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Introduction:::...
It's
been a while since I last looked at a CPU cooler, partly
because design and performance had all become a little samey,
and partly because it seemed the emphasis was shifting towards
more exotic options like water and phase change.
Prior
to recent developments like strained silicon, low-k and
reductions in die sizes, temperatures seemed to be spiraling
out of control, and the continued use of air as a suitable
method for cooling seemed less and less likely with each
new processor. These technological advancements have prolonged
the feasible life of the air-cooled CPU, though for how
long is another question.
On
test today are a trio of coolers all of which can be used
on Intel's LGA775 platform. Most can also be used on a variety
of sockets as we'll see when we look at the coolers individually,
but all testing was done on a 925XE powered ABIT AA8 Fatal1ty
equipped with a 3.4GHz Extreme Edition CPU.
Two
of the three test subjects come courtesy of cooling veterans
Thermaltake, the company behind the infamous Orb series
of coolers back in 2000. The third cooler was manufactured
by GlacialTech, a company who set up operations back in
2001 as a total thermal technologies solution provider.
GlacialTech's cooler was supplied to us courtesy of UK retailer,
Selwyn Electronics.
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