OCZ Tempest Cooler Review - PAGE 2

The OCZ Tempest cooler comes in a simple enough package of nothing more than folded plastic. It absolutely shines when brought out into the light of day. As for what range of CPUs it can cool, the list is brief, but stretches ever wide. This cooler can be strapped to any AMD S939, S940, and AM2 CPU. It can also be used with any Intel LGA775 or S478 chip -- and even though it's not specified on the package, the desktop Core 2 platform ought to be compatible with the Tempest as well. Now that we know what we can and can't do with this cooler, let's take a look at what hardware OCZ packaged up for us.

Common Components:
     Tempest heat sink
     Screws (x8)
     Paper Washers (x4)
     Mounting Clip (x2)
     Tabbed Mounting Clip (x2)
     Short Mounting Screws (x2)
     Springs (x2)
     Fan Ring
     Fan
     Thermal Compound

 

That's just a taste of how well written the OCZ Tempest manual is. Usually, most manuals are thrown together at the last minute with little thought of the end user in mind. But OCZ has detailed the instructions to the point where the cooler almost installs itself. The one thing that had me shrugging just a little bit was the little squeeze pouch of thermal paste they tossed in. I always shake my head when heat sink manufacturers do this. This white paste is pretty much zinc oxide and silicone. Yes, it will act as a thermal paste, but it won't work with a fraction of the effectiveness as say, Arctic Silver. It is worth it for any enthusiasts to toss this paste in the trash (or give it away to some unsuspecting stranger) and buy a tube of high quality thermal paste. Aside from that little slip with the thermal goo, the package looks to be more than complete. A fan speed controller would have been nice, but I'm not going to start picking bones.

One thing that really caught me was the sheer weight of this cooler. In comparison to other coolers of similar dimensions, it tips the scales in its favor. In fact, the OCZ Tempest cooler weighs in at some 580 grams total. Suffice it to say, pretty much all of that is metal. The only plastic part on this cooler is the fan -- somewhat of a given.

Now when it comes to the construction and engineering of the OCZ Tempest cooler, attention was paid to almost every detail. The most obvious aspect of the tempest is its 36 stamped aluminum fins. The OCZ label is stands proudly on the side of each, bringing the total surface area of all to 2,300 square centimeters -- roughly. OCZ didn't include this measurement, so I had to calculate this myself. As is expected from a quality product, every fin is highly polish to maximize air flow and reduce the settlement of dust.

Four 1/4" copper heat pipes run from the pure copper base plate and through all of those afore mentioned fins. Heat pipes are of course, the best method to date for pulling away high temperatures. My only reservation with regards to the heat pipe design on the Tempest is the horizontal positioning of the heat pipes. As we all learned in elementary school science class, heat rises. Yes, there is the short vertical ascension of the heat pipes, but standing them up right might have done a little more to help increase cooling efficiency. I guess we'll just wait to see what happens during the heat tests.

One very unique aspect of the Tempest is how the copper base has been plated -- it's titanium. Not only does this give the Tempest that bright shining silver brilliance, but it helps in a couple of other methods. For one, it helps with some heat transference, and that's probably the most important part of any cooler. The other thing it does is just as important. Titanium is of course, a very hard metal. That titanium finish will keep the base of the Tempest from getting all scratched up. But most important of all, it prevents excessive oxidization of the heat sink base. With most bare copper heat sinks, the finish on the base will start to oxidize. Even though the surface may be free of dirt, scratches, and debris, the cupric oxide that forms can impact cooling efficiency. It may not raise temperature to boiling, but it can have a noticeable affect. One or two degrees Celsius may not sound like a lot, but that can mean the difference between a stable system and a crashing computer.

I was also very impressed with the mirror finish that had been applied to the base of the Tempest. It is nearly perfectly uniform and will allow for the best possible thermal transference between the processors integrated heat spreader and the base of the cooler. And I don't mind saying this: shiny things are pretty. 

Then there is the fan.

Fan Specs:
     2500RPM +/- 10%
     44.0 CFM
     2 Ball Bearing
     3 Pin Connector
     Blue LEDs

As for mounting the included fan to the Tempest, I found it to be somewhat frustrating. For this cooler, the fan is screwed down to a black retention ring. Unfortunately, the included screws are just a little short. I had to press down hard -- really hard -- just to get the screws started. If OCZ had included screws just a couple of millimeters longer, things would have been so much easier.

There was also some question as to how the fan clips to the heat sink. The spring clips latch into small grooves on the sides of the Tempest. If attached properly, the fan is held securely in place. Though it works just fine, I am far too used to threaded fasteners and quite skeptical of any other method. It wouldn't have taken much to adapt the Tempest for screws. The only real advantage to this spring clip method is ease of removal. It is incredibly simply to clip on of unclasp the fan. In the end, it works of course, but it's all up to the end user.

As for this cooler, anything less than a lighted LED fan would have been criminal. The four bright blue high intensity LEDs really shine in the dark of night. Sure, it doesn't affect cooling any more or any less, but it does look cool. In fact, I was able to snap a quick 'Night Scene' mode picture with my camera, and I really like what I see.

All in all, the OCZ Tempest appears to be one of the better made coolers on the market today. They've really gone out of their way to make this heat sink shine. But the ultimate question remains . . . how well does it cool? I've got my test system together, and I've pulled a few other coolers off the shelf. Let me just grab some thermal paste and we'll get onto the testing procedure.