I'm building my first custom PC and I'm a bit concerned about fitting my cooling solution into the case. My case, the NZXT H5 Flow, only officially supports a 240mm AIO, but I've seen people getting away with fitting a 280mm AIO in there, as long as they use low-profile RAM. My AIO is the ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 280. Should I stick with the current cooler and see if it fits, or would it be smarter to swap it out for a 240mm option right away? Here's my build so far:
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7950X 4.5 GHz 16-Core Processor
- CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 280 72.8 CFM
- Motherboard: Gigabyte B650 GAMING X AX V2 ATX AM5
- Memory: Kingston FURY Beast 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30
- Storage: Western Digital Red SA500 1 TB 2.5" SSD
- Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME
- Video Card: Sapphire NITRO+ Radeon RX 7900 XTX 24 GB
- Case: NZXT H5 Flow (2024) ATX Mid Tower Case
- Case Fan: ARCTIC P12 PWM PST 56.3 CFM 120 mm Fan (5 pcs)
- Power Supply: SeaSonic VERTEX GX-1000 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX
If anyone has tips or feedback, I'd love to hear it!
1 Answer
Honestly, make sure you're okay with the hassle if it doesn't fit later. If you're going to be really annoyed if it doesn't work out, it might be better to just get the right size cooler now. You could grab a 240mm AIO but keep the 280mm one unopened just in case. Returns are usually pretty easy!
True, I just realized that I can also try mounting the AIO in the front of the case instead of the top. Thanks for the advice!