Evga’s Air-Cooled Competitor
As seen in our previous Small Liquid versus Big Air comparisons, we wanted to include a high-performance air cooler to show what, if any, differences there are between the two technologies. Small liquid lost before, though this time we’re also considering noise, fit, and alternative radiator dimensions.
We picked Evga’s SuperClock CPU Cooler for its single 120 mm fan—which makes it a direct competitor to Antec’s Kühler H₂O 620—as well as its moderate price and good performance reputation.
Evga supports both AMD and Intel processor interfaces using the same installation plate. The firm has not added LGA 2011 mounting hardware yet.
Holes in the SuperClock CPU Cooler’s socket support plate fit most AMD and Intel processors. Thumb nuts make the included bolts stand up, while fiber washers insulate the motherboard from contact with the nuts. Evga even specifies adhesive film for the fiber washers to stick the plate in place, though we left the wax paper on this adhesive to ease removal.
The factory-installed mounting bracket supports everything from AMD’s old Socket 939 all the way up to Intel’s LGA 2011, though that'll require screws that Evga has not yet added.
The SuperClock CPU Cooler’s heat pipe-direct design reduces latent heat and weight. Several of our previous air-cooling comparisons have dispelled wild claims about this design’s performance advantages, though anything that can cut out weight without hurting performance is a benefit to us.
Spring-loaded nuts hold the SuperClock CPU Cooler tightly against the CPU.
