Asus ROG Strix XF120: An excellent fan, but only in some ways

The first and still the only Asus fan that is on sale individually may be a good choice. But you can also get burnt. It depends on what you want to use it for. In the right context, it gives attractive results, and the impression of a very decent fan is spoiled mainly by pointless design details or sugar-coating the specs. Anyway, you can see that compared to the more ordinary fans from the last test, the Strix is a bit of a different class. Read more “Asus ROG Strix XF120: An excellent fan, but only in some ways” »

Big test of 120 mm fans. We known everything about eight of them

To write that we have something mapped out to the last detail is perhaps too bold, but after proper preparation, few pieces of hardware are as easy to evaluate as fans. Of course, this had to be preceded by long preparations, developing a methodology, but you already know the story. What you don’t know yet is the first fruit, or rather the results of Akasa, SilentiumPC, SilverStone, Xigmatek or more exotic Reeven fans. Read more “Big test of 120 mm fans. We known everything about eight of them” »

Cougar sends a new cooler into battle, the massive Forza 85 tower

The choice of more powerful single tower CPU coolers is growing. A year ago there might have been a shortage, but now, one model after another. The latest is the Forza 85, with which Cougar builds on the slimmer design of the Forza 50. Very high cooling performance is to be expected not only because of the extra weight and a high-speed fan, but also because the closed fins on the sides achieve the highest possible pressure. Read more “Cougar sends a new cooler into battle, the massive Forza 85 tower” »

New EK Momentum2 block covers 2/3 of the motherboard

EKWB has released a striking block for those who like small but powerful and quiet computers. The Momentum² is designed for the ROG Strix X570-I Gaming, a Mini-ITX board from Asus. It is a monolithic design, which is supposed to be characterized by low restrictiveness (thus it is also suitable for slower pumps), but mainly by a wide reach – in addition to the CPU, it covers both the VRM and the AMD X570 chipset. Read more “New EK Momentum2 block covers 2/3 of the motherboard” »

Enough TF thermal paste for now, Thermalright introduced the CFX

Until now, Thermalright’s current thermal pastes have been from the TF series. The latest paste (CFX) no longer carries this label. This might be because it no longer fits into the current pyramid due to its properties. The new CFX thermal paste is among the top of the company’s range in terms of parameters, but we believe that you may pay less for it per unit of “ability to dissipate heat” than is usual with Thermalright. Read more “Enough TF thermal paste for now, Thermalright introduced the CFX” »

Sapphire comes out with AIO coolers under the Nitro+ brand

The variety of liquid coolers is growing rapidly, but few build on such a strong brand as the two new Sapphire products. We’re talking about the “Nitro+”, an attribute that has gained a very good reputation in the graphics card market. Sapphire is going down a similar path as it once did with the Vapor-X. But this cooler succeeded only on the GPU, the CPU design didn’t stand too strong compared to the competition. The AIOs will hopefully turn out a lot better. Read more “Sapphire comes out with AIO coolers under the Nitro+ brand” »

More metal, no push-pins; Intel’s upcoming Core i9 coolers

Shortly after the leak of a detailed photo of the box cooler for Core i7, Core i5 and Core i3 Alder Lake CPUs, the most powerful model is revealed in all its glory. This one is naturally more robust and the tall fins are no longer plastic, but made of aluminium. It uses fixed mounting via screws, which is good news as well. The cooler also includes a backplate, which is handy since this cooler is significantly taller and heavier than the current stock coolers. Read more “More metal, no push-pins; Intel’s upcoming Core i9 coolers” »

Two heatsinks, a heatpipe and a fan; the new ElecGear SSD cooler

More complex, tall coolers for SSD always attract attention. However, their fin area tends to be significantly oversized, at least for current semiconductor storage models. No extremes are needed for cooling ten watts at most. However, higher cooling performance might be warranted later, for PCI Express 5.0 SSDs. From this perspective, the ElecGear active cooler is a rather timeless novelty. Read more “Two heatsinks, a heatpipe and a fan; the new ElecGear SSD cooler” »

The design of new coolers for 65-watt Intel CPUs is now clearer

Intel’s box coolers have been stagnant for a long time. Since the first models on the LGA 775 platform (which is already quite historic), not much has changed with their coolers. However, a significant shift away from the usual shape will come at the beginning of the year with the more economical Alder Lake processors. We wrote about this in September, but the latest visualizations reveal some striking details. Read more “The design of new coolers for 65-watt Intel CPUs is now clearer” »

We tried a DIY silon dust filter instead of traditional nylon. Result?

Socks, stockings or tights made of silon also attract uses other than on our legs. Enthusiasts can use the material to make, for example, a dust filter for a PC fan. It’s effectiveness then depends on the thickness of the silon fibre. However, tests show that whatever type you use, it is a rather unsuitable solution. And it’s also difficult for robbers who don’t worry too much about the mask and just need a visit to the drugstore before the job. Read more “We tried a DIY silon dust filter instead of traditional nylon. Result?” »

Raven 4 ARGB, AeroCool cooling novelty with conical fan

AeroCool has come up with an inspiring design that will increase the efficiency of smaller tower coolers. These always use small fans, but the 135mm tall new addition in the form of the Raven 4 ARGB has a full-sized “hundred and twenty” on the fins. To make sense of such a design, the fan bezel tapers smoothly from intake to exhaust, thus having a conical shape. Look at the details. Read more “Raven 4 ARGB, AeroCool cooling novelty with conical fan” »

The Akasa GRM120-30 foam filter works better than it seems

After analyzing the nylon and plastic dust filter, we now add a test of the “foam” dust filter. The latter has a slightly more complex construction. It consists of several parts and is kind of like a jigsaw puzzle, the elements of which even improve the aerodynamics in some ways. We go through everything in detail, and although we approached this type of filter with a bit of a bias, it comes out in a good light in the end. Is a foam dust filter better than a nylon one? Read more “The Akasa GRM120-30 foam filter works better than it seems” »

Analysis: a hexagonal grille is no match for a circular one, in any way

Why do cases and PSUs almost always have impractical cut-outs in the grille in front of fans for air passage? Whether this is due to indifference to an all-round honest product or ignorance of how inefficient a solution it is, remains a mystery. But we have devised a comparative test which refers to drawbacks of the hexagonal grille. Compared to the non-restrictive circular ones made of wires, the differences are significant. Read more “Analysis: a hexagonal grille is no match for a circular one, in any way” »

Test: Nylon vs. plastic dust filter. Which restricts fans less?

The vast majority of computers use two types of dust filters – a fine nylon one and a coarser plastic one. The fact that the plastic filter lets more through and is less efficient in this respect is already apparent from the eye, as it has a coarser mesh. But do you know which one degrades the performance of the fan more and by how much? One even “wheezes”, which is nicely indicated by a detailed noise analysis at 240 sound frequencies. Read more “Test: Nylon vs. plastic dust filter. Which restricts fans less?” »

Zero RPM illuminated Arctic fans are now also available in 140 mm

Arctic released the P12 fans with (A)RGB first in a more widespread 120 mm format. Now, however, the range is also expanding to include 140 mm models, which should achieve higher airflow compared to the smaller variants. The Swiss manufacturer claims that the rotor is also well suited for operation on liquid cooler radiators. In addition, the P12 PWM PST (A-)RGB fans are also characterised by a passive mode. Read more “Zero RPM illuminated Arctic fans are now also available in 140 mm” »

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