Xigmatek S126384 “Thor’s Hammer” CPU Cooler Review

Conclusion

If anything, the Thor's Hammer really has been and interesting cooler to test. It is easily the largest HDT-based product we have ever tested and even without the added layer of 6mm heatpipes there is no question that it has the thermal mass to handle insane levels of heat. Indeed, for the first time ever we have seen a cooler which is truly robust and downright massive enough to theoretically cool four 8mm heatpipes effectively. In the past, we have mused that Heatpipe Direct Touch technology has usually suffered from a lack of cooling fins. So much so that it always seemed the coolers were never designed for massive thermal loads like you will experience with overclocking high end quad core systems. Now once again Xigmatek comes to the table with a product that should show other manufacturers the light at the end of the tunnel.

While we can write pages about about the technology behind this product, when push comes to shove, engineering takes a back seat to the raw data and we were unfortunately left wanting. The numbers we received from the Thor's Hammer are not as good as they should have been considering all the advances Xigmatek made with the fin array and heatpipe layout. If anything, the i7 performance numbers are perfect examples of what an HDT cooler can do when hobbled with somewhat poor implementation in only a few minor areas of its design.

This cooler easily has the potential to give best in class cooling performance yet it is simply being held back by what amounts to a poorly designed and finished base. The base may be almost as good as the S1283 we reviewed darn near a year ago, but it is still rife with missteps. In all reality, when it comes to heatsinks that cost almost as much as a good budget GPU there is no way we should be talking about gigantic gaps between the heatpipes and aluminum shims let alone sub-par polishing jobs. However, these two factors seem to have contributed to the Thor's Hammer languishing behind heatsinks that cost half as much.

A poorly finished base on a standard cooler is bad enough, but on an HDT unit it has a huge impact on performance at higher loads. At lower loads the high efficiency of the design does mask this problem to a certain extent but when the heat is on, little things really do count.

The Xigmatek Thor’s Hammer had a chance to show what a properly designed HDT cooler could do, and boy were we hoping this was the case. For too long HDTs have been snubbed by many an overclocker that belongs to a crowd who insist an HDT can never be a “serious cooler”. Xigmatek had that chance, came out of the gates at a break-neck speed and faltered when it came to that push to the finish line we like to call "quality control". Here was another example of hope for change we could believe in that ended up falling flat. Here is a cooler which failed to live up to its potential and silence the HDT critics once and for all.

We can rattle on all we want about the base but regardless of its quality, Xigmatek was still able to hold to some respectable numbers. It was also able to defy its own size by offering us a simple, praise-worthy installation process. That in itself speaks volumes about the engineering that went into the design. Indeed, if you take the time to lap the base and pair it up with a good fan (or better still two fans) you will most likely not be disappointed.

All in all, even with the issues we had, the performance of the Thor's Hammer is very good but with a proper amount of attention paid to the details it could have lived up to its namesake: to be a true god among mortals. It is that unfulfilled potential that is in itself a crying shame.


Pros:
- Good Cooling Performance
- Dual fan capable
- HDT based cooler
- Enough rubber fan mounts for two fans
- Backplate comes standard
- Improved and easier fan installation process
- Excellent dual “face” to the fin array
- Easy Installation


Cons:
- Price
- Poorly designed & executed base w/ really poor polishing job
- No fan included
- Does not live up to its potential