I’m working on some changes to my system atm, and that includes upgrading the cooling.
I’m looking into 360mm AIO’s but I intend to switch the fans with Noctua Redux NF-P12’s. I want to know what else I should consider as far as AIO’s are concerned, or is it all in the fans?
For more context, I’m running a 13700k, 32gb drr5 and a 9070xt. I’m downsizing the system from ATX to mATX and, as previously stated, upgrading the cooling from a 240mm AIO to a 360mm. Everything will be getting moved to the Lian Li Dan-A3.
Doesn’t make sense to me either. The stock P12 Pros on the LF3 Pro are top fan for the rad thickness. Whereas, well, even Noctua’s own marketing materials point out the NF-P12 is a notably poor design.
Results on the LF3 are mixed. ID-Cooling and Montech Hyperflow are more or less direct LGA1700 price competitors and Lian Li’s GA II Lite isn’t much more. All of those likely have a thermal edge. And changing them off the stock fans is likely to be a downgrade unless you’re looking at like Vento Pro, F7 X120, BioniX P12, or NF-A12x25 G2. Most of which don’t particularly align to the budget objective.
What currency are we working in? LF3 Pro pricing starts around US$ 70/€65/AUD 100/CAD 100/NZD 125, give or take tax.
@lemma Fair. I buy Noctua and Arctic for the fanatical tech support. Both respond rapidly and will send you free parts if you run into installation problems. Noctua will even try to replicate your issues in the lab if you request it and provide enough information. They’ve both earned my loyalty over the years.
Working in NZD. The budget is mostly vibes, but I want to keep cooling under $300 if I can, and that includes some case fans. Mostly been looking at nz pc part picker, so local stock might be more than buying something overseas.
I was thinking about the noctua fan swap for noise reasons and figured if I was doing that the AIO wouldn’t be a huge deal (aka go cheaper since the fans would be doing the work), but I decided to ask in case there was something wrong with my assumption.
I guess I should have lead with the fact I was trying to go for low noise back at the start.
I do want to tune my cpu too but undecided if I want to try overclock or undervolt
I’m assuming that’s USD? can’t see if they ship to New Zealand or not
Noctua’s 360 AIO is king for that, but it’s also >2x the price of competing coolers. As someone who runs both Noctua and non-Noctua (Arctic) fans in a case, the difference between the former and the latter is complete silence vs. a background hum.
If you want silence, there’s no substitute for Noctua.
In USD but the shipping likely won’t be free, sadly. You’re likely better off buying from elsewhere based on your location.
Besides reviews and checking what others have gotten in terms of longevity out of it…
Does it fit the case? Especially if it is going to be top-mounted. 2 things can be a hindrance. The motherboard being too close to the top and the CPU power cable. Mostly mobo. The thickness of the radiator + fans matters here. Too thick, might not fit with the mobo/case. Measure it.
Since it is a 360mm, does it fit everywhere in the case? Top, front, bottom or only some of those places?
The pump in the AIO should never be pushing air. Simple way to solve that is to install radiator at the top. Pump should be in the heatsink. https://www.arctic.de/en/Liquid-Freezer-III-Pro-360/ACFRE00180A
They do also warn about mobos with certain SSD slot layout.
" Limited Compatibility with Certain Motherboards
Some motherboards may be incompatible with the Liquid Freezer III Pro due to oversized SSD coolers in the M.2_1 slot. For affected motherboards, we provide a compatible M.2 cooler free of charge."