Viewing page 1 of 3 pages.
1 2 3 NextAug 1, 2004 by Edward
Ng
Spire heatsinks are not
new to SilentPCReview; we've seen in past reviews that this company
makes good quality products at modest prices. This
time around, we're taking a close look at their latest creation, the CoolGate
heatpipe cooler. The
CoolGate is designed for "high
performance applications." It uses vertical dual heatpipes to transport heat away from the CPU.
|
|
SPECIFICATIONS
- Dimensions:
84x56x75 mm (l x w x h)
- Noise Level: 29.7dBA
- Ball Bearing 70x70x15 mm Fan
- Rated Speed: 3700 RPM +/-10%
- Air Flow: 28.0CFM@3,700 RPM
- Current: 0.25A
- Life Hours: Ball: 50,000
FEATURES
Dual heatpipe,
all-aluminum heatsink
Power Connector:
3-pin mainboard
Application:
- Intel:
Celeron ~2.8GHz (FC-PGA2)
- Pentium
4 ~3.4GHz (Prescott)
- Pentium
4 ~3.4GHz (Willamette/HT N)
|
DESIGN
CoolGate is a hybrid design
comprised of two all-aluminum, high-fin-density heatsinks, welded together
at the sides, with their open sides facing each other. The
fins are approximately 0.7mm thick with 1mm gaps between them; the fins of
the two sinks do not come in contact, but reach within 0.5mm of each other,
tip to tip.
Two HS, bonded fin-to-fin, is the essence of the CoolGate design.
The Spire web site describes the heatsink as pure aluminum,
but they also included the, "Copper Base," icon
on the product page. Perhaps this is an error, as my sample is quite obviously
pure aluminum save for the heatpipes. The dual heatpipes are copper, and extend
from base to the top along one side of the cooler. The cooler itself is
dressed up in a translucent plastic shroud, which hides the unfinished appearance
of the top sink. A 3-pin power connector provides fan speed
monitoring.
While CoolGate comes with its 70mm fan preinstalled,
its aluminum clips aren't; the user simply attaches them with the four screws
that are provided.
CoolGate's
dual copper heatpipes: The shroud provides some protection. The two holes for mounting the clips are also visible. The small chrome screws
keep the shroud on.
Cleaner than the other
side, the caps covering up the holes for heatpipe entry can be seen;
it is assumed that the heatpipes come through most of the way, but don't poke
through.
Blue plastic guides at the bottom keep the heatsink snug and securely centered
when installed.
| Help support this site, buy from one of our affiliate retailers! |
|
