Case / Cooler compatibility

tgrachan · September 26, 2017

I am currently using an extremely cheap (ie. crap) case and I was going to put a nicer cpu cooler into it to prevent the system sounding like a jet engine all the time and I figured I should probably check to see what clearance I have in the case. Currently I have 160mm to the side panel and I'm not keen on the idea of having the cooler touching the side of the case so I figured I would look at coolers under 155mm in height. The problem here lies in that 99% of decent coolers will be too tall for this. I have resolved that since I'll eventually be completely overhauling the system that I can always just get the case and cooler now and reuse them in the new system which I'm fine with. In looking around though I can't seem to find an easy way to tell what cases would be compatible with a large air cooler. I was looking most heavily at the noctua NH-D15 but the Masterair Maker 8 looks absolutely awesome and I really like that one as well. As far as cases go, I am leaning towards bequiet! for the obvious advantage that they are quiet and that's the main objective here but I'm open to suggestions. I definitely want a tempered glass side panel on the case and I don't really know what color scheme I'll have in the new build so I figure I can just stick to black on the case. I don't really have a budget in mind as long as the price is worth it.

Thanks for any help with this.

tarfeef101 · September 26, 2017

Unless OP replies, I ain't gonna respond cause I have 0 desire to get into a fanboy war. This is too inherently full of personal opinions.

So, cases. Some of my favourites

Lian Li PC-08
Phanteks Enthoo Evolv,P400s TG
Inwin 303 (you may want to make your own rubber grommets, but that's not too hard)
This looks cool but i haven't really worked with it
- Anidees AI Crystal Cube
Don't worry about the silence of the case too much. You can always replace the fans (given your budget flexibility), and most of these will be good enough that as long as you don't run em at crazy speeds, they'll be basically silent. And with the coolers you're looking at, that shouldn't be a concern.

Coolers:

The NH D-15 is basically the undisputed king of air coolers. In terms of functionality/performance, it is superior for sure. The fans may be a bit ugly depending on your tastes, but it will be quiet and cool for sure. Reliability is a strong point for noctua as well.
The cryorig R1 is a beast, and looks awesome. Availability is a concern for some people, though.
Not a huge fan of the cooler master one, but it is still a decent cooler, and will satisfy your needs.

tgrachan · September 26, 2017

After thinking about it I can definitely see how this could result in a fanboy war and that was not my intention at all (sorry about that), but thank you for your suggestions.

I have looked at the Phanteks Enthoo Evolv and I definitely like that case. In looking at the Inwin 303 really quickly I think it would be a shame not to put in a 360mm radiator on the top section. It would just look too cool not to do it.

From my reading I have realized that the NH D-15 is pretty much the best for air cooling options but I'm guessing it would be overkill for the vast majority of applications (so would the above mentioned 360mm radiator for that matter) so that's the only reason I had thought about going with another option. If I don't need the extra performance that it provides then I can possibly go with something a little better looking. I guess I just need to do more research to figure out how much the NH D-15 would really add over other coolers and if sacrificing the looks of the system would be worth the performance boost.

Thanks for your input on this. Is there a way to tell from the case specs how large of a cooler that it would support. I know that some manufacturers list it but it seems that the majority do not. I can look at the overall case width but that isn't quite the whole picture since that doesn't take into account the space behind the motherboard. Or is this more of an issue of as long as I don't get another really cheap case I should be able to fit whatever I want in it.

TVwazhere · September 26, 2017

5 hours ago, tgrachan said:

I am currently using an extremely cheap (ie. crap) case and I was going to put a nicer cpu cooler into it to prevent the system sounding like a jet engine all the time and I figured I should probably check to see what clearance I have in the case. Currently I have 160mm to the side panel and I'm not keen on the idea of having the cooler touching the side of the case so I figured I would look at coolers under 155mm in height. The problem here lies in that 99% of decent coolers will be too tall for this. I have resolved that since I'll eventually be completely overhauling the system that I can always just get the case and cooler now and reuse them in the new system which I'm fine with. In looking around though I can't seem to find an easy way to tell what cases would be compatible with a large air cooler. I was looking most heavily at the noctua NH-D15 but the Masterair Maker 8 looks absolutely awesome and I really like that one as well. As far as cases go, I am leaning towards bequiet! for the obvious advantage that they are quiet and that's the main objective here but I'm open to suggestions. I definitely want a tempered glass side panel on the case and I don't really know what color scheme I'll have in the new build so I figure I can just stick to black on the case. I don't really have a budget in mind as long as the price is worth it.

Thanks for any help with this.

Depending on your hardware, and idea of "decent" you can fit a Cryorig H7, its 145mm tall.

A good tool to use is https://pcpartpicker.com, it has a compatibility filter that will tell you if parts are compatible or not, and will also hide components that wont work with each other (For example if you pick an intel CPU, it wont show you AMD motherboards when you look for a motherboard, and same thing with a Case and cooler)

You'd actually be suprised how little fan-boying there is when it comes to cases and CPU coolers. Most people either dont care and just want something cheap, or look for the best bang for the buck, or the case that fits their needs regardless of brand. That being said, case makers and cpu coolers earn reputation for their quality (Example, Fractal Design and Noctua respectively) for tier consistent quality and performance, but thats not to say people will scream "IF YOU DONT PUT A NH-U12 IN A DEFINE R5 YOURE WRONG"

Personally for cases, I look at it as Performance First, Aesthetics second, Quality and/or Price third (this usually depends on budget which is more important), noise last (like @tarfeef101 mentioned its usually not a big deal)

4 hours ago, tgrachan said:

I know that some manufacturers list it but it seems that the majority do not.

Also sites like newegg.com usually list important dimensions like that...

The Phanteks Evolv ATX is one I dont recommend, it has severe airflow issues. The InWin 303 and Phanteks P400 has similar airflow issues but to much less of a degree. Someone on the forum used the Anidees cube and said it was good, and the PC-O8 has always been a dream case of mine, before the days of sub $100 TG side panel cases, which is usually the range I recommend. Cases like the Define C TG, Meshify C, and Phantels Enthoo Pro M TG, are usually the cases that check all the boxes for me personally, but cases like the Corsair 460x, NZXT S340/Phanteks P400, Thermaltake View31/Core X31/ Supressor F31 are all still good cases as well.