I've had an iBUYPOWER prebuilt for nearly two years and want to upgrade its cooling system. This would be my first PC modification, so I'm excited but also a little nervous about getting something wrong. It currently has a 240mm iBUYPOWER AIO cooler and three stock RGB fans. The fans are noticeably loud even at idle, and the CPU sometimes reaches 85°C or higher while gaming. I'm considering installing a 360mm AIO and replacing the stock fans, ideally for $250 or less. I'm especially interested in recommendations for reliable AIOs and RGB fans, possibly from Corsair. After installing the new hardware, will I need to change anything in the BIOS, or should it mostly be plug-and-play?
2 Answers
A 360mm Arctic Liquid Freezer III Pro is a strong option and can often be found for around $70–$100. It performs very well for the price. The installation should be mostly plug-and-play: mount the cooler, connect the pump and fan headers, and connect any lighting cables. You generally shouldn’t need to change BIOS settings unless your motherboard doesn’t automatically detect the pump or you want to adjust fan curves.
Before replacing everything, confirm that those temperatures are actually from the CPU and not the graphics card. A 240mm AIO should usually handle gaming loads reasonably well, so loud fans or high temperatures could be caused by dust, a failing pump, an overly aggressive fan curve, poor case airflow, or old thermal paste. Cleaning the system and applying fresh, quality thermal paste may solve the problem. Replacing the fans with quieter models is also an option, but it may not be necessary if the existing ones are functioning properly.
I checked with MSI Center and Intel’s utility, and both report that the CPU is reaching those temperatures. I’ll inspect the pump, dust, airflow, and thermal paste before committing to a full replacement.