I am planning to build two new computers - one for me and one from a friend

Mine will be a i7 (920 or 950) while my friend's one will be the AM3 (955 or 965)

we both do not do over clocking but it it worth getting better coolers than supplied with the CPUs as stock?

If so have anyone got any recommendation? - in the past I only stuck with stock coolers and when I did buy COOLER MASTER Gemin II it was too big for my case - I now brought a Antec 1200 case so size should not be a problem?

Mark

If you're going for the 955 and you're not going to OC it I'd say the standard cooler was fine. However, the 965 runs very hot and has a TDP of 140W so I'd recommend a better cooler for that one. The 955 is also about £40-£50 cheaper and much better value IMO.

I can't comment in the Intel chips, as I've never used one in a machine I've built myself.

thanks for the feedback

having read a few reviews now I think I tell my friend to stick with the 955

Mark

Uprated coolers will do as much for the noise level, as they will for the heat output. Always go uprated, unless you really don't care. The AMD chips in particular, run much hotter of late and will likely require more cooling than an i7.

Well that's a load of [LIFTED] right there. The only chips from AMD that run excessively hot are the 140W models such as the 9950 and the 965.

A 955 would happily run on the standard cooler, even when overclocked. As for the noise, they're not any noisier than your average case fan.

For the i7 a Fenrir Titan is a great choice.
It's silent. Even at 4GHz the titan cannot be heard in my case.

I never said they wouldn't run with a standard cooler. Just that they need more cooling than the Intel chips, as they run hotter. Which is true. Also the OP mentioned the 965.

From: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/coolin ... oup-test/1

Core i7 Heatsink Group Test

"The problem gets even trickier now that all Intel’s Core i7 processors require a whopping 130W TDP (Thermal Design Power) of cooling to keep them working safely at load."

From: http://www.nordichardware.com/news,9821.html

AMD reduces TDP rating of Phenom II X4 965

"It's still a bit high with a TDP rating of 125W"

Question: are they talking about the same thing here?


From this and other reviews I now thinking of getting the:

Cooler Master V8

what do you think?

Mark