Well, this one is a little geeky...
But I decided my computer was running to warm and sounded like a hurricane. So, I looked at aftermarket coolers for my lovely graphics card (Nvidia 260, couldn't afford the 280) and plumped for the Thermalright kit specially designed to this type of card. Great, this'll do the job.
I'll just take a quick look on the thermalright website. What is this? More types of heatsink than you can shake a stick at. Hmm, I'm bound to need the rear side cooler for the grahics card. And that masive heatsink for the main processor. Well, at the same time I'll get the rear cooler for that too. And some fans. But quiet ones, mind.

Ooh, it appears Scan is the only official UK retailer of Thermalright kit - I'll just take a look there. Yes! I can get it all there. Now, good fans. These look good, specially designed bearings which float in oil! No idea what that means, but sounds wonderful. Need two.

Now, what does that some to?

£150 delivered. For cooling a processor and a graphics card. It's OK, they take PayPal - I've got some cash on that. So it's only costing me £100. For some fancy lumps of aluminium and a couple of huffers.

It's not arrived yet, but it better be worth it.
( gareth_alien will be human again at, Tue 26 May 2009, 9:19, 5 replies)

WTF are you buying for 150 quid?
I thought *I* was mad for buying a BFO GeminII cooler and a couple of Noctua fans (the best ones out there, IMO, but also the most expensive), but that only came to about 50 quid. One of the motherboard sensors says it's slightly too hot, even though temperature probes say it's fine, and I'm prepared to chuck 50 quid away to find out if it's lying.

I've tried the really big and tall heatsinks, and think in some cases they actually impede airflow. No point having a really cool processor if everything else cooks..

Before I got this one I used the cheap and very effective Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro. Unless you're overclocking it's effective and quiet.

It's worth bearing in mind that 99.99% of heatsink reviews are utter shit. Many of them don't even test inside a case (useless). Several don't mention that particularly tall heatsinks won't fit inside certain cases, or in cases like the Coolermaster Stacker cases, will fit but not with the side fan panel on..

Lots of the products are designed to keep you buying more cooling options rather than actually doing the job..
(syllopsium, Tue 26 May 2009, 11:03, closed)

Well,
One of these, coupled with one of these.
Then for the graphics one of these, coupled with one of these.
Then two of these to do some blowing.
At some point I'm going to build my own chasis to go inside a desk, but in the meantime it's all going to be left open. Now I just have to not spill anything on it.
( gareth_alien will be human again at, Tue 26 May 2009, 11:57, closed)

eeesh
I do hope it works for you, but have you looked at the temperatures to see if the CPU is overheating? Personally if it was that hot and I was an overclock fan, I'd just reduce the overclock..

I did think about creating my own case at some point, but came to the conclusion that Life Is Too Short..
(syllopsium, Tue 26 May 2009, 13:51, closed)

Well...
Admittedly I don't need all this. But the pictures made it all look so shiney!

And life probably is too short, but I'm trying to de-clutter my house and figuered if I could build the PC inside the desk then it would be one less box to look at.
( gareth_alien will be human again at, Tue 26 May 2009, 14:06, closed)

It is, admittedly, shiny
I'd suggest your quickest option is to buy a nice big desk you can stick a tower PC under. Once it's under the desk, you can't see it!
(syllopsium, Tue 26 May 2009, 15:50, closed)