AIO cooler for an Intel I9 13900K based system

I'm looking for advice\opinion on selecting an AIO cooler for the major upgrade I'm going to be completing within the next 2 months to my desktop PC
Components of the new system:
Case: Corsair 5000x (white) +fans
PSU: Corsair RM1200x Shift
Motherboard: Z790 ProArt Creator Wifi
Ram: 644GB DDR5
GPU: Sapphire Radeon Nitro+ RX 7900 XTX

I am currently thinking that I'm going to purchase an AIO cooler for first time. I'm not keen on an air cooler for the 13900k.
I am considering one of these:
https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categ...IX-XT-White-Liquid-CPU-Cooler/p/CW-9060073-WW
Any thoughts on this is welcome.

I'm running the H150i Capellix, from the previous generation. (See "My Computers".)

I found the Corsair fans to be too loud at full speed, so I replaced them with these. (Supposedly based on a Nidec design.) Quieter, but still far from silent. Plus, no RGB on the fans.

The cooling is adequate. (As measured by not quickly reaching the 100°C throttling threshold, under stress.) I don't overclock, beyond the defaults of the Asus motherboard.

Nice unit. BTW you can always tune those fan down as I do with the stock fans included with my Corsair H115i RGB AIO using Corsair's iCue software. You have Performance, Balanced, or Quiet. Balanced in fairly quiet but set mine to Quiet since I don't overclock. For the rear case fan, again, Corsair, I set a fan curve in the BIOS so the fan never runs at full speed unless the system gets really hot.

I built an audiophile stereo system around my PC so I need that PC as quiet as possible. I've no problem with these Corsair fans. In fact, that's all I have in my system besides the stock Cooler 200mm front case fans. System is extremely quiet.

I personally love Corsair's ML fans and have been using them for years because they're efficient, and quiet, at lower speeds. Also been using Corsair's AIO coolers for a number of years without problems. See my system specs.

360mm EK-AIO (I have this) or 360mm EK nucleus AIO are good performers. So is the Arctic cooler 360. They don't use the Asetek pumps tthat corsair uses and are better and less costly. You will want 360mm at least.

You might want to ditch the fans that come with the cooler and buy some like the Phanteks T30 120mm or the Noctua Chromax A12x25. They are the best preforming fans ( cooling performance / fan noise level) and well worth their cost. Get one of those coolers and these fans and you will be jake.

BTW, that 644 GB of DDR5 is going to heat up your rig some

Edited for some clarity

If the OP gets the Corsair AIO, I'd suggest they check out the fans, and give the iCue software a try by toning down the fans, and seeing what they do before spending money that may not be necessary. They (not you or me) may be surprised.

I'm familiar with Noctua, having used them for years, and they are good fans, but they aren't going to be cheap. Yeah, they less costly than the RGB Corsair fans, but still, why pay for something you already have that does just as good. AND something specifically paired with the AIO. Additionally, those are RGB fans, the Noctua's are not. I'm quite sure when the OP chose the AIO they did, RGB was also a factor

That said, agree Noctua fans are great, I've used them myself, but Corsair aren't chump change either, despite what some would say. But again, you can't go wrong with Noctua either. In the end RGB may be the deciding factor.

Good luck to the OP on whichever way they go

Dru2 said:

I'm familiar with Noctua, having used them for years, and they are good fans, but they aren't going to be cheap. Yeah, they less costly than the RGB Corsair fans, but still, why pay for something you already have that does just as good. AND something specifically paired with the AIO.

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Because they are NOT as good at all. They are noisy and don't perform all that well comparatively. I would not have mentioned this if it were not the case. When you are running one of these top end hot processors, you need the best cooling you can get so why go cheap on the cooling? These high end fans are $25-$35 apiece and are way above the quality in design and performance that the aio OEM provides.

Those fans aren't "paired" with the AIO and won't have any advantage over other fans with the aio just because they came with it. I replaced the EK fans that came with my EK-AIO 360 with Phanteks T-30 120mm (they are 30mm thick) and it was like night and day.

IMO Corsair aio are overpriced, use stifled Asetek pumps (the ones I mentioned are not asetek), their fans are mediocre, and their RGB is proprietary and the icue software is bad. Not condemning Corsair, they make plenty of other good stuff, but are outclassed here. There are many reputable reviews out there.

RGB on aio fans is oversold. Wouldn't you rather have an aio that can cool your processor better? I have plenty of RGB, just not on my fans.

Just my opinion.

geneo said:

360mm EK-AIO (I have this) or 360mm EK nucleus AIO are good performers. So is the Arctic cooler 360. They don't use the Asetek pumps tthat corsair uses and are better and less costly. You will want 360mm at least.

You might want to ditch the fans that come with the cooler and buy some like the Phanteks T30 120mm or the Noctua Chromax A12x25. They are the best preforming fans ( cooling performance / fan noise level) and well worth their cost. Get one of those coolers and these fans and you will be jake.

BTW, that 644 GB of DDR5 is going to heat up your rig some

Edited for some clarity

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I'm also a huge fan of all things Noctua. The quality of their gear is second to none.
When I'm installing Noctua coolers for myself or others, I find myself ogling at the craftsmanship.

By the way... I know the OP doesn't want an air cooler, but Noctua air coolers are very good performers, and very quiet. The fans are a great choice too.

Thanks for all the comments.
I've done some digging around for testing of cooling solutions for 13900k's

Puget Systems did a detailed comparison using an AIO cooler vs a Noctua NH-U12AP with the CPU at different Multicore Enhancement and LP1 and LP2 settings using various apps (mostly Adobe, Da Vinci Resolve, CineBench R23 etc.)

On YouTube there is this comparison of 14 air coolers on a 13900k. Interestingly the Noctua D15 didn't do well but the same Noctua cooler Puget tested did quite well.

42 minute video. *sigh* I'm not an Evelyn Wood graduate (look that up in your Funk & Wagnalls), but I think that I could absorb the info faster by reading it.

I didn't watch the whole thing. I don't understand their point scoring, but the worst cooler was down 7% from the best. Seems like an insignificant range.

In the Puget tests, notice the Cinebench one. I haven't hunted for the most stressful test, but Cinebench seems to drive the CPU to 100%, as measured by the Corsair iCue software. The I9-13900K throttles at 100° C, so you want to look for whether that happens.

I believe that the AIO water cooler outperforms the air cooler in the extreme. On the other hand, air coolers don't leak, usually. (I don't know what sort of fluid is used in the heat pipes, but I have never heard of it harming a PC. If it is something like methylene chloride, it might pose a small risk to the user.) I switched from Noctua to AIO water a few years ago, not so much for better cooling but rather for the space around the CPU socket. For the I9-13900k, though, it is for the cooling as well.

The XPG fans I'm using (75 CFM, 3.15 mm static pressure, 28dB max) on the radiator are supposed to be slightly quieter than the most similar Noctua fan (71.7 CFM, 3.94mm, 29.7dB) with similar specs. I haven't verified that. They are definitely quieter than the Corsair fans.

@geneo is more interested in winning an argument with me than looking at things from a practical point for the OP. I stand by my comments. And I don't care what AIO/Fans the OP gets, I was simply trying to provide clarity to those pushing against his choice.

@Marcus Vinicus, do further research outside of this forum before you make a decision.

Good luck.

Call me old fashioned, but I don't understand why you would use liquid cooling around electronics when good quiet air cooling performs as good. One day that liquid cooling is gonna leak. It's not if, but when.

I have some computers over ten years old, and I can tell you, if they were liquid cooled, I'd be concerned about them leaking. But they're not. They're still going strong with air cooling.

I've got a Corsair H100i Pro 240mm and I love it, but it is a bit noisy. I am planning to switch to Noctua fans in the next couple of weeks.

Stigg said:

Call me old fashioned, but I don't understand why you would use liquid cooling around electronics when good quiet air cooling performs as good. One day that liquid cooling is gonna leak. It's not if, but when.

I have some computers over ten years old, and I can tell you, if they were liquid cooled, I'd be concerned about them leaking. But they're not. They're still going strong with air cooling.

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The liquid in most AIO coolers is electrically non conductive. If it leaks, it will make a mess, but it won't short out your components.

Yeah i'd +1 anything noctua as well, Pretty much slaps around any other fans in terms performance, Quality is always really high as well. The mac daddy of fans if you like.

Dru2 said:

@geneo is more interested in winning an argument with me than looking at things from a practical point for the OP. I stand by my comments. And I don't care what AIO/Fans the OP gets, I was simply trying to provide clarity to those pushing against his choice.

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There is a difference between disagreeing with someone and an argument. It seems that if I ever disagree with you on some technical thing you mostly seem to get offended and direct some ad hominem aspersion at me like the above.

Looking at the level of upgrade the OP is thinking of, I don't think he is looking for anything practical. The practical thing is keeping that hot puppy cool without too much noise. Simply trying to provide the best options I know about for which maybe not thought about.

Catnip said:

I've got a Corsair H100i Pro 240mm and I love it, but it is a bit noisy. I am planning to switch to Noctua fans in the next couple of weeks.

The liquid in most AIO coolers is electrically non conductive. If it leaks, it will make a mess, but it won't short out your components.

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The liquid (mostly distilled water and glycol and maybe some biocide etc.) is mostly non-conductive because the water is pure. It will become conductive over time in the cooler as it interacts with the metal etc. If it leaks it will become conductive fairly quickly as it interacts with air, dirt and dust (at least that is what I have read - makes sense).

It is a rare thing for these higher end aio coolers ever to leak. It is not inevitable. The failure mode is almost always a pump failure (not leak associated) either mechanical or from the impeller and plate getting clogged with debris.

Catnip said:

I've got a Corsair H100i Pro 240mm and I love it, but it is a bit noisy. I am planning to switch to Noctua fans in the next couple of weeks.

The liquid in most AIO coolers is electrically non conductive. If it leaks, it will make a mess, but it won't short out your components.

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I believe that the coolant is water plus ethylene glycol.

Similar to the coolant in water-cooled automobiles.

I don't know what that would do to electronic components, but I'm not optimistic that it would be harmless. Probably wouldn't cause an Irwin Allen production, though.

Marcus Vinicus said:

Interestingly the Noctua D15 didn't do well but the same Noctua cooler Puget tested did quite well.

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The NH-D15 only really shines if you buy one additional NF-A15 fan to be put against the back of this specific CPU aircooler AND your case airflow is up to snuff. But because a lot of people still prefer to use a smaller, or 'mid tower' PC case with fewer and/or smaller case fans, and also because a lot of these mid-sized PC cases do not have the clearance for the NH-D15 to be able to fit in them (let alone be able to fit with an additional NF-A15 fan mounted on it) most 'reviews' out there are biased toward AIO WCS. Bias also helps to explain why the number of reviews that mention the fact that the potential risk of a pump failure is among multiple reasons why it isn't really worth spending $230 on such a product is so low. These AIO systems are still noisy. When listening to music through a big pair of floorstanding loudspeakers, the pump noise would drive me insane. (You'd be surprised to find out how many audiophiles tend to agree with me that even 20 dBA of background noise is still a few dBA too loud to be completely inaudible, but then, I also know quite a few audiophiles who should consider theirself lucky for the fact that they can't hear it... lol)

$230 minus the cost of the NH-D15 is enough money to cover the price gap between a smaller, medium-cooled PC case and a bigger one that is choc full of durable, quiet, low/medium rpm 140mm case fans─complete with dust filters and enough interior space to conveniently access all the parts and clean out the dust. (It's a pretty old joke by now, but no, RGB lighting doesn't help to make your CPU run faster.) Even if you're not convinced about the NH-D15, then TBH, compared to a $230 AIO you'd STILL be better off stretching your budget by 1/3 (at minimum) going for a custom loop WCS. Just sayin'...

Deep cools aio's are worth a look as well, especially for the price. My LT720 cost far less than the asus unit it replaced, and cooling is on another level.

First thanks to everyone for your helpful comments.


I've carried out quite a lot of research into coolers for i9 13900k processors. The best air cooler seems to be the Noctua NH-U12A. A good choice for anyone with a high end 13900k that isn't going to get into overclocking.

The water coolers, I'm not interested in building my own custom loop solution. Of the AIO products Corsair are readily available where I live, Arctic are not currently stocked by any retailers here. Asus are available but expensive. Deep Cool LS720 and LT720's are available and seem like a good cooler, with these I need to find more reviews. They don't have all the complex RGB stuff like the Corsair ones.

I still prefer a AIO solution so it will probably between a 360mm Corsair Capellix and the Deep Cool LT720. The main issue with current AIO products isn't leaks (seems to be relatively rare) but pump failure is more common.


I have time on my side as DDR5 ram stocks are low here in New Zealand and ram that is in the QVL for my new Asus motherboard isn't readily available currently.