Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Hero - Problem finding a cooler that will fit...

[knox1711]

Not a huge overclocker, but I believe in keeping components as cool as possible for longevity.

Building a new rig with the Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Hero board, AMD 3900x, Corsair Carbide 540 airflow case, and wanted a vapor chamber solution (had too many pumps fail on me in the past), so I tried the Cooler Master MasterAir Maker 8...well there is a row of capacitors on the left side of the CPU socket, and it makes fitting the bracket for that cooler impossible. Even without the capacitors, the clearance for a video card in the PCI 1 slot was going to be very tight, if doable.

I have done a lot of searches, but haven't found a lot of solid information. The best cooler I could find with a QVL list that included the asus board was the Noctua NH-D15 ( chromax.black) but the dimensions on it look very tight as well. The bracket does appear to be able to clear the capacitor row though from what I see from the online installation manual. My RAM config is 16gbx2, so sticks in b2, a2 on the right side of the CPU socket...

Anyone have this board that can offer a recommendation for a top end air/vapor cooler or confirm the Noctua fit?

Thx.

 

[somebrains]

U12s or u14s won't work for you?
Threadripper guys seem to like them, Wendell likes them.

I like mine when I'm not using an aio.

 

[Furious_Styles]

If you're not a big OCer then attack the problem with a smaller cooler and lower voltages. You win on both fronts.

 

[knox1711]

EDIT: The NH-D15 arrived and it fits on the board. Have to jack the front fan up abit to get over the ram, but everything fits. Idle temps in the upper 30s. Not used to this 3900x yet.

Thanks for the conversation in the thread.

U12s or u14s won't work for you?
Threadripper guys seem to like them, Wendell likes them.

I like mine when I'm not using an aio.

I have the NH-D15 on the way from Austria (don't know why they didnt have stock in the US), and a NH-U12S on the way domestically. Obviously the 12 is nowhere near the cooler the D15 is...So like I mentioned, I am looking for the best/biggest heat exchange I can get given the board's constraints. Thanks for the ideas. Still hoping someone on here has actually put a D15 on this asus board or tried...

If you're not a big OCer then attack the problem with a smaller cooler and lower voltages. You win on both fronts.

Fair enough, but I like to have the option to overclock, if I have time to play around with it as a hobby. 3D modeling and 3D printing have taken up most of my hobby time lately, but sinking time into building a high end rig is something I really enjoy.

 

[Grymtitan]

Thank you for starting this thread!

I'm building almost the exact rig and running into the same problems. 3800x, 540 carbide case, with a Noctua NH-D15 heatsink.

The one sticking point for me is ram clearance. I'm looking to buy 2 sticks of 16gb G.Skill Trident Z Neo and it's mentioned that it is a bit taller than normal (44mm) . Will this still work?

 

[knox1711]

Thank you for starting this thread!

I'm building almost the exact rig and running into the same problems. 3800x, 540 carbide case, with a Noctua NH-D15 heatsink.

The one sticking point for me is ram clearance. I'm looking to buy 2 sticks of 16gb G.Skill Trident Z Neo and it's mentioned that it is a bit taller than normal (44mm) . Will this still work?

Hi. It will fit with your ram, I used the same kit, but you have to move the front fan up on the heatsink, so it sticks up higher...make sure your case can clear it...I used a Corsair 540 carbide with no problem...

FYI, I was not happy with the D15 performance. I went with the ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 280mm, an AIO which is actually currently a few dollars cheaper than the Noctua. It cools my 3900x 5 to 10 to 20 degrees cooler depending on what I am doing.

 

[Dan_D]

EDIT: The NH-D15 arrived and it fits on the board. Have to jack the front fan up abit to get over the ram, but everything fits. Idle temps in the upper 30s. Not used to this 3900x yet.

Memory clearance issues with traditional heat sink and fan configurations are normal. You can get some smaller units that avoid these issues like the Wraith Spire, etc. but they don't cool nearly as effectively.

 

[d3athf1sh]

i was gonna suggest the cooler master MASTERAIR MA620M that's what i'm getting for my 3800x soon as i have the money to do so.

 

[d3athf1sh]

Thank you for starting this thread!

I'm building almost the exact rig and running into the same problems. 3800x, 540 carbide case, with a Noctua NH-D15 heatsink.

The one sticking point for me is ram clearance. I'm looking to buy 2 sticks of 16gb G.Skill Trident Z Neo and it's mentioned that it is a bit taller than normal (44mm) . Will this still work?

i am getting a coolermaster ma620m but before that i actually contacted noctua and they suggested the d15s. I will quote what they sent me in the email and also show the pics.

quote:
Dear Mr. Qtip-va,
The NH-D15S is an asymmetrical single fan version of the NH-D15 (or NH-D15 SE-AM4) that has been tailored to provide superior RAM and PCIe compatibility. In particular, the NH-D15S differs from the NH-D15 in the following regards:
Asymmetrical design: While both coolers are 150mm wide, the NH-D15S is off-set towards the top edge of the motherboard and thus provides more clearance towards the PCIe slot.

RAM clearance: While the front fan of the NH-D15 overhangs the RAM slots on many motherboards, the single fan NH-D15S provides 65mm clearance for tall RAM modules on all compatible sockets.

Total height: While the front fan of the NH-D15 must be installed slightly higher in order to provide sufficient clearance for standard height (32mm) RAM modules, the single center fan of the NH-D15S can be installed lower on the fin stack. As a result, the total height of the NH-D15 including fans is 165mm whereas the total height of the NH-D15 including its single center fan is only 160mm.
Performance: While the base performance of the NH-D15 and NH-D15S heatsinks is identical, the dual fan configuration of the NH-D15 can provide 1-3°C better performance. Users who have sufficient room can also upgrade the NH-D15S with either a 120mm (e.g. NF-A12x25 PWM) or round 140mm (e.g. NF-A15 PWM) fan on the front fin stack in order to achieve the same performance levels as the NH-D15. The fan clips for installing a second fan are included with the NH-D15S.
Kind regards,
Emanuel Fankhauser
Noctua Support Team