Intel Core i7 / LGA1366 CPU Cooler Roundup

Mid-Speed Fan Performance Results

2.6GHz

The very first thing which pops out in this chart is that while Zalman allows their fan reduce its speed down to 1300 rpm….it should never be adjusted that low….ever. The stock fan equipped Zalman gets its but handed to it by even the underwhelming Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme. Speaking of the Tower 120, it is still down in the basement without any hope whatsoever. It seems that both the Spire and Cogage also rely on their high speed fans for high performance since they suffer as well. Granted, they are entry level units but both are marketed towards enthusiasts.

Moving on up we come to the Zalman CNPS10X equipped with the NF-P12 and once again all we can say is we are under-whelmed by its showing. This cooler really needs a high speed fan to get good results. We know it is capable of greatness but one thing is for certain: results like this are anything but best in class.

While we knew from previous experience that the ProlimaTech coolers were not going to be a great performers at this CPU speed as they aren’t built for lower heat scenarios. Heck, the Kingwin XT1264 comes within a hair of matching those very expensive coolers which is actually pretty impressive for Kingwin’s budget heatsink.

3.4GHz

Once we bump up the speed, things come a bit more in line with what we were expecting. The Mega Shadow and its brother slug it out for first place and it also seems that the Zalman cooler equipped with the NF-P12 has decided to enter the fray with a respectable showing. We are coming to see that Zalman fan may be able to slow itself way, way down but doing so kicks the living hell out of its performance abilities.

Once again the Tuniq proves itself to be totally limited due to its anemic fan being sandwiched between two massive performance robbing fin arrays. We also see the Kingwin’s early good run has come to an early demise as it seems that the lackluster base is once again the albatross around its neck, and we really do wonder what a good lapping job would do to its performance. This of course is no excuse as you should not have to do anything besides mounting it properly to get the very best from any CPU cooling solution. Damn crying shame is all we have to say.

3.8GHz

As expected the Tuniq, Cogage, Spire and Kingwin are all back in the basement once again fighting tooth and nail with one another for last place. All four are classic examples of coolers needing high speed fans to compete with the best of the best.

Also as expected the huge ProlimaTech coolers are still fighting for top spot but even though the Zalman’s stock fan numbers are less than stellar, when equipped with a good fan, things improve quite a bit.