[cloudstrife3733]

ok, Ive been looking through tons of fan/heatsinks for hours now,reading reviews,comparisons and what would fit well on my mobo and case.I just bought a e8400 I plan to oc to about 3.8 or so maybe 4.0 but Im having a hell of a time deciding what I want for cpu fan/heatsink,this is were Im hoping some of you can help me make a decision I have a gigabyte EP45-UDP3 mobo,750 w rosewill psu and as stated before a e8400 processor all going into a APEVIA X-JUPITER-JR G-Type X atx case.

I have been looking at a particular fan/heatsink which is the Thermaltake CL-P0257 Blue orb II,as far as I see ppl say it has great cooling ability's but is very large which shys me away a little bit from it,my case for a mid tower seems very spacious but since I have not installed a aftermarket cooler before im not sure on what to expect for size,anyways if anyone can tell me about great coolers with a reasonable size for a LGA 775 that would be great I would like to have a blue led fan if possible because of my case having led fans and also my psu but its not a big deal if I cant have that. Thank you.

 

[masta.g.86]

Newegg.com - ZALMAN CNPS9900LED 120mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

^
This is the one I use. Yes, I know it looks huge (and it is), but there is a right way and a wrong way to mount it.

When mounted incorrectly, it covers over one of my RAM slots.

When mounted correctly, there is plenty of space between my RAM sticks and the heatsink fins.

The reason is because the cooler is a bit lopsided. It sticks out further on one side (the side with the cooling fan). I'm not saying to specifically get this heatsink, but keep the lopsided characteristic in mind when looking at these big coolers. Often, they are lopsided specifically to avoid covering your RAM slots.

And yeah, it's a blue LED fan.

 

[cloudstrife3733]

Newegg.com - ZALMAN CNPS9900LED 120mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

^
This is the one I use. Yes, I know it looks huge (and it is), but there is a right way and a wrong way to mount it.

When mounted incorrectly, it covers over one of my RAM slots.

When mounted correctly, there is plenty of space between my RAM sticks and the heatsink fins.

The reason is because the cooler is a bit lopsided. It sticks out further on one side (the side with the cooling fan). I'm not saying to specifically get this heatsink, but keep the lopsided characteristic in mind when looking at these big coolers. Often, they are lopsided specifically to avoid covering your RAM slots.

And yeah, it's a blue LED fan.

yeah,that one doesnt look to bad,I was looking at the same brand only the cheaper one this one here they got on newegg is $67 but it comes with a combo deal with the artic compound so it doesnt seem to shabby Ill keep this one in mind,o and before I forget like I did earlier I meant to ask if I should buy a vga cooler to or just use the stock one on the video card Im getting,the one Im purchasing is the radeon 4870 sapphire vapor x my main purpose for this cpu is pcsx2 so I dunno if I should have to oc the video card as well so knowing that would help as well while Im looking at coolers but thank you for the input masta g please keep em coming if you all know some other good ones too.

 

[masta.g.86]

For video cards, the stock cooler is actually pretty optimal. The only aftermarket GPU coolers that I personally would say are "worth it" are the GPU water cooling kits. Since they're fairly expensive, I won't recommend ANY of them.

I have an HD4850 in my new custom build and an nVidia 7950GTX in my laptop. My laptop's GPU is more than enough for PCSX2 and my 4850 doesn't even break a sweat in PCSX2. This emulator is CPU heavy and you choosing an E8400 with the intention of OCing, should pose no problem.

Specifically on OCing, my card has the Vapor-X cooling from Saphire so I rarely see temps above 65C. You will see higher temps with a 4870, but an aftermarket cooler is completely unnecessary.

 

[cloudstrife3733]

For video cards, the stock cooler is actually pretty optimal. The only aftermarket GPU coolers that I personally would say are "worth it" are the GPU water cooling kits. Since they're fairly expensive, I won't recommend ANY of them.

I have an HD4850 in my new custom build and an nVidia 7950GTX in my laptop. My laptop's GPU is more than enough for PCSX2 and my 4850 doesn't even break a sweat in PCSX2. This emulator is CPU heavy and you choosing an E8400 with the intention of OCing, should pose no problem.

Specifically on OCing, my card has the Vapor-X cooling from Saphire so I rarely see temps above 65C. You will see higher temps with a 4870, but an aftermarket cooler is completely unnecessary.

ok,cool thank you masta.g anyone else got some ideas on some more fan/heatsinks?? please share trying to collect as much data on these so I can make a final decision.

 

[Princess Garnet]

Yes, I have a suggestion that is better and cheaper (no offense to masta.g.86). It's what I use for my Core 2 Duo E8600.

Newegg.com - XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

Newegg.com - XIGMATEK ACK-I7753 Retention Bracket For 4 heatpipes model only - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

Yes, it's two parts, and yes, they should just include the mounting bracket with the cooler (note that you can still use it without the bracket, but then they just give you the standard Intel push pins), but it's still cheaper than the one above, and as far as I can remember, better overall too. It may not be the best out there, but I think it's the best for the money. It is kind of large, though.

You may be able to get away without the bracket, and I'm unsure of it's gains, but it's only $6.50.

Here's an example of it's performance (temperatures are of CPU at 4.0GHz at idle).

It's currently the coolest running thing in my system, and the fan isn't even running it's full speed (nor is it even audible to me in my open style case unless it is running full speed). My CPU cores are running cooler than my hard drives, which sit at the front of my system with two 120mm fans blowing on them. That kind of speaks for itself.

Also note that the 29C value is the lowest it has ever gone on this CPU, and that is with varying room temperatures and locations, so I think it may possibly be running a slight bit cooler than that even. Of course, temperatures depend alot on your specific CPU too, so your mileage may, of course, vary.

Considering they're not price gouging the old trusty Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro anymore, you can get that for about half the price, but it doesn't cool quite as well, and again, uses the push pins and a smaller 90mm fan. It is smaller than most others and does perform great for the money though. I previously had this on my Core 2 Duo E8400 before upgrading to what I currently have.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134

(Edit: Engh, they kind of are, again. It's sitting at $32, but I'd like to see it at ~$25 like it was when I got it, but I guess it is worth $30, but if you're going to spend ~$35 or more, then I'd get a better cooler.)

I think the Zalman's are just way too expensive. They cost the same as when they came out, and while they were okay back then, better and cheaper stuff is out now. You'd be better off getting a cheaper cooler and in turn a better CPU (like an E8500) if you were spending that kind of money. In fact, my suggestion may run you about $50, and I'd consider that about the limits unless you were going all out (which 3.8GHz/4.0GHz is really not, at least for that CPU). It's a dual core CPU, so it won't need to spend as much to keep it cool.

 

[cloudstrife3733]

Yes, I have a suggestion that is better and cheaper (no offense to masta.g.86). It's what I use for my Core 2 Duo E8600.

Newegg.com - XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

Newegg.com - XIGMATEK ACK-I7753 Retention Bracket For 4 heatpipes model only - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

Yes, it's two parts, and yes, they should just include the mounting bracket with the cooler (note that you can still use it without the bracket, but then they just give you the standard Intel push pins), but it's still cheaper than the one above, and as far as I can remember, better overall too. It may not be the best out there, but I think it's the best for the money. It is kind of large, though.

You may be able to get away without the bracket, and I'm unsure of it's gains, but it's only $6.50.

Here's an example of it's performance (temperatures are of CPU at 4.0GHz at idle).

It's currently the coolest running thing in my system, and the fan isn't even running it's full speed (nor is it even audible to me in my open style case unless it is running full speed). My CPU cores are running cooler than my hard drives, which sit at the front of my system with two 120mm fans blowing on them. That kind of speaks for itself.

Also note that the 29C value is the lowest it has ever gone on this CPU, and that is with varying room temperatures and locations, so I think it may possibly be running a slight bit cooler than that even. Of course, temperatures depend alot on your specific CPU too, so your mileage may, of course, vary.

Considering they're not price gouging the old trusty Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro anymore, you can get that for about half the price, but it doesn't cool quite as well, and again, uses the push pins and a smaller 90mm fan. It is smaller than most others and does perform great for the money though. I previously had this on my Core 2 Duo E8400 before upgrading to what I currently have.

Newegg.com - ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - CPU Fans & Heatsinks

(Edit: Engh, they kind of are, again. It's sitting at $32, but I'd like to see it at ~$25 like it was when I got it, but I guess it is worth $30, but if you're going to spend ~$35 or more, then I'd get a better cooler.)

I think the Zalman's are just way too expensive. They cost the same as when they came out, and while they were okay back then, better and cheaper stuff is out now. You'd be better off getting a cheaper cooler and in turn a better CPU (like an E8500) if you were spending that kind of money. In fact, my suggestion may run you about $50, and I'd consider that about the limits unless you were going all out (which 3.8GHz/4.0GHz is really not, at least for that CPU). It's a dual core CPU, so it won't need to spend as much to keep it cool.

ok,yeah I see what you mean though about the zalmans Ive kind of noticed they were pretty expensive but they also seem very popular and have pretty good reviews for the most part.But I will definetly keep this in mind,thank you lord zedeck.