I'm building a new PC with a Ryzen 5 9600X and I'm unsure about which cooler to choose. I've heard a lot about the Peerless Assassin 120 SE, but I'm hesitant unless I know for sure it's a solid choice. Since I live in Australia where it's super hot most of the year, I'd prefer an AIO cooler if necessary. My case is the ANTEC C5, which seems to have decent airflow. What do you think?
4 Answers
Anything like an ID-COOLING option for around $20 should work fine. The 9600X is pretty efficient; you don't need anything fancy. A lot of high-priced coolers are really just for looks and don’t offer much more in terms of performance.
I've got the 9600X and I'm using a Phantom Spirit cooler that I scored for just $35, and it keeps everything cool. The Peerless Assassin is around $36 and is recommended for the 7600X, which means it will perform well for the 9600X too. You likely won't need an AIO unless you really want one. If budget isn't an issue and you think AIOs look cool, then go for it!
The Ryzen 5 9600X has a similar thermal design power (TDP) as the Ryzen 3 4100, which works fine with stock coolers. Don't worry too much about it!
Yeah, but stock coolers are usually pretty noisy and have had bad temp performance for me in the past.
You can find good coolers in the $20-30 range for this chip. It has a quirky idle temp around 50°C, but it's not something to stress over. Better coolers won’t really change that because of the design.
Thanks for the input! I'm leaning towards the Peerless Assassin now.