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XPS 8960, replace the noisy water cooling
After a marathon of techincal suppport and replacements, I ended up with a DELL 8960 XPS (13700 non-K, 32 DDR5, 4070 Ti).
After formatting it and making some tweaks to reduce the atrocious DPC Latency everything seems to work fine...
BUT:
There is a lot of noise. This was the reason of my first replacement (who had water cooling as well) , then they sent me an aircooled XPS, which was quiet, then, again it had some hardware issues and now I have this. I am 90% sure that the noise comes from the water cooler. its an high pitched noise, like a fridge (not that loud, but very annoying in a quiet room).
All I want to ask is:
Which air cooler is compatible with the motherboard/case? Is it easy to install?
Are there any specific things to take into consideration removing the water cooling system?
As far as I Know the 13700 non-K is a 65 TDW proccessor and a simple air cooler should be fine.
Any suggestions?
redxps630
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March 9th, 2024 01:14
just use the Dell premium tower oem air cooler for 8960/8950. the mounting screws are standard M3 to fit the Dell backplate. direct drop in, apply new thermal paste, and plug n play.
OptiPlex Tower Pluswith 500W Platinum Power Supply, WW
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Stefanos1984
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March 9th, 2024 06:52
@redxps630
I think Dell coolers are overpriced for their perfomance. That's why I am opt for an aftermarket cooler. Ideally I would like something around 50 USD.
But I really worry about compatibility.
redxps630
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March 9th, 2024 18:28
this Dell cooler is brand new and 50
https://www.ebay.com/itm/265404636365?
ProfessorW00d
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March 9th, 2024 19:29
@redxps630 that unit is coming from China . . . so "New" should be taken with a cup of tea.
ProfessorW00d
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March 9th, 2024 19:49
You should be 99% sure it is the AIO liquid cooling before you go to the expense and trouble of changing to air cooled. It would be unfortunate to make that swap and still have a high pitched noise, like a fridge. You can disconnect your AIO pump and radiator fan from the motherboard and then boot your XPS 8960. You get about 10 to 15 seconds to determine if the noise has disappeared. Do not leave the PC running longer than that with your AIO cooler disconnected. If you do need an air cooler, there is none better than Noctua for quality and quiet operation. This is a link to the Noctua Amazon Store. Keeping your processor as cool as possible is not the place to 'budget cut' for the long term health of your system.
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redxps630
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March 10th, 2024 02:37
This thread has good discussion on Dell cooler
https://www.dell.com/community/en/conversations/xps-desktops/xps-8950-cooling-wow-and-thanks/647f9f2df4ccf8a8de3f10e7
Stefanos1984
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March 10th, 2024 10:55
Thank you all for your answers!
Is it ok to run the pc for 15 seconds without cooling? Is it safe?
If it is the problem indeed, noctua will be easy to install? Or it will need some "mods" to install it?
Finally, am i wrong that 13700 non-K is 65 TDW, so liquid cooling is a bit of exaggeration as cooling solution?
smokeygraypoupon
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March 10th, 2024 13:44
I replaced the "box" cooler with the Dell tower cooler on my wife's XPS 8950 (i7-12700 non-K). I purchased it through Amazon from a US based seller. Easy installation. It cools the CPU very well and is silent. Noctua air coolers are reportedly the best air coolers. Some users report a BIOS issue with Noctua fans with Dell systems. Swapping the Noctua fan with a Dell 120 PWM fan would solve the fan issue.
In my opinion, liquid cooling for a i7-13700 non-K CPU is not necessary.
Hope this helps.
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redxps630
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March 10th, 2024 14:07
You would use a hybrid of Noctua mounting hardware + M3 grub screw for the Dell M3 studs built in chassis
“Used the included blue spacers and M3x20mm grub screws that I purchased from Amazon”
https://www.reddit.com/r/Noctua/comments/wa2dbj/dell_xps_8950_w_nhd12l/
https://www.ebay.com/itm/134824822086?
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Stefanos1984
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March 12th, 2024 08:59
Hello again, I contacted Dell Support for cooling replacement (to buy from Dell an air cooling system) and they said that is impossible for my system, without any explanations. Any Idea?
ProfessorW00d
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March 12th, 2024 17:02
Did the noise stop when you disconnected the AIO pump & fan?
Stefanos1984
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March 13th, 2024 06:42
@ProfessorW00d
I am afraid to turn on the pc without any cpu cooling....I don't want to damage the cpu permanently....
ProfessorW00d
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March 14th, 2024 01:50
@Stefanos1984 Modern CPU's are really smart . . . you couldn't damage it if you tried because it would shut itself down prior to damage. Regardless, if you are not comfortable then don't do it.
Have you picked an air cooler yet? Measure the height from your CPU to the side panel of your case so you know the maximum height your cooler can be.
Element115s4
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March 15th, 2024 14:15
It's not normal for a Dell water cooler to make any noise.
In my 8950 when gaming I can hear the RTX 3060TI get louder (no whine though) but that is expected.
Could the RTX be your issue?
S.Tech9
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March 16th, 2024 03:27
Hi!
Just tested the Dell Standard air cooler against the Dell liquid cooler on a DELL 8960 XPS 13700 non-K 32 DDR5, GTX 4060 : https://youtu.be/_98AMFuB--E
Tower cooler for the 8950 (Dell advanced air cooler) is already shipped, once I got that and if it fits , I think it should ... I will update the video, probably going to be your best option. (Also planning to upgrade the CPU to a i9-13900K.)
once you remove your liquid coller, you will also need a rear case fan and probably a bracket as well, unless you can salvage the one with the radiator?
I am not a pro Youtuber if you have any questions , anyting you want me to include in the next video... just let me know.
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