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 2900RPM) |
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 |
| Intel |
FCLGA4-S Reference (Q mode 2000RPM) |
low |
28.9 |
17.9 |
52.1 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
FCLGA4-S Reference (1000RPM) |
low |
41.0 |
24.5 |
44.9 |
| 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. |
The
heat output from Intel processors varies widely between single and multi-core processors,
so Frostytech relies on two thermal values that represent the upper limits of
existing CPU families.
With a
150W heat load applied by the Intel LGA775 version of FrostyTech's synthetic thermal test platform, the Intel FCLGA4-S reference heatsink was
able to maintain a test temperature of 24.5°C over ambient, at full fan
speed (P mode).
The noise generated by
the fan spinning at 2900RPM is a hefty 61.1 dBA according to our
real world sound measurements. This is little bit loud to live with on
a constant basis...
If we flick the switch
from "P" to "Q" mode, the fan slows to a moderately audible 52.1 dBA
and test temperatures rise 5 degrees to 28.9°C over ambient.
The next
fan speed tested is not directly user controlled, but it serves as a good example of what's attainable in
a cool running system with the BIOS in control of the PWM fan speed. The rotational speed
was dialed down to 1000RPM, and this saw test temperatures increase significantly to 41.0°C over
ambient. Noise levels fell to their lowest, 44.9 dBA.
For the next round of testing the
Intel FCLGA4-S reference heatsink was tested with an 85W heat load. A heat
load of 85W is more in line with the actual thermal loads Core 2
Duo processors.
The FCLGA4-S
heatsink maintained a 15.2°C rise in temperature in Performance fan
mode with 85W applied. When operating in Quiet mode the test temperature held
steady at 17.9°C over ambient. With the fan slowed to 1000RPM the result was 24.5°C
over ambient.
So there you have it,
Intel's best and brightest socket 775 heatsink compared to 100 of the best third party
Intel heatsinks available.
The verdict?
Intel's FCLGA4-S reference heatsink offers
good thermal performance at full fan speed where it's also quite noisy. As you can
see by the reference list, there are many other heatsinks which offer both
cooler temperatures and lower noise output, though to be fair few are as
vertically compact and I don't think any are as lightweight.
Intel's
FCLGA4-S reference heatsink offers a good ratio of
performance-to-noise when set to the quiet fan mode. If you're using this
heatsink with a 45nm Intel Core 2 Extreme QX6850 processor right now, you
may as well leave the switch permanently set to "Q". The rise in temperature is
moderate, the drop in noise is significant.
If you're
an enthusiast looking for the lowest temperatures an air cooled heatsink can
provide, and you don't mind tall tower heatsinks or heavyweights, there are
plenty of better performing third party heatsinks to pick from. Where
weight and height restrictions are critical factors, Intel's FCLGA4-S reference heatsink remains very competitive. In all other
respects the FCLGA4-S reference model is a good all around LGA775
heatsink.
Related Articles:
The Top 5 best heatsinks for low noise and low temperature
are ranked here. For more reviews on the latest heatsinks
and cooling solutions, rely on FrostyTech's inventory of 400+ heatsink
reviews. Here are a few other articles that you might enjoy as well.
- Xigmatek HDT-SD964 Exposed Heatpipe Base Heatsink
Review
- Scythe Orochi SCORC-1000 Low Noise Heatsink
- SilenX iXtrema IXC-120HA2 Heatsink Review
- Noctua NH-U9B Low Noise Heatsink Review
- Sunbeamtech Core-Contact Freezer Heatsink
- ASUS Silent Knight II Heatsink Review
- Coolermaster Hyper Z600 Passive Heatsink Review
