News

Dynatron has cooked up a new CPU air cooler for AMD's core-heavy EPYC and Ryzen Threadripper processors, and it spins at up to 11,000 RPM under full power. It's debatable whether the A38 is good-looking, but the fact of the matter is that it's an industrial-grade cooling solution that will get the job done.

The A38's dimensions are 119 x 79 x 65 mm, so it has the ideal size to be deployed in a 2U server environment. The CPU cooler, which weighs 450g, features a large aluminum heatsink with stacked aluminum fins and four embedded copper heat pipes. According to Dynatron, the A38 can dissipate up to 280W of heat without hiccups. It's compatible with the SP3, TR4, and sTRX4 sockets from AMD.

A 60mm cooling fan (DF126025BU - PWMH) is in charge of providing active cooling on the A38. It leverages a double-ball bearing design and feeds through a standard 4-pin fan connector. Given the size of the fan, it can get a bit loud when you push it to the edge.

With the duty cycle between 0% to 20%, the fan spins around 2,300 RPM and pulls a maximum of 0.84W. At this setting, it generates an airflow and static pressure up to 11.91 CFM and 1.48 mm-H2O, respectively, with a noise level up to 25.8 dBA.

At 50%, the fan speed and power draw jump to 5,400 RPM and 2.76W, respectively. The maximum airflow is increased to 28.38 CFM, while the static pressure is rated for 7.54 mm-H2O. The noise level is still manageable since the fan only hits 44.4 dBA.

For the brave that run the fan at 100%, it'll spin up to 11,000 RPM, and the power draw substantially rises to 18W. Logically, the performance is excellent since the fan provides airflow up to 58.31 CFM and static pressure up to 28.8 mm-H2O. The noise won't cause any hearing loss, but it's very much audible now. Dynatron estimated a noise level of 59.8 dBA, equivalent to a normal conversation.

The mounting mechanism on the A38 consists of pre-fixed spring screws, so you just install the CPU cooler and tighten the screws until they can't go anymore. The surface is also made from aluminum and comes with a high-quality, pre-applied Shin-Etsu X23-7762 thermal compound.

Dynatron hasn't revealed the pricing or availability for the A38.

TOUGHAIR 510 Tested on Intel Core i5-11600K

Thermaltake introduced the TOUGHAIR CPU Air Cooler series at CES 2021 that is targeted for high-performance PC builds. The TOUGHAIR CPU Air is available in three configurations, a horizontal low-profile tower (TOUGHAIR 110) for small form factor systems, and then as a vertical tower in single fan (TOUGHAIR 310), or dual fan (TOUGHAIR 510) configurations. Today, we’ll be taking a look at the flagship model, TOUGHAIR 510, that runs $59.99 shipped over at Amazon.

This model works on the latest Intel and AMD series processors as long as they are under 180W. The TOUGHAIR 510 CPU cooler has a 10W higher power rating thanks to the dual 120mm fan design. Thermaltake ships two TOUGHFAN 12 models with this kit and each has a fan speed of up to 2000 RPM.

Inside the box you’ll find the TOUGHAIR 510 CPU cooler, two TOUGHFAN 12 4-pin fans, instructions, Y fan splitter, fan mounts and a baggy of all the parts needed for the cooler to work on Intel and AMD sockets. These are the platforms that are supported by the TOUGHAIR 510:

Intel LGA 1200/1156/1155/1151/1150
AMD AM4/AM3+/AM3/AM2+/AM2/FM2/FM1

A Look At The TOUGHAIR 510

Thermaltake went with an asymmetric design structure to ensure good airflow through the towers cooling fins. This design also reduces the air turbulence for less noise and improved heat dissipation.

The base of the cooler was machined flat and you can clearly see that the four 6mm heat pipes make direct contact with the processor. The u-shape design on the heat pipes is a tried and true design that has been used for many years.

Appearance is subjective, but the top of the TOUGHAIR 510 looks good and should work in the vast majority of gaming PC cases. The dimensions on this cooler are 123.6 x 98.8 x 159.5 mm ( L x W x H) for those that want to ensure this HSF will fit before they order it.

TOUGHAIR 510 Installation

To check out the performance of the TOUGHAIR 510 we will be trying it out on the LGA1200 platform with the new Intel 11th Generation ‘Rocket Lake-S’ desktop processors. Installation is pretty straight forward and you can actually download the Thermaltake installation guide for this HSF assembly here. You basically put some standoffs through a backplate and then flip the board over and put on standoffs, a top plate and then secure it together. A simple process that takes a couple of minutes.

After that you apply the included thermal paste or one of your choice. Then you sit the heatsink on top and secure it with two screws that are already in the main bracket.

Next you need to put on the fan brackets, snap the fans on and use the 4 Pin PWM fan splitter cable to connect them to your CPU fan header on your motherboard. None of the memory slots were blocked on our ASUS ROG MAXIMUS XIII HERO motherboard. We also like the look of the cooler as the black and gray colors will go with most gamers build and there is no RGB. Not everyone likes RGB, so this will be a plus to some.

TOUGHAIR 510 Benchmarks

To check temperatures on the TOUGHAIR 510 we used the just released Intel Core i5-11600K ‘Rocket Lake’ processor that has 6-cores and 12-threads. This processor has a 125W TDP and it has a wide range of performance boosting mechanisms. We tested using the high performance power plan in Windows 10 with ASUS multi-core enhancement (MCE) enabled in the BIOS. Enabling ASUS MCE ignores all Intel power limits and is a feature enabled by many enthusiasts and gamers.

The Thermaltake TOUGHAIR 510 struggled a bit to handle the Intel Core i5-11600K processor as we did see thermal throttling.

A closer look at the statistics of the AIDA64 System Stability Test showed that our processor temperature topped out at 82C. At idle we were getting between 29-31C. CPU Core #4 on our Intel Core i9-11600K was certainly the hottest core as it reached 100C. AIDA64 showed the CPU package power reaching 190 Watts, which is beyond what this 180W cooler is rated to handle. That is likely why the CPU cooler was slightly throttling on this workload. This processor has a 125W TDP, but clearly enabling ASUS MCE pushes that well past that official rating.

Core i5-11600K Temperatures w/ ASUS MCE Disabled

After seeing the throttling we went back into the BIOS and disabled ASUS MCE. We ran the AIDA64 System Stability test again and topped out at 69C during our 20 minute run. It was clear that the hottest CPU temperatures came at the beginning of the test while the processor was still running at the highest clock speeds. We started the test again after about five minutes of recovery time and it shot up from 33C to 74C. So, we are seeing about 69-74C for overall peak temperatures.

This time around the CPU power was at 162 Watts and the CPU package power was 171 Watts. No throttling was observed and the highest core temperature on any given core was 89C. The noise level of the cooler was acceptable as we were getting around 32 dBA at idle and 48 dBA at full fan speed.

When we removed the HSF at the end of testing it looked like the Thermaltake TOUGHAIR 510 was making pretty good contact with the CPU.

Final Thoughts and Conclusion

The Thermaltake TOUGHAIR 510 did a good job at keeping the stock Intel Core i5-11600K processor cool. Enabling ASUS Multicore Enhancement on our Intel Z590 platform with the Thermaltake TOUGHAIR 510 Air Cooler left us with a throttling CPU. So, this cooler gets the thumbs up for stock usage and the thumbs down for overclocking or running turbo speeds outside the Intel guidance.

You can purchase the TOUGHAIR 510 for $59.99 shipped over at Amazon. It comes backed by a 2-year warranty. It has no RGB lighting, requires no to special software to operate, and you don’t have to worry about liquid coolant issues. That will be appealing to some, but those with overclocking ambitions will want to stick to liquid cooling solutions.

Intel’s Innovation Day is set to kick off in just a few more days and by now, it’s likely that several members of the tech media would have received a press kit of sorts from Intel, enabling them to test and prepare their review of the chipmaker’s 12th generation CPUs ahead of the lifting of the NDA. For the one tech site, it made a surprising discovery about trying to pair LGA1200 coolers with Alder Lake CPUs.

The tech site in question is Wccftech and according to the outlet, attaching a non-LGA1700 cooler on to an Alder Lake processor could lead to some uneven distribution of thermal paste across the CPU lid. Apparently, this is primarily due to the Z-height of new 12th generation CPUs versus the older versions. In contrast, the new processors sit slightly taller than its predecessors by 1mm, yet that difference in height is seemingly enough to cause the uneven distribution.

In the case of Wccftech, the site reportedly received a picture from one of it source, showing the spread of thermal compound for three AIO coolers, used on Intel 12th generation CPUs. The one on the left, labelled MSI K360 and S360, shows the material spread evenly, due in no small part to them actually supporting the LGA1700 platform via the provided brackets, out of the box.

The other two AIO coolers – a Corsair H115 and Cooler Master ML Series – were obviously unable to do the same, for the simple fact that both coolers do not have the necessary LGA1700 cooling brackets and sadly, do not ship out with the necessary mounting kits. As a result, the thermal compound simply didn’t cover the surface of their respective Alder CPUs evenly, and that alone could result in issues with thermal efficiency and performance throttling.

Ultimately, it is to the discretion of these PC Component makers to provide the LGA1700 upgrade kit for currently existing LGA1200 coolers, to consumers looking to trade up from their current processor and system, as well as to ensure that the new brackets are part and parcel of their next shipment of CPU coolers.

If you’re building a computer, you need thermal paste to ensure that your computer’s central processing unit (CPU) doesn’t overheat. The paste is a conductive material that’s applied to your CPU to ensure close-as-possible contact between the hot CPU and the cooler. Existing computers also may need new thermal paste applied as it tends to dry out over years of use. Whether you’re installing thermal paste on a new build or an older machine that will first require cleaning off the previous paste, we’ll show you how to apply thermal paste properly.

Want the full rundown for installing your CPU? Check out our guide on how to install an Intel processor.

What is thermal paste?

Thermal paste is a thermally conductive compound that helps to transfer heat; it eliminates air gaps that would generally be present between two surfaces to facilitate a better transfer. In computer building, we place a bit of thermal paste between the CPU and the CPU cooler to ensure that heat is removed from the processor as effectively as possible. Without the addition of thermal paste, your CPU would overheat and could be damaged. If you haven’t already purchased thermal paste for your machine, be sure to check out our guide on the best thermal pastes.

How to clean off thermal paste

If you already have a working machine that needs thermal paste to be reapplied, you’ll first need to clean off the old thermal paste. Before beginning, ensure that the CPU cooler has been removed, and you can visually see the thermal paste; it is generally white or gray. If you are installing thermal paste on a new machine and don’t need to remove old paste first, skip to the next section — otherwise, continue below for more instructions.

What you will need:

• A microfiber cloth (not paper towls, as they can scratch the surface)
  • Rubbing alcohol (at least 90%)
  • Cotton swabs
  • A plastic spudger (optional)

Step 1: Begin by wiping the top of your CPU with the microfiber cloth to remove as much thermal paste as you can without issue.

Step 2: Dip the end of a cotton swab into the rubbing alcohol, then use it to wipe the top of your CPU gently; this will help to break up any hardened thermal paste. Optionally, use a plastic spudger to help remove any stubborn paste.

Step 3: Again, use a clean portion of the microfiber cloth or paper towel to remove any remaining thermal paste; the alcohol will evaporate almost immediately on its own.

Step 4: Repeat the above process to remove any old thermal paste that may be stuck to the underside of your CPU cooler.

How to apply thermal paste

Once you have both a clean CPU and CPU cooler (or you just took them brand-new out of the box), we can begin applying thermal paste. The key to applying thermal paste is not to overdo it; you only need to use a tiny pea-sized bit of paste — anything more would be excessive. Double-check to ensure you have all the required equipment below, then begin the process.

What you’ll need:

• A clean CPU installed in your motherboard socket
  • A clean CPU cooler ready to install
  • CPU thermal paste
  • A microfiber cloth (or paper towel)

Step 1: With your CPU already installed into your motherboard, place a small pea-sized drop of thermal paste on the CPU’s center.

Step 2: Next, install the CPU cooler while applying top-down pressure to the unit. Note that there is no need to first spread the paste before installing the cooler; the cooler’s pressure will evenly distribute the thermal paste.

Step 3: Once the cooler is installed, check the CPU’s edges to see if any excess thermal paste has spilled over, and, if needed, wipe it away with a microfiber cloth or paper towel.

Does thermal paste need to be reapplied regularly?

After finishing this process, one question that you might have is how often, if ever, does the CPU thermal paste need to be replaced? One of the largest chip manufacturers in the world, Intel, recommends reapplying the solution “every few years” or if you “remove your cooler for any reason.” Typically, your thermal paste will last you quite a while, but keep an eye on your temperatures, as if they spike, it could be a sign your thermal paste is drying up.