Best AMD Cooler (Fan)
AMD processors have a large area and that is a good thing. Because some of them can draw as much as 140 watts of current and need a lot of cooling. Think of them as car engines that tend to run hot. Now think what would happen if you started to hot rod that car engine to get even more power out of it? That is what overclockers and gamers do. So they need big efficient coolers for their AMD chips. Just like that car would need a big radiator and fan.
Most of these coolers have similar characteristics since new ideas are copied almost as soon as they are on the market. But there are significant differences in the test results and not everything that looks the same, works the same. Pure cooling is the overriding concern with these coolers but not everyone is gaming all the time so noise is also a factor, especially at low fan speeds. Also weight and support are considerations, most of these will end up hanging off of a vertical motherboard.
Because this area is changing so fast with new products coming all the time from both AMD and from the cooler manufacturers I have included dates in this list. Some of the coolers that test the best may still be making it to market. The reviews get to see them early so they will say good things and you will get excited, like they do with movies. Note: Make sure you have a large enough case because some of these are big coolers.
Why it's best:
This 3Rsystem Iceage 120 Boss II Dimpled Fin cooler was tested on 10/26/09 and blew away the competition. It posted some of the best results that frostytech.com had ever seen. It is an exposed heatpipe vertical cooler with a 120mm fan and dimpled fins on the cooler. The conc... read full review
Why it's a best pick:
The Prolimatech Megahalems is a large cooler that has been getting superb reviews and winning tests for it’s cooling power on the new Intel chip. As of Sept 30 the company made the announcement that they are now shipping Revision B with mounting clips for AMD chips. Th...
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Why it's a best pick:
Zalman has decided to join the crowd with the CNPS10S Extreme. Long known as a maker of the “flower type” coolers with the open fins around the center fan the new CNPS10X Extreme is a vertical heatpipe model. Still innovative though because it comes with a fan co...
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Directron $58.99
Why it's a best pick:
The Spire Thermax II is another vertical cooler with exposed heatpipes. In fact it is very similar to one or two others and they may well all come from the same factory. Different companies may be buying the metal cooling assemblies and then fitting their own fans. At the ti...
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Amazon.com
Why it's a best pick:
Sunbeam uses the phrase “Core Contact” to describe what everyone else just calls exposed heatpipes. In fact this Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer 120 looks a lot like the Spire Thermax II. It tests very well and like the others it comes with: a controller fan, mounti...
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Amazon.com