Cooling

The Cooler Master 'mars' processor cooler

The processor is the hottest part of a computer and the most sensitive to heat so it is essential to keep its temperature low. There are so many coolers out there in so many different designs it can often be very hard to know which is better than another. The best way to tell is to read reviews that compare the performance results of various HSFs to each other. Most HSFs have 'heat pipes', which have a high convection liquid in them to transfer heat away from the processor and into the heat sink where it is radiated away by the air flowing through.

Some larger coolers will require a little extra work when mounting them, but they will come with clear instructions and it is never a particularly complex process.

The Cooler Master 'CMsphere' airflow

It's important to create good airflow through the case and ensure that each fan is contributing to this flow rather than working against it. The most common flow of air through a case is from low front to high back. To create this type of flow you need one or more fans sucking air into the front of the case and one or more 'exhaust' fans blowing warm air out the back of the case. There will also usually be one or more fans in the PSU blowing air out of the case and contributing to this flow.

Some cases will also provide areas on the side of the case to mount one or more fans which will suck air into the side onto the processor‘s HSF and the graphics card. Other cases may also have space for a ‘blow whole‘ on the top of the case to blow warm air out of the top.

Remember to make sure your fans are mounted facing the correct direction as a fan blowing in the wrong direction can cause the whole flow to be disrupted.

The Thermal Take 'Prowater 850i' cooling system.

Water cooling is the best way to reach low temperatures required for extreme overclocking. A water basic water cooling system consists of 4 parts;

• The 'water block'
• The 'Pump'
• The 'radiator'
• The 'reservoir'

Water is stored in the reservoir which holds a relatively large amount of water. Some of that water is then pulled through the pump and pushed round the water pipes into the water block which is attached to the processor. As the water passes through the water block it is heated by the processor and then carries that heat away into the radiator. The radiator is like a big heat sink which slowly cools the water in the same way that a fridge does. Once the water has passed through the radiator it is then returned to the reservoir where it remains until its next journey through the system.

The processor, north-bridge and graphics card can all be cooled with 1 water cooling 'circuit'. All you need is 3 water blocks, one attached to each components and a radiator capable of cooling the water fast enough.

Choosing a water cooling system can be much like choosing a heat sink in that its very difficult to know how it will perform just from the specification. As with a heat sink and pretty much every other part of a computer the best way to discover how good it is to find some reviews. Googling the model name + 'review' should yield some reviews.

Other than the noise made by the drives spinning, the only noise that comes from your computer is that of the fans spinning away. This means that if you want a silent computer you need to minimise this noise by either building a low powered fan less system, or by using quiet fans and having them spin slowly.

Of course the lower power the machine is, the less heat it produces and therefore the easier it is to cool and keep quiet. If you want a powerful machine then the best solution is to use as large fans as possible as they can spin relatively slowly while still providing a decent air flow. Water cooling is also worth considering as it is far more efficient way to cool parts and can therefore be quieter in operation.

For very low powered parts a heat sink without a fan (called a 'passive' heat sink) is possible but be sure to keep an eye on temperatures using some monitoring software like speedfan and it‘s still essential to have at least 1 exhaust fan blowing air out the back of the case and preferably one at the front, otherwise the air inside the case will heat up and the passive heat sink will no longer be able to cool efficiently.