Acoustic Performance

The results are summed up on the diagram below:

As you can see, none of the today’s testing participants can be considered really quiet. Thermaltake V1 AX and MaxOrb / MaxOrb EX with their fans at minimal speed and the PWM supporting coolers in idle mode generate moderate noise (no 120-mm fan is quiet at 1200~1300 RPM anyway). All coolers are uncomfortably loud at maximum fan rotation speed, although ZEROtherm ZEN FZ120 appears the quietest of them.

Conclusion

If you really want to find a unique-looking cooling solution that will attract your friends’ attention, then any of the coolers we discussed today will be a good choice. However, if you intend to do some overclocking and efficient CPU cooling is another priority for you besides stylish looks, then we would recommend to check out Thermaltake MaxOrb (EX). It is not only a good modding solution, but also copes well with overclocked CPUs cooling. It is important, though, to keep in mind that is has some retention compatibility issues, before purchasing it.

We cannot recommend Thermaltake V1 AX “fantail” and nickel-plated Zalman CNPS8700 NT “cup” for overclockers, although the latter may be a good fit for compact media centers due to its small size. I was sincerely disappointed with Zalman CNPS9700 NT – the most expensive cooler of all tested today that lost 7~10°C to ZEROtherm ZEN FZ120.

As always, the choice is yours. Just make sure you know exactly what you need your CPU cooler for :)