FrostyTech Mk.II Synthetic Thermal Heatsink Test Results Intel Pentium D / Extreme Edition & Quad Core class heatsinks tested at 150W Intel Core 2 Duo / Pentium 4 / Celeron class heatsinks tested at 85W Results based on readings from a 30x30mm copper interface die with 150W and 85W heat loads applied on the LGA775 version of the Mk.II Test Platform. Temperature results listed for each heatsink were calculated by determining the rise over ambient temperatures at time of test. Information on Frostytech's test methodology is available here. Socket 775 compatible CPU heatsinks
manufacturer:	model no.:	fan speed:	150w thermal test* (°c)	85w thermal test (°c)	noise level (dba)
Sunbeamtech	Core-Contact Freezer	high	16.1	10.0	51.3
Xigmatek	HDT-S1283	high	16.8	10.7	50.7
Thermalright	Ultra 120		17.8	10.6	53.7
Coolermaster	Hyper Z600		18.0	11.6	47.7
3Rsystem	Iceage 120	high	18.2	12.1	47.9
Thermalright	Ultra 120 Extreme		18.4	11.4	44.5
Xigmatek	HDT-SD964	high	18.8	11.6	57.2
SilenX	iXtrema IXC-120HA2	high	18.9	11.2	52.9
Coolermaster	Hyper 212		19.0	11.8	45.9
Apack	Zerotherm BTF92 OC Ed	high	19.0	11.2	53.6
Zalman	CNPS9700 LED	high	19.0	10.4	56.5
Xigmatek	HDT-S983	high	19.5	11.8	52.7
Scythe	Mugen		19.5	11.4	46.0
Tuniq	Tower 120	high	19.6	12.2	51.6
Thermalright	Ultra-90	high	19.6	13.0	56.2
Apack	Zerotherm Nirvana 120	high	19.8	12.3	49.2
Enzotech	Ultra-X	high	20.0	8.5	59.1
Zalman	CNPS9700NT	high	20.3	12.4	52.2
Scythe	Infinity SCINF-1000		20.3	12.6	37.8
OCZ	Vendetta	high	21.3	13.5	52.8
Noctua	NH-U12P	high	21.3	13.4	40.7
Apack	Zerotherm BTF90		21.8	12.7	52.1
Xigmatek	HDT-S963	high	21.9	13.7	50.2
Akasa	AK-965	high	22.2	13.8	48.1
Apack	Zerotherm BTF80		22.8	13.9	51.9
Zalman	CNPS8700 LED	high	23.2	14.1	48.1
Cooljag	Falcon 92-AL	high	23.2	14.2	52.1
Rosewill	RCX-Z3	high	23.3	14.0	58.6
Coolink	Silentator	high	23.5	16.4	41.2
Scythe	Mine Rev. B		23.6	15.0	36.8
Cooljag	Falcon 92-Cu	high	23.6	14.8	52.8
Akasa	AK-920	high	24.3	14.1	52.9
Intel	FCLGA4-S Reference (P mode)	high	24.5	15.2	61.1
Scythe	Zipang		24.7	15.2	33.1
Glacialtech	Igloo 5750 PWM	high	24.9	14.6	52.3
Asus	Arctic Square	high	24.9	14.9	44.9
Akasa	AK-922 (EVObue)	high	25.5	15.4	60.3
Coolermaster	Aquagate Mini R80	high	25.7	16.2	59.2
Asus	Silent Square EVO	high	25.8	15.6	42.8
Glacialtech	Igloo 5610 PWM	high	25.9	15.9	59.5
Thermalright	SI-128SE		26.5	15.2	44.5
Scythe	Andy Samuri Master SCASM-1000		26.7	14.2	38.4
Noctua	NH-U9B	high	27.1	17.2	41.9
ASUS	Triton 77	high	27.7	17.6	41.2
Auras	SLC-747	high	27.9	25.7	52.2
Auras	LPT-700		28.3	16.9	52.2
Thermalfly	F1-IACSHA	high	29.0	18.3	60.4
nPowertek	TTIC NPH1000		29.3	16.8	47.5
Glacialtech	Igloo 5710 Silent		29.4	18.0	43.4
Thermalfly	I75DUB	high	29.5	16.8	68.5
Zalman	CNPS9500 AT		29.6	17.3	53.3
Glacialtech	Igloo 5750 Silent		29.8	18.5	35.5
Coolermaster	Hyper TX2		29.9	18.8	53.7
Alpha Novatech	PRE9060M92P	high	29.9	18.5	51.5
Scythe	Kama Cross		30.0	18.8	40.0
Akasa	AK-961		30.0	18.7	60.7
Auras	LPT-709		30.1	18.6	43.9
Rosewill	RCX-Z2-EX	high	30.1	18.7	45.9
nPowertek	NPH-775-1		30.1	18.8	50.1
Glacialtech	Igloo 5610 Silent		30.4	17.1	44.7
Sunon	Waturbo		30.6	18.3	57.5
Auras	CTC-868 (closed)		31.0	18.6	48.7
Akasa	Revo (horizontal)	high	31.0	20.3	44.5
Scythe	Shuriken	high	31.4	18.8	38.2
Apack	CF800	high	31.4	20.7	48.4
Thermaltake	Jungle512	high	31.6	20.4	60.8
Coolage	Frozen Orb F0-Z924AL	high	32.0	19.9	48.9
Xigmatek	AIO-S80DP	high	32.4	21.4	55.0
Scythe	Katana II		32.5	18.6	37.9
Rosewill	RCX-Z2		32.6	19.3	59.9
Zalman	CNPS7700-Cu	high	32.9	19.7	50.7
Apack	CF900	high	32.9	20.3	48.3
Evercool	PT02-9232CP		33.3	19.9	63.3
Coolermaster	Aquagate Mini R80	low	33.4	21.5	48.6
Zalman	CNPS7700-Cu LED	high	33.5	20.6	49.8
Scythe	Ninja Mini		33.7	19.9	41.7
Thermalright	MST-977SLE		33.8	20.0	46.5
Intel	Stock Pentium D	high	33.8	20.7	47.5
Scythe	Orochi SCORC-1000		34.0	20.8	27.8
Thermolab	TLI-S Micro Silencer		34.7	19.2	52.0
nPowerTek	SF775-2	high	34.7	21.1	64.6
Asus	Silent Knight 2	high	34.9	21.4	46.2
Akasa	AK-960E		36.1	21.4	56.3
Gigabyte	Volar GH-PSV21-FB	high	36.3	22.1	56.1
Auras	SMF-660		36.4	23.0	43.4
Zalman	CNPS7500-Cu LED	high	36.4	22.9	50.9
Thermalfly	I75DUH		37.8	22.8	48.7
Akasa	AK-975CU	high	38.4	23.0	47.7
Cooljag	OAK-H	high	38.5	22.9	55.7
Cooljag	OAK-H2	high	38.6	24.1	55.6
LS Cable	SHS-T700		38.7	22.8	48.5
Arctic Cooling	Alpine 7 Pro	high	40.5	23.8	44.1
Intel	Stock Core 2 Duo		49.2	29.0	36.7
Thermolab	TLI-U Nano Silencer		50.4	28.8	48.3
Glacialtech	Igloo 5062 Cu Light		50.6	29.7	45.2
Glacialtech	Igloo 5057 E		58.5	36.1	53.4
Asus	Triton 75		58.6	16.1	49.6
Spire	Fourier IV SP607B3-C		63.6	18.7	60.2
			150w thermal test (°c)	85w thermal test (°c)	noise level (dba)
*heatsinks are ranked according to the 150w thermal test results column (rise over ambient temp.). low temperatures with low noise levels are considered best. for reference heatsinks with variable-speed fans, only the high speed (12v) fan test result is included in the comparison sheet; more detailed results reside in each specific heatsink review.

Intel processors vary in power output between single and multi-core models, so FrostyTech tests heatsinks with two thermal loads that represent the upper limit of each CPU family; 150W and 85W.

With a 150W heat load applied by the Intel LGA775 version of FrostyTech's synthetic thermal test platform, the Coolermaster Aquagate Mini R80 watercooling system maintained a good temperature of 25.7°C over ambient, with a somewhat loud noise output of 59.2 dBA at full fan speed.

The 80mm fan driving air through the heat exchanger then had it speed reduced from 3800RPM to about 1800RPM. This decreased noise output from a rather uncomfortable 59.2 dBA to a much nicer 48.6 dBA. With the reduced fan speed the aluminum heat exchanger didn't operates efficiently, so test temperatures rose to a fairly average 33.4°C over ambient.

Next, the Aquagate Mini R80 watercooling system was stressed with an 85W heat load on the Intel thermal test platform. At full fan speed this resulted in a temperature of 16.2°C over ambient. At the greatly reduced fan speed, the rise over ambient temperature result was 21.5°C. A larger heat exchanger probably would have allowed the Aquagate Min R80 to operate a little more efficiently.

Looking over the Intel and AMD thermal test data reveals some fairly obvious results. The Coolermaster Aquagate Mini R80 offers good cooling performance - not great and not extremely quiet - but good. It's also pretty clear there are more than two dozen air cooled heatsinks capable of maintaining lower temperatures (with far less noise) for a lot less money. The Aquagate Mini R80 is a well built all-in-one watercooling system for a broad range of processor platforms, but with a retail price tag of near $100 it's an expensive route to go for fairly moderate returns.

If you're interested in going down the watercooling route, the gear should offer you near ambient temperatures under load, or run very quietly. Unfortunately the Coolermaster Aquagate Mini R80 does neither. It's not a bad CPU thermal solution, it just doesn't compete against standard air cooling heatsinks. Bottom line - save your money and pick up a regular air-cooled low noise tower heatsink for your processor.

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