How much better is liquid cooling?

[shally17 1]

Hello All,

 

I have never used liquid cooling before. Please excuse my ignorance but is it much better than a top shelf radiator with push-pull fans? I am looking at overclocking an IvyB to 4.5-4.6 GHz.

 

Secondly, since my last rebuild 3 years ago, there seems to be a new kid on the block in terms of mobos. I have never heard of AS Rock before. How do they compare with the likes of ASUS for a Z77 based board?

 

Finally is there much difference in terms of performance in FSX between the i5 3570K and the i7 3770K. Both are rated at 3.4 GHz. With my limited knowledge, I don't even know the difference between i5 and i7.

 

Thanks,

Steve.

[MarkW 1,491]

I have tried liquid cooling on a previous build and ended up with nothing but problems, broken pump, water spill, etc. The newer fully enclosed units are a bit safer I guess but there is no need to go with liquid cooling on SB chips....you will have to do some research on whether this is the case for IB chips. Personally I would save yourself a few bucks and get a top of the line cooling fan. Results will be the same and you don't have to worry about water leaks. I have the Nochua NH-D14.

 

As for ASRock, I have the Z68 board and have been very happy with it. Please note that ASRock is a division of ASUS.

[BimmerCop 332]

I have a Corsair H100 and love it! No maintenance and completely reliable so far. If you are going with IB and want to overclock to 4.5-4.6Ghz, then as long as you use a top of the line TIM such as Coollaboratory's Liquid Metal Ultra, you will probably be able to get the job done with just a good air cooling solution. If you want to venture into the 4.8+ Ghz range, then the H100 is a good solution that won't break the bank.

[Ben Cap 89]

I have a Corsair H100 and love it! No maintenance and completely reliable so far. If you are going with IB and want to overclock to 4.5-4.6Ghz, then as long as you use a top of the line TIM such as Coollaboratory's Liquid Metal Ultra, you will probably be able to get the job done with just a good air cooling solution. If you want to venture into the 4.8+ Ghz range, then the H100 is a good solution that won't break the bank.

 

I also have an H100 and speaking from experience of OC'ing with older i7s and new ones, I would strongly recommend getting a watercooling kit like the H100.

 

If you don't want to break the bank but still want premium cooling performance, I'd go for a Corsair H60.

[ZachLW 37]

I have a Corsair H100 and love it! No maintenance and completely reliable so far. If you are going with IB and want to overclock to 4.5-4.6Ghz, then as long as you use a top of the line TIM such as Coollaboratory's Liquid Metal Ultra, you will probably be able to get the job done with just a good air cooling solution. If you want to venture into the 4.8+ Ghz range, then the H100 is a good solution that won't break the bank.

I also have an H100 and speaking from experience of OC'ing with older i7s and new ones, I would strongly recommend getting a watercooling kit like the H100.

 

If you don't want to break the bank but still want premium cooling performance, I'd go for a Corsair H60.

 

That's the trend these days. And it works great! Hard core liquid guys will talk smack (those nerdz), but the Corsair units are excellent.

[shally17 1]

Thank-you all for the replies. When you suggest using Coollaboratory's Liquid Metal Ultra, areyou talking about a standard application on top of the CPU or do you mean opening it up?

[BimmerCop 332]

Thank-you all for the replies. When you suggest using Coollaboratory's Liquid Metal Ultra, areyou talking about a standard application on top of the CPU or do you mean opening it up?

 

If it's an i7 and you want maximum cooling, OC overhead and performance, you have to de-lid and use Liquid Metal Ultra on both the die and IHS.

 

- Grammar *censored*, this was sent from my phone.

[TechguyMaxC 516]

That's the trend these days. And it works great! Hard core liquid guys will talk smack (those nerdz), but the Corsair units are excellent.

 

Having migrated from an H100 to a custom water cooling loop in my system, I can speak from experience. There is a measurable temperature difference here, but it's not like night and day as is the case when replacing the stock Intel TIM with a liquid metal TIM. The best thing you can do if you plan to OC Ivy Bridge is replace that stock garbage TIM with some liquid metal product like Coollaboratory Liquid Metal Pro or Ultra (Pro slightly better results, Ultra easier to use).

[shally17 1]

Hi Efrain,

I am a complete novice regaing the internal workings of a CPU. I assume that the die is what you find under the lid but what is the IHS?

[BimmerCop 332]

Hi Efrain,

I am a complete novice regaing the internal workings of a CPU. I assume that the die is what you find under the lid but what is the IHS?

 

Yup, the die is under the lid (IHS). IHS stands for Integrated HeatSink.

 

- Grammar *censored*, this was sent from my phone.

[Mace 1,904]

Integrated Heat Spreader !!!

 

If you are looking for good kit to transition yourself to liquid cooling, I'd also suggest the Corsair H100. Even a caveman like me can install it.

[Ben Cap 89]

Even a caveman like me can install it.

 

:LMAO:

[Noel 4,492]

Hello All,

 

I have never used liquid cooling before. Please excuse my ignorance but is it much better than a top shelf radiator with push-pull fans? I am looking at overclocking an IvyB to 4.5-4.6 GHz.

 

Secondly, since my last rebuild 3 years ago, there seems to be a new kid on the block in terms of mobos. I have never heard of AS Rock before. How do they compare with the likes of ASUS for a Z77 based board?

 

Finally is there much difference in terms of performance in FSX between the i5 3570K and the i7 3770K. Both are rated at 3.4 GHz. With my limited knowledge, I don't even know the difference between i5 and i7.

 

Thanks,

Steve.

 

Can't recall where I read the comparison, but I know the take home message was that the H100 was outperformed by an air cooler, albeit a big one! Noctua maybe?

[alainneedle1 97]

Can't recall where I read the comparison, but I know the take home message was that the H100 was outperformed by an air cooler, albeit a big one! Noctua maybe?

 

http://www.overclock3d.net/reviews/cases_cooling/corsair_h100_review/1

[Kosta 122]

Hard core liquid guys will talk smack (those nerdz)

 

Ah, you got me! Real liquid cooling since 2006 and going strong. No spills, no real broken parts (oh yes, one plastic thingy broke off that holds the reservoir...), cooling CPU, GPU, HDD, extremely silent (not only the cooling but the whole computer), and I would never ever again exchange it for anything else. And the best thing, real easy and clean to maintain - hardly any dust in the computer, I have to vacuum inside once a year, water exchange once-twice a year, no additives in the water, using exclusively destilled water. While H100 is cool solution for a single CPU cooler (albeit still warmer CPU than Swiftech X20 - 82 vs 74, which is a lot when overclocking), I can expand my watercooling to virtually any hot part of the computer, except PSU I think... And btw. my fans on the radi are on low :P My 2c.