I like seeing more practical coolers. I wish there was more solutions in this segment. This one too performs well. That said this one is still a Prolimatech, and it seems the price premium isn't worth it =P.

SPCR, do you have any direct comparisons between the 1155 & 1366 platforms? (Can't find any, but maybe it's me...) I understand why compact HSFs have their own category, but I'd prefer seeing an overall hierarchy of performance. That's a lot harder for me to figure out on my own than which coolers fit my case.

direct comparisons between the 1155 & 1366 platforms -- what does that mean exactly? how could this be done?

The smaller HS test platform was developed because many small, low profile HSF designed for HTPC or SFF use cannot handle the heat from a 130W TDP 1366 or 2011 CPU. Most would perform poorly with that much CPU heat, and it would be hard to differentiate among them. Testing such coolers on the cooler CPU allows you to see the differences between the various smaller models, especially when they are run really quiet (ie -- with the fan slowed right down).

There is not easy way to get around this. Put them all in one chart based on the hot test platform, and most of the smaller coolers would be squashed near/at the bottom.

The assumptions are:

1. If you have room you should go for a bigger, higher performance cooler, because then you have more headroom to play with, so you can run fans at super slow/quiet speed.
2. If you are working on a SFF or HTPC, you will NOT have a 130W CPU and you will not have the room for the best big HS.

That's why we think it's unimportant that coolers tested on the cooler platform cannot be compared to those on the hotter one.

The Panther is slightly oddball: It does not have a 1366 mounting option, so it cannot be tested or used on the hot platform anyway.

The Prolimatech Panther is AU$39 in Australia.

Is it really $50 in North America?

What price do you guys think it should be to make it competitive with other, more established budget coolers such as the Coolermaster Hyper 212+ and 212 EVO?

Thank you. I'm curious as to your criteria for including comparable coolers in your comparison tables. Do you consider 4-heatpipe and 6-heatpipe coolers to be in a separate performance category? I'm curious because I noticed that my 6-pipe Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme Rev.C performs similar to my 4-pipe Noctua NH-U12P SE2.

I wholeheartedly second this. I don't even mind a price premium (I'm looking at you, Noctua) if I get exactly what I want, as weight, shape and mounting matter more for me than the unit's absolute performance figures - why try for "Epic" when "Very Good" will do just fine (and is possibly close to Epic anyway). This too is a matter of efficiency.

This thin-ish (if tall) heatsink from Prolimatech with not-unreasonable bulk looks good, as it doesn't even obstruct the RAM slots and has plenty of clearance. Shame about it needing a fan swap to play nice, especially if it's going to be expensive.