i7 8700K Overclocking with a Noctua AIR COOLER? Is it a good idea?

felixantoine27 · Oct 21, 2017

Hey, I'm looking to buy a Pc with the new i7 8700K

I was wondering if this CPU Cooler would allow me to overclock and how much:

Noctua NH-D15 SSO2 D-Type Premium CPU Cooler, NF-A15 x 2 PWM Fans
Link:
https://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAB984BD8348&ignorebbr=1&_ga=2.106051907.1335796060.1508467024-1016333097.1458775498

Seeing many reviews about liquid coolers on websites, I have a hard time believing that it's the right solution. Pumps seems to fail after a couple of months, the possibility of the component to start making noises, or even worse: leaks. I heard that this Noctua model in particular would actually perform like a liquid cooler and the positives reviews tell me that it's not a bad choice. And I like the price.

What do you guys think?

Usefull info:

CPU: i7 8700K (3.7 GHZ base clock) 6 cores
MoBo: ASRock - Z370 Extreme4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
RAM: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory
CASE: NZXT S340 Elite
PSU: Seasonic M12II-620 Bronze 620W EPS12V

doubletake · Oct 21, 2017

felixantoine27 :

First off, the NH-D15 is a pretty massive piece of metal that is more than up to the task to cooling the 8700k. The problem that rears its ugly head when overclocking isn't the cooler itselt, it's the limited performance of the thermal paste that Intel puts between the CPU die and the heatspreader. No matter how good your cooling is (unless you go sub-ambient), you will run into the limitations that this material imposes on you when you start to push more voltage for a better overclock. Liquid cooling is really only required if you want to overclock the processor WITHOUT delidding it, as that is the only feasible way of keeping it from throttling due to the mediocre performance of the paste beneath the heatspreader. If you decide to delid, then you will find that most decent heatpipe coolers will be able to tame the 8700k.

Secondly, you shouldn't trash closed-loop coolers if you haven't used them before. We've come a ways since the early days of the first gen Asetek/CoolIT loops from yesteryear that had somewhat high failure rates due to defective hose connections or early pump seizure. Most of the CLC coolers that are out today (or at least, the higher end ones) work very well, with more robust connectors and tubing that are less likely to give out on you. You'd probably be in the single digit percent range if you had a modern all in one liquid cooler die an early death or leak on you. Now, I'm not really trying to sell you on them; I'm just letting you know that any preconceived notions you may have about CLC coolers are probably wrong and/or based on a very small but very vocal percentage of people who have played and lost the electronics lottery.

TL;DR
NH-D15 is a great choice, but if you're going for a large overclock (~5GHz), you'll probably want to delid no matter what cooler you pick.

geofelt · Oct 21, 2017

I like your build.
I7-8700K is a 95w TDP processor; more with overclocking.
You NZXT case has good front intake airflow, so an air cooler is fine.
Your case supports a cooler as tall as 161mm.
Unfortunately, the NH-D15 is 165mm.
However, the new s variant NH-D15s is only 160mm and is a better cooler anyway.
It is redesigned to clear tall ram modules and it is offset to not interfere with graphics cards.
Here are the TDP guidelines from noctua:
http://noctua.at/en/tdp-guide

NH-D15s would be just as effective, simpler to install, quieter, less expensive and more leak resistant than most aio coolers.

13thmonkey · Oct 21, 2017

geofelt :

According to ARK a 130W thermal solution is required (like for the 7700k), for no OC, I think this is in part to alleviate the thermal paste issues, but treating it like a 95W processor is, in my opinion at the root of the thermal issues with the 7700k

If you were told it was a 130W CPU, you wouldn't touch OCing without 180+W of cooling power available.
If you are told it's a 95W, you'd try and get away with 130-140W, which is really where it needs to be stock.

It's just a little hidden nugget of info that explains a lot.

https://ark.intel.com/products/126684/Intel-Core-i7-8700K-Processor-12M-Cache-up-to-4_70-GHz look at the package spec section

I think the ND15 is rated to about 240W, so it'll be brilliant.

geofelt · Oct 21, 2017

The NH-D15s is comparable in performance to the D15, and is 160mm which will fit, whereas D15 is 165mm which will exceed the 161mm available in the case.
The NH-D14 or D15s are the only coolers recommended by noctua under 161mm that will handle the 95w spec from intel as well as having the best overclocking potential.

13thmonkey · Oct 21, 2017

geofelt :

Not trying to correct, and that is why they work, because the 8700k needs a lot more cooling power than you think, and they have it in spades.

geofelt · Oct 21, 2017

The key, I think to good cooling with air is the amount of fresh air you can supply to it in order to do it's job.
The OP is planning a NZXT 340 elite, a most excellent case.
It permits two front 140mm intakes(but supplies only two 120mm).
I would recommend ordering two 140mm fans for the front.
Noctua is very good and quiet, but a bit expensive.
A good pair of 140mm intakes will draw in more air quietly than some very good aio coolers.

I must admit, I do not have actual experience with a 8700K.
My experience is with a I7-7600k, a 91w tdp processor running at 4.9.
With a single 180mm front fan running at low speed, my top temperatures are in the 75c. range under load.
That is with a noctua NH-U12s on low speed.
The system is all but inaudible.
Is that experience transferrable?
I think so, but full disclosure says I have not tried a stronger processor.

13thmonkey · Oct 21, 2017

geofelt :

The key, I think to good cooling with air is the amount of fresh air you can supply to it in order to do it's job.
The OP is planning a NZXT 340 elite, a most excellent case.
It permits two front 140mm intakes(but supplies only two 120mm).
I would recommend ordering two 140mm fans for the front.
Noctua is very good and quiet, but a bit expensive.
A good pair of 140mm intakes will draw in more air quietly than some very good aio coolers.

I must admit, I do not have actual experience with a 8700K.
My experience is with a I7-7600k, a 91w tdp processor running at 4.9.
With a single 180mm front fan running at low speed, my top temperatures are in the 75c. range under load.
That is with a noctua NH-U12s on low speed.
The system is all but inaudible.
Is that experience transferrable?
I think so, but full disclosure says I have not tried a stronger processor.

You are one of the better people giving advice round here...

n0ns3ns3 · Oct 21, 2017

@geofelt
S340 is a pretty fu..d up case at stock in terms of airflow. Just a bit better than EVOLV.
can be somewhat fixed with additional fans though unlike EVOLV.
An i7 can pull over 150w if tortured correctly. and your personal experience can not be transferred as presented since:
1. absolute temperature while important is not telling much without ambient. some people have 15C others have 45C.
2. there is no data on the load - program, settings, BIOS settings. Even things like C states affect the thermals, not to mention voltage.
3. there is no data on the case, case fans configuration and rest of the things that affect amount of airflow in your case.
4. there is no data on additional heat producing components like GPU.
That's not to bash or anything, just saying that data above would make it possible to extrapolate your experience on others while taking the differences into account.

Anyway, you are absolutely correct that NH-D15 and even much more compact NH-U14 would do the job very well with 8700K. better than 99% of the AiOs anyway.

felixantoine27 · Oct 21, 2017

Hey guys,

I have decided to go with the Noctua NH-D15s:
https://www.amazon.ca/Noctua-D-Type-Premium-Cooling-NH-D15S/dp/B00XUVGLEU/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1508626708&sr=1-3&keywords=nh-d15

Just to clarify I do not plan on overclocking as soon as I get the i7 8700K. I think I'll keep an eye on CPU temperatures with the Noctua and 2 case fans (1 rear/1 front). The day I'll decide to start overclocking, I'll order 2 case fans and proceed to it.

Tell me if there's anything else I should know

Thanks a lot for everything,

Felix

adamscurr · Oct 21, 2017

I do have to say to the OP that that water is pretty groovy... Been running a Corsair H110i for a year now and no trouble... Of course you get the random yahoo on the internet who rage posts how something didn't work for them, no need to jump on their bandwagon!

Adam

biglizard · Oct 22, 2017

felixantoine27 :

This is a mistake, get the fans now. And buying good fans is worth it.

D15s, in fact entire system needs the airflow.

What GPU do you plan on ? If an open air type definitely need the fans.

geofelt · Oct 22, 2017

It is easiest to install fans up front.
Ideally, I would have two 140mm front intakes and leave the single 120mm installed in the rear. Mainly for directional airflow.
Whatever air comes in the front will exit SOMEWHERE taking the heat from your parts out of the case. I would avoid more fans. Too strong exit fans will tend to draw in unfiltered air from other openings.
Keep the extra 120mm fan as a spare, do not install it just because you have it.

Too much exhaust capability reduces the cleansing action of the front filtered intakes.

One can reduce fan speed, but not increase it. I would use 1200 rpm, fans with three pin headers that you can plug into your motherboard and control the speed.

Noctua 140mm fans will be about $15:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAADY4B02908
Fans running at 900rpm will be largely inaudible.

Or, if you want, you can buy yate loon 140mm fans for about $7.
They are very good for the money.
https://www.amazon.com/Yate-Loon-140mm-Medium-D14SM-12/dp/B000S1Q1OA

And.. a tip:
Buy yourself a magnetic tip #2 Philips head screwdriver for assembly.

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