Author: Koen Crijns
A while ago we treated you to an extensive comparison test of CPU coolers (Dutch article). Today we take a closer look at two coolers in particular: the definitive versions of the Cooler Master GeminII and the Thermaltake V1.
The Cooler Master GeminII which we tested initially, was a first sample; recently we received the final product from Cooler Master, which turns out to perform a lot better than the originally tested pre-production model.
A unique aspect of the GeminII, is that you can outfit the cooler with two 12 cm fans of your own choosing. No less than six heat pipes transfer the heat, generated by the CPU, to an oversized heatsink on which both fans can be mounted. As the heatsink has a significant overhang, you can position the unit in such a way that the second fan cools the north bridge or the memory modules directly.
We've tested the cooler with a combination of two types of fans: 2x Cooler Master Ultra Silent Fan (SAF-S12) and 2x Cooler Master Neon LED-fan (TLF-S12). To start with the first combination: these fans are so quiet that the GeminII achieves a shared frst position in the noise production category. At 10 cm distance we only measured 31 dB. With these quiet fans the cooling achieved is still much better than average: even when cooling a simulated 100W CPU, the GeminII has its temperature drop to 46.3 degrees. This means this combination can cool pretty much any modern cpu quietly, while still leaving significant potential for overclocking. With the more powerful Cooler Master Neon LED-fans we attained an even better 39.8 degrees at 100 Watt. This is one of the best cooling performances we've seen, although the Cooler Master doesn't surpass the Scythe Infinity and Gigabyte 3D Rocket II. The noise levle at 10 cm with these fans is 47 dB, slightly more quiet than the average. The average price of the GeminII is only about 31 euro, but that's without any fans, which have to be bought separately.
Thermaltake V1The Thermaltake V1 is brand new. This CPU cooler is built entirely from copper, consisting of two vertically mounted, V-shaped heatsinks with a 110 mm LED-lighted fan between them. The cooler has a total of four heat pipes, spreading the generated warmth evenly over the cooling surfaces. Placing the V1 is remarkably easy. The cooler has its own fan controller, which allows adjustment of the rotational speed from 1300 to 2000 rpm. Thermaltake positions the product directly opposite Zalman's pouplar CNPS-9700 cooler.
As far as we're concerned Thermaltake has got the looks of this cooler just right. When it comes to noise generated, according to our measurements the V1 at its highest speed is a bit louder than its competitor with 53.4 dB at 10 cm. A 100W TDP simulated CPU is cooled down to 40.6 degrees by the Thermaltake product, certainly a decent score meriting a spot in our Top-10. At the lower speed the temperature hits 42.6 degrees which is quite good: only the Scythe Inifinity and the peltier outfitted Titan Amanda and Macstek Tirumph perform better. It should be mentioned that the noise level at the most 'quiet' setting is clearly higher than most other coolers.
Test results: cooling capacityCooling capacity with a simulated 100W TDP processor, measured with the fan running at highest and lowest speed.
Noise production of the coolers measured at 10 cm distance.
The final version of the GeminII performs very well indeed: the cooler is eminently suitable to make your CPU whisper quiet, while for overclocking enthusiasts it offers sufficient potential as well. With the Neon LED fans it performs close to the top of the current crop of CPU coolers, with higher capacity fans the GeminII would perform even better easily. The Thermaltake V1 looks great, cools just fine and is certainly not too noisy. It doesn't really excel in any area, but is by no means a bad choice.