THE GOOD:
This cooler looks great and cools very effectively. Right out of the box you can feel how sturdy the construction is and can see exactly how large it is, all the while it weighs relatively light in comparison with other heatsinks in it's category. The "wingspan" on this baby is large enough to cool your RAM and PWMIC on most boards. It has a very attractive price tag and also suits a 120mm fan so it can stay pretty quiet, too.THE BAD:
That same large wingspan also gets in the way of swapping out any sticks of RAM with any ease. If you have a smaller sized case it can be a real pain to do.
The way this mounts to the socket leaves some improvements to be desired. It really only has one hold down point directly in the center of the base, which if any pressure is exerted onto the heatsink, it will twist atop the CPU. That can be really bad for aged thermal paste. At least two hold down points would have been better so it wouldn't turn while in the "set" position. SUMMARY:
I use this on my Opteron 165. I used to use the Si-128's younger brother, the XP-90, but due to the excessive noise a 90mm fan can produce and the amazing trouble that heatsink gave going on/off the motherboard...it was time for an upgrade.
With my Opteron 165 @ 1.525 Vcore, my rig stays at or below 39c idle, and 45c at load, all depending on room temperature. Thats with a complimenting 120mm Vantec fan.
All in all, the Si-128 is a great buy unless you have a tiny case or you move your case around quite a bit. |
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4.00/5.0
4.0