HSF & RAM height concern

[Falseprophet]

I just ordered my new rig and the specs are in. I have been purchasing things over time and its time to put it all together but I have one last choice to make. "WHAT COOLING TO GET FOR THE 3770K IVY" Below are my new build specs...

Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-Z77X-UP5 HT - needed one PCI slot for sound card
CPU - 1155 i7 3770K
PSU - old Corsair HX620 or my new TX650 advice here
Case - Corsair graphite series 600T silver ? 10.5" deep?
video - Nvidia GTX 660TI 3gb superclocked
HDD - OCZ vertex 4 sata3 120GB
RAM - Corsair vengeance CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9 2 sticks (8gb total) want 4 sticks

My question/concern is what cooler to get that will not interfer with the RAM I lapped my Thermalright TRUE ULTRA 120 and my Q6600 AS5 and overclocked from 2.4ghz to 3.2ghz had it at 3.4 but turned it down. I dont really need to overclock the new 3770k but I am sure I will, just not sure how far 4.5 sounds nice +/- my goal is performance and noise level. I would like my computer to be pretty quiet since I watch movies on it also in my room. I just dont know what cooler to get that will work and let me fold 24/7 if I want and not interfear with the taller RAM, got the ram from a coworker 6 months ago for $30 I suppose I could change it if I had to but I kinda like it. please advise... last high end computer I researched and build was 5 years ago, so I know nothing about ram speeds or if that ram I got is even good for my new build, opinions or recommendations would be nice. I plan on finishing it up with 2 or 4 sticks totaling 16GB.

 

[Robert17]

You will get numerous recommendations on the forums regarding CPU coolers, all of them either tested, used, abused, and all worthy of consideration. Check out the reviews for sure.

I use an older H60 AIO on my 3770k and am OC'd to 4.2 24/7 for F@H. I have no clearance issues regarding RAM as is the case with any AIO or WC loop. And my H60 is older tech (in a way). And I do hear my 7 fans, never my H60. I admit (as I have in the past) that I'm a sucker for AIOs so there you have a sucker's viewpoint. Consider WC of some type if RAM clearance is your primary concern.

 

[Knufire]

He has a lapped TRUE 120...that's still a top dog for air cooling and he definitely doesn't need a better cooler for Ivy Bridge. Just cancel the RAM order and get something that isn't 3x the height of the RAM stick like the Corsair Vengeance is.

 

[Falseprophet]

My current computer is based on an EVGA 780i LGA 775 mobo with the Q6600 being cooled with the lapped TRUE 120... I plan to keep that setup intact and running as a my 2nd computer so I will need to leave the TRUE with the Q6600... Im looking for a new cooler, considered the corsair H100, but my concern is what happens to the 3770k its cooling if the pump goes out??? At least on AIR the big coolers like the TRUE and better will still keep the CPU alive if the fans go out and it runs PASSIVE for a few days or weeks before I notice it... I already own the 2x4GB 8GB kit of the Vengeance. I could sell it online though I a sure.

PS... does anyone know if that MOBO the Gigabyte will run RAM over 1600 Mhz? its rated at 1600, just not sure if Newegg failed to list higher speeds OC'ed

 

[Mandrake4565]

I have a Cooler Master 212+ in push pull config, which is pretty much the same as the new CM 212 EVO. On a ASrock Z77 board with those same RAM sticks and have no issues with the ram clearance. Worst case is that you have to pull the fan that is by the RAM up a little. I'm not sure if it's good enough for you to get to 4.5 but I have my I5-2500k at 4.6 2 hours prime stable with it and temps are under 70c.

 

[scibuff]

I'd personally advice against any closed water loop such as H80, H100 and similar. They don't perform better than top line Noctua/Phantek and are usually $20-$30 more. At 4.5 GHz they'd be much noisier than air cooling.

If you'd consider the top line air cooling options, e.g. noctua or phantek, Noctua actually has a good website that lists a lot of RAM modules and whether or not they'd fit.

If the RAM fits under Noctua NH-D14, you can be pretty comfortable that it will fit under any other heatsink + fan combination. I'm pretty sure no high profile RAM will fit (under big heat sinks) unless the motherboard has a different layout than most (and yours doesn't).

Going to 4.5 GHz, if you're lucky, may be possible with CM 212+ EVO - which is not as big. As mentioned above you may need to slide the side fan a little bit up to get clearance for the first (two) module(s).

To answer your "ps", the official Gigabyte site lists support for DDR3 2800(OC)/1600/1333/1066 MHz memory modules

I may be wrong here, but I believe OC-ing is slightly easier with only two sticks that with four (to get stability). I'm not sure how much difference it makes these days though. I can't imagine why you'd need 16GB of RAM. Also, there is a small chance the two new sticks won't work with the other two you have.

 

[S_I_N]

currently running my 2600K at 4.5 @1.375 vcore with 34idle 55 load temps on a Noctua D14 with a single platronics 140mm fan. ram height is an issue but my GSkill Snipers fit under it with a cm or 2 to spare. By Crucial Ballistic Elites on the other hand were to tall.

 

[dtrunk]

keep your current cooler , if you don't OC the 3770k you're CRAZY. sell your crappy RAM, buy some 2x4gb 2133 cl9 (8gb is enough imho), plus two sticks is better than 4; and just make sure to get normal size ram or low profile. that motherboard is overkill.

 

[Falseprophet]

So I have been doing some research and 2 coolers look like they might be a go, the XIGMATEK Dark Knight II SD1283 Night Hawk Edition VS the Thermalright True Spirit 140. "I am very skeptical of only having (3) heat pipes on the xigmatek, but one review said it beat the noctua d14 by 1 degree??? I am getting a new cooler for the 3770k because I am leaving the lapped true 120 with my 780i Q6600 build and putting my old 8800gts 640gb back in it and snagging my GTX 660ti 3GB card out of it and putting it in my new build. that way I will have 2 gaming computers that are fully operational... THOUGHTS PLEASE? I could always lap the new cooler and CPU too... also why do people recomend 2 sticks instead of 4, logic would say that 4 has 2x the electrical paths for memory bandwith and data? am I wrong there and everything I have read says I will not notice a difference with RAM with speeds higher than 1600 mhz explain if this is accurate???

 

[Knufire]

RAM speed statement is accurate.

You're almost right on the RAM...its a dual channel board, to oversimplify it think of there really only being two paths, with two RAM slots on each path. Two sticks is for dual channel mode (one stick on each path to maximize bandwidth) and leaves you room to upgrade in the future.

 

[S_I_N]

back in the day of off die memory controller 2 sticks always oc'd better and were more stable than filling all slots. Now a days with on die controllers its not as critical. I run 4x4GB of memory with the same oc as 2x4GB for some old habits are hard to break. But if you look at the record holders on overclocks you'll notice alot of time they bench with a single stick. Easier to find one ubar stick vs several.

with IB or SB being bandwidth *****s you'll deffo see better performance with higher clocked sticks. timing while helpful do not net as great a benefit as speed these days.

 

[Knufire]

I've never seen evidence of a real world performance benefit of high speed RAM. Anandtech even has specific testing done on Sandy Bridge that proves it doesn't.

 

[S_I_N]

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4503/sandy-bridge-memory-scaling-choosing-the-best-ddr3/7

not earth shattering at all but I'll take a boost anyday

 

[Falseprophet]

So then I could easily go with a 2x4g kit of good 1600 low cl like cl9 and be just fine. Im the type of person that has 30 web pages open, playing a game n converting media or ripping at the same time with multiple programs running, and I have not ran out of RAM with 8Gigs of 1066 ddr 2 yet. I will mostly be gaming "Borderlands 2, and higher games that are more intensive" and ripping cds dvd bluray and converting media formats. possibly folding again. I know that is a memory section item, so I will get back to cooling. what are thoughts on the 2 coolers listed, xigmatek and true spirit 140? or others similar?

 

[wingman99]

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4503/sandy-bridge-memory-scaling-choosing-the-best-ddr3/7

not earth shattering at all but I'll take a boost anyday

That is memory read performance not real world performance.

So then I could easily go with a 2x4g kit of good 1600 low cl like cl9 and be just fine. Im the type of person that has 30 web pages open, playing a game n converting media or ripping at the same time with multiple programs running, and I have not ran out of RAM with 8Gigs of 1066 ddr 2 yet. I will mostly be gaming "Borderlands 2, and higher games that are more intensive" and ripping cds dvd bluray and converting media formats. possibly folding again. I know that is a memory section item, so I will get back to cooling. what are thoughts on the 2 coolers listed, xigmatek and true spirit 140? or others similar?

The memory 2X4GB kit is good for what you want to do. Also I like the true spirit 140 in my opinion they make better coolers than Xigmatek.

 

[Falseprophet]

I thought about it long and hard and I think I have a winner. I have been very satisified with my lapped true 120 extreme on my Q6600 @ 3.2ghz ... "Why change a good thing" Thermalright won my respect with that cooler... I just noticed the Thermalright Archon SB-E and it looks like a better version of my true 120. think my true 120 has 5 heat pipes and the Archon SB-E has 8 in a similar slim profile. Figure I will pick one up, and see what happens, just wish it came in black, maybe it does? Does anyone have any thoughts on the Archon SB-E or Archon SB-E X2 with a 3770k? Check thermalrights website, this things is a beast and does not get in the overhead zone of the tall ram modules

 

[Knufire]

The Archon is essentially an upgraded TRUE Spirit 140. The "update" to the classic TRUE was the Venomous-X.

 

[Falseprophet]

Anyone have or know of any benchmarks of the thermalrights?

I liked the Archon SB-E and then I seen the Archon SB-E X2!!! Heres what sucks, I cant find the Archon SB-E X2 anywhere online for sale :-( is there any difference between the 2 besides the extra fan?

 

[Conumdrum]

False, you do much Google searching?

Or no time to do basic research?

It's not that hard to do. They have many good reviews etc on the web.

 

[Falseprophet]

False, you do much Google searching?

Or no time to do basic research?

It's not that hard to do. They have many good reviews etc on the web.

Actually, my home page IS "GOOGLE" and at the time of reading your reply I currently have about 35 web pages open researching the matter and have been at this non stop for the last 4 hours... Im sold on the cooler, but I cant find the X2 version for sale anywhere. I can buy another fan but Im assumin only one can plug into the cpu headder and wanted both controlled by the cpu headder