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I need the best air cooler for am3 socket

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Acuradude

Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2009
Location
VA
ok guys i have been looking at heatsinks for about two to three weeks now and every review i seem to find or read seem to say something completely different. i have ambients that get near 85f or 30c. and it will be going on a 720be that likes to hover around the 50c-55c underload. i will be using ocz freeze paste. so guys can you help me find a good heatsink!!!!
 
you got a price/noise requirement? what case will this be going in? Sig case?
 
yeah it will be going in my sig case and as for noise it could sound like a 747 and that would be fine as long as it kept my cpu nice a cool. lol price i have $70 i would like to pay less but if the best one cost more then i will wait until i can get it so far my search has showed these 3 always tend to be in the top 5 sometimes they are in the top 3 the spire thermax eclipse II and the thermaltake Frio and the noctua nh-d14 as in this review.
 
Those you mentioned are great heatsinks. They're a little pricey (Ndh-14) and I'm still a bit partial to the TRUE (ThermalRight Ultra Extreme 120.) Still a great competitor and I got mine for $30 shipped on ebay.
 
Well, my recommendations are the d14, then, in no particular order, the megahalems, true, and venomous x. For a budget performer, check out the cogage true spirit, nearly up to par with the true for a fraction of the price. you may want to consider investing in some 120*38mm fans at some point too, for maximal performance.
 
Anyone have experience with the Thermalright Silver Arrow on the AM3 Mobos? The Arctic Cooling 64 Pro that I bought is quite a disappointment. It's a nice cooler but it has a poor fan for efficient cooling and the mounting strap leaves a LOT to be desired.

The Thermalright coolers I'ved used in the past have always been top notch but the issue these days seems to be clearance around the memory w/heatsinks. The Artic Pro 64 actually needs to mount backwards with the CPU cooler fan fighting for air with the rear case fan in a conventional ATX style case. This resulted in immediate overheating so I had to change the rear case exhaust fans so they blew air into the case and used the PSU fan to remove the hot air. Not a good approach by Artic Cooling for the AM2/3 applications IMO. In the end the AC 64 Pro was worth 2-3 degrees C over the AMD Box heatsink/fan. The AC 64 pro is quieter but it's not a proper design for the AM2/3 IMO.

Any feedback on the Thermalright Silver Arrow appreciated.

http://www.thermalright.com/products/?act=data&id=96&cat_id=27
 
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It looks the same as my Cogage Arrow, but maybe with a better base, the VX mounting system, and 2 140mm fans. I can tell you that my Cogage Arrow running low speed fans beats the crap out of my H50 with 120x38mm_push/120x25mm_pull. The AM2/AM3 mounting system sucks and is worse than the supplied 775/1156/1366 mounting system.
 
Thanks MassiveO-

From reading some reviews it looks like the Cogage Arrow is the same heatsink and possibly fans? Don't know about the mounts but it does seem like the performance coolers have problems due to lack of space/RAM heatsinks. The AMD Box heatsink/fan just snapped into place and worked pretty well.
 
ok guys i just found out that my max height is only 149.22mm or 5.875in. and all the ones you guys have offered are to big
 
You may want to check out the Enzotech Extreme-X Rev.A and the optional Enzotech Type-X AM2 Retention Module. Dimension (L x W x H) 148x148x118mm.

I have this setup installed on a 955BE and with the fan running at 3/4 speed (at the point where I don't hear it) running the [email protected] and 100% load at 24C the Enzotech keeps it at 47C. If I run the fan to full speed then it keeps it at 43C.

I don't have any experience with the Noctua NH-C12P SE14 but it is another one that sits with the radiator laying flat so they aren't tall and can fit into most cases. Noctua NH-C12P SE14 Dimensions (L x W x H) 152x140x114mm.

Another option may be the Thermaltake CL-P0456 140mm again I have no experience with this cooler but its dimensions are (L x W x H) 156x155x128mm.

All of the three listed above are able to mount on the AM2/AM3, I like the Enzotech optional mount because it converts it to basically a intel mount and uses springs and thumb screws to install rather than the latch design for a more secure mount.
 
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With that limitation of size you are very limited as to what you can fit in your case. About the best i could find is the Zerotherm Nirvana CPU cooler. It fits your dimensions and should cool that 720be just fine.
 
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