CoolSonic CS-1662-K

December 9, 2002 admin Uncategorized 0

An OK performer for socket A/370 with tolerable noise levels – Joe

SUMMARY: An OK performer for socket A/370 with tolerable noise levels.

Coolsonic CS-1662-K

The kind folks at CoolSonic were nice enough to send a sample of their heatsink, the Model #CS-1662-K. This is a copper skived unit with a conventional YS Tech 60mm fan. We tested the same heatsink with the TMD fan HERE.

This version of the Coolsonic ships with YS Tech fan model # NFD1260259B-2A – a 60 x 25mm unit rated at 33 cfm @ 5500 rpm, 40 dBA¹. I found it to be tolerably quiet – I measured its noise at 57 dBA with a Radio Shack sound meter 8″ from the fan’s intake, substantially less than a Delta 38 (about 69 dBA). It’s also safe to use a motherboard fan header – 2.8 watts.

The clip requires a screwdriver to mount and is fairly stiff. The lip for the screwdriver blade is relatively small, so exercise care when mounting.

The base is well finished:

Base

When I ran my nail over it, I could not feel or hear any ridges.

THE TEST

The Coolsonic was tested on the CPU Die Simulator which gives results that are unaffected by motherboard influences.

TEST RESULTS – CPU Simulator

Heatsink
Die Temp
Ambient Temp
Delta
C/W
Coolsonic/YS Tech, 5256 rpm
50.1 C
23.5 C
26.6 C
0.39

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.

Die Simulator results place the Coolsonic in the mid rank of heatsinks tested to date (Heatsink Ranking).

CONCLUSIONS

The Coolsonic CS-1662-K with YS Tech’s conventional 60mm fan is relatively quiet with subdued CPU cooling performance – nor for the power user. It’s about the same performance as with the YS Tech TMD fan.

Thanks again to CoolSonic for sending this our way.

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

Email Joe