Before I start this look at the Hedgehog, I want to express my sincere thanks to BACATA, the official distributor for Kanie, for the prompt, efficient and above all, friendly way with which they arranged for us to get this review sample, and in particular to Jean-Christophe AGOBERT. This really was service above and beyond the call of duty. I also want to thank Kanie for authorizing BACATA's involvement.

Specifications :

Processor	AMD Duron & TBird & Intel FC-PGA
Fan Requirements	DC 12V - DC 0.13A - 2.64 W
Fan Speed	5400 rpm
Fan CFM Rating	24.4
Noise	38dBA
rpm Monitor	Yes
Dimensions	61 x 69 x 61 mm
Weight	445 (g)

 

Processor AMD Duron & TBird & Intel FC-PGA
Fan Requirements DC 12V - DC 0.13A - 2.64 W
Fan Speed 5400 rpm
Fan CFM Rating 24.4
Noise 38dBA
rpm Monitor Yes
Dimensions 61 x 69 x 61 mm
Weight 445 (g)

Perhaps the best advice I can give anyone planning on buying the Hedgehog is to check the fan's rating. I've seen a host of different fans supplied and you need to be certain which one will be in the box when it arrives. It's also worth noting that at 445g, the Hedgehog is some way beyond AMD's recommended maximum weight. I'm not sure what criteria AMD used to decide on that upper limit though, and while it is heavy, I didn't feel the Hedgehog posed any real threat to the safety of my processor.

Introduction :

I think possibly the most important word to be used when describing the Kanie Hedgehog is COPPER. There are many important factors that determine how good a heatsink and fan will be in use, and these range from apparently trivial matters like retaining clip design to more fundamental issues like size and fan power, but a heatsink can never be any better than the material from which it is manufactured, and short of using Silver, Copper is the cream of the thermally efficient metals crop. Time for the obligatory thermal efficiency chart. Remember higher numbers are better.

Thermal Conductivity, W/cm-K

Aluminum	2.165
Zinc	1.024
Tungsten	1.969
Copper	3.937
Silver	4.173

 

Aluminum 2.165
Zinc 1.024
Tungsten 1.969
Copper 3.937
Silver 4.173

Before fitting, there is a little assembly to be done. This sounds a little cheap and lazy on Kanie's part, but there is actually a valid reason for supplying the Hedgehog this way, and that is that depending on whether you want the fan to blow or suck air over the heatsink will dictate whether or not you fit the square Aluminium collar. There's also something strangely therapeutic about slotting this thing together.

Construction :

Before I get on to the assembly and performance, I want to dispel a myth that I have seen in at least 2 other Hedgehog reviews. For reasons of economy and large scale production, the Hedgehog is not milled from a single block of copper, but consists of a solid base with machined grooves, into which the copper "combs" are fitted and pressed securely. The combs are NOT soldered in (as I have seen claimed), therefor there is nothing in the construction that is likely to interfere with thermal transmission. I can't say if earlier models had the combs soldered into place, but certainly current models are pressed.

Assembly :

Once the Hedgehog has been torn from its shrink-wrap, the first job is to thoroughly clean all traces of oil from the base. This oil is used to prevent oxidation prior to use and wipes off quite easily. If you're wondering how many fins (pins is probably more accurate) this thing has, you can do what I did and multiply the number of pins width-ways by the number of pins length-ways giving a total of 238. However, having done this, you'll probably be left feeling a little stupid as you realise that the 238 in the model number refers to the number of pins, and that there was actually no need to count them at all. The "m" probably stands for "moron", which was how I felt after I realised this.

The next step is to fit the fan retainers. These are designed to slip over the raised two rows of pins at each end, and simply stop the copper pins from splaying when the fan screws are driven home, allowing the screws to bite securely into the copper.

Now you need to decide if you want the fan to blow air downwards over the Hedgehog, or to draw air upwards. In practice, this makes no difference to the temperatures attained, but if you have a case cooling fan situated nearby, you will almost certainly want the air drawing upwards so it can be intercepted by the case cooler and exhausted.

The picture above shows the Aluminium shroud fitted, though this is only used if the air flow is from bottom to top. If the fan is blowing downwards, then the shroud should not be used. If you're not sure which way the fan blows, a look at the side will usually provide the answer.

Here we see two arrows, one showing fan rotation direction, and the other showing airflow direction.

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