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TESTING
Testing was done according to our
unique heatsink testing methodology, and the included fan was profiled
using our standard fan testing
methodology. A quick summary of the components, tools, and procedures
follows below.
Key Components in Heatsink Test Platform
- Intel
Pentium D 950 Presler core, C1 stepping. TDP of 95W; under our test
load, it measures 78W including losses in the VRMs.
- Asus P5Q-EM motherboard.
A microATX board with integrated graphics and short solid-state capacitors
around the CPU socket, and a diminutive northbridge heatsink for maximum compatibility.
- Intel
X25-M 80GB 2.5" solid-state drive.
- 1GB
of Corsair XMS2 DDR2 memory. 2 x 512MB PC2-8500.
- FSP Zen 300W
fanless power supply.
- Arctic Silver
Lumière: Special fast-curing thermal interface material, designed
specifically for test labs.
Measurement and Analysis Tools
- Seasonic
Power Angel for measuring AC power at the wall to ensure that the
heat output remains consistent.
- Custom-built, four-channel variable DC power supply, used to regulate
the fan speed during the test.
- PC-based spectrum analyzer:
SpectraPlus with ACO Pacific mic and M-Audio digital
audio interfaces.
- Anechoic chamber
with ambient level of 11 dBA or lower
- Various other tools for testing fans, as documented in our
standard fan testing methodology.
- SpeedFan, used to monitor the on-chip thermal sensor. This sensor is not
calibrated, so results are not universally applicable.
- CPUBurn
P6, used to stress the CPU heavily, generating more heat than most
real applications. Two instances are used to ensure that both cores are stressed.
- Throttlewatch
2.01, used to monitor the throttling feature of the CPU to determine
when overheating occurs.
Load testing was accomplished using CPUBurn to stress the processor, and the
graph function in SpeedFan was used to make sure that the load temperature was
stable for at least ten minutes. The stock fan was tested at various voltages
to represent a good cross-section of its airflow and noise performance.
Physical Measurements
|
Physical Measurements
|
|
Heatsink
|
Height
|
Fan Diameter
|
Fin Thickness
|
Fin Separation
|
Weight
|
|
Alpine 7 GT
|
64 mm
|
74 mm
|
0.44 mm
|
2.6 mm
|
280 g
|
|
Intel Aluminum
|
63 mm
|
77 mm
|
varies
|
varies
|
330 g
|
|
Intel Q6600
|
62 mm
|
82 mm
|
varies
|
varies
|
440 g
|
|
Thermolab Micro Silencer
|
58 mm
|
85 mm
|
0.43 mm
|
1.4 mm
|
270 g
|
|
Scythe Big Shuriken
|
57 mm
|
113 mm
|
0.32 mm
|
1.3 mm
|
420 g
|
|
Intel Q9550
|
45 mm
|
79 mm
|
varies
|
varies
|
260 g
|
|
Thermolab Nano Silencer
|
39 mm
|
76 mm
|
0.38 mm
|
1.5 mm
|
210 g
|
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