Testing:
To test the thermal performance of the ThermoLab Baram CPU cooler, the idle and load temperatures were monitored while running OCCT 2.0.1. The idle condition was established with the system sitting at the Window's desktop with only OCCT open (but not running a test) for a period of one hour. The load condition was established by running the stress test portion of OCCT for a period of one hour. Among other things, OCCT monitors individual CPU core temperatures, and these readings were used for all phases of testing.
For comparison purposes, the BARAM was tested against five other coolers. The stock Intel cooler, the OCZ Technology Vendetta, the OCZ Technology Vendetta II, the Noctua NH-U12P, and the Zalman CNPS9900 LED. In terms of size, the ThermoLab cooler is bigger than the stock cooler and the original Vendetta, and just about the same size as the Vendetta 2 and the NH-U12P. All of the coolers used the Zalman Super Thermal Grease during testing.
The Intel, Noctua, and two OCZ Technology coolers were all run with their fans at full speed. The Zalman CNPS9900 LED was run with its fan at full speed (2163RPM) and at low speed (1028RPM). The ThermoLab cooler does not come with a fan, so it was tested in a variety of configurations with fans on hand. The list below details each configuration:
» One 120mm AcoustiFan @ 1400RPM
» Two 120mm AcoustiFans @ 1400RPM
» One 120mm Delta fan @ 2400RPM
» One 120mm AcoustiFan @ 900RPM
When single fans were installed, they were arranged to blow into the fins of the heatsink. With two fans installed, they were configured in a push/pull arrangement. The AcoustiFan at 900RPM was actually one of the 1400RPM fans wired to a resistor to reduce the speed even further.
The chart below details the results from all of the coolers achieved while maintaining an ambient temperature of 20 degrees Celsius.
As you can see, the thermal performance is great... but it seems unaffected by increasing the number of fans or the speed of the fans! Under a load, a single 1400RPM fan performed as well as a single 2400RPM fan, and just as well as two 1400RPM fans. The only difference came when the speed of a single fan was dropped to 900RPM, and then the temperatures went up just five degrees.
The single 1400RPM produced minimal noise, but you could hear it faintly while running on the open test bed. Dropping the speed to 900RPM made it nearly silent, and I had to lean in closely to pick up the sound. Definitely impressive in terms of cooling performance and noise production!
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