i7 Cooling

[mraquinn]

Everyone raves about the Megahalems but I keep reading that the Cogage TRUE does an equally, if not better, job for a lot less.

But I'm also reading that you need to upgrade the fan and use a Thermalright Bolt-Thru kit - this really the case? And do Scan sell them?

[Phage]

The top 3 air coolers are probably the Megahalems, The TRUE 120 and the Noctua U12. I haven't heard that you need to modify the fan .....
The bolt through kit is the mounting bracket for your socket. 939, 1156, 1366 etc. You will need to ensure that you have the correct mounting bracket for your chosen processor.

[Pob255]

Actually a bolt through kit, is a back plate with sprung bolts, you use it to replace the push pins if your cooler uses them.

The Cogage TRUE looks sneakly like the thermalright MUX-120 without a bolt through kit
http://www.cogage.com/a_page/cpu_coo...ue_spirit.html
http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_pa...r_mux-120.html
And they way Cogage is trying to captalise on the ThermalRightUltraExtreme name, which AFAIK was thought up by users not thermalright.

You can see the difference between a bolt through kit and the push pins
Here is the TR 1156 bolt through kit
http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_pa...r_mux-120.html
Cross peice, 4 sprung bolts and a back plate
vs just a cross peice and push pins that cogage use
http://www.cogage.com/a_page/cpu_coo...ue_spirit.html

[GSte]

I use a TRUE with 1366 bracket and the temps are great.

[mraquinn]

So, and apologies for being dopey, does the bolt through kit for the Cogage TRUE just make it contact better and fit more easily - I don't *need* it?

[marshalex]

titan fenrir is not to be sniffed at either and available for a pretty reasonable price compared to the others mentioned!

[ABCx86]

I've just built my i7 920 system, and I used the Titan Fenrir with the 120mm fan.
I set my Asus P6T SE to Q-Fan Standard, and what can I say this thing is silent, another plus is the CPU temps are usually around 40c, and never go above 55c. I think the stock cooler is a lot worse than that.
I'm installing a rear case fan soon, that should help even more.

Downside is the fan on high speed sounds very loud.(Although you're unlikely to need it on high speed).

It was £26 roughly, at that price I would certainly recommend it.

[mraquinn]

Sticking with either the Akasa Nero or the Cogage. From the reviews I've seen they are unbeatable for cooling and volume at the price.

[Pob255]

So, and apologies for being dopey, does the bolt through kit for the Cogage TRUE just make it contact better and fit more easily - I don't *need* it?

Basically, yes.
Although "fit more easily" is debateable, some people find the intel push pins easy to use, some prefur bolt through.

Bot through also has the advantage of being adjustable and a very secure fit, although push pins are also very secure if correctly fitted and you'd need to apply quite a bit of force to rip a cooler out.

Push pins can be such a tight fit that they can bend the motherboard.