I recently purchased an i9 14900K processor and went with an air cooler (the be quiet! Dark Rock 5). I was warned against liquid cooling due to some bad experiences others had. I've made sure my BIOS is updated to handle any stability issues, but when gaming and doing light rendering, my CPU temperatures are reaching 85-95°C. I've adjusted some BIOS settings to limit the power to 125W, which keeps my gaming temps mostly in the low 80s, with idle temps around 40-50°C. Given the heat generation and my long-term use plans, I'm concerned if I need to switch to a better cooling solution to prevent issues with the CPU, motherboard, or RAM degradation. The biggest AIO cooler that would fit in my current case is a 280mm unit. What do you think?
4 Answers
80°C is perfectly fine for your i9 14900K. While water-cooling is indeed cooler, air coolers tend to be more reliable. If you're experiencing thermal throttling or consistently high temps, an AIO might be a smart choice—especially with heavy workloads. Since you’re already managing to keep your temps in the low 80s, it could be fine for now, but keeping options open for future upgrades would be wise.
Yeah, I think your setup is okay now, but as you push it harder, that AIO would definitely help!
If you want to bring your temps down further, consider delidding your CPU. I have a 14700K and after delidding, it improved my temps by about 10°C, which is significant! Of course, this isn’t for everyone, but it might be an option if you're comfortable with it.
True, but the gains could be worth it if you play around with temps a lot.
Delidding sounds risky! I think I’d rather invest in an AIO for peace of mind.
I've been using an AIO with my i7 13700K and while it runs a bit hot too, I’ve never seen temps breach 78-79°C under load. A quality AIO can sometimes outperform air coolers, especially in tight spaces where airflow isn’t ideal. If you're pushing your hardware hard, I’d strongly recommend moving towards liquid cooling options.
Same here, but isn’t it common with any cooler? Just gotta choose a good model, right?
That sounds reassuring—I've heard mixed opinions about AIOs leaking though. How do you feel about it?
Honestly, 80°C isn’t terrifying by any means. Some even say 95°C can be acceptable, which is a wild thought! If you’re worried, consider undervolting to drop temps without sacrificing performance. A decent -50mV could help, and it’s an easy tweak to try out before going for liquid cooling. Also, make sure airflow in your case is optimal!
I’m with you there. I feel like undervolting can give you a nice balance between performance and heat.
I didn’t know undervolting could help that much. Definitely worth a shot!
I hear you on the reliability! But considering how hot these CPUs can run, I'm leaning towards AIO for better long-term performance.