Related Articles

Until you take a look at the base, the Hyper 212 Plus' build quality is excellent. The heatsink feels sturdy and the fins are thin, yet solid and not easily bent. However, the impressive first impression quickly falls apart after a quick glance at the base. The gaps are not only numerous, but quite large too and the base is uneven.

Obviously, it causes a performance hit since heat cannot efficiently reach the heatpipes. Coolermaster is a veteran in the cooling market and I was expecting better performance out of the Hyper 212 Plus, especially when the computer is sitting idle.

Fortunately, the PWM controlled fan is quiet and never ramped up enough to be noticeably annoying. Although if you decide force it to spin at full throttle, then it is noisy and not bearable for daily use, for me at least.

Compatibility is clearly one of the Hyper 212's strong points. On the AMD side, it supports sockets AM3, AM2+, AM2 and 939 which at this point covers nearly every AMD users. On Intel's side, current sockets LGA1366 and 775 are supported as well the upcoming LGA1156.

Although the heatsink's relatively thin design compared to Noctua's and Titan's coolers, which are about 45mm wider, hinders it's cooling capacity, it greatly minimizes issues with blocking memory slots on motherboards. Coolermaster has done a very good job at making sure the Hyper 212 Plus fits nearly everyone's system.

Such wide processor compatibility often brings a confusing array of mounting mechanism, but it is not the case here. Through an admittedly clever system, Coolermaster managed to support all those sockets with a single backplate and top bracket. Also, this universal system is surprisingly easy to use. A quick read through the manual tells you everything you need to know to get going.

Overall, Coolermaster's Hyper 212 Plus isn't the greatest performer, but it gave acceptable results, especially given the price of the unit. At right under 40$, it won't hurt your wallet. If you're holding on to your socket 939 or LGA775 processor and looking to upgrade in the near future, the Hyper 212 might just be what you want. It'll keep you covered no matter what you decide to upgrade to.