A heatsink with a manually controlled fan – Joe
SUMMARY: A very good all aluminum heatsink with a manual fan controller.
The good guys at TOCOOLS sent me a sample of their Socket A heatsink, the TOCOOLS Crown. TOCOOLS is a new face on the heatsink market. This is an all-aluminum sawed heatsink.
Included with the Crown is TOCOOLS FanCon. This is a variable fan speed controller which can vary fan voltages from 5 to 11.5 volts, for fans up to 6 watts. There is a bypass switch which gets the full 12 volts to the fan.
The fan is an Delta Model #EFB0812HHE – an 80 x 38mm unit rated at 60 cfm @ 5000 rpm, 45.5 dBA.
I found it was noisy but not as noisy as other high speed Deltas – I measured its noise at 65 dBA @ 4869 rpm, 58 dBA @ 4204 rpm and <50 dBA at 1760 rpm, with a Radio Shack sound meter 8″ from the fan’s intake, somewhat less than a Delta 38 (about 69 dBA).
The base is well finished and polished:
The clip is very stiff and requires a screwdriver to mount. It sits in the slot a bit and may require an angled screwdriver to engage the socket lugs.
In summary, an aluminum heatsink with a very stiff clip powered with a manual fan controller.
The TOCOOLS CROWN was first tested on the CPU Die Simulator which gives results that are unaffected by motherboard influences. I then tested it on an Iwill KK266+, modified to read AMD’s on-die diode, as an example of what users might see on their systems.
| Heatsink | Die Temp | Ambient Temp | Delta | C/W |
| TOCOOLS CROWN, 4689 rpm | 49.7 C | 25.1 C | 24.6 C | 0.33 |
| TOCOOLS CROWN, 4294 rpm | 50.6 C | 25.3 C | 25.3 C | 0.34 |
| TOCOOLS CROWN, 1760 rpm | 58.9 C | 25.0 C | 33.9 C | 0.45 |
| CPU/Motherboard | CPU Die Temp | Ambient Temp | Delta | C/W | CPU Back Temp |
| Palomino 1200, Iwill KK266+, 4436 rpm | 39.9 C | 26.5 C | 13.4 | 0.25 | 46.0 C |
| Palomino 1200, Iwill KK266+, 1779 rpm | 44.7 C | 26.9 C | 17.8 | 0.33 | 51.0 C |
In-socket thermistor per MBM: 34C @ 4436 rpm & 39C @ 1779 rpm.
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 TOCOOLS CROWN, at 4689 rpm, in the top rank of heatsinks tested to date (Heatsink Ranking).
Noise becoming more of an issue, the TOCOOLS CROWN is another approach – not as elegant as a temperature controlled approach, but very effective. The heatsink at full bore is a good one – almost surprising, considering its all aluminum construction.
Thanks again to TOCOOLS for sending this our way.
Be the first to comment