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Appeared on: Friday, June 12, 2009
Thermaltake ISGC-300

1. Features, specifications
Manufacturer
Thermaltake
Model
Price 

$48
Category
Power users

Thermaltake promotes the new ISGC-300 model as a high-performance gaming cooler for user who wish to upgrade their cooling system with something affordable and efficient.

The product is compatible with the Intel 775/1366 and AMD AM2 sockets. The special mount mechanism with clips offers stability despite the high weight of the device. The cooler is equipped with a 120mm fan and should become ever more efficient if you install a second fan, as the cooler's design conveniently allows it.

- Product features

- ISGC Fan Technology
The pure white 120mm VRFan which is designed by the Thermaltake to pursuit noiseless environment. Therefore Thermaltake design to reduce the turbulence and the friction between air and fan

- Hydro Dynamic Bearing (HDB) Technology
Improved fan operation stability and noise production for extended overall product durability

- Copper+ Base Architecture  x  4 Heatpipes
Mirror Copper Base deliver 100% touch between CPU and Cooler. Meanwhile, 4 Cooper heatpipes create great heat transferring.

- Individual 33 Sawtooth Tower Fins
Thermaltake designs Tower Sawtooth onto the fins. With these sawtooth indentations, the cold air intake becomes smoother. The maximum cooling performance and noise is controlled thus can be optimized through 33 Sawtooth Tower Fins

Here are the full specifications of the product:
Model CLP0539
Compatibility Intel Socket LGA 1366
Core i7
Intel Socket LGA 775
Core 2 Extreme
Core 2 Quad
Core 2 Duo
Pentium D
Pentium 4
Pentium
Celeron D
Celeron

AMD Socket AM3 /AM2 / AM2+
Phenom II x4
Phenom II x3
Phenom
Athlon 64 FX
Athlon 64 X2
Athlon 64
Sempron
Dimension 126(L) x 71(W) x 161(H) mm
Heatsink Material Aluminum Fins Al Cover + Cu Base
Heatpipe Ø 6 mm x 4PCS
Fan Dimension Ø 120 x 25 mm
Rated Voltage 12 V
Started Voltage 7 V
Fan Speed 800 ~ 1300 RPM
Max. Air Flow 58.3 CFM
Max. Air Pressure 1.4 mmH2O
Noise 16 dBA
Life Expectation 50,000 hrs
Connector 3 Pin
Weight 697g

2. A closer look

The medium-sized retail box gives us an idea of the real dimensions of the cooler. The graphics on it with the fighting figure makes it easily recognizable and tease the gamers. The retail price of the SpinQ is around $48, as found at several online stores.

The cpu cooler is placed in a hard carton box and all accessories are found in a separate box. These include several clips for Socket 775/ LGA 1366 and AM2. The printed manual could be better but on the positive side, it comes in many languages.

The Thermaltake ISGC-300 comes with a big 120mm fan pre-installed. Four heatpipes with a diameter of 6mm each create heat transferring from the base to the the array of aluminum fins.

The specific U design is also met in many other CPU coolers. However, Thermaltake's fan should make the difference here at least in the performance an of course noise.

The 120mm fan spins at 800 ~ 1300 RPM . According to Thermaltake, the specific fan is very silent, but we have to find out it in practice later.

The base is made out of full copper:

Installing the Thermaltake ISGC-300 requires several steps. First you need to mount the correct clips for your system, in our case the LGA1366. You need to use the four mounting screws that are included in a plastic bag. Then you have to place the black washers into the pins and flip over motherboard.

At the back, place the four white washers and use the included nuts to secure the cpu cooler. While it sounds difficult, it isn't.

Here is how the system looks like after installation:

3. Testbed

For our tests we used an open air testbed with the following configuration:

We tried to produce the the highest possible temperature inside our test PC using the OCCT v2.0.1 software with a custom 30mins (mixed) operation.

We left both CPU cores running at full load for ~30 minutes. All temperatures were logged using the CoreTemp 0.99.3 and the software. We also followed two overclocking scenarios:

We measured the produced noise with a Precision Gold N09AQ Environment Meter. All measurements were made at a distance of 30cm away from the cpu cooler running at full speed. For all the coolers we used the same thermal compound from Tuniq, the TX-2.

4. Results

In order to get the best possible cooling performance, we measured the performance of the Thermaltake ISGC-300 with a single fan as well as with a second ISGC Fan 12 , P/N: AF0018 installed.

At normal operation with stock voltages, the Intel Core i7-920 processor produces enough heat. The Intel stock cpu cooler gives us around 58 degrees Celsius under full load. The Thermaltake ISGC-300 with a single fan gave us around 50 degrees C. Adding a second rotating fan further lowers the temperature by two degrees C:

In the next test we overclocked the Intel Core-i7 920 at 3.60GHz by increasing its voltage. The produced heat was also increased. Here is a strong test for the the Thermaltake ISGC-30. The Intel stock cooler gave us around 90 degrees Celsius, while the Thermaltake ISGC-300 managed to get the cpu temperature down to 70 degrees C. If you look in our comparison chart below, the ISGC-3 is ranked in the middle. Adding a second 120mm will not help a lot and the temperature will go 2 Degrees C lower:

Let's have a look at the noise level. The Intel stock cooler very quiet with 37dB, measured at a 30cm distance from the cooler. At full rotation, the Thermaltake ISGC-300 cooler produces 46dB of noise. Setting the RPM at the lowest level will produce around 40dB of noise:.

Finally, let's see how much the Thermaltake model would cost you compared with the other cpu coolers. The product is found online at ~$48, which is rather more than competitive products.

5. Final words

Summing up, the Thermaltake ISGC-300 may not be the most efficient CPU cooler around but it will do the job, especially if you are considering changing your stock CPU cooler that came with your processor.

We liked the adjustable rotation of the 120mm fan that allows you to find the perfect performance/noise balance according to your needs, although you will find the fan quiet enough already despite its size.

Thermaltake's cooler lowered the temperature of our Core i7-920 by 18~20 degrees Celsius, compared with the temperature reported with the Intel stock cooler installed. This cooling efficiency is also noticed under overclocking. Adding a second ISGC 120mm rotating fan further improves cooling efficiency with 2-3 degrees C, which is also welcomed.

The retail price of the cooler reaches the $48, which is considered rather high compared with other products we have tested in the past.

Overall, the Thermaltake ISGC-300 is a good product, mostly designed for gamers who wish silent operation and decent performance. Adding a second fan would further boost performance, but will also have an impact on the product's overall cost. The competition is very tough in this category of CPU coolers and a lower price would make this product even more attractive.

Retail package
Design
Motherboard compatibility
Installation time
Copper Base quality

Pros:

+ Good retail package
+ Works with both AMD/Intel platforms
+ Includes thermal paste
+ Supports a second 120mm fan
+ Will lower the temperatures of your processor compared with the stock cooler
+ Low noise levels

Cons:

- The Installed 120mm fan is not that powerful to give absolute performance
- A bit pricey



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