Thermaltake SpinQ CPU Cooler - Printer Friendly version

1. Features

Manufacturer	Thermaltake
Model	SpinQ
Price	$60
Category	Power users

The Thermaltake SpinQ is a uniquely designed cpu cooler. As you can seen in the picture below, the cooler has a cylinder heatsink and spiral aluminum fins, with a 80mm fan that provides air stream throughout the cylindrical fin structure. A blue LED is also installed there contributing to aesthetics.

With over 50 waved aluminum fins and 6 copper heat pipes, this product promises to offer high cooling efficiency and low operation noise by adjusting the spinning speed of the fan, using the VR fan control knob. Finally, the cooler has a mirror coating copper base for effective conduction of heat from the CPU.

The Thermaltake SpinQ can be installed in the latest Intel Core i7 systems (socket LGA1366)

Specifications:

Model	CL-P0466
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 AM2 / AM2+ Phenom II x4 Phenom II x3 Phenom Athlon 64 FX Athlon 64 X2 Athlon 64 Sempron
Heatsink Dimension	121.63mm x 90mm x 151.85mm
Heatsink Material	50 Aluminum Fins + Copper & Aluminum Base
Heatpipe	Ø 6mm x 6
Fan Dimension	Ø 80mm x 85 mm
Rated Voltage	12 V
Started Voltage	7 V
Fan Speed	1000 ~ 1600 RPM
Power Input	5.4 W
Rated Current	0.45 A
Noise	19 ~ 28dBA
Life Expectation	50,000 Hours
Connector	3 Pin
Weight	667g

2. The package

The Thermaltake SpinQ cpu cooler comes in a rather big package You can have a look at the device through the transparent window on the box. The retail price of the SpinQ is around $60, as found at several online stores. The product is fully compatible with LGA 1366, LGA 775 (Intel) and AM2 (AMD) sockets.

Everything inside the box is well packaged and secured. Besides the CPU cooler, you can find several clips for the each socket, mounting screws and a printed manual:

The cooler is high sized with 152mm height, 121mm width and 90mm depth.

The Thermaltake SpinQ features six heat pipes with a diameter of 6mm each. Each heat pipe goes through the aluminum fins and goes down to the base. The design is pretty impressive, especially at the dark due to the blue-backlight fan.

The 80x85mm fan spins at 1000 ~ 1600 RPM, adjustable through the small switch.

The base is big enough to fully cover the cpu area:

Installing the Thermaltake SpinQ is very easy. All you have to do is use the the included screws and mount the corresponding Intel/AMD standard clip to the base. Then simply push down the four clips to secure the cpu cooler. The whole process won't take you more than 5 minutes.

As you can see the coolers size could make it difficult to install it in small PC cases.

3. Testbed

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

CPU: Intel Core7-920 Retail
Case: Open Air testbed
Motherboard: Asus P6T Deluxe Bios 1403
Memory: 3x1GB Crucial PC3-1066
PSU: OCZ 720W
HDD: WD 80JB
Operating system Windows XP with all the latest updates installed
Software: OCCT v2.0.1 & CoreTemp 0.99.3
Thermal Paste: Tuniq TX-2
Idle time: ~30min
Load time: ~30min
The RPM speed controllable via SmartFan BIOS or via external hardware controller

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:

Intel Core i7-920 @ 2.66GHz
Vcore: 1.1000V
Other BIOS values: Auto

Intel Core i7-920 @ 3.60GHz
Vcore: 1.26250V
DDR3 Voltage: 1.64V
Other BIOS values: Auto

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. Tests

Let's see how the Thermaltake SpinQ performed against other CPU coolers.

At normal operation with stock voltages, the Intel Core i7-920 processor produces enough heat. The Intel stock cpu cooler kept the temperature at 58 degrees Celsius under full load. The Thermaltake SpinQ managed to lower the temperature down to 51 degrees C. Although this is a good performance, other coolers were more efficient:

We increased the CPU voltage and as a result, our Intel Core-i7 920 reached the 3.60GHz and the produced heat was higher. Here is a strong test that the Thermaltake SpinQ has to pass in order to convince that it deserves its money.

The Intel stock cooler gave us around 90 degrees C, while the Thermaltake SpinQ managed to get the cpu temperature down to 73 degrees C. If you look at our chart, the SpinQ is found in the middle of the ranking table. We also see that lower priced coolers managed to keep the CPU temperature even lower:

What about the noise? The Intel stock cooler is the very quiet and the measurement showed just 37dB. The Thermaltake SpinQ produced 49dB at full RPM and around 43dB at the lowest allowed RPM:

As always, price matters. The following table has the information needed for your convenience. Priced at $60, the Thermaltake SpinQ will cost you more than other solutions such as the excellent Scythe Mugen 2 that costs just $32 and offers a greater performance.

5. Final words

The Thermaltake SpinQ is a very interesting and well designed product. The device has won many awards mostly for its unique design. The do find it very eye-catching and the blue fan will contribute to the aesthetics of your system, especially at night.

The cooler performed better that the Intel stock cooler with an Intel LGA1366 series, as it was expected. However, compared with other cpu coolers that cost lower, Thermaltake's solution gave an average performance. For example, when we overclocked the Intel processor at 3.60GHz, competitive products managed to keep the temperature up to 11 degrees C lower than the SpinQ. In most cases these coolers would cost you half the money you would spend for the SpinQ.

Thermaltake definitely makes the difference with the eye-catching SpinQ, in terms of aesthetics. If the competition was not so hard, we could say that we have to do with a good solution for your system and of course, a lower retail price would be welcomed.

Retail package
Design
Motherboard compatibility
Installation time
Copper Base quality

Pros:

+ Good retail package
+ Works with both AMD/Intel platforms
+ Includes thermal paste
+ Great external design
+ Will lower the temperatures of your processor compared with a stock cooler
+ Quiet when fan is spinning at low RPM

Cons:

- Performance doesn't keep up with the retail price and competition
- The delicate waved fins should be handled with care
- Cannot be upgraded using a second fan