12-14-2014, 02:49 PM
(This post was last modified: 12-14-2014, 03:40 PM by Hammerskjold.)
(12-14-2014, 04:08 AM)DeeBye Wrote: Do I want/need an aftermarket CPU cooler? I do not plan on overclocking, but I do value a fairly quiet machine. I don't need total silence either though. I'm not sure how quiet the stock Intel i5 cooler is. I don't mind if it's a dull roar while I'm gaming, but when my machine is idle I'd like it to be very quiet.
I'd vote yes for the aftermarket cooler. I personally go for an aftermarket air cooler (edited for clarity, air vs liquid cooler) but that's me having lower risk tolerance regarding absolute worst case scenarios.
Both types are generally pretty quiet nowadays*, since we're talking about a gaming and more general machine. I prefer air cooler system since it's still pretty good from a price\performance. But both types are usually pretty good nowadays, it's still better than the stock option for the most part, even if you're not overclocking.
*On my main, i7 photoshop machine, I have an aftermarket air cooler installed. It's a fairly large sized thing installed in a full size tower case. But it's a fairly quiet machine to date, opening the CD\DVD tray is louder than the general hum of the machine.