Alternative CPU Cooler to H80i?

[sunkast]

This week I finished building a system that I am planning on turning into a hackintosh for video editing. At the moment I have Windows installed for testing the hardware.

Intel I7 3770K
Corsair H80i CPU Cooler
Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UD5H mobo
Corsair Vengeance 16GB RAM
Antec P280 case
Corsair TX750 PSU
EVGA GTX 670 FTW

Everything is stock and has not been overclocked yet.

I'm pretty disappointed with the performance of my H80i. The fans are loud and temps run higher than I'd like at around 60-66C under load. I plan on overclocking my 3770K but with temps like that I'm not keen on using the H80i.

What would be a good air cooled alternative to the H80i? I have been looking at the Noctua NH-D14, but it won't fit with my RAM. I also need a cooler that is going to be quiet since it will be used in a studio.

 

[MacBeef]

You can't go wrong by using a H100i with two Noctua NF-F12 fans.

 

[skaker]

I use a NH-C12P-SE14 on my 3770k, no ram clearance issues, and cools surrounding components also. I have the fan linked using the ULNA (fan runs at ~850rpm), it's essentially silent, and CPU runs ~70-75c @4.5 Ghz.

 

[BoomR]

I use a NH-C12P-SE14 on my 3770k, no ram clearance issues, and cools surrounding components also. I have the fan linked using the ULNA (fan runs at ~850rpm), it's essentially silent, and CPU runs ~70-75c @4.5 Ghz.

I've got some Corsair Vengeance RAM as well (the black 8GB) and would really like to find a good cooler that I can use when I overclock, but won't have issues with staying clear of the RAM. Here's my question:

Installation of the NH-C12P-SE14: Do I need to be able to get to the under side of the motherboard to attach some sort of mechanism that holds the cooler in place? I'm using the stock cooler right now, and was able to install that once the motherboard was attached to the MB tray. It's not the end of the world if I have to remove all my cards & all the components, then take the MB out of the case. BUT if I don't have to, that would be bonus!

THANKS!
--B

 

[DBP]

Yes it will involve an extra plate at the back of the board. This applies to all decent coolers in order to get good pressure contact onto the processor's heatspreader. Ideally your case has a big hole in the sheet the motherboard is screwed to so you don't need to undo everything, but like you say it's not the end of the world.

 

[BoomR]

Understood. The build in question is my new G5 case mod build. The Mountain Mods motherboard tray has no such window, so will have to pull stuff out. But it'll be worth it to get a good cooler that will clear the Vengeance RAM & do the job keeping the o'clocked CPU cool.

THANKS!
--B

 

[sunkast]

I use a NH-C12P-SE14 on my 3770k, no ram clearance issues, and cools surrounding components also. I have the fan linked using the ULNA (fan runs at ~850rpm), it's essentially silent, and CPU runs ~70-75c @4.5 Ghz.

70-75C... Is that idle or under load?

 

[skaker]

70-75C... Is that idle or under load?

Load. If I speed up the fan I can get it lower, but I'm fine with those temps (I'd be fine with even higher), and silence is a priority.

 

[sunkast]

So I ended up going with the Noctua NH-D14. It's way better the Corsair H80i. It's dead silent with the low noise adapters on it.