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Air cooler or Liquid cooler for 9800x3d?

SKRDPTSGL said:
Thank you for coming back.I'm also thinking to buy a Phanteks aio because maybe is more compatible but Corsair sims like a more safe choice.
Click to expand...
Technically (and practically for the most part) the LF3 360 is compatible, it's 63mm thick and the G500A has 70mm clearance at the top. And looking at it in my build it's true, I see 7mm vertically from the top edge of the mobo. Or 5mm if I include the fan screws which protrude from the underside of the AIO.

Looking at it from above, the far edge of the AIO is a bit offset to the right relative to the mobo PCB. About lined up with the height of the EPS connectors, actually more by 2mm or so, thus closer to the side panel.
The problem is that when you connect the EPS plugs you add height and you also need extra height to account for the bend in the cables near the connectors. Also another issue arises with the use of wider AIOs like a 280. Even with 27mm thick rad the far edge will be closer to the motherboard tray thus potentially making routing thicker cables more difficult.

Also the relative to the cutouts the underside of the LF3 hangs lower by cca. 1cm. And this unfortunate combination makes routing the EPS cables through those cutouts practically impossible in safe conditions. I'm talking about a situation like mine, where the EPS connectors are near the DIMMs. And for me it's very hard to disconnect the EPS cables as there's very little room for my fingers to press the release latch.
20250529_000012.jpg20250528_235928.jpg
When the connectors are close to the I/O panel they can be routed with greater success by bending the cables obliquely to reach the corner. To help with this the AIO can be moved forward by 2cm as the holes in the top allow for that. The hoses will be closer to the front fans but nothing to worry about.
phanteks-g500a-19.jpg
In this video the Phanteks Glacier One 360 MPH was used.
It's EOL now but the current ones from Phanteks are the same thickness, 57mm as the fans are 30mm instead of 25mm. So about halfway between Nautilus and LF3.

My advice is to stick with a 360 and 52mm thickness. This way you will have the best conditions for cable routing and also getting your fingers around when connecting stuff.
If you can get the Nautilus for a good price I see no cons with it (from the reviews I've read and watched), personally I would get it. I totally regret keeping the LF3 past the return window and hate myself for installing it. Actually I am considering buying the Nautilus anyway and then try to sell the LF3 on the used market to recover some money.
But make your own research and don't rush, the good news is that there are other valid choices out there besides the LF3, and in your case the CPU doesn't require a 14900K level cooler so you're not constrained regarding your choice.
 
Why would they put the EPS cables there? I have never seen that before.. sorry I had to comment on that.
 
Air is pretty decent. Pretty reliable too. Nice not having to worry.
 
freeagent said:
Air is pretty decent. Pretty reliable too. Nice not having to worry.
Click to expand...

my best friend did a kryosheet and thermalright royal praetor recently, he is never going to have any maintenance at all (he usually keeps the same rig for 10+ years)

sure dusting is needed, but nothing needs unscrewed or anything for that at least.

a fan might die sure, but i doubt it, even if it does its easy to replace, air is the way to go imo at least for long term builds.
 
Sol_Badguy said:
Technically (and practically for the most part) the LF3 360 is compatible, it's 63mm thick and the G500A has 70mm clearance at the top. And looking at it in my build it's true, I see 7mm vertically from the top edge of the mobo. Or 5mm if I include the fan screws which protrude from the underside of the AIO.

Looking at it from above, the far edge of the AIO is a bit offset to the right relative to the mobo PCB. About lined up with the height of the EPS connectors, actually more by 2mm or so, thus closer to the side panel.
The problem is that when you connect the EPS plugs you add height and you also need extra height to account for the bend in the cables near the connectors. Also another issue arises with the use of wider AIOs like a 280. Even with 27mm thick rad the far edge will be closer to the motherboard tray thus potentially making routing thicker cables more difficult.

Also the relative to the cutouts the underside of the LF3 hangs lower by cca. 1cm. And this unfortunate combination makes routing the EPS cables through those cutouts practically impossible in safe conditions. I'm talking about a situation like mine, where the EPS connectors are near the DIMMs. And for me it's very hard to disconnect the EPS cables as there's very little room for my fingers to press the release latch.
View attachment 401784View attachment 401788
When the connectors are close to the I/O panel they can be routed with greater success by bending the cables obliquely to reach the corner. To help with this the AIO can be moved forward by 2cm as the holes in the top allow for that. The hoses will be closer to the front fans but nothing to worry about.
View attachment 401789
In this video the Phanteks Glacier One 360 MPH was used.
It's EOL now but the current ones from Phanteks are the same thickness, 57mm as the fans are 30mm instead of 25mm. So about halfway between Nautilus and LF3.

My advice is to stick with a 360 and 52mm thickness. This way you will have the best conditions for cable routing and also getting your fingers around when connecting stuff.
If you can get the Nautilus for a good price I see no cons with it (from the reviews I've read and watched), personally I would get it. I totally regret keeping the LF3 past the return window and hate myself for installing it. Actually I am considering buying the Nautilus anyway and then try to sell the LF3 on the used market to recover some money.
But make your own research and don't rush, the good news is that there are other valid choices out there besides the LF3, and in your case the CPU doesn't require a 14900K level cooler so you're not constrained regarding your choice.
Click to expand...

Lian Li GA II Lite?Is 55mm total.​

 
Space Lynx said:
my best friend did a kryosheet and thermalright royal praetor recently, he is never going to have any maintenance at all (he usually keeps the same rig for 10+ years)

sure dusting is needed, but nothing needs unscrewed or anything for that at least.

a fan might die sure, but i doubt it, even if it does its easy to replace, air is the way to go imo at least for long term builds.
Click to expand...
Die after how long? bcoz I recently bought Thermalright Phantom Sprit 120SE. I am just curious.

I wish Noctua Fans are available locally, I would replace it in no time.
 
The N said:
I wish Noctua Fans are available locally, I would replace it in no time.
Click to expand...
You really aren’t missing out on anything.
 
freeagent said:
You really aren’t missing out on anything.
Click to expand...
Just longevity thing. But I hope these TL-C12B-S V2 fans on PH120SE ARGB would serve long. No complaints regarding accoustic performance, but of course in my customized setup.
 
The N said:
Just longevity thing.
Click to expand...
I doubt it.

Noctua has made it this far on the illusion of quality, and quiet(ish) fans that don't push very hard.
 
Sol_Badguy said:
If you can get the Nautilus for a good price I see no cons with it (from the reviews I've read and watched), personally I would get it.
Click to expand...
There is a con actually, the fans don't come preinstalled.
freeagent said:
Why would they put the EPS cables there? I have never seen that before.. sorry I had to comment on that.
Click to expand...
Most MSI Z890 boards have this config. Some Z790s as well, the MEGs. Also the X870E Godlike.
The probably have a quota of cons/drawbacks for each product, and for these boards the "unorthodox" EPS placement got voted.
Goes to show these boards aren't made for actual users who install them in actual cases.
They better represent content ammo for toobers. :mad:
SKRDPTSGL said:
Lian Li GA II Lite?Is 55mm total.
Click to expand...
This might be the better choice for you on AMD. Can't say for sure (considering all of the aspects of a product), but for a 9800X3D both are going to be really, really close.
The 7950X3D test (@08:30) shows the Galahad dominating hard. If every sample has this difference over the competition then the choice is clear.
The fans come preinstalled, the installation seems fine on both platforms. The only "con" might seem to be the 40cm tube length, although from what I see looking at builds with it on top and with the tubes down they are long enough (@07:20).
So if they're close in price go with the Lian Li.
 
Sol_Badguy said:
There is a con actually, the fans don't come preinstalled.

Most MSI Z890 boards have this config. Some Z790s as well, the MEGs. Also the X870E Godlike.
The probably have a quota of cons/drawbacks for each product, and for these boards the "unorthodox" EPS placement got voted.
Goes to show these boards aren't made for actual users who install them in actual cases.
They better represent content ammo for toobers. :mad:

This might be the better choice for you on AMD. Can't say for sure (considering all of the aspects of a product), but for a 9800X3D both are going to be really, really close.
The 7950X3D test (@08:30) shows the Galahad dominating hard. If every sample has this difference over the competition then the choice is clear.
The fans come preinstalled, the installation seems fine on both platforms. The only "con" might seem to be the 40cm tube length, although from what I see looking at builds with it on top and with the tubes down they are long enough (@07:20).
So if they're close in price go with the Lian Li.
Click to expand...
Which one?
 
SKRDPTSGL said:
Which one?
Click to expand...
Which Lian Li?
The GA II Lite 360 Performance:
www.techpowerup.com

Lian Li GA II Lite 360 Performance Review

Lian Li goes on the offensive against its competition with the GA II Lite 360 Performance AIO, delivering daisy-chained fans, hidden cables, stellar performance, and an outstanding warranty. It’s a near-perfect blend of everything you’d want in an all-in-one liquid cooler—and better yet, it...
www.techpowerup.com www.techpowerup.com
If it's not much more expensive than the Nautilus, then you can't go wrong with this.
 
freeagent said:
I doubt it.

Noctua has made it this far on the illusion of quality, and quiet(ish) fans that don't push very hard.
Click to expand...
Somehow agree with the "fans that don't push hard" which of course results in low noise output.

About longevity, Noctua is doing great as NF-A14 fan on U14S is nearing 10 years. But now PH120SE is installed and it's my first experience with Thermalright.
 
The N said:
Somehow agree with the "fans that don't push hard" which of course results in low noise output.

About longevity, Noctua is doing great as NF-A14 fan on U14S is nearing 10 years. But now PH120SE is installed and it's my first experience with Thermalright.
Click to expand...
I have Thermalright fans that are 10 years old. TL-C12 is not their best offering.. more of a budget choice to get you in the door.
 
freeagent said:
I have Thermalright fans that are 10 years old. TL-C12 is not their best offering.. more of a budget choice to get you in the door.
Click to expand...
And so beating competition in pricing, and except PS 120 EVO, all using TL-C12 fans. Hope it will go long with me.
Right now, Phantom Sprit 120SE ARGB is a good change happened in my rig.
 
not saying you guys here do, but ppl shouldnt be discouraged from using any form of LC, unless its huge perf drop (small rad/pump etc) or cost (EK Predator) compared to air,
especially if they arent focused on cost alone (done enough builds to exclude "simple/easy" for (air) cooler install, as those days seem to be over too).
if you dont like it, fine, doesnt mean no one else should (use it).


@The N
Arctic has a few fans that offered 10y warranty, havent seen it for others (so far), but also had about ~20% of the (multi pack only) fans go bad within 1-2y,
meaning even the 6y warranty on other models would have been enough to get free replacements, and Noctuas are good, but doesnt mean all of them are (redux series).
10 fans would have cost me about 250-300$ (noctua), while i paid ~150$ for arctic fans. even if i ignore identical warranty coverage, the noctuas arent 2x better.

@Sol_Badguy
nothing prevents you from mounting the fans outside on the top of the case, gaining you a lot of space inside.. :D
but like many other cases with openings/holes besides any rad/fan area (pulling hot air back in), says a lot.
have yet to see a single time where having any openings not cooling (any non fan/rad port) show any temp/noise/perf gains over everything being sealed up.

@freeagent
@Space Lynx
sure air works, but like many other things "mankind" cooled with air for decades/centuries, we changed to water for many different reasons.
besides, the only issues i ever had with LC in the past 20y, was with Asetek based/designed units, showing that its usually related to a crappy product, not LC/AIO itself,
and until a few years ago brands like Corsair offered 5y warranty to replace/repair ANY part (in your pc) that would get killed if the AIO leaked/died, no air cooler ever offered that.
and on personal note, since ppl (in other forums) have suggested LC to be less reliable than air (and asking me for "proof" when i said that its not the case)
while never providing any (statistically relevant; >2500 units involved) info supporting that air is more reliable.
my preference is "silence", meaning inaudible with low loads like surfing/streaming, quiet under gaming load (read not 100% on cpu+gpu), with my best solution having a passive rad (reserator) if its close,
or using longer hoses to connect a "cooling box" (rad/fans/pump/res) 6-10ft away, something air will never be able to do.
 
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Waldorf said:
not saying you guys here do, but ppl shouldnt be discouraged from using any form of LC, unless its huge perf drop (small rad/pump etc) or cost (EK Predator) compared to air,
especially if they arent focused on cost alone (done enough builds to exclude "simple/easy" for (air) cooler install, as those days seem to be over too).
if you dont like it, fine, doesnt mean no one else should (use it).


@The N
Arctic has a few fans that offered 10y warranty, havent seen it for others (so far), but also had about ~20% of the (multi pack only) fans go bad within 1-2y,
meaning even the 6y warranty on other models would have been enough to get free replacements, and Noctuas are good, but doesnt mean all of them are (redux series).
10 fans would have cost me about 250-300$ (noctua), while i paid ~150$ for arctic fans. even if i ignore identical warranty coverage, the noctuas arent 2x better.

@Sol_Badguy
nothing prevents you from mounting the fans outside on the top of the case, gaining you a lot of space inside.. :D
but like many other cases with openings/holes besides any rad/fan area (pulling hot air back in), says a lot.
have yet to see a single time where having any openings not cooling (any non fan/rad port) show any temp/noise/perf gains over everything being sealed up.

@freeagent
@Space Lynx
sure air works, but like many other things "mankind" cooled with air for decades/centuries, we changed to water for many different reasons.
besides, the only issues i ever had with LC in the past 20y, was with Asetek based/designed units, showing that its usually related to a crappy product, not LC/AIO itself,
and until a few years ago brands like Corsair offered 5y warranty to replace/repair ANY part (in your pc) that would get killed if the AIO leaked/died, no air cooler ever offered that.
and on personal note, since ppl (in other forums) have suggested LC to be less reliable than air (and asking me for "proof" when i said that its not the case)
while never providing any (statistically relevant; >2500 units involved) info supporting that air is more reliable.
my preference is "silence", meaning inaudible with low loads like surfing/streaming, quiet under gaming load (read not 100% on cpu+gpu), with my best solution having a passive rad (reserator) if its close,
or using longer hoses to connect a "cooling box" (rad/fans/pump/res) 6-10ft away, something air will never be able to do.
Click to expand...

the pump noise alone is louder on a LC cooling unit than my fans are. so i never understood that whole water is quiet thing
 
@Space Lynx
you mean the ones you used/heared. :D

while im not spending 80-100$ anymore for a modded Eheim or D5, the clone i have is silent at reduced rpm, running it at 50% is enough for full load, given you mount it properly (isolated).
and i have tinnitus with my left ear more sensitive to any high pitched sounds (like some pumps), and my case at 2ft to my left, is not an issue.
and even if i look at the pump that came with the Eisbär was fine, just didnt like the (small) res , and wanted a little more pressure/flow so adding the gpu would never be an issue, even that it would have worked.
 
I moved back to my AIO last night because summer :D
 
@freeagent
and here i thought for 2s you had a massive rgb lit res, but it was only the ram sticks.
stupid mobile screens, guess an 8in phone is next for me :laugh:
 
FoulOnWhite said:
Just read that review, what a cracking air cooler.
Click to expand...
my 120MM Thermalright aio smashes the thermalright phantom spirit evo in a hot case (when the graphics card is also running) - air coolers are awesome if you have cold air flowing into it.
 
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