Viewing page 1 of 5 pages.
1 2 3 4 5 NextMay 22, 2006 by Devon
Cooke
|
Product
|
Spire Verticool II SP601B3
Socket 775 / K8 CPU Heatsink
|
|
Manufacturer
|
|
|
Market Price
|
less than US$30 |
Spire is an old heatsink brand, overshadowed in the
retail market by the likes of Zalman, Scythe, and Thermalright. This is not
a slight; most of Spire's business is done with OEM companies
who have different requirements in a heatsink. Spire does not aspire to deliver
the biggest, coolest, or quietest heatsink of them all; instead, their products
are designed for mass production. Low cost plays just as big a role as performance
in their design decisions.
SPCR has reviewed several Spire coolers in the past, most recently the
CoolGate in mid-2004. Generally, Spire coolers have tended to be inexpensive
and effective but loud, with poor-quality stock fans. However, the marketplace
has changed significantly since 2004, and low noise now gets a mention on the
feature sheet of nearly every heatsink on the market. Spire's product line has
evolved, and their Verticool II looks like it could give Scythe and Arctic Cooling
some competition in the budget heatsink department.
The Verticool II is a heatpipe-based tower cooler with an unconventional 80mm
fan. The design is quite similar to Arctic
Cooling's Freezer Pro series of heatsinks, and it carries a similar price
tag.
No-frills retail packaging and just enough parts to support LGA775 and K8
platforms.
Only two mounting systems are supported: Intel's LGA775 platform that supports
all of Intel's hottest chips, and AMD's K8 platform (Sockets 754/939/940). The
lifetime of the Verticool II is likely to be short; AMD's upcoming AM2 socket
will diminish demand for older K8 heatsinks, and Intel's transition to BTX will
probably render LGA775 obsolete when their post-Netburst processors go mainstream.
|
|
| Feature & Brief |
Our Comment |
|
Supports all new Intel & AMD micro-processors
|
No longer true; Intel's Core Duo chips
do not use the LGA775 HS mounting system, and AMD's AM2 platform requires
a different setup. |
|
All new UV-reactant 80mm Spider-Fan design
|
Smaller frame than a conventional fan. |
|
Amazingly silent at just 19.0 dBA
|
No measurement distance given.
|
|
2 Thermally improved heat-pipes
|
Thermally improved... compared to? |
|
All copper base
|
A common feature, but helpful in ensuring good heat transfer
from the CPU.
|
|
45 stamped Aluminum Micro-Fins
|
About average density. Too few fins reduces surface area, and
too many makes them too closely spaced to cool effectively.
|
|
Dual-Core ready for both Intel & AMD!
|
Ok.
|
|
|
|
Supported CPU Platforms
|
Socket 754 / 940 / 775 / 939 |
|
Dimensions
|
Heat sink: 95 × 65 × 100 mm (l ×
w × h)
12VDC Fan : 80 × 80 × 25 mm |
|
Bearing
|
Ball bearing
|
|
Rated speed
|
2,300 RPM ±10% |
|
Rated power
|
1.56W |
|
Noise Level
|
19.0 dBA
|
|
Air flow
|
25.78 CFM at 2,300 RPM |
|
Current
|
0.13A |
|
Life Hours
|
Ball: 50,000 h |
|
Features
|
Blue transparent spider fan
2 heatpipes
Aluminum Micro-Fin
Copper base
|
|
Connector
|
3 pin, mainboard
|
|
Application
|
Intel:
Celeron D ~ 2.93 GHz (340J)
Pentium 4 ~ 3.73 GHz (775 Prescott)
Pentium D ~ 3.4 GHz (775 Dual-Core)
Pentium EE ~ 3.73 GHz (775 Dual-Core)
AMD:
Athlon 64 ~ 4800+ (K8)
Athlon 64 FX-51 (K8)
Athlon 64 FX-53 (K8)
Athlon 64 FX-55 (K8)
Opteron ~ 2.6 (K8)
Sempron ~ 3300+ (K8) |
|
Thermal Resistance
|
0.21 (AMD) & 0.23 (INTEL) °C/W |
|
Thermal type
|
Stars-420 white grease (Injection tube) |
| Help support this site, buy from one of our affiliate retailers! |
|
