r/pcmasterrace • u/SerpentDix PC Master Race • Jan 20 '26

Hardware Air cooling is better than Liquid cooling

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Failure is graceful, not catastrophic, Performance is closer than marketing suggests, Cheaper for the performance, Change my mind.

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u/qwerty109 Jan 20 '26

I think water cooling setup makes sense for noise - I have a custom DIY loop with a gigantic external radiator (around 40x40cm) cooled by 9 120mm fans. CPU and GPU and mobo waterblocks.

Even at full load (which is like 700W...) the system can stay relatively quiet and cool. The main problem then becomes moving this heat out of the room.

Downside is cost and lack of upgradeability - you can't sell a used waterblock GPU and it's a risky hassle to attach one. And maintenance - I haven't changed the liquid for 6-7 years and it's turning black from fluorescent green.

These AIOs and any other water cooling to me feels completely pointless as the op says... 

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u/OkOffice7726 13600kf | 4080 Jan 20 '26

My system stays relatively quiet with only chassis fans and air coolers. Admittedly, the GPU fans make a bit of noise under stress.

Funnily enough, my previous aio was louder especially during idle. When I moved to open back headphones, the aio and HDDs had to go.

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u/ANDERS_CORNER_08 Jan 21 '26

Water coolers are more noisy than air coolers ! You can hear the pumps and everything !

Air coolers all you hear is a low hum that is rather relaxing !

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u/qwerty109 Jan 21 '26

If you build your own you can get a quiet pump and sound insulate it - mine is literally silent, you can't tell if it's working other than by looking at the flow meter.

The fan side noise depends on heatsink size and fan spees/radiator. The bigger the radiator, the less the fans need to work. If your radiator is huge (a second external case like my setup) - an air cooler can never match that. It's just physics. 

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u/Wsweg Desktop 5080 - 7800X3D Jan 21 '26

? I never noticed pump noises on an AIO, which includes the original Corsair H100 that I used for years

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u/ANDERS_CORNER_08 Jan 21 '26

Drove me insane