Advice on quiet CPU cooler

[vidi2000]

I'm looking for a quiet CPU cooler that fits my system: Gigabyte GA-Z77-DS3H with 4 Corsair Vengeance DDR3 modules.

I was going to buy a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO (replacing the stock fan with a Nexus one) but the fan will interfere with the first module, as kindly confirmed by martva here http://www.tonymacx86.com/user-buil...ga-z77-ds3h-i7-3770k-hd6870-4.html#post439272

I'm not going to overclock the CPU, i just want to replace the stock cooler with a silent one for quiet operation.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Schmeknicolor]

I just got a advice from a store where i'm going to buy almost all the parts for my build, they adviced me this one http://www.overclockers.com/thermalright-true-spirit-140-heatsink-review/
http://www.rwlabs.com/article.php?cat=&id=545&pagenumber=1
Cheaper than the one i was going to.
The downside is that they seem tall as hell.

 

[vidi2000]

Yes, unfortunately these are very tall and will not fit in my case

 

[ggeorge]

Yes, unfortunately these are very tall and will not fit in my case

It would be helpful if you told us what the height limitations are.

Unfortunately the Vengeance ram has stupidly large heat sinks, with a height restriction as well your options are going to be limited. Though it is possible to remove them and if you're not overclocking the ram they aren't really needed. Mostly they are there to look "cool".

If quietness is what you want, you should check out the recommendations from here. The mid-sized and low profile coolers are at the bottom. Keep in mind that you can replace the fans on most of these heatsinks and that a better fan can make one significantly quieter.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_Heatsinks

 

[Going Bald]

It would be helpful if you told us what the height limitations are.

Unfortunately the Vengeance ram has stupidly large heat sinks, with a height restriction as well your options are going to be limited. Though it is possible to remove them and if you're not overclocking the ram they aren't really needed. Mostly they are there to look "cool".

If quietness is what you want, you should check out the recommendations from here. The mid-sized and low profile coolers are at the bottom. Keep in mind that you can replace the fans on most of these heatsinks and that a better fan can make one significantly quieter.

http://www.silentpcreview.com/Recommended_Heatsinks

That link is really old and a lot of the heatsinks they recommend will not fit on a socket 1155/1156 board. Most low profile heatsinks are going to need low profile ram or they will interfere with the ram slots. If you have high profile heatsink ram you need to look for a heatsink/fan combination that is the same size as the stock cooler with updraft/downdraft fans. Another solution is to replace the 120/140mm fan that comes with the heat sink with a 92/80 mm fan so the fan clears the ram but will still give you some cooling. You will take a performance hit if you do this, so do your research carefully.

 

[doof]

Heat spreaders on the memory are more decorative than functional. Most attach to the chips with double sided sticky tape. Not exactly an optimal thermal interface. The evo is a good unit for the money, I'd just use that and remove the spreader on the first DIMM. I have several set ups like this and never had a problem with them. I don't over volt the memory.

 

[Asus-Freak]

Here's the solution: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181015

 

[vidi2000]

@ggeorge
i have a Fractal Design Define R3 case which supports CPU coolers with height of ~165mm

@toivi
yes of course but i've already got the Vengeance modules

@Going Bald
Yes, since i don't need a cpu cooler for overclocking but only for silent operation, this is exactly what i'm looking for: a heatsink/fan combination that is the same size as the stock cooler with updraft/downdraft fans of standard size (92mm or 120mm) that can be replaced by a silent fan (the Nexus Real Silent 120mm Case Fan which is silentpcreview.com reference fan). Any advice?

@kduvernay
unfortunately liquid coolers are not a good choice for silent operation since they have one additional source of noise, the water pump.

 

[tupper]

I just bought the Hyper 412 Slim (so i can use full sized RAM) will let you know how it goes

 

[thelostswede]

@ggeorge
i have a Fractal Design Define R3 case which supports CPU coolers with height of ~165mm

@toivi
yes of course but i've already got the Vengeance modules

@Going Bald
Yes, since i don't need a cpu cooler for overclocking but only for silent operation, this is exactly what i'm looking for: a heatsink/fan combination that is the same size as the stock cooler with updraft/downdraft fans of standard size (92mm or 120mm) that can be replaced by a silent fan (the Nexus Real Silent 120mm Case Fan which is silentpcreview.com reference fan). Any advice?

@kduvernay
unfortunately liquid coolers are not a good choice for silent operation since they have one additional source of noise, the water pump.

Have you even used a modern, sealed unit watercooler?
Anyhow, this ought to clear your modules http://www.coolermaster.com/product.php?product_id=6729