Thermaltake DuOrb CPU Cooler Review

Testing:

I am going to put the Thermaltake DuOrb through its paces to see how well it performs. I will be testing how well the DuOrb cools the system by monitoring the CPU temperatures both while idle and at full load. I am also going to record the chipset temperature on the Northbridge to see how well the airflow from the cooler cools the surrounding components. I will record the temperatures and compare them to two other coolers using the same testing procedures to see how it stands up to the competition. All hardware will be kept at the stock speeds and voltages, except for when the CPU is overclocked. This will eliminate any variables from affecting our data. Just a note, the ambient temperature of the testing area will be kept at a constant 25C for all testing. To simulate a load on the CPU, I will run OCCT v2.0.0a for two hours and then let the system cool for thirty minutes for the idle temperatures. Temperatures for the CPU will be recorded using Core Temp 0.98.1 and for the chipset I will be using ASUS's PC Probe II software.

Testing Setup:

• Processor: AMD Phenom 9600 "Black Box" (200x11.5)
• Processor Overclocked: AMD Phenom 9600 "Black Box" (200x13.5, 1.40v)
• Motherboard: ASUS M3N-HT
• Memory: Mushkin Redline XP2 8000 2 x 2 GB 5-5-5-12
• Video Card: ASUS 8800 GT w/ Forceware 174.74
• Power Supply: Mushkin 800watt Modular Power supply
• Hard Drive: 1 x Seagate 7200.11 1Terabyte SATA w/32MB Cache
• Opticals: Lite-On 8x DVD+/-RW
• O/S: Windows Vista Ultimate Edition

Comparison Coolers:

• OCZ Vendetta 2
• Stock AMD Heatsink

In all of the tests, not only did the Thermaltake DuOrb keep the CPU cool, but it kept the surrounding area cooler as well.