tuniq tower 120 v. thermalright 120 ultra?

[veedubfreak]

The Ultima-90 is basically a smaller version of the TRUE-120. Identical in every way except that it is smaller. Same number of heatpipes but shorter. If you can afford it and want the BEST possible overclock on air, get a TRUE and a scythe sflex or yate loon fan for it. Also for 300 bucks you could have picked up a q6600 from clubit.

 

[thirdshiftdj]

it looks exactly like the ultimate 120 extreme... what's the diff besides the price?

I'm guessing its the size and the size fan that it holds. Someone beat me to it

 

[anime_dude07]

but do you think with all the other fans I will have mounted to the case that I'll be fine just getting the true120 w/o a fan?

2 x 120mm
3 x 80mm
1 x cm stacker cross flow
1 x 70mm PCI slot fan

and if I do get the scythe s-flex fan, do I need an adaptor or clip to attatch it to the true120?

 

[veedubfreak]

No, you definately need a fan on the heatsink itself. The TRUE comes with clips for a 120mm fan, it just doesnt come with the fan itself. Also, whenever possible, i would avoid anything smaller than a 120mm fan as the amount of air moved at the same decible level is really affected.

 

[TheMaestro]

No, you don't need an adapter clip for S-Flex on a TRUE120. I have that same config. I will say this, my PSU is top-mounted, and the side of my TRUE120 is very close to touching it. The wire clips protrude very slightly, so I don't think I can easily replace the fan without bending the clips. Might be a problem if you have a small/mid-size case like I do.

BTW, I have a QX6850. I was surprised that my TRUE120 only got the idle core temps down to 47C (about 45C after a week curing the TIM). (Best single core temp is about 38C and the highest is about 49C). Many people say you need to lap the TRUE120, so I might try that to see if I can get the temps down.

Any opinions on lapping the TRUE120: necessary or just a waste of time?

 

[thirdshiftdj]

get another fan its only 15 bucks at the most.

 

[Invisible]

depends...high end s-flexs can go for $30+

 

[anime_dude07]

I read somewhere else that lapping is necassary because of the way the true120 and the intel cpu's don't fit snugly together, one is convex and the other is flat or convex as well, so they don't match up... but never looked farther into it, nor have I had any experience with lapping...

but the case is a full-size tower, so there shouldn't be a problem w/ case size...
there isn't much here yet, but check out my build log here.
that'll give you ALL the details of my build....
and thanks to everyone once again for the great advice...

 

[phucng_10]

I'd say the Ultra-120 would be better. Maybe you'll have to spend about another $10-$15 dollars on a fan, but it should help lower the temperature.

 

[TheMaestro]

I've tried both the TRUE 120 (w/ S-Flex) and the TRU 90i. If you're getting a mid-tower, consider the TRU 90i. The TRUE 120 will probably fit (though you should double check), but it will be tight. I have a mid-tower, and the fan wires on the TRUE 120 were practically touching my (top-mounted) PSU. The TRU 90i is a comfortable fit. In a full-tower, either the TRUE 120 or the TRU 90i would work well. All things equal, you'll get a few degrees better cooling with the TRUE 120 (most likely this is a result of the 120mm vs. 92mm fan), because the design is the same. I'm not sure the extra fins on the TRUE 120 make that much of a difference.

You're going to get a lot of opinions on the (TRUE 120 vs. TT 120, etc.), but in the end, they're all very good high end coolers.

I lapped both the cooler and the CPU. TR bases are notoriously uneven. If I put mine on the table, it wobbles ever so slightly. That can impact the cooling. Ideally, the cooler and the CPU should fit together flush, in which case you need almost no thermal interface material to get a great connection. BTW, CrazyPC.com sells lapped TRUE 120s, and their quality is pretty good. It's $16 more, but if you want to save time, it may be worth it to you.

Finally, if you're going to lap the CPU, you'll want to test it first. In this case, don't install the MoBo, but test everything outside. If it works, then you can lap the CPU and install the cooler. Some coolers, like the TRUE 120, are a mofo'ker to install without removing the MoBo.