Comparison of A64 HSF (POLL)

[Jaxidian]

From my reading, these are the 4 popular HSFs for an A64 rig:

? Zalman CNPS 7000 AlCu
? Zalman CNPS 7000 Cu
? Thermaltake Silent Boost K8
? Thermalright SLK-948 (fan changes a lot of things)

Could some offer some comparisons between these HSFs, in what areas some excel in and in what areas some are weak in?


Here are my thoughts (many not very well proven) on these HSFs:

Performance
1) Thermalright - This, of course, depends on what fan is used.
2) Zalman Cu
3) Zalman AlCu - I believe this HSF's performance is nearly identical to the Cu version, just a degree or two warmer.
4) TT Silent Boost - I believe this is significantly behind the other HSFs in performance but is still plenty good enough as long as you don't overclock (and then arguably good enough).[/list]

Noise (Updated using Cerb's List)
1) Thermalright with an undervolted quiet fan
2) Zalman (either) undervolted
3) Thermalright w/ quiet fan
4) Zalman normal
5) TT SilentBoost
6) Thermalright with a medium fan
7) Thermalright with a loud fan.

Please, share your thoughts and comparisons of these HSFs. I understand that the SLK HS has a lot of factors that are totally dependent on your fan choice, but I was generalizing with what I would aim for in my fan choice with that HS.

 

[InlineFive]

The Silent Boost K8 and the 7000Cu are the most popular coolers for K8s. Either do an excellent job but I'm biased towards Zalman because of annoyances with Thermaltake in the past.

 

[Jaxidian]

Are you saying that you think the TT is just as good as (or close enough to) the Zalmans as far as performance?

 

[McArra]

Silent boost is not nearly as silent as Zalman is. Zalman 7000al/cu performs within 1-2C worse than Cu but weights almost half as much and performs better than the Silent Boost. Silent Boost is a very good cooler but not as good as Zalman 7000.

 

[Cerb]

Revised list for you:
Noise:
1. Thermalright with an undervolted quiet fan
2. Zalman (either) undervolted
3. Thermalright w/ quiet fan
4. Zalman normal
5. TT SilentBoost
6. Thermalright with a medium fan
7. Thermalright with a loud fan.

The TT SilentBoost is as quiet as TT gets, which isn't saying much. I haven't used it, but the Venus coolers are as loud as TT's stuff ever was, and the fan is not quiet. It's a Panaflo M that's of an odd design. Zalman and Thermalright's solutions both offer excellent cooling with much lower noise (provided you get a good fan for the TR). The TT's saving grace is that it is cheap.
As you severely lower the fan voltage, the Zalman comes up to being a better performer than TR w/ a Panaflo L for the same noise. If you want quiet, get the Zalman (it's easier). The more you use Zalman and and TR solutions, the more most others will just annoy you.

 

[hytek369]

i used 2 zalman alcu on my dual opterons. pretty happy with it. any reviews on them against the silentboost? i have a friend that has dual silent boost on his system, i want to see if zalmans are better or not. i already sold my mobo so i cannot do the review.

 

[Jaxidian]

Cerb, thank you for your excellent post! I'll update my list in the first post based on yours (and give you credit, of course).

My next question: According to the poll, the Thermalright is getting the top number of votes (or just under the Zalmans if you combine the two) yet nobody is really saying anything about it. For about the past 2-3 years, I've favored Thermalright over most other manufacturers (when looking for a HS, I'll always find the best Thermalright product for my need, then compare the other brands to that heatsink, which is what my personal goal was here). From the poll, although there aren't a large number of votes, it seems it is a pretty popular HS here. So would somebody give some some thoughts (or links to good reviews) on the TR compared to the Zalmans?

 

[Cerb]

Finding a direct compsrison is difficult, particularly w/ TR having so many HSs out right now.
http://www.silentpcreview.com/article132-page3.html
That's the closest I could find googling. SP-9x and SLK-900, not SLK-947/948, but a good comparison nonetheless. The quieter, the better the Zalman does, the faster, the better the TR does. You can actually get less noise if you want w/ the TR, but of course performance suffers.
Both TR and Zalman stuff are great, with TR offering an ace card for most of us here: the fan can be changed easily.

 

[Jaxidian]

That was pretty much what I had thought, Cerb.

So far, it seems to me that if you want the ultimate air cooler for an A64 rig, go with the TR with some nuclear-powered fan on it. If you want quiet, go with either the Zalman (for moderately quiet) or the TR with a really quiet fan (for extremely quiet). If you want cheap, go with TT. If you choose to go with a Zalman, then it's up to you if the few extra bucks is worth the 1-3C cooler temps. If you choose to go with the TR, then be prepared to spend a little extra time mounting the fan with their unconventional mounting system.

Does that seem like an appropriate summary for people looking for "Which one is the best?"

Edited to add the last line about the fan mounting with the TR.

 

[Davegod]

I'd probably be choosing between the 7000 AlCu and the SLK948. Seeing as you can take the SLK and make it however noisy or high performance as you like by the relatively cheap method of replacing the fan, I'd probably go with the SLK.

 

[Zap]

The Zalman CNPS-7000A-AlCu has been my HSF of choice for the following reasons:

1) Works with all three popular sockets so you can change platforms and keep the same CPU
2) IMO works just as well as the all copper unit
3) Don't have to figure out which fan to get and worry that you could have gotten a better fan
4) Comes with the FanMate to adjust speed/noise however you want
5) Looks really impressive
6) Cost $31, not much more than budget units and less than premium units

I currently or previously owned:
1x 7000 Cu
3x 7000 AlCu
1x SLK800A
3x ALX800

I no longer have the all copper units. Too heavy and IMO doesn't cool appreciably better than the hybrid units. I use the ALX800 on Athlon boards without the mounting holes and using various fans, preferably the Panaflo 12H. Suprisingly it does a great job without much noise. It isn't much more noticeable inside a system than the rest of the stuff (in a moderately quiet system). It is rated around 40CFM, but does a better job at cooling than a 50CFM Sunon and 48CFM YSTech (tested for idle temps outside a case). So far I've used the Zalman units only on P4 setups so far for myself, but have helped a friend install one on his Athlon 64.

 

[Jaxidian]

After all of this discussion and comparisons, I think I'm going with the TR SLK948 with a 20dB 92mm fan found here. I was almost tempted to go with the Zalman so I didn't have to bother with the fan and the funny mounting system but I don't like not being able to change my fan if I would ever want/need to. Also, since right now, A64 cooling isn't a major concern, I can go with something quieter than the Zalman and still not have any heat problems. If the fan on the Zalmans were replaceable, then I would probably use the CU unit (since it only costs another $5 or so).

 

[Cerb]

Sleave bearing = bad.
Panaflo L ($9.99 w/ tail)

 

[Jaxidian]

Originally posted by: Cerb
Sleave bearing = bad.

Why?

 

[Cerb]

Lifespan--and the only time I used one of those 92mm ones, it vubrated badly. FDB = dual ball (FDB quieter) > ball > sleeve.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: Cerb
Sleave bearing = bad.
</blockquote>]http://www.directron.com/92l1a.html">Panaflo L ($9.99 w/ tail)

">http://www.directron.com/92l1a.html[/S</a>

Originally posted by: Cerb
Lifespan--and the only time I used one of those 92mm ones, it vubrated badly. FDB = dual ball (FDB quieter) > ball > sleeve.

Vibrating really badly is a sign of a faulty (or dirty) fan. I would disagree on your assessment of bearing type noise output. IMO:

quiet - medium - loud
FDB - sleeve - ball

Lifespan-wise, the sleeve bearings may not last as long.

FDB is really the best of both worlds (life span of ball bearing, low noise of sleeve bearing).

Panaflo 12L (80mm version) $3 each, $2.50 each for 10+ units with 2 pin tail (hook up to power supply, not motherboard).