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COMPARISONS (Continued)
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Comparison at 20 dBA (+/- 2 dB)
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Cooler
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SPL
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Thermal Rise
|
Height
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Weight
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Cooler Master Geminii S
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20 dBA
|
21°C
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86 mm
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500 g
|
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Scythe Big Shuriken
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18 dBA
|
22°C
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57 mm
|
420 g
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Nexus LOW-7000
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18 dBA
|
23°C
|
70 mm
|
480 g
|
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Intel Q6600 HSF
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21 dBA
|
34°C
|
62 mm
|
440 g
|
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Thermolab Micro Silencer
|
20 dBA
|
36°C
|
58 mm
|
270 g
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Intel Aluminum HSF
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19 dBA
|
37°C
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63 mm
|
330 g
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Thermolab Nano Silencer (9V)
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22 dBA
|
37°C
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39 mm
|
210 g
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Arctic Cooling Alpine 7 GT
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20~21 dBA
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39°C
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64 mm
|
280 g
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Intel Q9550 HSF
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18 dBA
|
40°C
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45 mm
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260 g
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Thermolab Nano Silencer (8V)
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18 dBA
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42°C
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39 mm
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210 g
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Silverstone
NT07-775
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20 dBA
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44°C
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36 mm
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300 g
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Coolers tested in our last roundup in green.
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When dialed down so that their respective fans generate 20 dBA@1m (+/- 2 dB),
it is clear that there are two classes of coolers — those that perform
the same or worse than the stock coolers, and those that are a cut above. The
Shuriken, LOW-3000, and Geminii S easily outpace the competition by more than
10°C. On the other side of the spectrum, the NT07-775 is hopelessly outmatched
due to its size.
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Comparison at 15 dBA (+/- 2 dB)
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|
Cooler
|
SPL
|
Thermal Rise
|
Height
|
Weight
|
|
Cooler Master Geminii S (Nexus fan)
|
16 dBA
|
21°C
|
86 mm
|
500 g
|
|
Scythe Big Shuriken
|
13~14 dBA
|
27°C
|
57 mm
|
420 g
|
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Cooler Master Geminii S
|
14 dBA
|
29°C
|
86 mm
|
500 g
|
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Silverstone NT06-E (Nexus fan)
|
16 dBA
|
29°C
|
107 mm
|
550 g
|
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Arctic Cooling Alpine 7 Pro
|
17 dBA
|
33°C
|
86 mm
|
450 g
|
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Nexus-fan modded Intel cooler
|
16 dBA
|
39°C
|
67 mm
|
540 g
|
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Intel Q6600 HSF
|
16 dBA
|
42°C
|
62 mm
|
440 g
|
|
Intel Aluminum HSF
|
14~15 dBA
|
46°C
|
63 mm
|
330 g
|
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Arctic Cooling Alpine 7 GT
|
15 dBA
|
46°C
|
64 mm
|
280 g
|
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Thermolab Micro Silencer
|
15 dBA
|
48°C
|
58 mm
|
270 g
|
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Thermolab Nano Silencer
|
15 dBA
|
49°C
|
39 mm
|
210 g
|
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Intel Q9550 HSF
|
15 dBA
|
51°C
|
45 mm
|
260 g
|
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Silverstone NT07-775
|
15 dBA
|
56°C
|
36 mm
|
300 g
|
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Coolers tested in our last roundup in green.
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At 15 dBA@1m (+/- 2 dBA), the NT07-775 remains in the basement. The Intel copper
heatsink with Nexus fan takes a small lead amongst the smaller coolers, and
it has unrivaled acoustics. The Alpine 7 Pro impresses, coming within a few
degrees of the more expensive NT06-E, Shuriken, and Geminii S — at $15,
it's clearly the field's best budget cooler. The Shuriken and Geminii S prove
to be better than the NT06-E at the extremely limited airflow of the 15 dBA@m test.
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