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FINAL THOUGHTS
Gelid Slim Silence AM2
The Gelid Slim Silence AM2 obviously wasn't designed to be a high performance
heatsink, but it performs remarkably well considering its height conforms to
the 1U standard. Paired with a 95W CPU on our open test platform, the stock
fan has to be run at high speeds to keep load temperatures within reason —
in a cramped/hot mini-ITX or rackmount case we would wager it would need to
be run at full speed if it were to work at all.
It performed much better when we underclocked/undervolted our processor to
the point where it mimicked the power level of a 65W chip, the recommended maximum
TDP listed in the specifications. With a cooler processor like an Athlon II
X2, the whiny fan can be undervolted until it sounds smooth and unobtrusive
while keeping its cooling performance adequate. That's as much as we can ask
of a 1U CPU heatsink.
Prolimatech Samuel 17
While an excellent performer on its own, the Prolimatech Samuel 17 fell a few
degrees short of toppling the widely available and affordable Scythe
Big Shuriken. The Samuel 17 is really only superior in two ways, the
first being its size. Though it's about the same height as the Big Shuriken,
it's shorter by 15 and 5 mm in the other two dimensions — this may make
a difference in some cases. Its second advantage is its mounting system, particularly
for Intel motherboards. Trying to engage pushpins underneath the Shuriken's
main fin mass is an agonizing experience — Prolimatech's bolt-thru method,
even without a backplate, is far preferable.
For the moment, the Big Shuriken seems unassailable from both a performance
and value standpoint. The Samuel 17 doesn't cool quite as well, its street price
is US$10~$15 higher, and it doesn't ship with a fan which further complicates
matters. A standard 25 mm thick fan along with the included bolts increases
the height of the Samuel 17 to 73 mm which is too tall for many mini-ITX cases.
A good slim fan would be ideal, but they are difficult to find with the exception
of the 12 mm thick Scythe Slip Streams, one of which is conveniently included
gratis with the Big Shuriken.
Our thanks to Gelid
and Prolimatech
for the Slim Silence AM2 and Samuel 17 heatsink samples.
* * *
Articles of Related Interest
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Phenom II Stock Coolers
Intel LGA1366 Stock Cooler: Good Enough?
Gelid Silent Spirit &
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Scythe Grand Kama Cross CPU
Cooler
Titan Fenrir & Coolermaster Hyper
212 Plus: Direct Touch Revisited
SPCR's 2010 CPU Heatsink
Test Platform [Updates: 10 April & 31 May]
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