Valkyrie Vind SL125 – Interesting synergy of two fans

Key features

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Key features of the cooler

The packaging of the Valkyrie Vind SL125 cooler alone will surely catch your eye. Similar to the Dragonfang water cooler, the packaging uses a combination of futuristic military graphic design with a touch of mecha. Inside the package is a single tower heatsink that is made up of a dense bundle of aluminum fins. These fins are intersected by six six-millimeter copper heatpipes. The top of the cooler is fitted with a plastic cover with the manufacturer’s logo, and the overall design of the heatsink is slightly asymmetrical to avoid physical conflict between the cooler and RAM modules on a motherboard.

   

   

Paired with the heatsink is a pair of fans from the X12 series recently tested by my colleague Samák, and this is where it gets really interesting. This pair of fans is mirrored to each other and both fans are mounted on the heatsink so that their hub is directed to the centre of the cooler. It is therefore really important to make sure that both fans are oriented correctly to ensure optimal airflow through the heatsink of the cooler, so that both fans work together and not against each other. The fans are fitted with rubber corners to suppress any vibrations and all four corners are fitted with translucent strips that house the 5V RGB LEDs. The cables for these LEDs can be connected in series with the top cover of the cooler, which also features several RGB LEDs.

   

Similarly to the Dragonfang 360 cooler, the product presentation is top-notch. When you open the box, the entire cooler slides up neatly for easy removal. Thermal paste is pre-applied in a matrix pattern on the full-size (38 × 42 mm) copper coldplate, so there’s no need to worry about applying it when you first install the cooler. However, if you do need to relocate the Vind SL125 to another build, the accessories fortunately include a small tube of additional paste for about two to three applications.

   

The mounting system of the cooler is very clearly stored in a plastic moulding, there is also a tool for tightening screws, the aforementioned tube with thermal paste and a cable splitter for the supplied fans. Somewhat strange and anachronistic, however, is the presence of an interchangeable top cover with a somewhat… waifu motif, which reminds me a bit of the design of graphics card covers from the turn of the millennium – those who lived through the era of Voodoo from 3dfx know what I’m talking about. I leave the presence of this element to everyone’s subjective assessment. As standard, the cooler is fitted with an inconspicuous black cover with a golden manufacturer’s logo, so everyone can choose what they prefer.

   

The cooler installation itself is easy, the mounting system is pleasantly robust thanks to the all-metal build and the presence of a tightening tool makes installing the cooler a very easy task.

Cooler and fan parameters

If we compare the Vind SL125 with similar types of coolers from competitors, we can easily see that it is very similar in size and weight. With a height of under 160mm, it should also not be a problem in most current cases on the market, and you don’t have to worry about the compatibility of RAM modules either, as the Vind SL125 does not interfere with the space for DIMM slots on the motherboard.

The Vind SL125 uses the same fan as the Dragonfang series of coolers, the X12. The X12R version is mirrored, so the fan hub points towards the heatsink and is not visible, otherwise it is the same type of fan with the same blade and frame geometry.

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Testing methodology

As a test processor and heat generator I use the Intel Core i7-11700K on the Asus TUF Gaming Z590-Plus WIFI motherboard. The entire build is mounted on a Streacom BC1 frame with no fans to provide airflow. Acoustic shielding (acoustic foam on OSB boards) is installed around the test rig to eliminate ambient noise. The Voltcraft SL-100 calibrated noise meter is placed perpendicular to the cooler in a fixed position relative to the motherboard at a distance of approximately 35 cm from the processor socket.

   

Stress tests are performed using Prime95 with a duration of 30-35 minutes. Coolers are tested at three standardized noise levels (36, 39 and 42 dBA) and then at maximum speed. In addition, I am gradually adding tests at 45 and 48 dBA levels and you will also find this data in the results over time. The tests are run in two sets based on the thermal output of the processor.

The first set of tests is at 125 W, i.e. the forced PL1 limit of the processor. In the second set, the power draw is then about 210 W (4500 MHz at 1.285 V). However, this second level represents a very high concentration of heat per mm2 due to the small size of the chip itself. Thus, not all coolers can be expected to pass this set of tests at all noise levels. For example, no cooler has reached the 36 dBA level at this load, and I ended up eliminating it from the tests after some consideration.

The highest temperature reached after the test is always recorded. All data regarding temperatures and thermal output of the processor are obtained from HWiNFO64. The measured values are then adjusted against the temperature in the room as the resulting Delta T. The test success limit is set to 75 °C. Any higher value means a risk of processor temperature above 95-100 °C and a risk of thermal throttling. Therefore, if the cooler does not pass the load with a Delta T value below 75 °C, such a test is marked as a failure.

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Results – 36 dBA

In this category you will no longer find load test results at 210 W. The reason is the impossibility of achieving such low noise at very high load with any cooler I have had the opportunity to test, even with the best 360mm AIOs. Instead, I am collecting data at 45 and 48 dBA levels and I intend to include them in our tests starting next year.

However, the results at 125W load understandably remain, and if no value is listed for the cooler, it means that it could not be adjusted to such a low noise level.

And as has become a good habit here, if a single tower cooler has two fans, I’ll run a second set of tests without the rear fan. In the charts, these tests are marked with the “(single fan)” attribute.

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Results – 39 dBA

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Results – 42 dBA

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Results – maximum speed

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Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Spectral analysis of noise

This is a simple analysis at noise levels of 39 dBA, 45 dBA and at maximum speed of the cooler. For the analysis I use the UMIK-1 microphone from miniDPS in conjunction with True Audio’s TrueRTA application. The resolution of the analysis is 1/24 of an octave and the shape of the spectrogram is an average of 100 samples acquired over 20–30 seconds.

Last time we took a look at an interesting all-in-one cooler from Valkyrie and today we’ll loosely follow up on that theme with a review of the Vind SL125 air cooler, which is the only air cooler model Valkyrie has in its lineup so far. The Vind SL125 air cooler combines a single dense fin bundle with a pair of mirrored fans. So I’m curious to see how this interesting combination performs in our stress tests.

Conclusion and evaluation

With the overall evaluation of the Valkyrie Vind SL125 cooler, I can’t help but draw some comparisons, like when I reviewed the Dragonfang 360 last month. The overall presentation of the product is great, the build quality is also good, the accessories are not lacking and overall the cooler makes a good impression on me.

The problem arises, however, when you compare it to direct competitors that offer virtually the same thing, but at a lower price and/or with better cooling efficiency. Another small problem comes with the presence of a second fan, which while it does indeed improve the overall cooling efficiency, it also increases the overall noise level of the cooler, especially at maximum speeds. The spectral analysis graphs clearly show a peak around 200–300 Hz, which corresponds to insufficiently suppressed resonance in combination with the cooler’s heatsink and subjectively manifests itself as a rumbling sound.

Bottom line, the Vind SL125 is certainly a solid cooler, but unfortunately it fits into the grey average without offering a better price/performance ratio or lower noise than its rivals.

English translation and edit by Jozef Dudáš

• Contents
• Key features
• Measurement methodology
• Results – 36 dBA
• Results – 39 dBA
• Results – 42 dBA
• Results – maximum speed
• Spectral analysis of noise
• Conclusion and evaluation