I can't face reading it all but the conclusions are quite good. I knew the big typoon was good but didn't think it would win lol.
No Thermalright ultra 120 Extreme..
i would have liked to have seen the Scythe Ninja as well because I just bought one.
Sorry to nit pick at your huge test!! :mrgreen:
Bloody hell that must hav taken an age to review all those coolers. Nice one.
Sick to death of installing CPU coolers yet ? :P
We had to say “enough is enough” :) We no doubt will be bringing more articles on cooling very very soon :)
Great review - shame I purchased the Thermalright ultra 120 Extreme yesterday but it was not included in the review. It's baby brother doesn't fair as well. Suprising given all the rave reviews it has had
staffsMike
I can't face reading it all
:O_o1: :stop:
staffsMike
No Thermalright ultra 120 Extreme..
Wasn't out when we stopped accepting submissions
staffsMike
i would have liked to have seen the Scythe Ninja as well because I just bought one.
Sorry to nit pick at your huge test!! :mrgreen:
Scythe chose to send us the Infinity, we were provided with the Mine by Quietpc.com
daniel.phillips;1106816
Bloody hell that must hav taken an age to review all those coolers. Nice one.
You have NO idea :surprised:
daniel.phillips;1106816
Sick to death of installing CPU coolers yet ? :P
I never want to see another cooler for the rest of my life.
DR
We no doubt will be bringing more articles on cooling very very soon :)
DOH!
Maybe I will :mrgreen:
Remember folks, if you like it,
please DIGG! it!Matt
I think I might have to go out and buy a Scthe Mine / Thermaltake Big Typhoon if I cant get this watercooling sorted…
I really do feel sorry for you having to install all of those..knowing how tricky some of them can be.
You even start to welcome the sight of the stock cooler..just because its so simple lol.
Fair enough if thats what Scythe wanted to send even if the mine did fair better :p
thanks for the review - good coverage, although would have been good to have an assessment of noise performance too
but big effort and full credit to you
frazered
thanks for the review - good coverage, although would have been good to have an assessment of noise performance too
I agree with you, but given that HEXUS like to do things properly it's not possible without a full acoustic chamber. Which we don't have the multi-millions for :)
frazered
but big effort and full credit to you
Thank you, it was a big effort by all, not least the editors who spent many many many hours on it too.
Matt.
Matt - I've just picked up 5 more from you direct from Ye Olde Taipei
DR
Matt - I've just picked up 5 more from you direct from Ye Olde Taipei
Oh joy…
I'm going to shoot you…..
twice :stop:
Very good review. Especially good are the layout, pictures, clear information and graphs. Only minor criticism is that some of the pages are a bit short so it feels like you're having to click through very often.
Overall though, easily the best Hexus review to date!
awesome review never thought the Big Typhoon would win it
can we expect an update which does include the 120 extreme :embarrassed:
Not so much an update as maybe another review, as per the article, there are a few which need a larger chassis than the Antec 900, so we are considering our options on what to do for a review in a larger chassis.
Although we are not sure if it will be done on this scale again or not.
Matt.
One question, the time taken to fit, was that the first time you installed it, or after you'd realised what you needed to do to install it?
Good review though, last time I installed a big ass heatsink was an SI-97 on SoA…
The boxes were opened and all parts, where necessary, were laid on the counter.
The stopwatch was started, and if necessary the instructions read and the cooler installed.
This was the only fair way we could do this.
Matt
Huge review, nicely done. Lot of surprising results. Looks like I'll stick with my Zalman 9700 for now then. I cna't help but wonder how the results would of differed in a different case, but then again that's part of the challenge, there's not one cooler that will be best in every set up.
Cases make a huge difference, which is why we at least defined a set layout and applied it to each one, bench testing in open air will return nothing but false results.
I have the Big Typhoon at the moment, but wonder if the Thermalright Ultra 120 would have performed better if it had the same fan as the Typhoon??
MD
…there are a few which need a larger chassis than the Antec 900…
A
larger chassis than the 900!?
What are you doing in there, bolting a bloody turbojet to the MB?
New rule, if you need a case the size of your fridge to fit your new shiny CPU cooler, you're not allowed to have it. Nyer.
The 900 is an average sized chassis, the likes of the P180, P182, Stacker, Gigabyte Aurora suit the larger coolers because of the larger space for air-flow.
Matt
Any chance of a round up of HTPC suitable coolers? Some a bit smaller than these at least!
Thanks! Made me feel so much better about the ridiculous amount of time it took me to install the NH-U12, I resorted to trying to find pictures of it installed on google images to see how those fan clips were supposed to attach. It was my first build as well so I felt a bit idiotic after hearing the old ‘oh it’ll only take an hour' after I'd spent at least that trying to figure out how the damn thing was supposed to work. It also seemed to require superhuman strength to get the screws in… but maybe I'm just a weedy nerd ;-)
suprised that the Noctua didn't do all that well, and also pleasently suprised my the Thermaltake typhoon VX and the Scythe Mine! Especially useful info for me as i'm in an antec900 right now. Suprised to see it described as an average sized chassis though, i suppose its not THAT wide…
Nice work guys one of these was well overdue on t'internet. I must say I was surprised by the Thermalright Ultra 120 results too. I'm sure you guys are as aware as the rest of us the great results we've seen around the web for them. I wonder though you mention applying paste on both mounting faces - off the record did you try only one to see if it made any difference? Also from memory (if you can) can you recall how good the mounting pressure was for this cooler?
Johnny Bravo;1107173
Nice work guys one of these was well overdue on t'internet. I must say I was surprised by the Thermalright Ultra 120 results too. I'm sure you guys are as aware as the rest of us the great results we've seen around the web for them.
We were likewise surprised, so much so we tested it twice on that cooler.
Johnny Bravo;1107173
I wonder though you mention applying paste on both mounting faces - off the record did you try only one to see if it made any difference?
No we didn't as we followed exactly what the instructions stated. (obviously we know the normal technique, but if the instructions say then the installer does :) )
Johnny Bravo;1107173
Also from memory (if you can) can you recall how good the mounting pressure was for this cooler?
Pressure was fine, as expected
great roundup…….BUT
a) yes, I would've tested the extreme 120 rather than ultra 120. I would've also put in a caveat that the thermalright really depends on what fan you use. Put a slow 1000rpm unit and it will perform badly. Put on a 2200rpm unit as on the Tuniq and I'm sure it will do much better….albeit with a lot more noise.
b) And that's the other thing - what is the point of a cooler review without some subjective or objective sound measurements?
I have a tuniq and it gives ok performance….but it's noisy at full speed. Very noisy. How does the typhoon compare? Does putting it on max speed give little performance gain for too much noise?
Not to mention did you actually try putting the motherboards for any length of time upright in a case?
I would be terrified putting a typhoon vertically when my Tuniq puts so much flex in the motherboard that you can move it around a fair bit - and yes, the motherboard is secured to the case with all supplied mounting screws (not enough provided by lian li though) and I have tightened the mounting screws as far as they go…..
Biggest criticism - noise levels!!!!!! thermals are pretyt irrelevant without the trade-off.
brilliant review guys, very thorough, must have driven you barmy though.
Let's have more plz
People, the EXTREME Ultra 120 wasn't out when this group review closed for submissions. We put through what we could, and only saw need to leave out a few (water based solutions)
Matt.
this has to be the most epic review i've ever read. im not even half way through! :D
Excellent job MD
Steve B;1107282
this has to be the most epic review i've ever read. im not even half way through! :D
Excellent job MD
indeed.
well done Matt! :thumbsup:
all should know though, that whilst this excellent HEXUS article has been a baby which Matt (almost secretly conceived… :rolleyes: …and) has nurtured from start to endex, and it is he who very much single-handedly undertook all the graft in all the testing, and of course the lions share of the initial words and article coding, what you all read here was ultimately yet another great HEXUS team effort; an effort which Tarinder and Bob played a significant hand in assisting Matt bringing to the page the results of his blood sweat and tears in, hopefully, a very digestible format. (and hopefully more digestible than some of my sentences…:shaun: )
thanks to all involved and and thank you also to all you good people within the HEXUS.community who are taking the trouble to show your appreciation.
i know this matters a lot to everyone at HEXUS - and in this instance i reckon very much so by Matt - receiving your input and hearing your appreciated is always something we're very grateful for.
cheers,
PD
Ok, if it wasn't out, it wasn't out.
But honestly whilst i applaud the length and thoroughness and the methods used (it is the best roundup in a while from any tech site) we still need acoustic information and that is my biggest sticking point.
Should I upgrade from a Tuniq to the typhoon? Temperature wise they are similar, but sound? Can you add any comments here on sound levels? I can't believe I'm the only one to be interested in that.
p.s. you should at least put a disclaimer on the thermalright review - you are harsh on it when the fan could be the limiting factor. would account for your surprise.
PD HEXUS;1107343
all should know though, that whilst this excellent HEXUS article has been a baby which Matt (almost secretly conceived… :rolleyes: …and) has nurtured from start to endex, and it is he who very much single-handedly undertook all the graft in all the testing, and of course the lions share of the initial words and article coding, what you all read here was ultimately yet another great HEXUS team effort; an effort which Tarinder and Bob played a significant hand in assisting Matt bringing to the page the results of his blood sweat and tears in, hopefully, a very digestible format. (and hopefully more digestible than some of my sentences…:shaun: )
Absolutely - the presentation of the article with it's clear comparisons and diagrams was what impressed me the most :)
Good review, but…
It hardly seems fair to compare passive coolers with coolers with integrated fans or TECs. You might as well have included WC and phase or LN.
I say it's an apples to oranges review, why not test each category and rate coolers within their own?
Nice review; huge, comprehensive and well presented! I have a couple of concerns though, which apply to most HSF reviews, not just this one.
1. You say early on (in this thread) that open air testing will return false results, which I don't really get. Open air testing at least is consistent, with no variables other than room temperature, whereas in-case tests introduces innumerable variables (for readers that is, not necessarily for the reviewer(s) if the same case/layout is used all the time) given that no two cases or PCs are identical in layout layout, air flow, etc, etc. Hence without replicating your test system down to the finest detail, there's just no chance of me or anyone else getting the same results as you. If you then decide to change the case and layout for a later review, there is no way of making a reasonable comparison from one review to the other since the “ecosystem” is entirely different.
Open air testing at least removes all the inevitable variables of in-case testing, making it possible to judge the performance of various coolers against each other is a more or less ideal environment. While it won't tell me which cooler will perform best in my case (neither will any in-case review, for the reasons given above), it will be far more accurate in telling me which one is the best in a more or less objective sense. While performance will likely differ once it's mounted in a case, that difference is for the reader to anticipate since it is beyond the scope of any review - until someone decides to do a test similar to this across a few hundred cases each with a few hundred different layouts….
2. It kinda “concerns” me that the Ultra-120 and NH-U12F did not perform to expectation. Given that they're more or less universally hailed as the best of the best, could there be a fault in your review? After all, if 15 tests (warning: arbitrary number!) say product X is great and 1 test says its mediocre, where should one reasonably expect to find an error in testing methodology?
Hope you don't mind a little negative (but, I hope, constructive) critisism. :surprised: Of course, personally I think that anyone who relies on a single review of anything for his shopping decisions is mildly insane (or too well off to give a toss) and that the only way to make an informed decision is to consider all available sources - in which case your results unfortunately stand out as an anomaly in the case of the Ultra-120 and the NH-U12F and should likely be discarded on statistical grounds. :eek:
Whilst I do agree what we have said does go against the grain in comparison with most sites let me just highlight a few things:
In case testing is actually a more reflective result in my opnion, of course, all cases are different, with that you are right, but I could easily find flaws in results where testing is done on a lab bench, not least because air flow is THE most crucial thing for alot of the coolers here, more so the passive ones.
Airflow on a desk is so variable, for example, I have a desk fan running in the labs on a hot day, yet the next its not so hot, but I am testing coolers, therefore I might not have the desk fan on.
Air-Con is another factor, whilst it may maintain a constant room temperature to the best of its ability it is actually putting out wave after ware of varible temperature to keep a ‘constant’.
Basically airflow is everything, and whilst we may not have used a specific case which a reader may have we have at least installed it in one, in the confines and restrictions of such an environment. Its never perfect, but I beleive its alot more ‘real-world’ than any other review I have seen recently
The thing here is some of you are missing the point with this review. HEXUS being the type of organisation which we are makes everything a level playing field, unless you have a thermal lab (millions and millions of £'s) and an acoustic lab (again more millions) its very hard to say your figures are an absolute.
We are saying this is the most absolute we could make it given the resources we had to hand (which is more than some other sites at least) which is why we pitched this review slightly differently.
We looked at the packaging, the weight, the cost, the thermal pastes, the actual product itself, how hard it is to install, compatability and also, of course thermal performance. Acoustics are another problem entirely especially when you have some coolers with thermal control and others fixed on one setting, exactly how, short of an acoustic lab can you give a fair an accurate reflection?
We beleive that a test like this, on this scale has rarely, if ever been done with this mentality to mind, I personally love what has been achieved with this review and I do honestly believe it gives the less experienced amongst us, who have maybe avoided coolers like this in the past a real idea of the issues and pitfalls, as well as thermal representations.
Thank you for your feedback though and like PD has already said, every comment its greatfully recevied, and your comment about the case being potentially different in the future is duly noted, we will obviously have to asses this and see exactly what improvements we can make in the future, even if, potentially it means testing in three environments (lab bench, small case and large case) its a possibility, obviously though we wouldn't do it on the scale of 25 coolers at a time.
Matt.
that was an AMAZING READ :)
Bloody masterpiece tbh….. well done Matt :)
holy crap that was long
i hardly expected a thermaltake to come out on top though
well done to them i guess :)
You know….neither did we. (edit: especially me! - PD)
Then I took a look round the big cooler round ups by the big sites, and on the whole, they don't feature.
It seems there are some who avoid them, and they tend to get picked up by the smaller sites.
looking round reviews after this was written and you find the smaller sites are all saying very much the same thing.
Its dead easy to fit and cheap too. I don't understand why they don't promote it more.
Matt.
Thanks for the excellent reply MD, much appreciated. Let me just say that I didn't at all mean to be overly critical of the review - I thinks it's very good overall and as you allude, far better than a great many half-assed efforts that crop up regularly. Still. with the risk of boring everyone here to tears, I'll make a few more comments.
As you say, air flow is the most crucial thing for a lot of coolers. Hard to disagree with that, to be sure. The trouble is that the combined effects of aerodynamics and thermodynamics is so variable and understood by so few, including a number of HSF manufacturers. The fact is that the effects of one particular air flow configuration (i.e. case fan config) can impact different designs of coolers in different ways. Hence the anomalies that are sometimes seen in reviews where a HSF performs better (in a relative, if not absolute, sense) in a less ventilated setup than in a better ventilated one. If all heatsinks adhered to the same thermo and aerodynamic principles then your assumptions would be correct, but they don't.
As far as thermal and acoustic labs of true scientific standards, I don't think (or hope) that anyone expects anything like that. In fact, a lot of people most likely take any seemingly well done review on faith, giving no thought whatsoever to methodology. Most people, after all, don't have the background needed to judge the probable veracity of any but the most obviously botched attempts. Which, of course, is why a reviewer ought always to present a case that is as universally applicable and as scientifically constructed as is possible under the circumstances.
In terms of the testing of heatsinks though, there is no such thing as universally applicable, since cases, case contents and case cooling setups will differ endlessly. That being a given, you either have to remove the test object from the case, or, at the very least, standardise the case, its contents and cooling setup for the maximum amount of time for any reviews to be at all valid references. In other words you ought, in my opinion, to resist upgrading the internal components as new and shiny things appear on the market, since swapping out a Geforce 7600GT for an 8800GTX Ultra will instantly WTFOMGBBQ the reference value of pre vs post-upgrade reviews. Basically, consistency is all. Without it there is nothing even resembling a level playing field, which negates almost all cross-reference value of old and new results.
I still believe open air testing is superior in every way, for the simple reason that it removes almost all external variables. AirCon is a problem, but room temperature isn't really. As long as the room temperature is stated for every review, readers ought to be able to extrapolate its effect on the test objects. It also removes the need to keep the remainder of the system identical from one review to another, enabling one to get shot of that annoying, old 7600GT at last. Still, open air or in-case - the main thing is consistency, because consistency = validity = reference value and applicability, which all too few reviewers appear to understand.
Right, I'll stop now before I'm forcibly thrown off the premises. :D Sorry to have gone on and on, I just get a bit exasperated by all the reviews out there which are instantly made near worthless by the reviewers constantly changing their test rigs without understanding the implications. It'd be nice to see Hexus do a better job, which is why I brought it up (and up and up and…).
Looking forward to the next mega-review!
I registered just to say this:
How can you spend so much time making a comprehensive CPU cooler test and *NOT* test fan noise???!!!!!
Incredible. “Oh no, not us.”
cheesecake23
Incredible. “Oh no, not us.”
Huh?
An excellent in-depth review, though I do agree with people that it's all a bit redundant without having even a subjective opinion on noise. I mean, just for an extreme example (that's not at all accurate, I'm sure), ThermalTake could have strapped a Delta-like fan to their heatsink, but that couldn't possibly be compared to say a Scythe Miné with an all-but silent fan.
I'll just settle for the fact that the Typhoon VX is quieter than the Tuniq when both are set to full speed and give me the temp values when on full.
Don't need a fancy sound proof (anechoic?) chamber, just a little info to give an impression…..I really genuinely want to know, I'm not commenting on the review now. I guess I'll just have to buy one myself and find out the expensive way.
Great work, very detailed but as cheesecake23 says there's not much on noise ratings…..
Anyway, you missed off the intel stock cooler's weight off the chart at the end when comparing the weights of each cooler:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=8757&page=112When will there be a review on different thermal paste, and 80cm case fans I wonder?
Another congrats on a great review. Glad to see my Gigabyte Gpower Pro do so well considering how light it is.
Well done for making such an ambitious review!
I'm very disappointed by the Thermalright performance. Even the non Extreme version should be doing much better than that for the price they are charging. (Anandtech seems to have had an insane effect on the price of the Ultra-Extremes - £50, :crazy: )
I am a big Thermalright fan, so I'm a bit like an embarrassed ATi fanboy at the R600 launch…
NO MORE NOISE NONSENSE !
:angst:
The only thing a cooler needs to do is take heat away from the chip
No more
No less
Having gone to the effort of researching the subject (cue 120 page read-a-thon), buying a cooler, taking (at least part of) your box apart, carefully installing the new cooler (smooth pasting etc) and rebuilding your box…
…the time taken to switch fans is likely to be non-existant
Similarly, the cost of a fan will be a fraction of the cost of the cooler itself
If a cooler ships with a fan - then surely the manufacturer has created the best possible pairing for their products and wants it to be bought and used ‘as is’
When no fan is supplied - then common sense must take over
Dear Matt,
When you have finally finished basking in your own glory,
any chance you open up your anechoic chamber and let
the HEXUS.massive know what fan to buy for :-
(a) Maximum air flow
(b) Minimum noise
Love,
xxx
.
Great review. Thanks a lot! :D I'm going to pick up a nice Thermaltake Big Typ VX soon to replace this Intel fan.
One thing got me though, it was this statement:
“especially as some hardware sites refuse to test Thermaltake products”
Why would a site refuse to test Thermaltake products? :S From my experience most of their kit has been quite good.
wizzard
…why would a site refuse…
Could it be a case of ‘Ron Dennis is a master engineer but a c0ck to spend time with’
?
cheesecake23
I registered just to say this:
How can you spend so much time making a comprehensive CPU cooler test and *NOT* test fan noise???!!!!!
Incredible. “Oh no, not us.”
i think that time must play a factor here…..ita a mammoth undertaking to do what the guys did, and I am immensely proud of the achievement of this review.
Had the guys done noise, something else would have had to drop :(
—–seperate thought train
Lastly …. Not only did a suprise winner emerge, it's affordable….and people ask, quite rightly, why it's not advertised?
Let me point something out: If a major car manufacturer totally ceased all advertsing, of every sort, from factory backed telly adverts, to the smalled local dealer advert on a local newspapers website….the price of the entire range of cars could drop by over £1000.
But no one would know.
Possibly, on a smaller scale, these guys are selling enough heatsinks that this unit is profitable, and while a huge mega campaign would shift some serious alloy, it would then lose dough?
Tell you what though…..this little heatsink could shift a few more units now…for free :)
PSU and exhaust readings were mentioned at some points in the test but I didn't see them in the review, did I miss them or were they not published?
OK, I'm amazed that you managed to put up 120 pages. I don't know if my nagging in the blogz had any effect, but it'd be nice to think it did (Rather than deadlines, bosses and a personal life).
As for the review, two things I'd like to chip in, which have already been said before. Noise and HTPC coolers.
Some comment on noise would have been nice. You mentioned a few times that coolers were quietish, couldn't you have given a quick summary on each one you tested, in the setup you tested? Nothing more than a passing ‘This one was very quiet’ would have been appreciated.
For HTPC, that seems to be the ‘in’ thing at the moment and if I ever get back to the UK, that'll be the next project. Can't hurt to look at those coolers which don't take over half your case. Oh and HTPC's are also rather dependant on noise, but I've already commented on that.
Other than those two tiny comments, it was a marathon read. I can only imagine what work was involved typing, editing and compiling such an opus. Well done to all involved, especially MD.
All looking forward to the next one on VGA coolers?!?!??!?!?!
siu99spj
All looking forward to the next one on VGA coolers?!?!??!?!?!
No! Thermal paste and 120mm fans!
Oi! Great job and amazing job. I'm another fan of those great charts: very easy to understand and I liked the idea of the fan install time, even if it wasn't the most pertinent.
I really like Zalman's paste there. Any chance we can get a quick look and maybe a comparison of it, say to AS 5?
Fan testing would be great. I second that one guy who asked for the fan with the least noise/most CFM. Is that a fan roundup that I hear?
~Ibrahim~
Workaholic
Great work, very detailed but as cheesecake23 says there's not much on noise ratings…..
Anyway, you missed off the intel stock cooler's weight off the chart at the end when comparing the weights of each cooler:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=8757&page=112
I will have to get that updated, thanks for pointing it out.
Workaholic
When will there be a review on different thermal paste, and 80cm case fans I wonder?
We are keeping our ideas to ourselves on the next review of this type :)
Bania
Dear Matt,
When you have finally finished basking in your own glory,
any chance you open up your anechoic chamber and let
the HEXUS.massive know what fan to buy for :-
(a) Maximum air flow
(b) Minimum noise
Love,
xxx
.
That would require a review and as per above, we ain't saying nothing yet! :)
wizzard
Great review. Thanks a lot! :D I'm going to pick up a nice Thermaltake Big Typ VX soon to replace this Intel fan.
One thing got me though, it was this statement:
“especially as some hardware sites refuse to test Thermaltake products”
Why would a site refuse to test Thermaltake products? :S From my experience most of their kit has been quite good.
Prejudice is the best word I can't think to sum it up. On this showing I feel they deserve more, but like HEXUS has always stated, we say how it is, without prejudice.
Zak33
i think that time must play a factor here…..ita a mammoth undertaking to do what the guys did, and I am immensely proud of the achievement of this review.
Around two months of lab work alone.
Tetras
PSU and exhaust readings were mentioned at some points in the test but I didn't see them in the review, did I miss them or were they not published?
They are featured on the graphs shown in the thermal results for each cooler.
siu99spj
OK, I'm amazed that you managed to put up 120 pages. I don't know if my nagging in the blogz had any effect, but it'd be nice to think it did (Rather than deadlines, bosses and a personal life).
no it didn't :P the size was dictated by us trying to give a comprehensive analysis of the products.
siu99spj
Some comment on noise would have been nice. You mentioned a few times that coolers were quietish, couldn't you have given a quick summary on each one you tested, in the setup you tested? Nothing more than a passing ‘This one was very quiet’ would have been appreciated.
There is no point unless you have statistics to back it up. I mean I could be half deaf and not know it, how inaccurate would that be?
Also as the coolers were tested over a great deal of time a passing comment could change from one week to the next.
siu99spj
For HTPC, that seems to be the ‘in’ thing at the moment and if I ever get back to the UK, that'll be the next project. Can't hurt to look at those coolers which don't take over half your case. Oh and HTPC's are also rather dependant on noise, but I've already commented on that.
We ain't saying nothing. :)
siu99spj
Other than those two tiny comments, it was a marathon read. I can only imagine what work was involved typing, editing and compiling such an opus. Well done to all involved, especially MD.
Thank you, massive team effort here.
siu99spj
All looking forward to the next one on VGA coolers?!?!??!?!?!
Dunno who said there would be one, We ain't saying nothing. :)
ikjadoon
No! Thermal paste and 120mm fans!
Oi! Great job and amazing job. I'm another fan of those great charts: very easy to understand and I liked the idea of the fan install time, even if it wasn't the most pertinent.
I really like Zalman's paste there. Any chance we can get a quick look and maybe a comparison of it, say to AS 5?
Fan testing would be great. I second that one guy who asked for the fan with the least noise/most CFM. Is that a fan roundup that I hear?
~Ibrahim~
We ain't saying nothing on future reviews, but thank you for your comments.
MD
Workaholic
…noise ratings…
Am I the only person that thinks all of these coolers are 100% silent and that noise is created by fans ? :confused:
One more idea for ‘the book’ would be to test passive solutions on a truly decent
(but not 100% top end CPU) like a 6400 or 6600
Testing would be easier for Matt as well…
..kick off an endless loop of 3DMark CPU tests and head-2-bed…
…come back in the morning and
(if it did not die in the night) stick a thermometer up the CPUs butt
:mrgreen:
Well its not often I want to stick my 2 cents worth in but here I kind of have too.
First off, hello to everyone at Hexus, when they realise who I am they will kick me off lol
As for the article, the time in man hours, the late night discussions, the sheer co ordination of such a review is something you can only accept is no mean feat.
The article covers a ‘standardised’ set of tests which yes could have covered a Db range, external to the room temperature tests, climate out side, local temps, the weather, humidity, air moisture, the list goes on. What it represents is a standard set of tests in a real pc as you would use it at home. The same tests done today may show a little different result as the weather in general may be cooler, there may be less people in the test lab or the air con/heating is turned down/up one degree.
some of you are missing the point, its a guide not an exact scientific enclosed lab test.
Your only supposed to see how they perform in similar conditions as close as we can get. Yes some results are bizarre. I know from testing for us at my website some results are just as strange. on that day, at that time with those tests it gave this result, maybe you will have something different, there are hundreds of factors to take into the testing pot.
All that matters is when you read it you can see what you like, can afford, and some idea of what it could do for you.
My only gripe is I cant read the article through all the adverts guys.. :surprised: :surprised:
no offence guys (well that will get me shot at dawn)
I think its a brave move to take on, to stick with, to edit the thing alone merits a blue peter badge so give the guys respect. I do!
:bowdown:
Bania
Am I the only person that thinks all of these coolers are 100% silent and that noise is created by fans ? :confused:
And the award for most sensible post of the day goes to Bania.
MTG
My only gripe is I cant read the article through all the adverts guys..
I know I shouldn't say this but very few adverts make it through by wall of protection on Firefox. When I visit Hexus elsewhere (university) the site looks very cluttered…
I realise they pay for the website but I don't think they have to be that intrusive.
DeSean
I know I shouldn't say this but very few adverts make it through by wall of protection on Firefox. When I visit Hexus elsewhere (university) the site looks very cluttered…
I realise they pay for the website but I don't think they have to be that intrusive.
Im at work on firefox and its not blocking the ads, we dont have much control here as the admins a bit of a hitler. Odd thing is we are the front line tech support and hes a college wanna be lol
oh well, some sites do it, some dont, for those that do, maybe keep them out of the reading area ??
I registered an account just to say this:
This review is irrelevant without noise. I don't care how well a cooler cools if you make absolutely no mention of noise (It could be loud, grindy, and annoying as hell). I can't believe you neglected to test for this, destroying what otherwise would've been a decent review.
And ironically, this review comes down to primary a test of performance, exactly what you were trying to avoid. Without noise, performance is an empty figure.
chuckskull
And the award for most sensible post of the day goes to Bania.
LOL :juggle:
To DeSean, what resolution are you running your window desktop on (you need a minimum of something like 1024 * 768)
Any chance of any of these going on competition, could do with a new cooler for a HTpc I'm building in the near future,,,,
Interesting round up, thanks for taking the time to do it.:)
Would of liked to see the Ninja in there, but I guess you have to be happy with what you get!
Wow, the biggest cooler-review I've seen so far and yet you forgot (choose to) not include any loudness-measurements… I wouldn't touch the best-cooling cooler if it sounded like a jet-engine. Together with price and performance the dBA is the most important characteristic a cooler has…
Guys can we stop with the acoustic comments, we understand that some of you lay an awful lot of importance on them, even if it its just an opnion.
Remember all tests were run on the middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…
Matt.
I'm so pleased we have done this roundup and with all these feedback we can include these comments and input in future tests :)
It's great to know and we have readers who actually give us feedback on how to make things better - we take it all to heart and we improve ourselves based on this :)
Thanks guys
MD
Guys can we stop with the acoustic comments, we understand that some of you lay an awful lot of importance on them, even if it its just an opnion.
Remember all tests were run on the middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…
Matt.
What about the fans that had no fan controller? They were run at full speed?
Isn't that a glaring inconsistency? The thermal paste was also a huge differential, as you're not focusing on the heatsink itself very well when you just use the included thermal paste instead of one paste across all heatsinks.
And ‘middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…’ means nothing for noise. A 4000RPM fan at “medium” can still be spinning at 3000RPM, which probably won't make much of a difference in noise.
MD
Guys can we stop with the acoustic comments, we understand that some of you lay an awful lot of importance on them, even if it its just an opnion.
Remember all tests were run on the middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…
Matt.
erm but wasn't there one fan that you said “OMG that's noisy”…. :-)
MD
Guys can we stop with the acoustic comments, we understand that some of you lay an awful lot of importance on them, even if it its just an opnion.
Remember all tests were run on the middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…
Matt.
d00d, you know who i am by looking at the account details, I stopped by to try and reason with these people about it. Far as Im concerned its a cracking review :rockon2:
I said so too !!
Noise? well who cares, at the end of the day its a guide not a specific sales team to the end user. If they need noise levels for everything why dont the go to the smegging manu's website for that info, clearly they cant work that out for themselves..
cant win them all bro hey
hi DASQ,
DASQ
…you're not focusing on the heatsink itself… ….when you just use the included thermal paste instead of one paste across all heatsinks.
exactly.
praps best read the article again DASQ?… :)
cheers,
PD
MD
Guys can we stop with the acoustic comments, we understand that some of you lay an awful lot of importance on them, even if it its just an opnion.
Remember all tests were run on the middle settings of adjustable fan speeds…
Matt.
All,
I must firstly apologise for my post above, it was wholly out of character of me and I am disappointed in myself for posting it.
I do fully appreciate your feedback. I have tried to do as much as I can to provide a buyers guide to coolers, yes we didn't assess noise in that sense, and we will take on your comments for future reviews.
Many thanks
Matt.
This review does not need to be 120 pages. There are too many ads, and I lost interest after clicking through the third page. What the hell has happened to Hexus!? Did Tomshardware buy them out?
chis
…this review does not need to be 120 pages…
May I suggest you take a trip to an ‘urban dictionary’ site and look up Willy Waving
You run with 120 pages in this game, when you want to stick 2 fingers up to the opposition - knowing that they have not the time, energy, ability or inclination to ‘take you on’
A.N.Other site just ran a ‘huge’ cooler test - which now looks totally embarassing in comparison
Even more embarassing is that they seem to be able to run top-end CPUs - at maximum load - at 32 degrees
Maybe the tests were done in Alaska - with a negative ambient temperature - but it is hard to see how a top-end-quad-core CPU
(running pants out for a long time) would only barely get above ‘summer room temprature in South East England’
MD
…I must firstly apologise…
What a suck up !
Get off your knees and keep hitting em with a blunt object - it's all we understand
(or want!)Us Moany Buggers -> :angst: <- MD
chuckskull
…the award for most sensible post of the day goes…
I now love you and want to have your babies
120 page reviews of Biblical
(replace with Tora, Koran, Yellow Pages etc as you see fit) proportion are
exactly what top-end-tech-sites should be about
We
want to drown in numbers and argument…
…otherwise we'd just buy an overpriced/underpowered Dell and be happy with Graphics Media Acceleration ;)
.
Bania = pWnage!!
roflmaofita
PD HEXUS;1109369
hi DASQ,
exactly.
praps best read the article again DASQ?… :)
cheers,
PD
And it's a stupid decision to simply stick with the stock thermal pastes.
Some thermal pastes are known to be bad performers. It doesn't matter how good a heatsink is if the thermal paste is garbage. Using one consistent thermal paste across all heatsinks would give an actual idea of how well the heatsink performs. This just obfuscates the final conclusion.
Awful.
DASQ
And it's a stupid decision to simply stick with the stock thermal pastes.
Some thermal pastes are known to be bad performers. It doesn't matter how good a heatsink is if the thermal paste is garbage. Using one consistent thermal paste across all heatsinks would give an actual idea of how well the heatsink performs. This just obfuscates the final conclusion.
Awful.
Whilst I agree that using the same paste for each heatsink would give a better idea of how the heatsinks themselves perform relative to each other. (Would have been interesting to see as well, but that would have doubled the amount of time taken to produce this already massive undertaking.)
However by using the paste/pad whatever that comes with the sink you have an idea of comparison of the complete package as is, which looks to be the angle Hexus took for this review (a perfectly valid one as well in my opinion). Not everyone has some decent thermal paste lying around and so more than likely would use what came with the sink.
Elessar_VPR
Whilst I agree that using the same paste for each heatsink would give a better idea of how the heatsinks themselves perform relative to each other. (Would have been interesting to see as well, but that would have doubled the amount of time taken to produce this already massive undertaking.)
However by using the paste/pad whatever that comes with the sink you have an idea of comparison of the complete package as is, which looks to be the angle Hexus took for this review (a perfectly valid one as well in my opinion). Not everyone has some decent thermal paste lying around and so more than likely would use what came with the sink.
But everyone can afford the $12 it costs for a tube of thermal paste that will likely last them the next 4-5 heatsinks, at least.
If they had added temperatures using AS5 on top of with the stock thermal pastes, that would've been much better, but obviously more time consuming. They really should've just gone for all-AS5.
DASQ
…a stupid decision to simply stick with the stock thermal pastes…
What do you think that says about the way that cooler manufacturers view you, the customer ?
.
Bania
What do you think that says about the way that cooler manufacturers view you, the customer ?
.
they would have viewed you as someone who wants it from the box to look good and taken ya cash, and if you KNOW WHAT THE HELL your talking about would have enough brain cell(s) to wipe off the junk on it where there is some, or not use the one supplied if its in a blister pack or tube and slap on shin etsu for total performance…
or you can be gay and use some cheap nasty white goop or AS if you feel that way inclined..
jesus all you people have done is moan.. temps this, paste that, oh he touched my pee pee when I was three, hes got hair on his… when do I get mine.. I'll tell ya, WHEN YOU GROW UP
smeg heads
MTG
…smeg heads…
Sorry you can't see the point being made - it is a very serious one
Most law is founded on some basic principles, one of which is that you have to ‘take people as you find them’
In the case of selling
(complicated/technically advanced) goods, I always take that to mean ‘put together a package that makes sense’
Apparently clever people like you can always research the thermal diversity between Arctic Silver and toothpaste etc…
…but the normal punter will buy a package and use it ‘as is’
It makes sense, therefore, for the company
(looking to take ~£30 of your hard-earned) to actually put together a package that works
Sites like HEXUS can spend days examining various compounds of white goo that you may produce for them…
…but - when they test coolers…
…it makes sense
(for consumers) to test the package ‘as is’
I'd love to see a manufacturer of one of the ‘non-winning’ coolers posting on here that they were not happy with the result because of the inferiour thermal compound
they provided… :embarrassed:
.
as you said..
“…but the normal punter will buy a package and use it ‘as is’”
anyone who buys THAT type of unit for normal use has no idea what it is for or capable of. Anynoe who buys it knows its for clocking not normal clocking, the sheer size of some of those units, requiring a mobo removal says it all.
if you buy anything that needs that, you know its purpose, and have one for it that says clocking or extreme performance. so you have enough knowledge to know what its for, how to fit it, and how to make it better.
Therefore you should have enough brain power to work out the paste issue.
sorry d00d, you cant sit there on the fence like that, its not an off the shelf type of exchange it needs some knowledge
MTG
…you can't sit there on the fence like that…
I'm not sitting on the fence - I am saying categorically that manufacturers that bundle sub-standard paste are f***ing idiots and deserve to experience downgraded cooling in this kind of test
One can only hope that someone at ‘board level’ within such an organisation will go round and ‘kick some product manager butt’ to make sure that their paste quality increases as well
Not everyone needs to bundle with Arctic Silver etc…
…but if it is not up to the job - then they SHOULD suffer piss-poor results
That'll learn em :D
but some pastes work better on different machines, in manu testing they provide a basic, cheap effective paste. My testing shows ShinEtsu from MicroSI ffering a massive 12 degrees difference between worst and best pastes.
It clocks well, is stable but takes 2 weeks minimum to cure, most people wont wait that long for best performance. Some cheap pastes are almost cured from leaving the tube, the likes of AS are fine, even the ceramic version is ok.. but ShinEtsu costs, where can you or do you draw the line?
It is a tough call and I do understand what you are saying, but see this from both sides
do you increase price for best paste?
lose profit?
make product a little cheaper with inferior parts somewhere to balance costs?
where do you draw this line mate?? Where is the middle ground on this issue??
12 degrees? I'm sorry, but the absolute max between the best and worst will be around 5c if both are applied correctly. 12 degrees is what you'd get if a heatsink isn't on squarely…
no your incorrect, the results were confirmed by other independant review sites. One of which was OCwizard.com, by wizard as he is a great personal friend of mine, also by bulldog from another site to name a couple.
The facts remain its a phenominal paste and one of the popular sellers in the UK and US. Just because you have never come across this technology does not make impossible. Its totally different from all other pastes in how it works
Anywhere in the UK selling ShinEtsu yet? Wouldn't mind trying it for myself.
EDIT:Actually looking at reviews it seems to be almost identical to AS5…
ShinEtsu's been around for ages. I got some bundled with some heatsink or other I bought years ago…. I assume he's on about some new product, but I've no idea to be honest. I've thrown mine, as it was no better than AS5 (or even AS3).
Struggling not to laugh at someone who finishes off a post with “smeg heads”… and that's not a compliment.
//edit: and in a joke test thing I read years ago, toothpaste beats the crap out of all the thermal pastes… except it hardens rather rapidly. :D
chuckskull
Anywhere in the UK selling ShinEtsu yet? Wouldn't mind trying it for myself.
EDIT:Actually looking at reviews it seems to be almost identical to AS5…
chillblast.com have the version 2, its been out for about 3 years, anything efore that is fiction it didnot exist.
if you want the version thats out but not for sale anywhere as of yet PM me your addy I'll send you some mate.
:D
MTG
chillblast.com have the version 2, its been out for about 3 years, anything efore that is fiction it didnot exist.
if you want the version thats out but not for sale anywhere as of yet PM me your addy I'll send you some mate.
:D
Yeah version 2 dates back to AS3 days, 2003-ish iirc AS5 will beat it by a few degrees.
PM on the way, cant resist playing with a new toy :P Will post back my results.
and in the post to you tomorrow mate, dont eat it this time!!
I heard the rumours:telephone:
I've been looking at building a new system for the last 2 months now. And Hexus have continually come up in my searches for review of various components, from Cases, to Motherboards and now Coolers!
Well done on the huge cooler test!
Yes I know I'm about 6 pages lates on this, but still needs to be said!
I've actually put off my new build now till September as the DirectX10 games come out then and there's no point buying now. But I'll be trawling your site then for my parts!
That is a smart move mate IMHO.
The prices of CPU's will be down by then so more Mhz for less ££££ and buy good SATA HDD's, if your the gamer, you love the extra speed.
Buy a good board too, and Im sure you will have a cracking system that will play everything on the max…
Enjoy!
Great review, and convinced me to buy the Big Typhoon VX. It was only afterwards I read some concerns about the ability of the push pin mount to adequately hold the cooler in a tower PC. Do you have any concerns about this in a tower?
bydandie
…any concerns about this in a tower…
I reckon on the first few ‘mega cooler installations’ - Matt would have been shaking like a leaf - concerned that tons of metal would come crashing down any second and wipe half the capacitors off his board…
…but…
…but the fourth or fifth installation…
…he was probably pulling out his protractor and wondering
(with an evil grin on his face :imagine ‘devilish face with halo’ smilie:) at how much flex was built in to modern mainboards
:mrgreen:
BTW MTG et al
On the earlier ‘paste’ question… If you are talking about a mini-tube's worth (enough for one installation or so) - then the cost delta from AS5 to Colgate is probably less than the material cost of the copper in a single heatpipe. I know that the Chinese manufacturers are legendary in their quest for lower costs… but supplying better paste (even if it is AS shipped as a ‘white tube’ OEM product) really would be no financial hassle and - if they ignore this ‘important ingredient to great cooling’ - then they deserve to get arsemastered in cooler group tests.
d00d
I knoiw what your saying about small blister sachets or small syringes for a single shot type of application.
But the cost of making these smaller style packages is higher than making a normally filled size one.
The small containers are precision, so many more need to be made. They take time to align in the systems, fill and most, and I say most companies find it a non viable option.
The bigger the prudct is the better and faster it is to make, so cheaper. Also ingredients vary, so costs on this may have otrher factors, does air affect the prduct? Would standing around in a machine for small output fills affect the final batch?
Not for ceramic applications but some bio paste bases are affected, some zinc ones too are also affected.
On a few occasions it does come down to the need. If a manu is told they need it a certain way they will make it, unless costs out wieght the result.
This is not an easy to solve problem and I do see things from both sides. But try to see what the company is doing, making money, nothing more, if it was ££££ producing, on a large scale with a perfect quality control and the need arose maybe and I say maybe they would do it.
Thanks for the reply, after looking around some more I decided to go for the older version of the Big Typhoon which was £6 cheaper and from what I can see, the only difference is the variable speed fan, as the heatsink is the same. This gives me the mounting plate attachment hethod which is better AFAIK. :)
I have a scythe infinity and the clips didnt appear to be enough to hold the unit on, so I made backing plate for it. If you can bolt it, and do them up evenly in opposite corners as you go. Its a great way to clamp down tightly and give the best temps
If you have saved yourself £6 on top of the bargain, well done!!
The ShinEtsu arrived from MTG this morning. Nice big syringe full. Once I've got the last of this mornings beer out of my system and the heat has died off a bit, I'll clean off the AS5 and put it on.
And current temps, using AS5(i'll have forgotten them by the time I've swapped TIM's).
E4300, 3.3ghz@1.45v (horrid vdroop on this mobo).
Idle measured 1 hour after CPUburn ended, system left to idle, no background programs except Everest for temp monitoring.
To burn the CPU. Orthos, Small FFT's (up to 10c hotter than the normal blend test) Test ran for six hours.
Results are a little high, but it's boiling weather here and orthos all afternoon in the heat. I'll compare the Shinetsu tomorrow afternoon when the temps are high again. Then again in a couple of weeks once the ShinEtsu has had time to set properly.
Idle-
CPU: 41c Cores: Both rock solid at 49c
Burn-
CPU: 54c Cores: Both at 83c
Well here's the results of the ShinEtsu gunk(I dont think it has a product name yet, well I don't know it at least :P) and they put put AS5 to shame.
Not even bedded in yet, which according to ShinEtsu should take 2 weeks. Could go either way, it may loose some performance or gain some. Every other thermal paste I know usually gains a couple more c. If there's any major difference I'll update this post.
The gunk was thicker than AS5, which makes it more difficult to apply, but it's not much at all it's like saying tying your shoelaces is harder than wearing flip flops. This thickness gave a much more ‘solid’ contact with the chip though. once pressed into place it wouldn't shift, I couldn't slide or twist it with pulling it back off completely first. Whereas AS5 just works like a lubricant until it's set. My only gripe with the fitting would be the syringe needs a smaller nozzle, but I don't think mine was in the final packaging or anywhere near it.
Anyway, numbers. Same setup as before:
Idle-
CPU: 38c Cores: 44c
Load-
CPU: 47c Cores: 74c
3c idle drop. Not a huge drop, but makes a lot of noise difference when Q-fan is active. 7c under load is just amazing considering this is compared against AS5. The current market leader.
For some comparison between Small FFT's and the more common blend test the CPU was 49c during blend. So you can see these are very good temps on air. When I have more time I'll try it on my 8800GTS and see how it performs. not sure when that'll be, didn't go out this weekend so I will be next weekend :P
If anyone's curious this was done with a Zalman 9700NT, running at 12v for consistency. All settings the same, ambient hotter if anything than yesterday. I doubt there's any real difference though. Everything else is in “My system”. Gotta admit I was pretty ready to bash this stuff, but it's proved me wrong.
man this is some really good reviewing.
i needed something to back up the zalman 9700 i wanted, and this did it.
again well done, it must have taken alot of time and effort
bydandie
…only difference is the variable speed fan…
You could be lucky here - maybe not
Some people find variable fans annoying (especially when the sensitivity is set to low - and the things keeps kicking in & out)…
…but that is going to depend on the ‘pitch’ of the old one in ‘constant motion’
When Matt is COMPLETELY BORED - then here is another test just begging to be done…
…not only to look at noise levels in terms of dB…
…but also the average ‘note’ produced
It is much easier to ignore a louder, low note than a quieter note at a higher pitch
(In me mind) I am seeing some kind of graph showing volume against note for each fan - let's see if Matt listens…
:telephone:
chuckskull
told you d00d
;o)
by the way its no longer made by shinetsu, its made by the guy that made it orignally created it that no longer works for the company. Hes out on his own..
details to come for you all..
The ShinEtsu(or whatever it is now) has further improved. Idle now: 32c Load: 45c.
I registered just so I could say … fooled ya Not gonna mention sound but many thanks for a great round up/ review of cpu coolers.
Being a total noob at building can I ask a few questions?
The Thermaltake Big Typ VX, is it compatible with a quad core QX6700 cpu? Their website mentions core 2 chips but not quad core. Is the Scythe Miné ?
Also on the coolers that you could orient whatever way you wanted (I think the thermaltake was one of them) which way did you set the fan? Blowing air out the back of the case or thru the top of the case? Would this be likely to make a difference?
Sorry if the questions are foolish but as I've said I'm a noob at all this?
many thanks for your replies
do I speak the truth, or do I speak the truth ??
lol
Nub1
I registered just so I could say … fooled ya Not gonna mention sound but many thanks for a great round up/ review of cpu coolers.
Being a total noob at building can I ask a few questions?
The Thermaltake Big Typ VX, is it compatible with a quad core QX6700 cpu? Their website mentions core 2 chips but not quad core. Is the Scythe Miné ?
Also on the coolers that you could orient whatever way you wanted (I think the thermaltake was one of them) which way did you set the fan? Blowing air out the back of the case or thru the top of the case? Would this be likely to make a difference?
Sorry if the questions are foolish but as I've said I'm a noob at all this?
many thanks for your replies
Both the thermaltake and Mine are compatible with QuadCore
These were put in a tower. The fans blow downward through the heatsink, so its not THAT applicable, case flow is more important in such circumstances, not just the heatsink itself.
Matt.
:Oops: Thanks for that MD, realised yesterday that my question about fan orientation was foolish to say the least :embarrassed:. Fan is on top of heat sink not the side. Doh! All I can say is total lack of :sleep:, coffee and too much beer. That and reading so much about heat sinks I was just getting plain muddled up.
Anyways guys thanks for the response and thanks for the mega-review. Thermaltake is now on order.
Sorry to double post but I've just installed the Thermaltake and found there is an orientation. i.e. which way the fins are directed. On page 73 hexus.net/content/item.php?item=8757&page=73 of the review the photos show both orientations. The top has the fins parallel to both the RAM and the back of the mobo while the second photo has the fins perpendicular to the RAM.
I don't mean to be picky but I installed the heatsink like in the top photo and have noticed that I get a lower temp if I have the top fan on low (temp difference is 1-2C on the cpu). Would you reckon this is due to airflow disruption within the thermaltake fins by the top fan?
If the heatsink were orientated the other way this shouldn't happen as much, as the fan at the rear is smaller. I could leave the rear fan on low and increase the top fan and see if it lowers the temps anymore. Hmmm. If I have time I might try to reorientate the heatsink but am not sure it'll clear my northbridge.
Anyways, once I installed it, it took 10C off my idle temp, down to 42C with all fans, case and heatsink on low. Heatsink fan on low is silent, moving it up to medium speed does produce a low volume whine (but not noticeable if pc kept under desk) and dropped the cpu temp by another 2C.
Anyways I was just wondering which way you guys had the heatsink orientated? And seeing as the photos show both ways did you try it both ways, was there a difference?
thanks again for the review
Nub1
…Sorry if the questions are…
Don't be daft - questions is what this place is all about :)
If you are new to all of this - visualising the products, how they sit and what they can do for you can be a little confusing
Are you ever in London ?
If you had a chance to pop in to see the guys & kit at YOYOTech, then I am sure you would find many of your questions would get answered in less than 20 minutes
If your in devon I'll help you out…
Thanks guys, I do live near London so I'll give YOYOTech a try. Just been checking them out, so when I'm up I'll call in. :) Sorry MTG I'm not in Devon often but next time I'll let you buy me a pint ;)
I never made it clear in my earlier posts that I am using the Antec 900 case (because of this site) and then they go and do this review as I get near to completing my first build. The timing was perfect. To top it off the forums are friendly/ helpful too. How cool is that.
thanks guys for the pointers and offers of help.
Nub1
Sorry MTG I'm not in Devon often but next time I'll let you buy me a pint ;)
you can have a pint and a play in the server room no problems mate!!
:rockon2:
thanks for the offer, I'm looking forward to trying out the server room :)
Just thought I'd share this, have just lapped the heatsink and got another few degrees off, down to 37C on idle on my qx6700. The heatsink really has a rough surface so it is worth lapping.
cheers
its worth doing all the bridges too, north and south, repaste them afterwards..
Do the graphics too, lap and paste again with something decent..
All helps everything over all
:rockon2:
Great minds and all that. Am actually in the middle of doing the bridges, well applying AS5 not lapping. Unfortunately bridges on my evga 680i board have some foam pieces on them, not really enough space to get any paper moving. Will also replace the tim on the mosfets with ceramique. But the graphics card:eek:, well that's like lapping your cpu, could be very costly. Will have a look at the card tho'. Am interested…
We'll see. :)
I know that my ATI x1950pro works far better by simply taking the heatsink off and cleaning it, putting good paste on like this..
CLICK HERE and putting it all back together again… give it time to cure though, dont push it for at least a week..same with the mobo, give it time and it will work far better in the end if you do..
you dont have to lap everything if your not happy to do it, thats fine mate, you can break it so if in doubt, or if ya wallet cant take it, dont do it its that simple and no body would blame you..:O_o1:
mask the area off, apply the paste and spread it out.. and it will be so much better!!