess heat blow on it from the vent.

henydiah · Mar 21, 2013

hyper 212 plus or evo will be good for Phenom II 945

chrisafp07 · Mar 21, 2013

If it will fit in your case the Hyper 212 plus, or the Zalman Optima is a great option as well.

bigweavy · Mar 21, 2013

It seems like everyone is prefing towards the Hyper212. Any preference on which model?

henydiah · Mar 21, 2013

why want model ? just get price and performance

chrisafp07 · Mar 21, 2013

bigweavy :

The EVO it has bigger fans and heatsink.

blazorthon · Mar 21, 2013

The Evo and Plus are almost identical, the EVO is just slightly better. The regular Hyper 212 is, as chrisafp07 said, a smaller cooler that is not nearly as good as the Hyper 212 Plus nor the Hyper 212 EVO. I'm still leaning more towards the Zalman Optima, but if you want to go with a Hyper 212 Plus or EVO, I'd say just go for whichever is cheaper (usually the Hyper 212 Plus).

bigweavy · Mar 22, 2013

Thanks guys, I couldn't find an Optima in a Microcenter near me so I ended up going with the Evo.

steddora · Mar 22, 2013

Just make sure you apply the thermal paste right and set your fan up in the bios and you're off to the races. Just so you know, the h60 is crap compared to a Hyper 212 with a pair of high performance fans.

Walkermoon · Mar 25, 2013

So how much temperature difference did you actually see? I'm curious cuz i've got a similar config and m also looking for a aftermarket cooler.

bigweavy · Mar 26, 2013

Well, again, pre Hyper 212 Evo, I idled at stock frequency around mid 40's. post 212 installation gives me about a 30C idle temp and 42C load temp with a 450Mhz OC as well. I must say, I'm pretty damn happy with the purchase. You guys all knocked it out of the park on this one.

Thinking of using on of my case fans as a second Heat Sink fan.

chrisafp07 · Mar 26, 2013

bigweavy :

If you use one of your case fans on the heatsink to create push/pull airflow you will notice even better temps. Possibly much better.

xFriarx · Mar 26, 2013

Yea, definitely put another fan on it. You will drop your temps another few degrees. I wouldn't necessarily sacrifice a case fan though, unless you have one to spare.

Phenom II 945 Cooling (Hyper 212 or Corsair H60)

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