Thermaltake VOLCANO 11+

April 30, 2003 admin Uncategorized 0

Variable speed fan – Joe

SUMMARY: A fine choice for variable speed Socket A cooling.

TT11

Size: 70 x 66 x 31 mm; Fan: 80 mm, 1300 rpm, 21 cfm – 4800 rpm, 76 cfm.

The good guys at Thermaltake were nice enough to send their latest, the VOLCANO 11+, for a test spin.

The Volcano 11+ ships with parts to run

  • At full speed (4800 rpm)
  • With the fan controlled by temperature
  • By manually adjusting fan speeds with a rheostat

Parts

Parts include:

  • Two manual fan controllers – one for PCI slot, one for 5¼” drive bay
  • Temperature sensor for fan temp control
  • Four pin to 3 pin power plug
  • Screws, thermal tape, jumper and grease

The instruction sheet that comes with it is well done and very easy to follow.

The Volcano 11+ ships with a fan with speeds that can be controlled by a temperature probe. At 20 ºC, it runs at 1300 rpm and at 55 ºC, 4800 rpm. Noise is spec’d at 17 dB @ 1300 rpm to 48 dBA @ 4800 rpm. I measured its noise with a Radio Shack sound meter 8″ from the fan’s intake. At 1395 rpm – <50 dBA; at 3008 rpm - 55 dBA and at 4800 rpm - 75 dBA¹.

Its not safe to use a motherboard fan header – at its highest speed, it draws 8.4 watts – using the power plug adapter is a must.

The base is fairly well finished:

Base

However, I could see polishing marks and when I ran my nail over it, I could slightly feel ridges.

The clip engages all three socket lugs and is very secure – it does take a screwdriver to mount.

THE TEST

The Volcano 11+ was tested on the CPU Die Simulator (75.4 watts) which gives results that are unaffected by motherboard influences.

TEST RESULTS – CPU Simulator

Heatsink
Die Temp
Ambient Temp
Delta
C/W
Volcano 11+, 4834 rpm,68 dBA
49.5 C
22.1 C
27.4 C
0.36
Volcano 11+, 3008 rpm, 55 dBA
55.1 C
22.0 C
33.1 C
0.44
Volcano 11+, 1395 rpm, <50 dBA
71.1 C
21.0 C
50.1 C
0.66

Delta = CPU temp – Ambient Temp
C/W = Delta / CPU Watts

Interpreting C/W: For every watt (CPUw) that the CPU
consumes, the HSF will limit the CPU’s temperature rise to (C/W x CPUw)
plus the temperature at the HSF’s fan inlet. For example, at an ambient temp of 25 C, a C/W of 0.25 with a CPU radiating 50 watts means that CPU temp will increase 50 x 0.25 = 12.5 C over ambient temp, or 37.5 C. The lower the C/W, the better.

Quite a range! As always, low noise = low cooling performance. Die Simulator results place the Volcano 11+, at its highest speed, in the mid rank of heatsinks tested to date (Heatsink Ranking).

CONCLUSIONS

Thermaltake’s Volcano 11+ is a fine choice for variable speed Socket A cooling, offering users maximum flexibility to control CPU temps.

Thanks again to Thermaltake for sending this our way. The Volcano 11+ is available from The Heatsink Factory.

¹Note that manufacturers measure fan noise usually 3 feet from the fan.

Email Joe