Cooling with air?

Critterbug9934

Honorable
Dec 24, 2013
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I have an i5 4670k that I want to get to 4.5 ghz with a cooler that will be quiet. I was looking at the noctua NH-D14 and U-14s. Both of the coolers are over $70. is it really worth it? I guess my question is, what cooler will get a 4670k to 4.5 ghz fairly cool and quiet, without breaking the banks.
 
Solution
Before you start, you should know that a lot of Haswell chips (like the I5 4670K) can't reach 4.5GHz regardless of the cooler. Getting a high OC on a Haswell chip is also about luck, you need to get a good chip.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-4770k-haswell-review,3521-10.html

One of the problems with this generation is that there is actually an empty space of few microns between the CPU cores and the heat spreader, which does not allow for excessive voltage. Another problem is the heat density. In other words, it is not about how much heat the CPU cooler can dissipate, but how fast it can.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-heat-sink-haswell,3554-25.html

The way Haswell was made was with mobile in mind. The...

StealthParade

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Jan 2, 2014
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i have an i7 4770k with a coolermaster hyper 212 evo and can get it up to 4.4 completely stable with temps under 70 at 100% prime95 :p
you dont have to break the bank. but the noctuas are great and so are the phanteks
 

Shneiky

Distinguished
Before you start, you should know that a lot of Haswell chips (like the I5 4670K) can't reach 4.5GHz regardless of the cooler. Getting a high OC on a Haswell chip is also about luck, you need to get a good chip.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-4770k-haswell-review,3521-10.html

One of the problems with this generation is that there is actually an empty space of few microns between the CPU cores and the heat spreader, which does not allow for excessive voltage. Another problem is the heat density. In other words, it is not about how much heat the CPU cooler can dissipate, but how fast it can.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-heat-sink-haswell,3554-25.html

The way Haswell was made was with mobile in mind. The Haswell architecture is supurb at low watts and low MHz, but the power consumption of Haswell rises exponentially with MHz. A Haswell at 4.0 GHz consumes more power and generates more heat than Ivy Bridge. Also the 22 nm technology, and the 3 way gate technology, does not allow for high vCore. Meaning I won't advise more than 1.25, which is not enough for all chips to go to 4.5 GHz. As I said, it is also about luck - get a good chip. Some can do 4.5 GHz at 1.21(lowest I have seen) and some CPUs can't do it even at 1.3.

If you want to pick a good air cooler for the Haswell chip - the NH-D14 and NH-U14S will be your best bet, though pricy, but that is how things are. I have my heart given to Phanteks PH-TC14, which is more effective than the Noctua NH-D14 on Sandy/Ivy bridge systems or on LGA 2011 socket (and does not look like s***). But benchmarks show that the Noctua design is better for Haswell.
 
Solution