gesture505

I've heard mixed results about attaching heat sinks to the heat sink. It seems dependent on placement and method of attachment. In the end, improving airflow seems to be the way to go. I wonder if there would be a way to introduce a baffle of some sort the reduce the noise from the fans kicking up at higher speeds.

I picked up one of the first Hydro series coolers from Corsair a long time ago. I don't remember the model number anymore but it had a single 140mm radiator and had a more cylindrical pump than what they've got today. It worked very well for the year or two I used it and eventually switched to a custom build. These products are good buys but a big problem will be "upgrading". You can't really build onto it without basically tearing it apart and just using the radiator. Still, if you want a relatively "set and forget" watercooling product, you can't go very wrong with these. I would recommend the H110 because of the 140mm fans. They are great for quieter setups. Both the 110 and 100i have the same size radiator.

I would imagine that it was probably a difference in ambient temperature in your case. I found a fairly old reference describing things to consider in cooling design against altitude. The altitudes described are much higher than the ones in your environment. Coolingzone.com - Cooling electronics at high altitudes made easy

AMD recently put the 13.8 beta up on their site with "frame pacing" advertised to reduce frame stutter. I wonder if this new frame pacing will be supported when they release this new GPU.

I am currently using a set of Plantronics Gamecom headphones for vent. I travel around with it as well and they have held up fairly well in my checked baggage (I still cushion them against twisting and such). The earcups are fairly good sized but I find that I am unable to wear them for more than about five hours before my ears start hurting. Pulling them up and then placing them back is enough to relieve the slight amount of stress. I've used others like the Skullcandy Hesh 2.0 and I prefer these plantronic ones.

In crowded places like Shrine, turn down your shadows and environmental effects. In a raiding situation, going with fair reduces the ground effects while still showing you boss effects you need to move out of. I know it has been months since you've posted but do you still have this problem?