Air or Water

[LinusFan132]

So as I am a newbie in the PC area (well not in my school), what are the pros and cons of water and air cooling?

[LogicalDrm]

*** Threads merged ***

 

Please only post once per question. Or if you have multiple smaller questions, post them as one bigger thread.

[MartinKweh]

they said, Air is better. im a noob as well. based on what they said, there are air coolers that are actually better than water coolers.  watercoolers also have shorter life span than air coolers (broken pump = broken AIO) 

 

Pros of air

-cheaper

-looks cooler(depending on the aesthetics)

-has a longer lifespan(practically immortal unless you threw it around LOL)

 

Cons of air

-sometimes, if its too large, it can block the ram or even not fit in the case

-(my personal fear) if the heatsink is too heavy it might fall off if not secured properly and practically destroy the gpu. 

 

Pros of water cooling

-Easier to install

-can fit in most cases (depending on the size of the AIO)

-can cool better(depending on the size of the radiator again)

 

cons of water cooling

-can leak(oof)

-radiator can be hard to fit if the case does not support the mounting

-E X P E N S I V E

[RAS_3885]

16 hours ago, LinusFan132 said:

So as I am a newbie in the PC area (well not in my school), what are the pros and cons of water and air cooling?

Air coolers are basically set it and forget it unless a fan dies.  There really are no parts of an air cooler that will die unless physical damage is involved.

 

With an AIO you have the possibility of a leak, a pump dying, or a fan failing.  The chances of a leak or dead pump are admittedly very small if you buy a reputable brand, but still non-zero.

 

Most people pick based on aesthetics or case size limitation (since the top end air coolers can be very large).  I personally like air for it's simplicity, but when I finally getting around to upgrading my gaming rig I may try an AIO.  But that's more since I want to switch it over to a sorta small form factor build where a large air cooler might not fit.

 

I would not recommend custom loop water cooling as a first time system builder.  It will perform better than any air cooler, but the cost, complexity, and risk go WAY up.

[WoodenMarker]

On 11/9/2019 at 4:08 AM, Martin2132 said:

Pros of water cooling

-Easier to install

I'd argue it's the opposite. There are plenty of difficult installations on either side but a good air cooler installation is much easier than a good liquid cooling installation. Any of Noctua's coolers are a great example that a liquid installation would struggle to compete with. 

 

@LinusFan132 If you would like cooler recommendations, tell us your specs and what you're looking for in a cooler. 

[StarsMars]

On 11/9/2019 at 5:25 AM, LinusFan132 said:

So as I am a newbie in the PC area (well not in my school), what are the pros and cons of water and air cooling?

Price:

AIO's generally cost more. Anywhere from (USD)$45 - $200

 

Air coolers are cheaper as a rule. You can get a very good cooler for $60. Anywhere from $25 - $110

 

 

Compatibility:

Some air coolers can run into tall ram. In some rare scenarios block the top PCIE slot. Some are tall and require a deep case.

 

AIO's come in 120mm, 240mm, 280mm, 360mm, (rare) 420mm

Most cases can fit a 120, 240 or 280. They don't block ram or PCIE.

 

Either way you have to check to see if your motherboard and case are compatible with your choice.

 

Performance:

Air coolers reach equilibrium and dissipate faster than water coolers.

 

AIO's handle temperate spikes better.

 

A few high end air coolers compete with high end AIO's. ex: Noctua D15 competes with something like an NZXT X62.

A 240mm AIO or a mid range air cooler are plenty for most peoples use case in my opinion.

 

Reliability:

AIO's have a pump that could die, could corrode over time, and can leak.

Failure rates are low but possible. Some have a software to save the CPU if the pump dies. Some companies will cover damage costs from leaks.

 

Air coolers are as reliable as the fans on them. If a fan dies, the heat sink can passively cool enough to allow your CPU to downclock and protect itself.

Air coolers and their fans are also generally covered under warranty.

 

 

TLDR:

Air coolers are generally cheaper and more reliable.

AIO's generally cost more and can have higher cooling potential.

 

Find one you want, see if it's compatible with your components. Check reviews for warranty experiences, noise and reliability.

[Zando_]

2 minutes ago, StarsMars said:

-snip-

To add on to that for open loop/custom liquid cooling:

 

Price:

Unless you go super cheap AliExpress style like @Tristerin, pretty much always more expensive than even the most costly AIOs. My loop was all brand name stuff so it's around $500-700 or so (you can go a good bit cheaper if you shop around). 

 

Compatibility:

As compatible as you want it, you're picking every component yourself so you can build for pretty much any case and hardware (there's even watercooling kits for the Raspberry Pi).

Performance:

If built right, as good as it gets without going exotic (Chillers, LN2, other stuff like that). If you're limited by your case or something, then still slightly above good air coolers/AIOs most of the time, but most of the difference is on the GPU (GPUs take very well to water). Really depends on budget and what case you're running. 

Reliability:

Pretty damn reliable if you go for something like EK-ZMT (rubber tubing) with stubbies and zip ties. Never had a single leak with that setup, blocks are dependable af, and D5 pumps just kinda pump forever, I've never heard of reliability issues with them. So long as you don't mix metals and run good coolants to avoid blockages it's basically just flushing/refilling the loop maybe yearly, depending on the size of your res, maybe a couple top-ups too. 

If you go with hardline then it'll be less reliable but still if built right they shouldn't have any issues. 

TLDR:
Expensive, but you have full control. You decide how it looks, you decide what you'll stuff in your rig, you decide how it performs, you decide how reliable it is. 

Like other peeps said I wouldn't recommend it for a first time builder, I just wanted to give a perspective on the third option. 

 

[Tristerin]

@Zando Bob I cant get enough of them $12 aluminum radiators!  I just bought some new antifreeze to try in my next loop, twice as expensive and I need to do more research but Im pretty sure its PETG safe from the chemical sheet I was looking - its G05 stuff, goes in the high end cars etc and should make hardline loops cheap too!