Liquid or air cooling for an overclocked 6600k to around 4.4GHz?

WindowLickerAU · Jul 6, 2016

Hi
I've been mostly told to go with an air cooler as they are cheaper, more silent and will cool the same amount. Yet majority of builds I watch on youtube they use water cooling. So if I want to overclock my 6600k to 4.4Ghz and have a low temp and silent build, what would be best cooler?

GPU:Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 Xtreme 4GB
MoBo:Gigabyte Z170X Gaming 3 Socket LGA1151 ATX
CPU:Intel Core i5 6600K Skylake 3.5GHz Quad-Core
CPU cooler:Cooler Master Hyper 212X Universal
Ram:Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4 2400MHz
PSU:Aerocool KCAS 700W 80+ Bronze Power Supply
SSD: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB
Case:Aerocool PGS Aero 1000 Mid

Thanks in advance

Jester Maroc · Jul 6, 2016

The advantage (besides temps) of liquid cooling is less stress on the MB from a massive weight hanging sideways of it. If you have the money I would recommend going liquid.

madmatt30 · Jul 6, 2016

Cryorig r1

WindowLickerAU · Jul 6, 2016

Jester Maroc :

Thanks for you help

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

There is no advantage to liquid cooling if we are talking about CLC type coolers... there is no CLC that outperforms a comparably priced air cooler and they are as much as 12 times as loud.

Here we see the H100i CLC losing to the Noctua NH-D14 air cooler by 3C while being 12 times as load. CLCs have to overcome their deficiencies (low heat transfer aluminum radiator and weak pump) with extreme rpm fans which creates all the noise.

Water cooling benefits from a case designed specifically to accommodate it. Tho it "officially supports up to 240mm rads in front and top, that may prove to be difficult depending on configuration. Installing in the front, for example means losing HD cages.

Custom water loops are a great means of cooling tho generally only adopted by those who are also going to water cool their GFX cards. What I would recommend here is an ALl-in-One water cooling kit that is not a CLC.

They have strong 1+ gpm pump, making addition of additional blocks and rads possible if you decide to water cool your cards and other devices.
They have a copper radiator with much greater heat transfer efficiency
They don't mix metals resulting in galvanic corrosion
They don't use extreme fan speeds.

Ek and Swiftech provide high quality kits that are basically custom water cooling components pre-assempled at the factory and ready to mount. For your cases, I';d recommend the Swiftech H220 X2 or the The Phanteks PH-TC14PE for air. Both are aesthetically pleasing and you can color match them to our case color scheme.

http://www.swiftech.com/h220x2.aspx

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=PH-TC14pe&N=-1&isNodeId=1

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

Jester Maroc :

1. There is no temp advantage with CLCs as we can clearly see in the above image.
2. The is a noise issue ... being 12 times as loud should be a factor in the decision, no ? Especially when it can't cool as well.
3. Your concerned about 1.5 pounds of weight but not about 60 pounds clamping force ?

Weight might be a concern when buying a PC from a site that doesn't pack properly and having it shipped via FedEx gorillas. But in this case, it is a completely "imagined problem" used by CLC manufacturers to distract from the **real** problems above.

When adding a cooler to your own build, this is a complete non-issue. The weight is 1/40 th of the clamping force being applied. Kinda like worrying of a person is carrying a briefcase when they step on your foot.

The load the 1.5 pound cooler puts on the MoBo is dwarfed by the 60 pounds of clamping force that is used to hold the water block in place. The weight issue is a non-factor ... the clamping force is ... the vacuum cleaner like noise is ... the reduction in thermal performance is... galvanic corrosion is.

https://martinsliquidlab.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/corrosion-explored/

WindowLickerAU · Jul 6, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

There is no advantage to liquid cooling if we are talking about CLC type coolers... there is no CLC that outperforms a comparably priced air cooler and they are as much as 12 times as loud.

Here we see the H100i CLC losing to the Noctua NH-D14 air cooler by 3C while being 12 times as load. CLCs have to overcome their deficiencies (low heat transfer aluminum radiator and weak pump) with extreme rpm fans which creates all the noise.

Water cooling benefits from a case designed specifically to accommodate it. Tho it "officially supports up to 240mm rads in front and top, that may prove to be difficult depending on configuration. Installing in the front, for example means losing HD cages.

Custom water loops are a great means of cooling tho generally only adopted by those who are also going to water cool their GFX cards. What I would recommend here is an ALl-in-One water cooling kit that is not a CLC.

They have strong 1+ gpm pump, making addition of additional blocks and rads possible if you decide to water cool your cards and other devices.
They have a copper radiator with much greater heat transfer efficiency
They don't mix metals resulting in galvanic corrosion
They don't use extreme fan speeds.

Ek and Swiftech provide high quality kits that are basically custom water cooling components pre-assempled at the factory and ready to mount. For your cases, I';d recommend the Swiftech H220 X2 or the The Phanteks PH-TC14PE for air. Both are aesthetically pleasing and you can color match them to our case color scheme.

http://www.swiftech.com/h220x2.aspx

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=PH-TC14pe&N=-1&isNodeId=1

Well then, thanks a lot for all this, its appreciated. I will probably end up going with the Phanteks cooler then

jtk2515 · Jul 6, 2016

I went with the swiftech 220x 2 6700k@4.7 1.4vcore fullload 75C and around 33db it's pretty good. Cost around 160$ so it's not cheap but you can upgrade it unlike other water cooling systems.

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

JTK ... I have done several installs with the H220-X / H240-X... looking forward to doing a build for a user who had planned a custom loop but is now going with an Enthoo Evolv Tempered Glass case with a Swiftech H240 X2, extra 280mm radiator and twin MSI 1070 Seahawk EK X (w/ EK water blocks pre-installed)

WindowLick ... I have installed numerous PH-TC14PEs .. the color options really add a nice kick to the aesthetics. And the fans are the best on the market ... adding Phanteks 1200 rpm fans to a Noctua cooler, (replacing the Noc's 1500 rpm fans) lowers temps by 3C

WindowLickerAU · Jul 6, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

Sounds sweet, how loud is it though? Its not a huge concern its just my last pc was so loud and so hot that im striving to make a quiet and cool build

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

It is very quiet ... in the build below, the only sound you could hear was the PSU fan on the EVGA G2 1000

Note that that is NOT the preferred way to install the cooler. That arrangement was necessitated by the 4 way capable SLI MoBo. if you put it the normal way (blowing out rear) you will get slightly better temps.

Note also that Phanteks cooling technology is based upon PWM control of 3 pin fans. This gives you the best of both worlds... all the advantages of PWM and none of the disadvantages. To hook this up properly, use both the included cables:

PWM MoBo header => PWM / DCV Converter Cable => 1 to 2 connector splitter cable => Fans

I'd suggest setting fan curve to

30 % (350 rpm) at 30C
50 % (525 rpm) at 50C
70 % (850 rpm) at 65C
100 % (1250 rpm) at 75C

jtk2515 · Jul 6, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

Going to add another radiator as soon as I get some cash and try to push my 6700k a little more. That is the main reason why I got the h220 over a air cooler is just to have the option. Would you know what I can expect with another rad installed?

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

I don't think you will see much impact on the CPU

The H240-X has 34% more rad than the H220-X and it picked up 1 degree

jtk2515 · Jul 6, 2016

I feel if I could get my temperatures down by about 10-15C I might be able to hit 4.9-5GHZ with 1.4-1.45. Might have to add a 360mm rad then.

WindowLickerAU · Jul 6, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

What if i fill my computer with wet bath towels, best liquid cooling out there and no sound :^]

jtk2515 · Jul 6, 2016

WindowLickerAU :

That would work just make sure you use a good liquid like Bud Light.

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

jtk2515 :

10-15C below where it is now ... not gonna happen ... your issues is not with the cooling system. You're likely being limited by the CPU / Block transfer. Only way to go here is w/ sub zero cooling.

Let's assume it was the cooling system ... and let's assume linear improvements, ignore the law of diminishing returns and ignore the effect of delta T shrinkage on heat transfer.

If ya got 1C from 34% Rad , then you's need at least 27 x 120mm of rad to get 10C

If (1.34) gets you 1 C
then 13.4get you 10C

13.4 x 2 x 120mm

jtk2515 · Jul 6, 2016

Might be right but I hope not. Let me try google it and see if I can get any results about it.

JackNaylorPE · Jul 6, 2016

Here, I'll save ya the trouble ... I think the the OP is a bot loopy

http://www.overclock.net/t/1457426/radiator-size-estimator

jtk2515 · Jul 7, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

Thank you. Will read that and see what I should do. Just changed my OC on my 6700k 4.6ghz with boost to 4.9GHZ at 1.375vcore. wont stay at 4.9 very long if your maxing all cores but in 1-2 cores it does pretty good. Got a better physics score on it this way with less voltage.

synphul · Jul 7, 2016

Temps are just one consideration when it comes to overclocking. Voltage is another, you can chill a cpu to ambient temperature and still harm it with excessive voltage. Many cpu's hit a brick wall where the next multiplier continues to require more and more voltage so cooling to an extent becomes a moot point.

If you're looking to oc for competition then by all means push as many volts as it can take with knowing that it may cook your cpu, run it til it blows. Competitions aren't the same as 24/7 or daily driver overclocking where you hope for the cpu to remain in one piece for an extended period of time. But then competition uses things like ln2 with pads and other protections against condensation and it's not really tailored to daily use that way. It's long enough to score a benchmark without crashing.

Much like racing where high performance cars get their engines rebuilt every race or every other race and go through a number of a set of tires to complete a single race. That's not at all feasible for a typical family car where people hope to get 60k miles out of a set of tires, not several sets in 500mi and wish their engine to last for 200k mi and not be fully blown after 1,000 mi or so.

In my experience with large air coolers they may benchmark at a specific noise level with fans at max speed but the reality is the fans may never have to reach full speed to keep it cool. An i5 isn't exactly an i7 but fairly similar. Using a big air cooler I finally got it to run loud enough to hear it, but it required running p95 with no other case fans operating with my i5 oc'd to 4.6ghz. A highly unlikely scenario, it doesn't have to run full speed to keep the cpu cooled even when oc'd. Meaning it stays well within acceptable temps without making the cooler fans spin up to obnoxious sound levels.

Jester Maroc · Jul 8, 2016

JackNaylorPE :

Thanks for this reply. I never knew the clamping force was so high. However, my next build will be a micro ITX case which I would like to haul around to LANs (old school

), wouldn't the added weight of a heavy air cooler be detrimental to the MB? I mean the only coolers that outperform liquid cooling are huge monsters and I do not feel comfortable with all that weight hanging from the MB while the PC is carried around?

madmatt30 · Jul 8, 2016

1 word (well 2 really)

Raijintek Pallas

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA66Z28G9982&FM=1

JackNaylorPE · Jul 8, 2016

Jester Maroc :

My son took his PC back and forth to college about 4 times a year. He had a lifted, off road jeep and the PC oft wound up traveling in the roof rack when he'd car pool. The weight is not an issue, the impact loading when it takes a shock is. But even the low budget Hyper 212 ($25) beats single fan CLCs like the H55.

The flip side is, who is going to want to sit next toy you listening to this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTf0Vq1j4Ec

At 55% CPU Load, I'm leaving the room

Nothing wrong w/ liquid cooling, just avoid those that mix aluminum and copper components....unfortunately, CLCs do that

JackNaylorPE · Jul 8, 2016

jtk2515 :

You'll be fine at 1.375 (w/ adequate cooling) ... keep in mind that AVX will take that up to > 1.5 volts when AVX instructions are present. That's why you have to be careful what you test with. RoG Real Bench uses real applications and AVX and other instruction sets are part of the test. If ya can run that, you should be able to run anything.

Some folks are still running P95 which I would advise against.

a) If you use the current versions, you can easily fry your CPU when AVX is present.

b) If you run the old versions, you have proved that your CPU and its OC is stable ... but only when modern instruction sets are not present.

Liquid or air cooling for an overclocked 6600k to around 4.4GHz?

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