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Heatsink Comparison Table
|
°C rise Comparison
|
|
SPL (dBA@1m)
|
20
|
19
|
18
|
17
|
16
|
15
|
14
|
13
|
12
|
|
Scythe Ninja Mini
(ref. 92mm fan)
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
23
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
27
|
|
Xigmatek HDT-SD964
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
22
|
-
|
27
|
34
|
|
Prolimatech Samuel 17
(ref. 120mm fan)
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
27
|
-
|
-
|
31
|
36
|
|
Scythe Samurai ZZ
|
-
|
-
|
29
|
-
|
-
|
30
|
-
|
-
|
32
|
|
Scythe Big Shuriken
|
26
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
30
|
-
|
-
|
37
|
37
|
|
GELID Silent Spirit
|
25
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
35
|
-
|
43
|
53
|
|
Scythe Kozuti
|
-
|
-
|
37
|
-
|
-
|
40
|
-
|
45
|
|
AC Alpine 64
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
34
|
-
|
43
|
-
|
-
|
46
|
|
Phenom II AM2+
|
36
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
42
|
-
|
53
|
|
Phenom II AM3
|
43
|
-
|
46
|
-
|
53
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
GELID Slim Silence
|
-
|
54
|
-
|
-
|
>60
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
|
Gray boxes indicate failure CPU overheating.
|
We've tested several smallish heatsinks over the past couple of years but the Kozuti proved to be, pound-for-pound, and inch-for-inch, the most efficient model yet. Its thermal performance below 20 dBA@1m is outstanding for its size, besting much larger heatsinks like the Arctic Cooling Alpine 64, and two versions of the AMD stock heatpipe cooler. It also gives the Gelid Silent Spirit a run for its money, and actually beats it significantly when their respective fans are dialed down to close to inaudible levels; This is a remarkable accomplishment as the Silent Spirit is three times taller than the Kozuti.
|
°C rise Comparison (reference fans)
|
|
Heatsink
|
Nexus 92 mm fan voltage / SPL@1m
|
|
12V
|
9V
|
|
16 dBA
|
12 dBA
|
|
Scythe Ninja Mini
|
23
|
27
|
|
Xigmatek HDT-SD964
|
24
|
30
|
|
Scythe Samurai ZZ
|
25
|
31
|
|
Scythe Big Shuriken
(Nexus 120 mm fan)
|
24
(12V)
|
33
(7V)
|
|
Prolimatech Samuel 17
(Nexus 120 mm fan)
|
27
(12V)
|
36
(7V)
|
|
Gelid Silent Spirit
|
30
|
36
|
|
Scythe Kozuti
|
32
|
38
|
With our 92 mm Nexus reference fan laying on top of the Kozuti, it falls short of Silent Spirit by 2°C. Keep in mind this makes the Kozuti 65 mm tall; if you have that much clearance to work with, the Scythe Shuriken is easily the superior choice.
MP3 SOUND RECORDINGS
These recordings were made with a high
resolution, lab quality, digital recording system inside SPCR's
own 11 dBA ambient anechoic chamber, then converted to LAME 128kbps
encoded MP3s. We've listened long and hard to ensure there is no audible degradation
from the original WAV files to these MP3s. They represent a quick snapshot of
what we heard during the review.
These recordings are intended to give you an idea of how the product sounds
in actual use — one meter is a reasonable typical distance between a computer
or computer component and your ear. The recording contains stretches of ambient
noise that you can use to judge the relative loudness of the subject. Be aware
that very quiet subjects may not be audible — if we couldn't hear it from
one meter, chances are we couldn't record it either!
The recording starts with 5~10 second segments of room ambiance, then the fan
at various levels. For the most realistic results, set the volume so that
the starting ambient level is just barely audible, then don't change the volume
setting again.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Scythe Kozuti is an impressive little heatsink that performs better than we could've imagined. It managed to keep our X4 630 test processor adequately cool even with its fan slowed down to close to an inaudible level. The Kozuti even beat out budget coolers like the Arctic Cooling Alpine 64 and AMD stock heatpipe coolers despite a significant size disadvantage. While the stock fan isn't up to par acoustically with most Scythe models, the end product is as good as it gets for a low profile heatsink. Being just 40 mm tall, it will fit in pretty much any slim case except a 1U chassis and it has more than enough cooling proficiency for a 65W or lower TDP chip.
The Kozuti is currently priced at various e-tailers for US$30~$35. Some
may consider this unfair as the much larger Big Shuriken can be found for approximately
the same amount. The price is not proportional to the amount of materials used,
but it seems somewhat reasonable because it is a rare commodity: A better than
stock cooling solution that can fit in the mini-PC of your dreams.
Our thanks to Scythe
for the Kozuti heatsink sample.
Scythe Kozuti receives the SPCR Recommended Award.
* * *
Articles of Related Interest
Gelid Slim Silence & Prolimatech Samuel 17 Low Profile CPU Coolers
AMD
Phenom II Stock Coolers
Intel LGA1366 Stock Cooler: Good Enough?
Gelid Silent Spirit &
Scythe Samurai ZZ CPU Coolers
SPCR's 2010 CPU Heatsink
Test Platform [Updates: 10 April & 31 May]
* * *
Discuss
this article in the SPCR forums.
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