Thermaltake's ISGC-100 is a low profile low noise heatsink for small and compact PC chassis. Three 6mm diameter copper heatpipes ensure good thermal conduction from the base to the fins of the 70mm tall heatsink. A 92mm PWM fan scales in speed from 600-1600RPM, directing airflow down through the horizontal aluminum fins of the heatsink. In real world terms the ISGC-100 heatsink ranges from moderately audible to completely silent.

The Thermaltake ISGC-100 heatsink comes with fan that has beautiful glossy white fan blades shaped like the fins of a whale. The fan motor used Hydro Dynamic Bearings to decrease noise and improve lifespan (MTBF 50,000 hours), always a nice touch.

The 335gram ISGC-100 heatsink installs onto Intel socket 775 and AMD socket 754/939AM2/AM3 processors and should run about $29 USD/CDN. It is not compatible with socket 1156/1366 processors.

Thermaltake ISGC-100 Heatsink

heatsink specsheet manufacturer: thermaltake model no.: isgc-100 materials: aluminum fins, copper heatpipes, aluminum base with copper baseplate fan mfg: thermaltake ttb922512hs fan spec: 600-1600rpm, 12v, 0.37a, pwm fan airflow: 37cfm fan dim: 25x92x92mm heatsink & fan dim: 70x96x121mm weight: 335 grams includes: multi-socket socket mounting hardware, thermal compound, instructions Compatible with Sockets: AMD - 754/939/AM2/AM2+/AM3 Intel - LGA775 Pricing: $29USD ($30CDN)

Mounting brackets for the Thermaltake ISGC-100 screw into a flat aluminum slab soldered to the opposite side of the line of heatpipes at the base. The bottom of the heatsink that makes contact with the processor is actually a 2mm thin copper plate, rather than exposed heatpipes.

Mounting Hardware and Brackets

Thermaltake's ISGC-100 heatsink heatsink is compatible with Intel socket 775 and AMD socket 754/939/AM2/AM2+/AM3 processors. Heatsink installation requires access to the rear of the motherboard to install small nuts (Intel only). AMD motherboards are easier to work with because the heatsink uses the standard AMD heatsink retention frame and a simple clip.

Base Finish and Flatness

Flipping a heatsink over to inspect the business end is often a simple indicator of overall cooler quality. More practically speaking, a heatsink is in many ways only as effective as the contact it makes with the processor - the flatter and smoother the better. Base finish is one of the criteria that Frostytech measure in the course of evaluating heatsinks, and it involves two distinct aspects. Surface Finish is the first; this is calculated with the aid of Surface Roughness Comparator that has a cross section of common machine surface finishes and their numerical surface roughness equivalents in microinches. The second is Surface Flatness. This is tested with an engineers straight edge or proven flat surface, in two axis.

The stamped copper base plate has been machined and polished smooth, surface roughness is approximately ~8 microinches, which is considered good. The base is perfectly flat in both axis.

FrostyTech's Test Methodologies are outlined in detail here if you care to know what equipment is used, and the parameters under which the tests are conducted. Now let's move forward and take a closer look at this heatsink, its acoustic characteristics, and of course its performance in the thermal tests!