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COMPARISON
Only three other heatsinks have been tested on the same test bench as the Verticool
II: An Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro, and two long-time favorites, a Scythe Ninja
and a Thermalright XP-120. The Ninja and the XP-120 belong to a different class
of heatsink; they are heavyweights that cost close to double what the Verticool
II does. The Freezer 7 Pro, on the other hand, is an ideal candidate for comparison
with the Verticool II. Both fall into roughly the same price category, performance
is similar, and they even share a similar design.
The heatsinks were compared at two noise levels: A "quiet"
level where the noise level was good enough for most users without sacrificing
too much performance, and a "silent" level where the fan was
simply cranked down as far as it could go.
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"Quiet" Comparison at 24 dBA@1m
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Heatsink/Fan
|
Noise
(SPL - dBA@1m)
|
Fan Voltage
|
Load Temp
|
°C Rise
|
°C/W MP
|
|
Spire Verticool II SP601B3
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24
|
9V
|
45°C
|
24
|
0.24
|
|
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro*
|
24
|
9.5V (est.)
|
50°C
|
29
|
0.29
|
When compared at a constant noise level with a moderately high fan speed, the
Verticool II clearly beat the Freezer 7 Pro. At 24 dBA@1m, the Verticool II
was still performing quite close to its peak performance, making it difficult
for the Freezer to compete. Only when the fans were turned up to full speed
did the Freezer 7 Pro manage to outperform the Verticool — at the cost
of much higher noise.
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"Silent" Comparison at ~20 dBA@1m
|
|
Heatsink/Fan
|
Noise
(SPL - dBA@1m)
|
Fan Voltage
|
Load Temp
|
°C Rise
|
°C/W MP
|
|
Spire Verticool II SP601B3
|
20
|
5
|
69°C
|
48
|
0.48
|
|
21
|
7
|
56°C
|
35
|
0.35
|
|
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro
|
20
|
9
|
53°C
|
32
|
0.32
|
However, when the noise level was dropped close to the ambient noise level
in the test lab — ~20 dBA@1m — the situation was reversed. Here the
Freezer was clearly the better of the two, as the fan on the Verticool needed
to be turned down too far to reach such a low noise level. The performance of
the Freezer 7 Pro barely changed when the noise level was dropped, but the Verticool
lost more than 20°C. Even reducing the gap by increasing the noise level
slightly to make things more competitive did not help the Verticool beat the
Freezer in the "Silent" comparison. These results suggest that the
airflow impedance represented by the spacing and depth of the fins in the Spire
is higher than in the Freezer 7 Pro.
NOISE RECORDINGS
Spire Verticool II SP601B3:
MP3: Spire
Verticool II SP601B3 - 5V / ~20 dBA@1m
MP3: Spire
Verticool II SP601B3 - 7V / 21 dBA@1m
MP3: Spire
Verticool II SP601B3 - 9V / 24 dBA@1m
MP3: Spire
Verticool II SP601B3 - 12V / 27 dBA@1m
Recordings of Comparable HSF:
MP3:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 4 (original version) - 7V - 20 dBA@1m
MP3:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro - 9V / 20 dBA@1m
MP3:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro - 10V / 28 dBA@1m
MP3: Arctic
Cooling Super Silent 4 Ultra TC, 22 dBA@1m
MP3:
Nexus 120mm fan - 12V - 41 CFM - 22.5 dBA@1m
MP3:
Nexus 120mm fan - 8.8V - 35 CFM- 19 dBA@1m
|
HOW TO LISTEN & COMPARE
These recordings were made with a high
resolution studio quality digital recording system. The microphone was 3" from
the edge of the fan frame at a 45° angle, facing the intake side of the fan to
avoid direct wind noise. The ambient noise during all recordings was 18 dBA or
lower. It is best to download the sound files to your computer before listening.
To set the volume to a realistic level (similar to the
original), try playing this Nexus
92mm case fan @ 5V (17 dBA@1m) recording and set the volume so
that it is barely audible. Then don't reset the volume and play the other
sound files. Of course, all tone controls and other effects should be
turned off or set to neutral. For full details on how to calibrate your
sound system playback level to get the most valid listening comparison,
please see the yellow text box entitled Listen to the Fans
on page four of the article
SPCR's Test / Sound Lab: A Short Tour. |
FINAL CONCLUSIONS
The Verticool II is the first Spire heatsink we have seen that does not have
a very loud fan. So long as the fan speed isn't turned down too far, it offers
a good cooling-to-noise ratio for its price range. While it can't compete with
the heavyweights, it does give the Freezer 7 Pro a run for the money.
Unfortunately, it does not deal with low airflow well, and the noise threshold
for acceptable cooling performance is a bit higher than we would like. Although
it is a quiet heatsink, silence is beyond its capabilities.
In terms of performance, the Verticool is probably best mated with an AMD processor
that is cooler than our Intel 520. For current Intel socket 775 processors,
a beefier heatsink is needed for low noise levels. With this in mind, it is
too bad that the installation system for AMD processors is so inflexible; the
ability to direct airflow in a tower heatsink is a very important feature. The
thoughtless screw positioning on the K8 brackets was also an annoyance.
Ultimately, the biggest thing going for the Verticool II may be its price.
It can be had for as little as US$25 online, and its performance and noise are
both quite acceptable for a budget system.
|
Pros
* Easy to install (Socket 775)
* Relatively quiet fan
* Decent performance with enough airflow
* Inexpensive
* Light Weight
|
Cons
* Poor low-airflow performance
* Tedious to install (K8 Sockets)
* Quality of noise could be better
|
Much thanks to Spire
Coolers for the Spire Verticool II SP601B3 sample.
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