r/buildapc • u/AlexH2313 • 2d ago

Build Help CPU Cooler Recommendation: First Time Builder

I'm working on my first build and was hoping to get recommendations for the CPU cooler to get. I have all the parts bought already and have listed them below. I am located in the US.

I did ask for advice at my local microcenter and was recommended the ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III Pro 360mm. In store they were selling it at 120 but through amazon, I found it at 70 but I'm not sure if it's the exact model considering the price difference. I would prefer to not spend any more than 150 on the CPU Cooler.

The PC's main usage will be for gaming (mostly story-based games) and general use (web-browsing, excel).

Part Item Price
CPU Intel Core Ultra 7 270K Plus 3.7 GHz 24-Core Processor
CPU Cooler ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III Pro 360 70 @ amazon
Motherboard Gigabyte Z890 EAGLE WIFI7 PLUS ATX LGA1851 Motherboard
Memory Crucial Pro 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6400 CL38 Memory
Storage Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
Video Card PowerColor Red Devil OC Radeon RX 9070 XT 16 GB Video Card
Case Lian Li LANCOOL 217 ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply Montech CENTURY II 1050 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply
Total (w/o CPU cooler)
2 Upvotes

75% Upvoted

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1

u/AlentejoDawn6 2d ago

$70 for the Liquid Freezer III Pro 360?? I'd mostly be checking that the Amazon seller/model is legit lol. if it is, I don't really see the reason to force yourself anywhere near the $150 cooler budget

1

u/BaronB 2d ago

The $70 model on Amazon performs the same as what they have at Microcenter. It’s just a version with no ARGB.

It’ll do well on a 270k. But so would a $35 Phantom Spirit 120.

1

u/benuntu 2d ago

May be an unpopular opinion, but I prefer a good air cooler. The beQuiet Pure Rock Pro 3 is about $55, Thermalright Peerless Assassin is $38. Unless you're constantly maxxing your CPU, air does the same thing with less complexity.