In this review Frostytech tests the 'Cryorig H5 Ultimate' air cooled heatsink.

The Cryorig H5 Ultimate is a full-tower heatsink which stands 160mm tall and comes equipped with a single 140mm PWM fan. The H5 Ultimate utilizes four 6mm diameter nickel plated heatpipes to conduct heat from a thick copper base plate to a 100mm tall array of raw aluminum cooling fins. The fins feature a square-tooth 'honeycomb-esque' pattern pressed into the leading edge which is likely aimed at reducing issues with back pressure. The supplied 11-bladed 140mm fan operates at 1300-700RPM and moves up to 76CFM at an air pressure of 1.44mmH2O according to manufacturer specs. For those who prefer dead quiet operation, Cryorig do supply a second set of wire fan mounts so a second fan can be installed onto the rear of the heatsink (second fan not included).

Rounding out the specs for the H5 Ultimate heatsink, we see that it occupies a footprint of 145x110mm and weighs 920grams. Of note, the heatsink's mounting base is positioned asymmetrically (off to one side) to improve RAM clearance on motherboards where the CPU socket is surrounded by memory DIMMs.

Cryorig's H5 Ultimate heatsink retails for about $70USD/CDN and is compatible with AMD socket AM2/AM3/FM1/FM2 CPUs, and Intel LGA2011/2011v3/1366/115x/775 processors.

Cryorig H5 Ultimate Heatsink

heatsink specsheet manufacturer: cryorig model no.: h5 ultimate materials: aluminum fins, nickel plated copper heatpipes, aluminum base cap, nickel plated copper base plate fan mfg: cryorig xf140 fan spec: 1300-700rpm, 12v, 0.14a fan airflow: 76cfm fan air pressure: 1.44 mmh2o fan dim: 25x140x140mm heatsink & fan dim: 160x145x111mm weight: 920 grams includes: multi-socket socket mounting hardware, thermal compound, instructions. Compatible with Sockets: AMD - FM2/FM1/AM2/AM3 Intel - LGA2011/2011v3/1366/115x/775 Pricing: $52USD ($60CDN)

Asymmetric design for memory clearance

The Cryorig H5 Ultimate heatsink has it's base positioned towards the front of the heatsink (ie. it's asymmetric) instead of being centered directly under the aluminum cooling fin tower. What this means in real world terms is that the CPU socket is positioned directly below the center of the entire heatsink+fan, which helps maintain good motherboard memory slot clearance. With a 25mm thick fan installed, the width of the heatsink front to back is 111mm. In other words, from the center the processor socket to the first memory DIMMs flanking the processor, you'll need about 56mm of clearance on both sides.

The 140mm PWM fan supplied with Cryorig's H5 Ultimate heatsink incorporates small rubber covers at each of its eight corners. No matter which way it's mounted, there's vibration absorbing material in direct contact with the metal fins. If you've ever suffered the intermittent hum of a loose computer part - ahem, DELL! - you'll know this is a small, but very important touch!

A set of springy wire clips hold the fan firmly in place on the H5 Ultimate, which is Frostytech's preferred method. Wire fan clips make removing the fan for periodic de-dusting a straight forward exercise. Rubber nibs tend to snap over time and screws are a pain to deal with unless the entire heatsink is de-socketed first.

As mentioned earlier, the square-tooth profile of the aluminum fins leading edge gives the heatsink a sort of flattened honey-comb appearance. The pattern of 10mm squares extends about 7mm into the body of the fin with a gradual slope. While it's reminiscent of honeycomb used for flow-straightening in wind tunnels, the lack of an appreciable plenum behind the fan motor, supports and frame, effectively negate this.

Round back, the trailing edges of the H5 Ultimate fins have sort of rhombic cut out, which is purely decorative since the fins aren't bent in the Z-axis. A second fan can be mounted to this side of the heatsink as Cryorig have supplied extra wire fan clips.

At the working end of the heatsink we discover a nickel plated copper heatspreader cradling the four 6mm diameter heat pipes. The base is 2-6mm thick to distribute heat from multi-core processors evenly out to all the heatpipes. The base is clearly swaged into the aluminum top plate at each end (the top-plate serves to distribute clamping forces) so this makes us wonder if the base is soldered to the heat pipes or not? There's no way to tell with out destructively disassembling the heatsink.

Heatsink Mounting Hardware

The Cryorig H5 Ultimate heatsink installs onto Intel socket LGA2011/2011-3/1366/115x/775 and AMD socket AM2/AM3/FM1/FM2 CPUs. The heatsink ships with several metal rear-motherboard support brackets, metal mounting brackets, associated hardware, an extra set of wire fan clips, screw-driver and a tube of Cryorig CP7 thermal compound. A shrink-wrapped product registration card is also included.

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!