Introduction

As processors obtain faster speeds with each generation then it usually brings a greater amount of heat-due to the limitations of the silicon itself. Many manufacturers have self-proclaimed ‘their’ processor cooling fans to be the best in a myriad of environments and being able to do so quietly. This is by no means an easy feat when it has to fit a number of differing motherboard and system configurations. Getting the right combination of cooling and noise can be very difficult to get right. One such manufacturer whom believes that they have the right combination is Noctua.

Company Background

“Designed in Austria, Noctua’s premium cooling components are internationally renowned for their superb quietness, exceptional performance and thoroughgoing quality. Having received more than 1000 awards and recommendations from leading hardware websites and magazines, Noctua’s fans and heatsinks are chosen by more than a hundred thousand satisfied customers around the globe.

Noctua comes from a cooperation of the Austrian Rascom Computerdistribution Ges.m.b.H. with the Taiwanese cooling specialist Kolink International Corporation, pooling more than ten years of experience in the development, manufacturing and marketing of high-end cooling components. Established in 2005, Noctua took the international silent enthusiasts’ hearts by storm and quickly developed into one of the most acclaimed suppliers of premium quality quiet cooling products. Today, Noctua is present in more than 30 countries across the globe and working with several hundred sales partners. Chosen by noise conscious PC users, system integrators and industry clients alike, Noctua has become synonymous with impeccable quality, excellent customer service and class leading quiet cooling performance.

The little owl, Athene noctua, is the symbol of the Greek goddess Athene, who represents wisdom, science and strategy. She has a marked preference for the most clever among the Greek heroes, like Odysseus, who endure their adventures by the use of savvy consideration instead of mere force. Until today, the owl symbolises intelligence and prudence, its manlike face emblematises attentiveness and communication. We from Noctua follow the suit of its calm and accurate observation in the dark, its soundless flight as well as the effective, economical use of its powers and precise attack.”

]]> http://www.overclockerstech.com/noctua-nhc14-cpu-cooler-review/feed/ 0 http://www.overclockerstech.com/coolermaster-silencio-550-chassis-review/ http://www.overclockerstech.com/coolermaster-silencio-550-chassis-review/#comments Mon, 17 Oct 2011 09:40:36 +0000 Gilgamesh http://www.overclockerstech.com/?p=7224

Introduction

Some, as the phrase goes, may say ‘Silence is Golden’ and in some situations this can be true. In the performance cooling world, silence is the last thing that is wanted. However, for those who just want a good computer that performs well and is fairly quiet to boot (pun intended) then accommodations must be made. No chassis can be 100 percent silent as air needs to be drawn into the case and then expelled again. However, efforts can be made to both reduce vibration and sound proof various parts of the chassis. Entrance CoolerMaster;  they believe they have the answer to the silent computer world, so without further ado let us investigate their latest chassis product, the Silencio 550.

Company Background

Cooler Master was founded with the mission of providing the industry’s best thermal solutions. Since its establishment a decade ago, the company has remained faithful to this mission, emerging as a world leader in products and services for companies dealing with devices where heat issues must be resolved. In pursuing this mission, Cooler Master is absolutely committed to delivering solutions that precisely meet customer requirements for features, performance, and quality. Moreover, we strive to be a reliable long-term partner for our customers that they can truly depend on.

Cooler Master’s current business encompasses a comprehensive lineup of thermal solutions for a full range of applications. Its products range from heat sinks and fans to component housing, chassis, and ducting for computers, industrial machinery, telecommunications equipment, and many other devices.

Specifications:

Near silent operation and prepared to take on powerful hardware, the Cooler Master Silencio is able to keep high-end setups running cool and quiet. Sound proofing on both side panels assist in vastly reducing noise levels. A sleek mirror finish front panel and clean lines present a minimalistic design aesthetic that speaks to its silent interior. The benefits of elegance and silence, combined with the functionality of built in Super Speed USB 3.0, a multifunction SD card reader, and 3.5″ X-dock HDD hot-swap all make the Silencio a giant among its kind.

Manufacturers Product Page

As one can appreciate by looking at the specifications above, a rather standard specified chassis-albeit with the sound-proofing added.

Introduction

Fan controllers are a much called upon item when assembling a computer in this day and age. The ability to control fan’s speed, and the noise that accompanies it, to either a high performance level or near silent is something that appeals to most system builders. The aforementioned would be great in an ‘overclocking’ environment and the latter in a more home theatre situation. Whilst the fan controller is a simple concept, which works by simply lowering or raising the voltage supplied to a fan to achieve the desired speed, it is hard to get right. Many manufacturers opt for blaring lights and bling in a vain effort to appeal, whilst others go for under-stated elegance.

There are many pretenders to the throne of “King of Fan Controllers”, however there are a few that have proven they are the genuine article, one such is the company called Lamptron!

Company Background

Lamptron develops and markets the next generation of high performance computer peripherals using the latest technology that enables a new level of interaction between the end-user and their personal computer. Products developed are through a combination of proprietary technology, innovation and ergonomic industrial design. There are three principal business sectors:

1. PC Gaming products
2. PC Silence products
3. PC Modding products

Products are designed and developed by our experienced Research and Development Department. Our engineering and R&D staffs specialize in user analysis, material control and industry design. Lamptron not only has expertise in product easy-to-use and product design, but we also plays a vital role in the enhancement of production efficiency and marketing analysis. We are constantly developing new products and technology to meet market demands and to generate new markets for our innovation products.

Our Global success is attributed to three basic visionary attributes:

Our Global success is attributed to three basic visionary attributes:

1. Continue to offer innovation products which means the products are in the highest quality and innovation.
2. Providing our global partners with a level of service that is consistent with our premium product range.
3. Helping our global partners grow, through reliable service, quality products, flexibility and co-operationThis simple philosophy has allowed us to build long standing relationships with global distributors.”

Conclusion:

We at Overclockers Tech find this chassis wonderful to work with. It is rare for a case at this price to be able to fit a water cooling radiator (as large as a 360mm) without having to ‘modify’ the chassis. Additionally, with a small amount of modification a second radiator (a 240mm) can be added to enable a dual loop system. Although the case is made from steel, the quality of the case is still apparent.

The top panel, where the power on/reset switches are, is easy to access and includes a slide cover for any unwanted use. Internally the Haf-x has a lot to brag about with its wire management system and hot swappable bays. Although for some reason Coolermaster has not made the presence of a system of managing the eight-pin EPS connector. This is partly caused by the manufacturing of the CPU inspection hole a little too large. The only other flaw we found is the use of ‘castor wheels’ as not everyone installs the case underneath their desk and some people like to have their computer on the desk in order to ‘show off’ their system, this is in addition to some bare wires (instead of being braided) In this case (pardon the pun) some people may say that ‘it is a computer not a luggage trolley.’

We also like the ‘hot-swap’ bay feature which will come in very handy for the enthusiast sector of the market. Having said the former we feel that the Coolermaster HAF-X really is a quality case and has some outstanding features. When we give a product a gold we at Overclockers Tech like to see some truly creative features and Coolermaster have certainly achieved this. It is our pleasure to give the HAF-X a 9/10 award and therefore a gold.

This chassis can be purchased at www.watercooled-pcs.co.uk for only £139.50

Discuss in our forums!!

Author: Gilgamesh

Introduction

In this modern age we are fortunate enough to live in; components are getting faster and hotter and one needs an efficient cooling system in order to keep up with increasing demands of modern technology. For example: A modern processor cooler is needed to not only keep a processor cool during normal operations but that of an overclocked environment also. Many have tried and failed to achieve both tasks; mostly only able to achieve a fair measure of performance in normal CPU operations.

However there have been amongst the myriad of CPU coolers true gems, one that sells on sheer performance alone and this makes the whole task of searching for this treasure a worth while one.

Enter Spire Corp, a rather little known company in the west but one that seeks to truly kick the preverbial ‘behind’ and take names.

Company Background

Founded in 1998, Spire is a leading premier brand for computer thermal solutions, power supplies and pc cases. In order to meet the needs and demands of the global market, we have established our production facilities in shenzhen, China. Our incorporated branch offices are located in the USA and The Netherlands with sales offices in Germany, Japan and Brazil. All locations are located strategically to better work with the customers we serve.

Spire Products are dedicated to bringing you the latest technology in computer cooling as it becomes available and to offer a variety of solutions to combat the growing concern of overheating. With today’s high-speed processors functioning at an unprecedented speed and output, the demand for better and more reliable cooling solutions has become one of the most important issues in the computer industry today. As a premier manufacturer of high quality cooling solutions, we are able to meet the demands of the computer industry by providing competitively priced products, next day delivery and lifetime warranty. With reliability of products having such high precedence in the business, Spire has earned the loyalty of many well known manufacturers and distributors throughout the world. We have maintained close business ties with international names in the computer industry.

(taken from http://www.spirecoolers.com/main/aboutus_company_profile.asp)

MSI X58 Big Bang X58 Unboxing

Click to view our latest unboxing video

A full review of this motherboard will be carried out soon.

Today we have embraced the ‘Youtube’ Community and have started to post Guides and ‘Component Unboxings on Youtube. If you would like to view all our video’s and guides; you can access our channel by typing ‘Overclockerstech’ into the search function.

See our brand new channel for parts two three and four.

Introduction

Why cool to such an extreme level? A simple answer would be to achieve a higher processor speed via overclocking. When the aforementioned process is achieved, even though the frequency may be higher, the efficiency goes down and this wasted efficiency is called heat! Overclocking enthusiasts employ a myriad of differing cooling methods, but what happens when the processor frequency is so high that even water is no longer sufficient? This is where sub-zero cooling comes into its own. This guide will try to employ a simple, non pretentious and a step by step process in order to prepare your precious motherboard for cooling with dry ice!

Introduction

In the performance water cooling industry, we have seen many CPU blocks vie for our attention; with many products and a myriad of interesting ideas. A company that has hugged the limelight is with their heat killer range of blocks and indeed they have been bestowed with the performance’ crown for a log time. With baited breath water cooling enthusiasts have been expecting the new heatkiller killer for quite some time! This is where the new XSPC RASA steps in with its new mounting mechanism, which is of a similar nature to that of the Swiftech XT.

XSPC have been around for many years, offering cooling parts for the computer consumer. They made their name with their range of radiators and of their quality water cooling tubing. In recent times XSPC have purchased ‘Thermochill’ which is in joint ownership with Watercoolinguk and it has seen to have gone from strength to strength.  With the release of their new RX radiators time is indeed looking good for XSPC!  Those ‘good times’ may be set to continue with the launch of their new CPU water block entitled Rasa. The word or concept Rasa is Sanskrit for the concept of ‘essence’, it is also Latin meaning ‘Slate’ as in Tubular Rasa’ meaning blank slate’.  The reason why the block was called this as that this block is not based upon any existing XSPC product, rather they started from ‘scratch’-hence the name Rasa!

Without further delay let us look further into the Rasa’s capabilities.

Specifications

• ¼ inch thread mounting holes for the barbs
• Chrome mounting bracket
• Weight 150 Grammes
• Compatible with Intel Sockets 775, 1156, and 1366

One must note that the block that this reviewer received was the final revision prototype, this means that the chrome is not as polished as the final sales version that the consumer would see. Additionally the screws holding the Rasa block together will be stainless instead of mild steel.

We recall from last year a question that many pondered – just how far can air cooling go? Air cooling can only go so far and it won’t be long until we hit the limit. We’ve already seen some companies take to water cooling solutions with all-in-one kits – some more successful than others. It won’t be long until some of the bigger names start to find new ways to adapt air cooling for the masses and take it to a new level. There are already rumours of vapour chambers and TEC’s in the future. However, one such company that we are reviewing today has taken a step ahead of the big rivals and taken air cooling to a whole new level – liquid metal.

About

Many people will be unfamiliar with Danamics and wouldn’t have known they produce CPU coolers. Founded on the principle of providing manufacturers of electronic hot spots the very best in cooling, Danamics started in 2005. Since then, Danamics has worked on developing, manufacturing and commercializing their core technology, which centres around the principle of using liquid metal as a heat remover. Danamics were keen to improve on their earlier cooler; the LM10. Much hyped and talked about, it proved to be only average and couldn’t keep up with the very best standard air coolers, let alone justify such a high price tag! They redesigned the whole cooler from the ground up but have kept the same Sodium Potassium Alloy used for cooling.

Liquid Metal you say?

Sodium Potassium Alloy (aka NaK) is a top substance for heat transfer. However, reading through the nice detailed warning booklet, it is highly reactive to air and water. Something that puts many people off due to the fact that if the substance were to leak, well, watch out for an explosion! This NaK is pumped around the cooler’s nickel plated heatpipes via the electromagnetic pump which is silent and features no moving parts. This pump is a REV.2 (PowerBooster 2) over the previous LMX Pump, which Danamics has told me is smaller, cheaper and more effective. Note – this does get very hot so be careful! Moving parts are totally eliminated as the magnetic force is created within the particles of the liquid metal causing it to flow.

See the image below for the step-by-step of how this electromagnetic flow works:

Step-by-step