Testing:

To test the performance of the ThermoLab ITX30 it was compared head-to-head with three other coolers installed on the Intel i3-3225 processor (with the Mini-box M350 case left open). The Noctua NH-L9i, the Titan DC-155A915Z/RPW, and the stock Intel cooler will provide the competition for the ITX30. Idle testing consisted of letting the system sit at the Windows 7 desktop with no other applications running for a period of 30 minutes. Load testing consisted of running 3DMark Vantage back-to-back three times. HWMonitor 1.19 was used to monitor idle and load temperatures, and the room was maintained at a consistent 21 degrees Celsius.

The chart below shows the idle results, where we see that the ThermoLab ITX30 is able to match the impressive performance of the Noctua NH-L9i. The Noctua NH-L9i had impressed me previously with its cooling performance and its low noise operation, and at least at idle, the ITX30 is able to match it!



The next chart looks at the load results, which shows that when the processor gets cranking, the NH-L9i offers the best results, but that the ThermoLab ITX30 is only two degrees warmer (52C versus 54C). The ITX30 was able to remain very quiet, which will make it an excellent choice for me - and anyone else looking to tame the heat inside a compact system, like an HTPC.



While the fan never had to run up to full speed while being controlled by the motherboard's PWM header, when forced to run at its maximum RPMs, it did get louder, but not anywhere close to what I would call loud. If it were to cycle to full speed during normal HTPC duty you would definitely notice, but it seems that setting the BIOS to "Quiet Mode", or whatever your equivalent settings are called, would keep the system nearly silent and keep the CPU at a safe temperature.