Please recommend a cpu heatsink for an E6600?

[Toolman55]

Hello,

I am close to placing the order for my new build. I've heard people say the stock heatsink/fan for an E6600 is more than adequate for someone who is not going to overclock, and I'm not a gamer. I will not oc but I am considering trying out a game or two (something a little more exciting than solitaire) . So do I need an aftermarket cooler? If so, can you recommend one based on my case choice??

This is my component list so far:

SILVERSTONE TJ09-B Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card
CORSAIR XMS2 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Desktop Memory Model CM2X1024-6400PRO - Retail times 2(2 gigs of ram)
Western Digital Raptor WD740ADFD 74GB 10,000 RPM Serial ATA150 Hard Drive - OEM
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 (Perpendicular Recording) ST3250620AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
LITE-ON 20X DVD±R Burner with 12X DVD-RAM write and LightScribe Technology Black IDE Model LH-20A1H-186 - Retail
Another Lite-On DVD Rom
Round Cableing
Memory card reader
Floppy

I haven't made up my mind on the power supply yet. The three I'm toying with are below. I've heard good things about Hiper and Zion, and I like the modular aspect. I've always heard GREAT things about PC Power & Cooling--a little pricey, but I've been burnt twice by mediocre psu's (fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me!) I do not want to get spanked a third time!!! PC Pwr&cooling also puts a single 12v rail in the psu below and the 49amps available should handle the GTS vid card on my list with no problem (or the GTX if I get crazy).
Your thoughts and suggestions are welcome.

HIPER HPU-4K580-MS ATX12V v2.2 580W Power Supply - Retail
PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V EPS12V 610W Continuous @ 40°C Power Supply - Retail
XION Supernova XON-600F14R-201 ATX 600W Power Supply 115/230 V cUL,CE,FCC,CB - Retail

What I'm building is probably overkill. I don't overclock and I'm not a gamer--although I would like to try one or two of them out. My first build is still going strong (Athlon XP 2000) but is woefully inadequate for any attempt at games (with my 64mb ati vid card

I want something snappy and able to handle anything I can throw at it---even Vista--someday.

I've been a visitor here for a long while. I enjoy the "spirited" debates I see here from time to time. It looks to be great forum.

Thank you all again for your replies. Your thoughts on a psu are also welcome.

Thanks again,
Don

 

[Mondoman]

OEM cooler (since it's free, try it out - you can always buy an aftermarket one later).
PC P&C. Since its output is rated at higher-than-room temp, its output is even higher than it seems.

 

[stefx]

Well go with the stock cooler first, and if you don't like the noise level or temps, then consider an aftermarket. You might find the stock cooler acceptable and save ~50$ after all

 

[wolf18]

If you are not going to play a lot of games then dont buy the GTS. You can run Vista and other games with much cheaper cards.

If you are really set on the GTS though get the 320 MB version, it's cheaper and still DX 10.

As for the cooler, stick with the stock HSF, like Mondoman said, It's free. It kept my E6600 cool enough until I OCed it, and messed with it.

 

[Toolman55]

Thank you all. I was afraid this was something I "had" to have. I was encouraged to read several positive remarks on the retail coolers ability to keep temps down.

Don

 

[brshelton]

If you aren't overclocking than the stock is fine if you don't mind a noise machine. Not much gaming and not any overclocking you might consider a huge passive one considering your case fans/case size.

 

[fate0n3]

Yea the OEM cooler is not that bad at all. I usually recommend to people that if they are interested in going to an aftermarket HSF to do it from the start for the one simple fact of most aftermarket HSF require a backplate to be placed on the motherboard. Which means you have to remove everything form the case and then put it all back. If you aren't going to OC or game tons or don't run intensive apps then you should be good with the stock HSF.

Now as for PSU i would HIGHLY recommend any of PC Power & Cooling PSUs. They are very high quality PSU they don't cut any short cuts that i can see with them. They also come with a 3 year warranty if anything would ever go bad. The PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 is a really nice PSU i myself own the 750 model and it works like a dream very stable power output low noise and heat from it. And nice long cables pre-sleeved from the factory.

 

[shadowtheweak]

for the power supply i'd recomend the Corsair CMPSU-620HX 620W
I ordered it a week ago, but haven't been able to put it to use yet because i'm not quite done building my pc, but all the reviews i've read have said it was pretty bad ass. I would get a cooler after trying a few games, or just try some games with the graphics turned way down. If games aren't your thing then I wouldn't invest in a cooler.

 

[brshelton]

Ya I've heard it rocks but if your adventuresome I would rather mod a regular power supply to modular and sleeve it yourself so its cool colors and stuff but thats me. If you are interested in this route I can link you.

 

[tool_462]

Yes! Another Tool!

 

[Toolman55]

Thank you to all who responded. I'm feeling better about staying with the stock cooler.

While I appreciate other suggestions about a psu, I'm leaning heavily towards the PC Pwr&Cooling PSU. It's extra money, but I simply haven't heard anything but raves about them. Also, as I mentioned earlier, I've made the mistake TWICE of trying to save a few bucks on a psu, only to get burnt. While the psu's suggested are certainly quality products I'm just a little gun shy.

Thanks again to all. This was my first post here at THG and I really appreciate the warm response.

Don

 

[Mondoman]

Just a note on the PC P&C: I bought a 350w PC P&C PS for my old Athlon system about 10 years ago; the system was retired into the closet about 5 years ago, but I just pulled it out to use it as a Linux NAS RAID server. Even with 4x 400GB hard drives added on, it still works great!

 

[SergioLeNo1]

Hi:

I have bought a Core 2 Duo 6600 and actually not overclocking and using the fan heat sink that came with it and the temp is still around 42 -45 celsius idle with peaks at 52-54 when pushing a few applications.

I intend to keep it that way until i decide to overclock later.

My suggestion is give it a try and you can always change it if you decide to do OC or serious demanding applications.

Im curious what type of mother board your looking at for your new system

 

[Toolman55]

I'm a dumba$$. I thought I listed it up above.

GIGABYTE GA-965P-DS3 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

This one seemed to be reasonably priced and the least number of issues.

I've never used a Gigabyte board before, but I've read some very good reviews on it--even in Maximum PC mag.

Don