CPU Cooler Performance Tier List

[M.R_KING]

15 minutes ago, MrBrightSyde said:

best to worst from reviews I've seen: MA410P > MA620P > Hyper 212

so do you tell me that the hyper 212 rgb black edition is the worst cooler from the three coolers؟؟؟ and the ma620p has  two fans so why he is on 2nd rank؟؟؟؟

[MrBrightSyde]

1 minute ago, M.R_KING said:

so do you tell me that the hyper 212 rgb black edition is the worst cooler from the three coolers؟؟؟ and the ma620p has  two fans so why he is on 2nd rank؟؟؟؟

Yes. More fans doesn't mean better performance if you are using worse fans. You can even see in the tweaktown review of the MA620P that it's objectively worse in cooling to the MA410P, though they don't have the Hyper 212 RGB Black in that review.

 

I'll actually amend my earlier statement, It's MA410P >= Hyper 212 RGB BE > MA620P, review of Hyper 212 RGB BE beating the MA620P

This just makes me think that it really depends on the CPU since I see the MA410P beating the 212 RGB BE in some reviews (using Intel CPUs) but losing to the 212 RGB BE in others (using AMD CPUs).

[M.R_KING]

27 minutes ago, MrBrightSyde said:

Yes. More fans doesn't mean better performance if you are using worse fans. You can even see in the tweaktown review of the MA620P that it's objectively worse in cooling to the MA410P, though they don't have the Hyper 212 RGB Black in that review.

 

I'll actually amend my earlier statement, It's MA410P >= Hyper 212 RGB BE > MA620P, review of Hyper 212 RGB BE beating the MA620P

This just makes me think that it really depends on the CPU since I see the MA410P beating the 212 RGB BE in some reviews (using Intel CPUs) but losing to the 212 RGB BE in others (using AMD CPUs).

thanks for your help❤

[Duckson McQuack]

Honestly get what's cheapest. MA620P is very very loud and doesn't perform very well.

[WoodenMarker]

On 8/1/2020 at 4:34 AM, Tan3l6 said:

I propose to elevate it to one class higher because it's dual-tower.

The tiers and titles are arbitrary summaries that describe what tends to be in that tier. It's not higher up because it generally doesn't perform as well as the coolers in that tier. 

[Nokchabingsu]

If anyone is wondering, I just replaced my Snowman M-T6 with a Scythe Fuma 2 on my 3600 and the temps were lower 1-2c of the Snowman. The Snowman is pretty quiet too.

[Quadriplegic]

On 8/7/2020 at 5:50 AM, Tonberry said:

Is there any new exciting high performer CPU air coolers to have in 2020?

Thermalright Frost Spirit 140. Tho it seems like global release is delayed by quite a bit?

[CometLake]

I am surprised NOCTUA NH-D15 is not TIER 1 in this list.

 

I suppose risks and scary issues of using Water Coolers are not accounted to build the list.

 

If you extrapolate "thermals" only, then yes, you can build a list with mostly water on TIER 1, obviously, but there is a long list of variables involved in rating a CPU cooler.

[Energycore]

1 minute ago, CometLake said:

I am surprised NOCTUA NH-D15 is not TIER 1 in this list.

 

I suppose risks and scary issues of using Water Coolers are not accounted to build the list.

 

If you extrapolate "thermals" only, then yes, you can build a list with mostly water on TIER 1, obviously, but there is a long list of variables involved in rating a CPU cooler.

Coolers are ranked by performance because it's a Performance Tier List. As you said, there's too many factors to actually rank coolers in terms of their whole package (type / size / build quality / customer support / etc). So only performance is ranked.

Quote

This list focuses on out of the box CPU cooler performance -- it's not a list of recommendations

From the OP.

 

Making a recommendation for a CPU cooler is very nuanced - I get that. Once you've decided on the form factor you want to use, you can use this list to zero in on the specific model by looking at their performance in this list.

[Energycore]

This review shows the NH-U12A performing below the Dark Rock 4 in both thermals and noise.

 

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/noctua-nh-u12a-cooler,6372-2.html

 

I realize the Tiers are made using multiple reviews but this might be worth looking into to tweak the tier of both of these. Perhaps the Noctua is one tier too high, or the DR4 is 1-2 tiers too low.

 

I remember the DR2 sucking, maybe even the DR3, so I understand why it would have been easy to overlook the DR4.=\

 

EDIT: This other tomshardware review puts the DR4 4 degrees ahead of the MasterAir MA610P so its tier might be correct, but the NH-U12A might be a bit too high.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/be-quiet-dark-rock-4-cpu-cooler,5563-2.html

[WoodenMarker]

10 hours ago, Energycore said:

This review shows the NH-U12A performing below the Dark Rock 4 in both thermals and noise.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/noctua-nh-u12a-cooler,6372-2.html

 

I realize the Tiers are made using multiple reviews but this might be worth looking into to tweak the tier of both of these. Perhaps the Noctua is one tier too high, or the DR4 is 1-2 tiers too low.

 

I remember the DR2 sucking, maybe even the DR3, so I understand why it would have been easy to overlook the DR4.=\

EDIT: This other tomshardware review puts the DR4 4 degrees ahead of the MasterAir MA610P so its tier might be correct, but the NH-U12A might be a bit too high.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/be-quiet-dark-rock-4-cpu-cooler,5563-2.html

I'm not entirely sure why but Tom's Hardware's results generally seem off compared to many other reviews. My guess would be that their cpu might have deformed a bit after usage with coolers with more convex or flat bases.

Comparing to results to sockets similar to the their 2011-3, the NH-U12A seems to fare better against the DR4 from other reviews. 

https://www.nikktech.com/main/articles/pc-hardware/cpu-cooling/cpu-air-coolers/9917-noctua-nh-u12a-cpu-cooler-review?start=5

https://bit-tech.net/reviews/tech/cooling/noctua-nh-u12a-review/2/

https://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/noctua_nh_u12a_review,7.html

 

The NH-U12A may fit better at the top of T4 but it still seems to bleed into T3. I've mulled over it in the past at least when it was first released and was a bit surprised when it seemed to outperform the NH-U14S fairly consistently.

[Energycore]

13 minutes ago, WoodenMarker said:

I'm not entirely sure why but Tom's Hardware's results generally seem off compared to many other reviews. My guess would be that their cpu might have deformed a bit after usage with coolers with more convex or flat bases.

Comparing to results to sockets similar to the their 2011-3, the NH-U12A seems to fare better against the DR4 from other reviews. 

https://www.nikktech.com/main/articles/pc-hardware/cpu-cooling/cpu-air-coolers/9917-noctua-nh-u12a-cpu-cooler-review?start=5

https://bit-tech.net/reviews/tech/cooling/noctua-nh-u12a-review/2/

https://www.vortez.net/articles_pages/noctua_nh_u12a_review,7.html

 

The NH-U12A may fit better at the top of T4 but it still seems to bleed into T3. I've mulled over it in the past at least when it was first released and was a bit surprised when it seemed to outperform the NH-U14S fairly consistently.

Interesting. I might need to switch up my source for CPU Cooler Reviews hehe.

 

I was surprised a mid-sized tower with 2 120mms performed that well. I really want one, but I really don't need one right now

[Energycore]

Found a duplicate row in Tier 4

[Quadriplegic]

Deathmatch of the ultimate RAM friendly aircoolers – R1 Universal vs Fuma 2. 

Who won? Who's next? You decide! EPIC aircoolersbattleofhistory

[bluehillday]

@WoodenMarker 

 

does Downdraft's cpu coolers like amd's stock need an case exhaust or is it pointless?

[WoodenMarker]

7 hours ago, bluehillday said:

@WoodenMarker 

 

does Downdraft's cpu coolers like amd's stock need an case exhaust or is it pointless?

Yes, exhaust or some form of heat removal is needed in all systems or else temperature will continue to rise until the system overheats. 

FYI, there's no need to tag since I'm following the thread.

[Energycore]

1 hour ago, WoodenMarker said:

Yes, exhaust or some form of heat removal is needed in all systems or else temperature will continue to rise until the system overheats. 

FYI, there's no need to tag since I'm following the thread.

Now that this is in topic, I could use your advice.

 

I just bought an NH-C14S. My case has 2 fans in front intake, 2 fans in top exhaust. No hear exhaust. Is that an ok configuration for a downdraft cooler? What fan configurations are bad for a downdraft?

 

 

[WoodenMarker]

1 hour ago, Energycore said:

I just bought an NH-C14S. My case has 2 fans in front intake, 2 fans in top exhaust. No hear exhaust. Is that an ok configuration for a downdraft cooler? What fan configurations are bad for a downdraft?

That's alright. Depending on the size and location of the exhaust fans, that may be less optimal than a rear and top exhaust. What case?

Like any cooler, downdraft coolers benefit from cool intake and and a way to exhaust the heat from the cooler. The difference is in the intake and exhaust location. The intake is best not blocked off with enough space from obstruction for fresh air to reach. Exhaust is outwards from under the cooler so it's good to have enough exhaust to not trap any warm air. Traditional tower coolers are a bit better at directing heat towards a particular vent. 

[Energycore]

15 minutes ago, WoodenMarker said:

That's alright. Depending on the size and location of the exhaust fans, that may be less optimal than a rear and top exhaust. What case?

Like any cooler, downdraft coolers benefit from cool intake and and a way to exhaust the heat from the cooler. The difference is in the intake and exhaust location. The intake is best not blocked off with enough space from obstruction for fresh air to reach. Exhaust is outwards from under the cooler so it's good to have enough exhaust to not trap any warm air. Traditional tower coolers are a bit better at directing heat towards a particular vent. 

Case is a model that's unavailable in the US as far as I know. Here's pics of the inside

 

 

The Case takes 3 fans up front but only the lower 1/3-ish of the front panel is actually open, so I have fans in the 2 lowermost positions. Ignore the bottom fans, they blow into nothing.

The triangle with lines is mesh, the rest is solid.

 

I'm not looking for the most optimized temps right now, but I will later when I upgrade, so buying a fan is an option.

 

These are the case dimensions

[WoodenMarker]

10 hours ago, Energycore said:

Case is a model that's unavailable in the US as far as I know. Here's pics of the inside

The Case takes 3 fans up front but only the lower 1/3-ish of the front panel is actually open, so I have fans in the 2 lowermost positions. Ignore the bottom fans, they blow into nothing.

Yea, not much to do besides move the top front fan to the rear for exhaust where it can exhaust potentially more heat instead of what seems to be partly fresh air from the front before it reaches the components. 

[Energycore]

17 hours ago, WoodenMarker said:

Yea, not much to do besides move the top front fan to the rear for exhaust where it can exhaust potentially more heat instead of what seems to be partly fresh air from the front before it reaches the components. 

Alright. I'll do that once I grab my 3600, if I run into heat problems.

 

Here's a picture of what it looks like

 

Spoiler

 

And by the way, I figured out that my case is actually identical to the Silverstone Fara R1 but with a different front panel. Not a "ripoff" similar design, actually identical. Seems like it did alright in thermal tests.

 

Not gonna like, I really like how the front top LED fan looks. What you said about it pulling fresh air out of the case is right though, so I might compromise and block that fan off completely, then add a pressure-optimized fan to the rear position.

 

[WoodenMarker]

1 hour ago, Energycore said:

Alright. I'll do that once I grab my 3600, if I run into heat problems.

Here's a picture of what it looks like

 

Not gonna like, I really like how the front top LED fan looks. What you said about it pulling fresh air out of the case is right though, so I might compromise and block that fan off completely, then add a pressure-optimized fan to the rear position.

Ah, I see that the heatsink fins would be directing air towards the top. It's hard to tell if leaving fans at the top to continue that flow or having a rear exhaust to reduce the chance of heat being trapped would be better.

The 3600 isn't very difficult to cool with the NH-C14S so either configuration would work fine. 

[Energycore]

1 minute ago, WoodenMarker said:

Ah, I see that the heatsink fins would be directing air towards the top. It's hard to tell if leaving fans at the top to continue that flow or having a rear exhaust to reduce the chance of heat being trapped would be better.

The 3600 isn't very difficult to cool with the NH-C14S so either configuration would work fine. 

Thanks for the help

 

One day I might borrow a smoke machine and look at what air paths are actually like in my case, just for fun. Until then I feel very calm about my setup

[viceice]

Hello, my friend considers buying a single fan Corsair H45.

 

This one in particular;

 

https://www.akakce.com/islemci-sogutucu/en-ucuz-corsair-hydro-series-h45-cw-9060028-ww-sivi-sogutma-fiyati,54097163.html

 

He has a Ryzen 2700x and wants to overclock it to at least 4.2 ghz/1.4v range. 

 

Would this cooler do the trick? He's also streaming with x264 encoding. He wants to be below 65 degrees in stream+game scenarios. Is this possible with this cooler? 

 

I see H45 as Tier 3 but dunno what tier accomodotates to what kind of cooling powers.

[Energycore]

6 minutes ago, viceice said:

Hello, my friend considers buying a single fan Corsair H45.

 

This one in particular;

 

https://www.akakce.com/islemci-sogutucu/en-ucuz-corsair-hydro-series-h45-cw-9060028-ww-sivi-sogutma-fiyati,54097163.html

 

He has a Ryzen 2700x and wants to overclock it to at least 4.2 ghz/1.4v range. 

 

Would this cooler do the trick? He's also streaming with x264 encoding. He wants to be below 65 degrees in stream+game scenarios. Is this possible with this cooler? 

 

I see H45 as Tier 3 but dunno what tier accomodotates to what kind of cooling powers.

Why does he need it to be 65C?

 

The H45 will cool an overclocked 2700X, but you should expect closer to 80C, not 65. And that's very safe.