Xigmatek XP-S964 Cooler
Ideally every CPU cooler should perform well, which most do. But in the age of advertising and marketing, consumers are easily mislead into believing a product will perform well just because of the company branding it. I have reviewed some very nice coolers over the summer by some of the most well known names in the industry; only to be let down by their claims of premium performance. Well, to be honest, prior to very recently I had never heard of Xigmatek before. Just a few weeks ago Benchmark Reviews unveiled the Xigmatek HDT-S1283, which tested to be the best-performing CPU we have seen to date. Perhaps on the same level is the Xigmatek XP-S964 Copper Heatpipe CPU Cooler.
Many manufacturers search out designs that will help them develop a product known for extraordinary performance. Benchmark Reviews has already reviewed many of the very best CPU coolers available to enthusiasts, from the very unique and original Zaward Sylphee ZCJ003 CPU Cooler to the oversized Thermaltake MaxOrb CL-P0369 CPU Cooler. Not long ago, we even reviewed the Ultra ULT33186 Chilltec TEC CPU Cooler which combined three different cooling technologies into one solution. All of these products performed very well, but none of them really set itself apart from the pack like the Xigmatek HDT-S1283 did. Now Xigmatek is back at it, with their offset arrangement of heatpipes in the new XP-S964.
Heatpipes have not been an integrated part of the CPU cooler for very long now, but the tall design with a fan fixed to the front has already been done several times over. Copper heatpipes, and later copper bases, helped reach the coolest temperatures available from air cooling. But enthusiasts didn't have to wait long for the next advancement: Xigmatek delivered the Heatpipe Direct Touch design in the HDT-S1283, and now those same creative minds have returned with an offset heatpipe design allowing for full-face air-cooling exposure.
Outstanding performance and quiet, XP-S964 outmatches other air coolers. 4pcs Φ6 mm heat-pipe with high-density and light material fins, it provides outstanding heat dissipating efficiency and cooling performance. With rubber suspension and powerful but quiet 92mm fan, it is much more quiet and reliable. Universal Retention Module for INTEL and AMD, it is easy to install in seconds for users.
About the company: Xigmatek
Purpose and targets of becoming one of the worlds leaders in thermal PC Industry were set for Xigmatek Co. Ltd in 2005, the founding year! To ensure reaching their project aims, Xigmateks management followed up with hard work, experiences and customer friendly business style.
Honing one of the world’s most efficient manufacturing operations, Integration Presence in major economic regions, being tied up with most important strategic alliances between suppliers and academia and further majority investments in R&D are some of Xigmateks aggressive incensement strategies.
Combining the cream of product designers, R&D engineers and technical people (main team in Germany) Xigmatek is proud and full of confidence to offer excellent quality products and service to cover the customers requirements and demands.
Within the standard channels as the consumer market and the distributing electrical appliances, Xigmatek will keep on focusing on development and set up even new sales channels to comply ever-changing demands and requirements.
Several years of experiences company background in Thermal IT industry provides our customer the best, reliable, environmental and performing Thermal/Cooling Systems including excellent Service to fulfill global users and customers demands.
Features
-
Imbalance arrangement of heat-pipe result in perfect heat dissipation.
-
Anti-vibration rubbers prevent fan vibration and also absorb vibration noise.
-
4pcs high performance U type heat-pipe.
-
92mm highly efficient PWM fan.
-
Maximum dissipating surface.
-
Minimum Components interference design.
-
Brilliant smart fan: PWM + Thermal-control fan (optional).
-
3-in-1 application: LGA775 push-pin/K8 & AM2 tool-less clip.
Specifications
-
Product Name: XP-S964
-
Product Number: CAC-S9FH4-U01
-
Outside Dimension (W) x (H) x (D) mm: 104 x 52 x 133
-
Heat Sink Material: Copper Base with Aluminum Alloy
-
Heat-pipe: Φ6 x 4
-
Fan Dimension (W) x (H) x (D) mm: 92 x 92 x 25
-
PWM Fan Voltage Rating (V): 12V
-
Speed (R.P.M.): 1200~2800 R.P.M.
-
Bearing Type: Rifle Bearing
-
Air Flow (CFM): 39~54.6 CFM
-
Air Pressure (mmH2O): 1.7~3.3 mmH2O
-
Life Expectance (hrs): 50,000 hrs
-
Noise Level (dB): 22~34 dBA
-
Connector: 4 Pin with PWM
-
Weight (g): 550g (w/fan)
-
Thermal Resistance: 0.18
-
Application:
-
All Intel Socket 775 CPU
-
Core 2 Extreme / Quad / Duo
-
Pentium Extreme Edition / D
-
Celeron D
-
All AMD Socket AM2 / 754 / 939 / 940 CPU
-
Athlon 64 / FX / X2 / Opteron / Sempron
Closer Look: XP-S964 Front
After reviewing the HDT-S1283, my expectations of Xigmatek became quite high. After all, it's not every day that a totally unfamiliar face comes in and takes the cooling crown away from an entire field of competing products by such a large margin. So when the XP-S964 showed up to Benchmark Reviews packaged in a plain white box without a picture or see-through front, I began to question their wisdom.
The XP-S964 Copper Heatpipe 92mm CPU Cooler is touted by Xigmatek to be "an outstanding performance air cooler with particular fin design to reach maximum air flow but minimum noise level". That seems modest enough. After all, the CPU cooling industry has over-used the 120mm cooling fan in far too many designs already. Wouldn't it be nice to see a completely efficient design that could perform the same but maintain a smaller footprint?
With rubber suspension "screws" used to seat the fan, and a convenient 3-in-1 application retention module design, the XP-S964 provides users with quick and easy installation. I was personally thankful that Xigmatek did not design this particular cooler to require my motherboard to be removed for installation.
Xigmatek's XP-S964 combines a single (supplied) 92mm PWM Thermal-control fan with soft-rubber suspension and 4 pieces of Φ6 heat-pipe. Together with the solid copper base and 3-in-1 application retention module, the XP-S964 has created a focus on effective cooling without the noise.
Closer Look: XP-S964 Rear
At the backside of the Xigmatek XP-S964 is virtually the exact same scene as what the front offered. The copper heatpipes are offset so that the 92mm cooling fan can directly contact each rod with fresh cool air. There are no extra soft-rubber fan mounting "screws" available; so if you desire another 92mm fan mounted at the rear of the unit you need to secure it with fan screws into the holes provided at each corner.
I applaud Xigmatek for the offset heatpipe design, primarily because I have wondered how long it would take before someone used this exact idea. In all honesty though, the offset heatpipes in the XP-S964 92mm CPU cooler have been designed with low production cost in mind more than pure performance.
In a perfect design, the heatpipes would take full advantage of the high pressure zones created by the fan. If you were to divide the width of the finsink cooler into five segments (fifths), the fan would provide the best cooling performance inside the second and forth segments. In this Xigmatek design, the first and fifth segments are utilized, which I believe to be about a half-inch outside the fan's sweet-spot. I realize this is critical thinking, but they are trying to make a better cooler into a smaller footprint. This concept must begin with proper engineering.
From the image above you can see that each of the heatpipe rods are all identical in length and bend points, so it is a simple matter of offsetting the base which creates this unique design. Xigmatek may have used some production-friendly design in the XP-S964, but I fear that there is more performance to be had if the competition wanted to risk the expense of utilizing copper heatpipes with different bend angles.
Xigmatek has finished the copper base on the XP-S964 to a light polish. The precision-smooth surface may seem like a desirable feature to the average consumer, but Thermalright had it right by using a very tiny pebble design in the finish. The "sandblasted" look leaves countess tiny bumps which in turn offers a small increase in surface space. Why do you think Intel uses this same finish on every one of their CPU heatspreaders?
Testing & Results
Testing Methodology
Testing was conducted at a series of temperature intervals, with the ambient room temperature measuring the same for each cooler's reading. Lavalys EVEREST rounds up temperature readings to the nearest whole number, however all ambient temperatures were recorded and accurate to one-tenth of a degree Celsius.
EVEREST Ultimate Engineer Version 4.00.976 was utilized to measure all CPU temperatures. It should be noted that temperatures obtained through software most always reflect the thermistor readings as recorded by the BIOS. All of the units compared in the results were tested on the same motherboard using the same BIOS. These readings are not absolute or correct, but they are relative since every BIOS is programmed differently.
Test System
-
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-P35C-DS3R (Intel P35 chipset) with F4G BIOS
-
-
Processor: Intel E6600 Core 2 Duo 2.2GHz operating at multiple speeds
-
-
-
-
Hard Disk 1: Western Digital WD360GD 10,000 RPM SATA
-
Optical Drive: Toshiba Samsung SH-S203 SATA 20x DVD R/W
-
-
-
Operating System: Windows XP Professional SP-2 (optimized to 16 processes at idle)
For each test, the computer system was powered on and left idle for ten minutes prior to recording the idle temperature with EVEREST. After idle temperatures have been recorded, two console versions of the Folding @ Home client were simultaneously run to create full load on both CPU cores. After ten minutes of full load, the temperature was again recorded. This process was identical for all cooling solutions used in this test, and was repeated for each ambient temperature interval.
Results
Up first are the results under idle load. The CPU temperature is listed vertically along the left-hand side of the chart, and the ambient room temperature is displayed for each group along the bottom. In this test battery, the OEM cooler provided by Intel with the Core 2 Duo E6600 was used as a reference, which offered a high-temperature baseline reading.
When I tested each cooler, I made certain to keep the hardware settings identical across the entire test platform. I used the same front side bus and clock speeds, which would enable me to clearly compare the performance of each product under identical conditions. While the ambient room temperature increases, all of the coolers I have ever tested would also record higher readings (all except for the Ultra ULT33186 Chilltec TEC CPU Cooler). Since the OEM cooler supplied by Intel was the first unit to be tested, there was quite a difference between the ambient room temperature and the temperature of the cooler (42° C idle at 24° C ambient room temperature).
At idle load I was very pleased to see that the Xigmatek XP-S964 was recording results just slightly higher than the Thermaltake MaxOrb CL-P0369 and Zaward Sylphee ZCJ003, which is encouraging. The 36° C recorded at 24° C ambient was not the best, but still very positive since it was in-line with the results of much larger coolers. But the heat had just started to be applied, and once I completed tests on the other coolers it would be time for real cooling under serious load.
Under full load, the Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 began to create tremendous heat. The little Intel OEM cooler, despite its copper base, gave the worst results anyone could suffer recording, registering 61° C at full load while the room's ambient temperature remained 24° C. But that's what you come to expect from a bundled cooler, right? Sadly this must be the case, because I still hear of many users (even some gamers and hardware enthusiasts) which still use the stock reference cooler. I feel for those of you in this situation, I really do...
...but there are some very good reasons to evolve, or at least save up your money and upgrade. The Xigmatek HDT-S1283 Exposed Copper Heatpipe CPU Cooler has certainly earned the the crown for cooling, but its brethren has managed to successfully take the narrow third place victory over a field of giants. In all honesty, the Zaward Sylphee ZCJ003 CPU Cooler was the real king of the hill prior to these tests, since it is roughly half the size of everything here. But it's certainly worth noticing how the Xigmatek XP-S964 92mm single-fan CPU cooler managed to defeat a few previous champions with a maximum recorded temperature of only 46° C in a 24° C ambient room temperature and at full load.
I'm not impressed with the Ultra ULT33186 Chilltec TEC CPU Cooler which matched the Zaward VIVO PCJ004 at almost every point; but at about six times the cost. Both tied for second-place recognition, but neither came near to performing the best.
Final Thoughts
In all respects, I think this little 92mm cooler did very well against a field of much larger coolers which otherwise outclass it. In regards to 92mm coolers, the Xigmatek XP-S964 has certainly proven to be the best single-fan cooler in the 92mm range. Still, I can't help but nit-pick the little details which certainly could have swayed this product into unprecedented performance.
If Benchmark Reviews were to redesign this cooler, the first change would ditch the soft-rubber "screws" which make fan installation more troublesome than it needs to be. Next would be the heatpipes and base: utilize the HDT (heatpipe direct touch) design and bend the rods to that they do not overlap and take full advantage of the fans wind force sweet-spots. Finally, I would remove the steel frame surrounding the finsink; or at least make it more efficient.
Xigmatek XP-S964 Conclusion
The presentation rating is going to be among the lowest we have ever given out. This is entirely due to the fact that Xigmatek packages the XP-S964 into a plain unmarked white box. You wouldn't know what you're buying or what's inside unless you open it and look - certainly not the best marketing tool.
In regards to the overall appearance I felt that the XP-S964 utilized an attractive combination of copper heatpipe with aluminum fins. The soft rubber screws really stood out and looked a bit out of place once the 92mm cooling fan was installed.
Construction was completely bullet-proof. There is a very sturdy frame surrounding the finsink, which ensures no damage comes to the delicate aluminum parts.
For a single-fan 92mm cooler without the new HDT technology, the Xigmatek XP-S964 has proven that superior functionality can still exist in the copper heatpipe segment of CPU coolers. The fan can become noticeably audible at it's highest speed, but thankfully this was only the case with the side panel removed.
At the time of this writing, the XP-S964 is exclusive to the European market. North American availability is expected soon, with a manufacturers suggested retail price of $34.90. This price seats the XP-S964 at the center of the aftermarket CPU cooler selection.
In conclusion the XP-S964 offers performance normally unavailable in the 92mm footprint. Beating out monster coolers like the Thermalright MaxOrb at half the size, this is the cooler to have if you want to keep it small. But on the other hand you have very limited availability to North America, which means that you may have to spend more than you would like on shipping. Xigmatek has another winner on their hands, and the XP-S964 is among the best products I have seen. Now it just needs a proper package.
Xigmatek has begun to use the exposed copper heatpipe design in several other coolers, so there is no doubt they will be going in that direction with their future designs. In the meantime, the XP-S964 is one mighty-mite capable of surprising you with solid results.
Pros:
+ Small footprint
+ 92mm Pulse width modulation fan
+ Excellent cooling performance
+ Compatible with all current CPU sockets
+ High-quality construction
+ 6mm copper heatpipe rods
+ Hassle-free installation
+ Offset heatpipe rod layout
Cons:
- Audible fan noise at highest speed
- Soft-rubber fan mounting "screws"
- Would benefit from textured mating surface
- Limited North America availability
Ratings:
-
Presentation: 5.0
-
Appearance: 8.5
-
Construction: 9.25
-
Functionality: 9.5
-
Value: 9.0
Final Score: 8.25 out of 10.
Questions? Comments? Benchmark Reviews really wants your feedback. We invite you to leave your remarks in our Discussion Forum.
Related Articles:
|
