The 7 Best RAM Coolers
Special Honors
EK Water Blocks This company is probably the most popular and trusted out of several major custom water-cooling suppliers. One of the advantages of working with their products is that they offer in-depth customization services and a variety of kits to accommodate all sorts of builds. If you're intent on keeping your components as cool as possible, it's tough to beat EK Water Blocks. ekwb.com
Editor's Notes
October 16, 2020:
Ram coolers come in a few varieties. The simplest is a standard heat sink, such as the Electric Magic Cooling Vest, that uses thermal adhesive to stick to either side of each module. Although especially straightforward, these can actually be pretty effective, and they offer the added bonus of disguising RAM chips that aren't very attractive. For a reasonable step up in price, the EZDIY-Fab DDR-3528 do the same thing in terms of cooling, but also offer fun RGB lighting for those who are interested in looks as well as performance.
The second most intensive type of cooling uses simple fans. Air coolers like the Corsair Vengeance CMYAF and G.Skill Turbulence III can definitely be noticeably effective, but they won't fit in the most cramped builds, so you'll need to take some careful measurements before selecting one. The advantage of the G.Skill is its adjustable height and tilt, which can also help reduce motherboard VRM temperatures, although its fans aren't quite as powerful as the Corsair's are.
Then there's liquid cooling. If you're into designing your own custom water loops, it's hard to top the EK Water Blocks Monarch in terms of effectiveness, although it is a distinctly DIY endeavor and doesn't have any fancy lighting. For a blend of appearance and cooling, the Thermaltake A1 is the way to go. If you're not willing or able to safely install your own system - which is something most users will definitely not even have need of - then the Thermaltake Floe RC is a very good all-in-one choice, and it's actually quite reasonably priced in light of its capability and advanced RGB lighting.
February 17, 2019:
RAM isn't usually at the forefront of your list of priorities when overclocking, but there are some instances when it should be considered. For example, if your CPU is already running hot, such as an Intel Core that's pushed pretty far, or an AMD Ryzen that's operating at its normal clock, the first and even second RAM slots can be subject to increased temperatures. On the other hand, maybe you're running a slightly compact build that has poor airflow, which can be a death sentence if you spend a lot of time running particularly advanced games, blockchain miners, server utilities, or raw audiovisual data processes. The ThermalTake is the simplest and most effective, in terms of passive cooling, and for many applications, it's all you'll need.
If you're dead set on overclocking to the maximum degree, and especially if you're dedicated to overclocking your RAM's bus speed, the EK Water Blocks units might be for you. They call for a bit more expertise than the rest, because they're meant for liquid cooling, and for obvious reasons, perfect installation is absolutely paramount to their safety. On the other hand, the Corsair is a relatively simple fan that can take the edge off high temps, provided it's not actually pulling air from directly overtop the central processor — this can actually increase your memory temperatures, if you're not careful.
The HyperX, EZDIY, and UpHere are more simple, as they're essentially just advanced heat spreaders, but they do pull double duty, as they add a little bit of pizazz to any case. And if you've made a substantial investment in one of those new-fangled video cards, and want to make absolutely certain that its video RAM doesn't overheat (we're looking at YOU, Nvidia), the Arctic Accelero will make sure that never happens, but be aware that it is quite a bit of work to properly install.