Fan Review 2002 - Part Deux

Author: L.Vogt Date: 3-18-02 Subject: Heatsink Fans

By: L. Vogt

(Click graph above to zoom in)

AMD Stock Thermal Solution (Non OEM Boxed)
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

Simply put, there are no bells and whistles with this CPU cooler. This is the stock solution AMD packs with the boxed release of their processor. An all aluminum cooler, it wasn't the worst of what we tested on our rig but it could have been a bit better if AMD had packed a slightly faster fan. The unit comes stock with the "bubblegum" pink thermal pad. The fastening clip is a single post type and was very tight. It took us several tries to get it on because of the level of force needed. Taking it off was even harder. We had to fight with it and try to keep from putting the screwdriver through the board. The dimensions* of 60mm X 60mm X 55mm and a weight of 7.3 oz. ensures it will fit all motherboards. In the world of quiet CPU cooling this fan ranks only as "average", but it sets our baseline at 57.0c / 134.6F with the thermal pad and 54.3c / 129.7F using the white thermal compound.

Dr. Thermal TI-S86
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

The TI-S86 is an all aluminum heat sink that seems to have the same design idea as the ThermoEngine product line. A radial set of fins surround a central core, however this unit sports a unique tension mechanism; a lever arm with a locking tab. Of the units I have tested, this has to be one of the easiest I have put on in some time. The fan is a low profile, quiet unit at 60 X 60 X 10mm and does a pretty good job considering the size of the heatsink (80mm X 60mm X 45mm). Our temperature was a respectable 48.4c/119.1F using thermal compound. At about 80mm wide, it could be a problem on some motherboards. Overall, the unit shows a quality construction and is rather easy to install. In comparison with other coolers that are a lot smaller, I expected numbers around 46c.

Dr. Thermal TI-V77
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

The TI-V77 is a copper core unit with aluminum radial fins. Like its brother the TI-S86, it has the E -System Clip that makes it an easy install. With a copper core, I was expecting to see at least a 3c difference from the the TI-S86, All I got was about 1c with a test temperature of 49.3c / 120.7F with the gray/black thermal pad. It wasn't until I lifted the unit off the die that I discovered where it was sitting in relation to the copper core (click image above). Although the clip design assures correct installation to the CPU, the small diameter of the core prevents proper alignment to the die. It's not a problem with the Pentium III processors, however. The die lines right up to the center of the copper core. I don't think I can recommend this unit for Athlon or Athlon XP processors unless Dr. Thermal changes its design. It is understandable when you build a CPU cooler for a wide range of CPU's with this fin design, that you just can not make everyone happy. The unit was tested again with thermal compound and got 47.3c /117.1F. The dimensions of the cooler are 72mm X 72mm X 50 mm with a 70mm X 70mm X 10 mm fan.

Global Win SAK38
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

You definitely know that through SEO, your business will benefit hugely, so you have to make sure to find the right Link Building Company that can help you gain your goals SEO on lookup motor rankings, finding the best Link Building Company for your business is a lot more crucial than ever. Link building Company will help you | Simple Website Templates. Every great website and web design needs a starting place or point. Our own newly redesigned website started from a basic template that was heavily modified to suit our needs and the same can be done for you. Using our simple sea website templates on our site you can buy website templates

I kind of expected that this unit would turn into our “ringer” for this group. Global Win has been building some of the more notable CPU coolers for quite some time. This unit, with overall dimensions of 60 X 60 X 78mm makes it an easy fit for all motherboards. However, because of the height, there may be an issue with some cases. The copper loaded/spreader heat sink has the typical high-density fin design. It's the clip on this model that needs to be addressed. The 6-point clip gets jammed easily. There is just not enough play between the spars of the clip assembly and the heat sink fins. Subsequently, the assembly gets jammed. I discovered the issue the first time I tested the unit. The clip would jam on one side as I locked it down, actually peeling a little curly-cue of the aluminum heat sink as I tried to align and lock it into place. It took three more attempts before it went on correctly, and even then, a couple of the fins bowed outward. The numbers are good, but not spectacular. I expected that the 7000-rpm fan would have pushed us into the low 40’s, but got 47.8c /118.0F with the thermal pad and 46c/114.8 with thermal compound. As it stands, this unit rates a 10 on the noise scale but turns in .4c difference against the TaiSol.

Speeze 5T060B1H3R
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

This unit is an all aluminum heat sink. The dimensions are 74 X 65 X 57mm at the bottom and flares to 74 X 78mm at the top. A single point clip holds the heat sink pretty well and it is a very quiet unit rating a 3 on the noise scale. Its performance lags behind its larger brother (5T208B1H3T) with temperatures at 53.8c / 128.8F with the thermal pad and 52.4/126.6F with thermal compound. Not the worst numbers in the group, but it is large and does not do as well as lighter/smaller CPU coolers we have tested.

Speeze 5T208B1H3T
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

Sporting a 70mm X 10 fan, this unit is pretty large at 75mm X 70 mm X 63mm. Bigger however, is not always better in the name of cooling ability. The saving grace for this unit is that it is very quiet, ranking a 3 on the noise scale. It turns in 52.2c/125.9F with the thermal pad and 50.3c/122.5 F with thermal compound. The single point clip on the unit wasn’t too hard to install. I would like to see a better finish on the die contact side. Overall not a bad cooler but not as effective as I thought it would be.

Tai Sol TLT CG742
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

I have dealt with TiaSol before. Their products are usually “middle of the field” performers that hold their own in most tests. This unit was added at the last minute to the test group to see where it would fall in relation to the other brands we had seen. When I tested this, I was dumbfounded by how well it worked. It clearly stripped the field for it size, weight and noise level (which only ranks a 2). I was scratching my head after the third and fourth test to account for the numbers: 48.8c/119.8F with the thermal pad, 46.4c/115.5 F with the thermal compound The only thing I could come up with was the fact that the entire heat sink was a cast piece and not an extruded one, which seems to increase the thermal transfer properties of the aluminum quite a bit. The clip is a 6-point type and went on without issue. This unit looks to have the potential to be a real high performer if the fan was changed to something with a higher CFM. The fan that’s on it only pushes 21CFM over the 40mm tall fins, yet still turns in the numbers above. Overall dimensions 80 X 60 X 57mm make it a fit for most motherboards.

Thermaltake Volcano 5
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

The Volcano 5 is an all aluminum heat sink with a single clip design. The fan is a 60mm X 20mm and comes stock with Thermaltake's black thermal pad. Given the weight and size of the unit, it has really been eclipsed by smaller, more efficient fans since it first came out. The numbers are what really tell the story: 52c/125.6F with the thermal pad and 50c/122F with thermal compound in our tests. Although a good performer, it is a bit noisier than others that perform in the same range or better.

Thermaltake Volcano 6CU
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

Copper core/spreader makes a big difference in this unit’s ability to cool. How big? Well in comparison to the Volcano 5 its pretty sizable. With the thermal pad, we get a respectable 48.6c/119.4F and with thermal compound, 46.3c/115.3F. However, there is a problem. This is not a CPU cooler you want to use if you plan to move your machine a lot or go to LAN parties. The unit is pretty heavy and from personal experience the single point clip is just not sufficient. I personally had this unit come off while moving my machine for a LAN party.

Thermaltake Volcano 6CU+
(Click fan picture to zoom in)

This unit's heat sink is exactly the same as the 6CU. The "+ " means 7000 rpm fan, and it lets you know it. Scoring a 9 on the noise scale, you expect some severe cooling capacity. Sadly, it only delivers little over 1c difference from the 6CU. I actually spent more time with this cooler to make sure that the numbers were correct, but the consistent thermal compound test brought us to 45.2c/113.6. As this unit is even heavier than the 6CU, moving your machine often or going to LAN parties is even more likely to be a problem. With all of the Volcano units, I would really like to see Thermaltake go to a 6-point clip to avoid these sorts of issues.

* Measurement Definition: First measurement represents heatsink side with clip, second measurement is the other side and third measurement is height.

Some may agree or disagree with how we decided to test each of these units. However there really is no "perfect test" for CPU cooling devices since every case is different, every motherboard is different, and orientation of the CPU cooler and its relation to other heat generating devices inside a machine can cause a wide variety of issues in a CPU coolers ability to dissipate heat.

Each unit was tested on a 1.4 GHz Athlon T-Bird processor with the thermal probe attached directly to the CPU.

The test rig is a MSI K7T Pro2 motherboard with 512 MB of Corsair DDR 2400 ram and a Gainward G-force 3 video card. Onboard sound was enabled for all tests running under Windows XP professional.

All CPU coolers were tested twice with an ambient temp of 24c or 75.2 F and were tested with continuous loop of 3D Mark 2001 Demo and Quake 3 Arena time demo for 4 hours. All thermal compound testing was done with the generic white compound. Although other compounds such as Arctic Silver and chanteuse do have better thermal conductivity, Since none of the manufactures tested included anything but the white compound we thought it best to give people the "out of the box" results without having to spend extra cash on exotic thermal transfer compounds.

We have gotten away from the dbA rating scheme where it concerns fan noise level for allot of people telling someone a unit has a 29dbA or 37dbA only seemed to confuse people for the most part. Although with all the fans tested we supply the dbA numbers, we have opted for a 1 - 10 scale A (1) means you would have to place your ear on it to hear it . A (10) however, Well if you like the sound of a jet engine in your case you will get it with a 10.