H50 Cooler + HAF 922 Case

[makwy2]

Hello friends!

I have a problem I hope is not unique. I am looking to put a quiet and easily installed cpu cooler in my system for both heat and sound reduction. From my research it sounds like the Corsair H50 does the job very well. So I now have two questions:

1. I have a Cooler Master HAF 922 case, what is the best configuration to install the cooler? Should the radiator be mounted to the back as an exhaust, the bottom as an intake, or the side or top as an intake/exhaust? If you have this setup please share your experience (and a picture if you have it) !

2. I haven't bought the H50 yet but I did find a good deal ($55) and I'm ready to buy, is there another **quiet** and effective AM2+/AM3 CPU cooler that give me more (silent) bang for my buck under 70 dollars? (Have I mentioned I wanted it to be quiet...) Suggestions are welcome!

My computer details are listed in my signature! I'm willing to provide further details if it would help you answer and/or suggest solutions.

***EDIT ADDITION***

I am not interested in overclocking my system. I don't mind overclocking it for a couple hours while my machine runs regressions on my research data but otherwise it just sits at stock speed AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE 3.2Ghz)

THE CASE

Also, the case link for newegg is here Cooler Master HAF 922. The unit has one (non-removable) 200mm intake on the front, one 200mm top exhaust fan, and one 120mm exhaust on the back. In addition there are mounts on the side of the case for one 120mm or two 80mm fans as well as a mount on the bottom of the case for either a 120mm or 80mm fan.


THE COOLER

The Corsair H50 is an all-in-one water cooler with a 120mm fan with radiator.

 

[jacinclowe]

well i have a h50 and i can tell you that its not bad its really silent and the best is usually in the back as an exhaust i had it as a intake but it was too man fans in my case pushing in so i had to turn it around my case is the thermaltake armor+

overclocks are decent dont expect a big overclock she did 3.7ghz on my i7-920 with 70c on prime95

and bang for buck if your not looking for a big overclock then it will do nicely and in terms of silence its excellent cant even hear it

 

[notty22]

I mounted it on to the rear exhaust fan of my antec 300, the corsair fan pushing in, so the rad is using the case air. Both fans spin at the same rpm. I also have the top exhaust fan, no intakes. I5 750m, 4.0ghz low 60's prime 95, high 60's ibt. m/b never goes over 33c. My video card does not put out much heat and its vented out the back.
I came from trying to get a o/c out of the stock hsf, so I was super impressed.

 

[foscooter]

I think I follow you, you want to know which way to mount the CPU Heatsink & Fan?

Depends on your case. Sorry I don't know your case

If it has a top fan, then fan on bottom of heatsink, blowing into the fins, and out the top fan.

If no top fan, then fan on side, blowing thru the fins, out the back towards a rear fan.

But basiclly, have the fan blow into the heatsink fins, and out the other side to a case fan exhaust.

Much had been discussed as to fan placement and heatsink fins. If you have doubts, ask "crashman"...he has tons of info on this!


SORRY, just found out the H50 is a water cooler ass'y....NEVERMIND!

 

[SolidlyStated]

Don't quite know why anyone would think a case is not important...

This is true especially if you have a HAF922. This is the best case I've owned. It has a tremendous amount of air flow, yet is very quiet, and the workmanship is top-notch.

I got mine as part of a Core i7 rig and detailed my overclocking experience in a large article with all the trimmings. I got the whole mess running at 3.55GHz in the HAF922 on the stock cooler. If you want to check it out- HAF922 and Core i7 on stock cooling.

Good luck with the radiator!

 

[JackNaylorPE]

The H50 isn't a bad CPU cooler .... it doesn't approach the performance of the best air coolers out there, many of which are much cheaper, but it does increase case temps by blocking the case exhaust fan ports.

The articles below will serve twofold .... let you see how some better coolers perform and give you some ideas about mounting
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=432&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=23
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=492&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=4

 

[randomizer]

i'm hardware researcher.

Better go do more research then.

 

[notty22]

You can set the h50 up to vent out your rear exhaust, so it won't trap any heat and in fact all cpu heat will exit the case

And then there is this.

 

[makwy2]

You can set the h50 up to vent out your rear exhaust, so it won't trap any heat and in fact all cpu heat will exit the case
http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/3050/p1170279x3802805.jpg
And then there is this.
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=103362&stc=1&d=1271786222

The first picture is quite helpful! I'm not sure though if I can put a fan on either side of the grill with the space I have.

As for the second picture... well someone really really likes the sound of fans... crazy.

 

[makwy2]

Don't quite know why anyone would think a case is not important...

This is true especially if you have a HAF922. This is the best case I've owned. It has a tremendous amount of air flow, yet is very quiet, and the workmanship is top-notch.

I got mine as part of a Core i7 rig and detailed my overclocking experience in a large article with all the trimmings. I got the whole mess running at 3.55GHz in the HAF922 on the stock cooler. If you want to check it out- HAF922 and Core i7 on stock cooling.

Good luck with the radiator!

Did you try any water coolers or alternative coolers?

 

[makwy2]

Best answer selected by makwy2.

 

[SolidlyStated]

sorry makwy2, I only benched it for stock cooling purposes. I looked through aftermarket cooling extensively until coming to the realization of, 'why do I need more when nothing I run can even push this CPU?'

Even when I encode video, there is never more than 30% CPU utilization, with or without hyper threading.