Tag: Arctic

Arctic BioniX P120 A-RGB: The lit specialist for filters and grilles

Extra tests, Fans | | Ľubomír Samák

Now that’s what we call a turnaround. Remember how the BioniX F120 failed on obstacles? The newer BioniX P120 (A-RGB) no longer has such a fundamental limitation. On the contrary, it is significantly less stifled by obstacles than many competing fans. Just tame those vibrations, fine-tune the acoustics, where there are some flaws, and it’ll be great. The basis (the rotor) is better in practice than the label parameters suggest. Read more “Arctic BioniX P120 A-RGB: The lit specialist for filters and grilles” »

Arctic Freezer 7 X rev. 3: The cooling legend that missed the boat

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Ľubomír Samák

How many generations of processors could the Freezer 7 cool? The most. No other brand of coolers has been around for so long. That’s worthy of respect, but the fact remains that the progression in efficiency is rapid from revision to revision. Some improvements do come, but at a slower rate than competing solutions that are way more cost-effective. Thus, Freezer 7 often reaches the shelves of brick-and-mortar stores and PC builds only by inertia. Read more “Arctic Freezer 7 X rev. 3: The cooling legend that missed the boat” »

Arctic Alpine 17 CO: A classic that’s going to have a hard time

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Ľubomír Samák

Alpine coolers are always cheap and are sold at prices below ten euros. Active models with fans can be seen as simple replacements for box coolers. However, while Intel has vastly improved the coolers supplied with Alder Lake CPUs between generations, the biggest change with the new Alpine 17 is the added LGA 1700 support. The difference in cooling performance over the Laminar RM1 has thus narrowed considerably. Read more “Arctic Alpine 17 CO: A classic that’s going to have a hard time” »

Arctic has an alternative to Intel box coolers, the Alpine 17 (CO)

Cooling, CPU coolers, News | | Ľubomír Samák

After Akasa, Arctic also updates a small, simple and inexpensive cooler for Intel LGA 1700. With the Alpine 17, it builds on the Alpine 12 design. The new Alpine (17) looks like a good option for 65-watt Alder Lake processors that ship without a cooler. The Intel The Alpine 17 will probably not outperform the Intel Laminar RM1, but it does have a few features that some may prefer it for. Read more “Arctic has an alternative to Intel box coolers, the Alpine 17 (CO)” »

Arctic BioniX F120: The efficient fan that loses to obstacles

Extra tests, Fans | | Ľubomír Samák

We watched the Arctic BioniX F120’s behaviour during tests with our jaws dropped. First of all, because in some situations it really has top efficiency, and at a low price of around ten euros. But that’s how it excels in theoretical applications where nothing stands in it’s way. When it works with a filter, grille or radiator, the magic of the BioniX is gone. Such a significant turnaround is unique and fascinating. Read more “Arctic BioniX F120: The efficient fan that loses to obstacles” »

Beware, some Arctic MX-5 thermal pastes may dry out faster

Cooling, News, TIMs | | Ľubomír Samák

Less than a year into the MX-5’s existence, the first publicly known flaw is associated with this thermal paste for which it may achieve lower thermal conductivity than expected. This is due to the compound that makes up the paste not holding together properly, and the thermally conductive interface will harden before application, in the tube. Arctic has supposedly already withdrawn these batches from circulation, but one needs to be cautious. Read more “Beware, some Arctic MX-5 thermal pastes may dry out faster” »

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

Cooling, Fans, News | | Ľubomír Samák

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” »

We know how Arctic will get on with the Intel LGA 1700 socket

CPU coolers, News | | Ľubomír Samák

With the advent of Alder Lake CPUs, the socket is changing and LGA 1700 this time changes the situation in terms of mounting. Arctic is currently responding to this with an announcement for current and future owners of coolers from this company. There are two pieces of good news. The first is that you can also install older Arctic coolers on new Intel processors, and the second message refers to an upcoming cooler that will have native support. Read more “We know how Arctic will get on with the Intel LGA 1700 socket” »

Arctic kept his word, the MX-5 is on sale. We know the specs

News, TIMs | | Ľubomír Samák

As of March 15, various size tubes of the new MX-5 thermal paste are in stock on Amazon. Arctic thus managed to start the sale on the day they announced in January, when no specifications were yet known. These are already quite detailed and include commonly unspecified specs of electrical insulation. However, something feels fishy here as the basic information about thermal conductivity is missing for some reason. Read more “Arctic kept his word, the MX-5 is on sale. We know the specs” »

After 10 years, a new Arctic paste from the MX series is here – 5

News, TIMs | | Ľubomír Samák

There is no more popular series of thermal pastes than MX from Arctic, which was released in the early phase of the company under the old name Arctic Cooling. Two years ago, Arctic boasted a statistical report on 10,000,000 sold pieces of MX-2 and MX-4 (in total) and now, without prior news, there has been a notice of the upcoming release of MX-5. The exact date is already known and you won’t have to wait long. Read more “After 10 years, a new Arctic paste from the MX series is here – 5” »

Arctic Liquid Freezer II 240 – Quality does not have to cost a lot

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

I’ve recently tested the popular Arctic Freezer 34 air cooler, which eventually won an editorial award. Now I would like to give a liquid all-in-one cooler from the same manufacturer a hard time on a hot processor. We will see if Arctic can design an AIO cooler as well as it did with an air cooler. Liquid Freezer II 240 should offer a very interesting price to performance ratio without unnecessary decoration. Read more “Arctic Liquid Freezer II 240 – Quality does not have to cost a lot” »

Arctic Freezer 34 – Effective, quiet and affordable

Cooling, CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Pavel Sekerka

Arctic has long focused primarily on the production of affordable coolers. Freezer 34 should be just one such cooler. At an affordable price, it boasts of a solid TDP rating (150 W) and also promises quiet operation. I’ve had it in my wishlist for a long time, but only now have I managed to get one piece for testing. So I’m wondering if it really lives up to its reputation that precedes it. Read more “Arctic Freezer 34 – Effective, quiet and affordable” »

Test of “chewing gums”: 3× Arctic and Thermal Grizzly Minus Pads

Cooling, Extra tests, TIMs | | Ľubomír Samák

Thermal conductive pads are useful wherever a thermal paste cannot be reasonably applied. A good example are power supply circuit of graphics cards and processors, so the choice of test subjects was unambiguous. It was less clear, however, what thickness of pads is most effective, if it is better to pay for more expensive ones, and what improvement to expect. Read more “Test of “chewing gums”: 3× Arctic and Thermal Grizzly Minus Pads” »

Arctic Freezer 33 tasting different heat intensities

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Ľubomír Samák

From the previous tests, you already know that Freezer 33 loses its breath quite quickly in tower cases. But it does not have to be always like that – the distinctive performance difference between the vertical and the horizontal position appears only with certain cooling efficiency requirements. At 90 W, the cooler performs differently than at 180 W. Interesting is also the comparison on the “big” Haswell-E and on the “small” Kaby Lake. Read more “Arctic Freezer 33 tasting different heat intensities” »

Arctic Freezer 33 face-to-face with SilentiumPC Fera 3 v2 (bonus)

CPU coolers, Extra tests | | Ľubomír Samák

Cooling the processor is one thing, but cooling its power supply circuit is another. How will the coolers handle this task? We specially focused on testing the heatsinks with Noctua reference fans. Notably, the weird Freezer had some real difficulties. We know where the problem is. We made some tests without fans too, and on this occasion we decided to include top-notch passive cooler Zalman FX70. Read more “Arctic Freezer 33 face-to-face with SilentiumPC Fera 3 v2 (bonus)” »

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