I built my rig earlier this year and it's been working great, though I have one thing that upsets me, whenever I do anything that takes a lot of CPU usage my main CPU fan goes on at 50C and it's way too loud, it's audible from down the hall. It rattles the whole case and it's a ridiculous amount of noise. It's a cheap CoolerMaster heatsink and I'm just ultimatly looking to upgrade to a new higher quality heatsink, one that hopefully won't rattle everything and make a ton of noise.

I have:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600
EVGA nforce 680i SLI Motherboard
Thermaltake Armor series Full size case

I'm willing to spend well for a decent heatsink that'll keep it cool without making too much noise.
Thank you in advance.

Here's a very decent one for cheap. You can get the Xigmatek heatsink and pair it with a Retention bracket for easy installation (however you have to take out your motherboard for this retention bracket as it needs to be installed at the back). You can choose not to purchase the retention bracket and installation should be the same as the stock heatsink (4 push pin).

EDIT: I forgot to mention that when you switch the heatsink, make sure that your processor is cleaned off of the thermal paste.
I believe the Xigmatek does not come with the thermal paste pre-applied but provides a tube for you.

This post has been edited by kamille316: Nov 6 2008, 07:15 PM

Hello Fyrex...

Zalman 9700 series coolers are quiet and effective. I've had very good luck with them.

Like kamille316's suggestion, you may have to remove the motherboard to install this cooler. All the mounting hardware is included, including the thermal compound. It also comes with a control so you can adjust the performance as needed.

wannabe1

Hm is there any alternative solutions, I really don't feel like taking everything apart just for the heatsink, are there any good ones that I can just install without removing the motherboard?

I decided to go with the one you offered,
Will this specific model fit with my motherboard/CPU?

Yes, it will install on your motherboard/cpu setup.

You will most likely have to remove the motherboard for the install, but it's well worth the effort.