Those are garbage, though. 140mm too. You really need 240 or more for modern processors. (I say as I sit next to a computer that runs a 7950X and 4090 on a single 140mm, but that’s a 60mm thick radiator with two 3krpm fans and it’s really only there as a backup to make the computer usable at all with the huge external radiator not plugged in.)
I'm running a single 120, and it's doing just fine with my I7 12000K. I'll probably upgrade it to a 240, but the point still stands that with all the cheap cases with extensive rad mounting options beyond 120. If you were building a new rig right now, you're telling me you would go for a giant noctua cooler over a case and 240 AIO setup?
In benchmarks a decent air cooler generally beats a 120/140mm AIO at a given noise level. It’s about the radiator surface area, when the water radiator gets that small its surface area is generally less than that of the tower air cooler. You still get some benefit from having the larger amount of water to sink heat into, which means your fans won’t spin up and down as frequently (assuming you can control them from water temperature rather than from core temper), but if 120mm AIO or 90mm+ tower air cooler were my options, I’d go for the air cooler.
No, I’d go for the 240mm water cooler. I love Noctua, but high-end processors put out too much heat these days for air coolers to be reasonable.
But that's my entire point. For the same or close enough price point to that noctua, you could have a 240, even cheaper with current sales at even bestbuy. If the price point was $100, or you didn't have a case with rad mounts, I could understand. But like I said before, with the availability of cheap cases with rad mounts and the price point of AIOs (even the 240s), what's the point of spending $150 on a tower cooler?
Absolutely zero point. At best the new noctua is a tad quieter for a bit more cooling.
I'd spring for a real loop which can be made for a few dollars more than a shitty AIO. Pump res, 1 rad 240+mm rad ( per component, for cpu just get a 360), barrow fittings from aliexpress, and epdm tubes, It may cost a little more but its reusable and serviceable and will work much better. But who am I to talk, I have a Lian-li v3000+ I got off ebay for $200, 2 d5, 1 360mm+2 480mm rads, far too many quick disconnects cooling a 11900k and 3080. But barring intel changing its socket mount holes I can continue to use this block. I've kept it from a 7700k up to my 11900k. AIO are garbage and are overpriced junk.
Oh hey, a fellow v3000+ user. Enjoying it?
Overkill but it was $200 on ebay so i couldn't pass it up.
Zero plasticizer clogging up my shit, very low permeation. Using Clear DP ultra.
I need to move my res somewhere else but I threw it together and can't be bothered to move it.
3090s are kind of a different beast because even though they are a generation old, they still have 24gb of VRAM which is very important for AI applications. You’ll probably notice 3070s and 3080s are definitely less than original MSRP.
So I should stay lower in the VRAM to avoid the AI tax like the old crypto tax? I was thinking about getting the 4070ti Super or 4080 after next gen drops.
3080s (10 GB models specifically) are going in the low 300s used on eBay. I've had mostly great luck buying used computer stuff on there. Just avoid anyone with zero feedback as those are fake dummy listings and it will take eBay 15 days to get you your money back.
I'm looking at 40 series, not 30 series. I won't buy until the next gen is out though. Get the DLSS 3. I can hang on to my 980ti for a little while longer. I'm not playing any really demanding games right now.
If you can snag a 4070ti super on sale, you should be set for a long time for 1080p gaming.
