Intel 12600 on a prime motherboard would of meant the CPU wasnt properly supported to run at its proper capacity, prime boards are basically bottom spec motherboards. Both of these factors have vastly expanded the options available for keeping PCs and chips cool. And that explosion of gear has been great for experienced system builders, while creating some confusion for those new to the scene. In this article, we've combined a brief tutorial with a list of some of the best CPU coolers now available. You'll want to read closely to ensure you get one that will work in your system.

Thanks for your reply, much appreciate the advice, Taking your suggestions on board I've come up with this config.Don't want to install liquid cooling as it requires maintenance and there is a risk of liquid loss. TDP is just plain lies nowadays. This is the value of the CPU when it isn't boosting. These chips will boost indefinitely when the temperatures and power limits are being adhered to. The 12600k can easily push 200w. The coolers ability is going to be massively hampered when you put it in a case. Putting that case into a cupboard.... isn't going to increase efficiency, it's going to turn the case into an oven. With any AIO you're able to expel that air as part of the function, which is an absolute no brainer. If you wanted to save some money you could transfer your Windows license if you aren't going to be using it on your current PC. Not only does Corsair's iCUE H100i Elite Capellix cooler have an enticing aesthetic design, it also has one of the lowest-rated noise production levels that we've seen on a CPU water cooler. To be fair, the cooler can get a bit loud when the fans and pump are operating at full speed—when everything's revved up, Corsair says, the noise can climb to 37dBA. At ideal temperatures, however, the Elite Capellix is rated for as little as 10dBA, which is practically inaudible assuming the number holds in your specific build.

I have concerns about water cooled CPU coolers as water and electricity don't tend to mix well if ever there was a leak to occur but there are not many air cooler options, will the PCS Frostflow 200 be adequate or will this cause issues with the CPU. As stated before ths PC will not be used for any gaming. I have gone for 2 1TB SSD as I would install my music software on drive C: and the data files on drive D: and also the 1TB drive is not a lot more than a 512GB drive. Not sure about the 3200MHz support on the intel chip... looking at the specs i'd say your right, but im a novice i'd imagine he's seen something I havent or i'm missing something, I know the motherboard supports 3600MHz no issue. The CPU cooler I am using right now is Corsair H100i V2 Hydro Series High Performance and when i am playing AAA games, the CPU Temps never go pass 60 D. So I don't think my CPU is overheating. The previous generation of intel supported up to 2400 as default. This didn't in any way stop the motherboards from supporting XMP RAM up to 4800Mhz. The same is true now. This is the default setting for the RAM. Will 3000 work... sure, but you'll be taking a performance hit. If you're happy with that performance hit then that's up to yourself but our advice is never going to suggest that you do. There's always a case to be made with 3200 vs 3600 (due to the CAS latency) but that's a bit of a moot point as the higher frequency is still better and there's little in the way of money between them. I'm mainly using the system for streaming and playing mostly fps gaming, nothing crazy, at 1080p/1440p. Not particularly interested in OC'ing the cpu as my needs dont require it.Coolers, you pair to the CPU, intel tend to run hot, so you need a powerful cooler from the start, generally speaking CPU's these days all benefit from liquid coolers, heat production is steadily climbing as they become more and more powerful. Thanks for your reply, I'm going to use it to run flight simulator mostly in VR and some moderate video editing, know what you mean about the case, it would be a trade off for having the 3070 Ti, just received the full spec from PCS. This covers the changes we would recommend. Had to substitute the CPU with the 3600 as 3600x isn't available on the config. Looking at your build, the only thing that I can really see is your PSU seems very underpowered, for this build I’d probably personally suggest 850+.

Unfortunately that build won't do a great job of 1440p: the 3060 just isn't strong enough. Here's where I'd start looking: Before going any further, if you're a PC-building beginner, you'll want to read our deep-dive PC Cooling 101 guide to learn everything you need to know about CPU coolers. We'll summarize a few points from that article here, but won't be covering it in anywhere near the same depth.

Configure This PC

PSU, its a known issue that it recommends some shoddy numbers. It doesnt take into account a system under full load and allow headroom on it, or future upgrades. If you want longevity, overspec the PSU so it doesnt get worn out and it can take future GPU upgrades (which have greater power consumption) Who on earth are Nano review? Do you know them? Are their opinions well regarded? Do you think they are looking out for your best interests?