SUMMARY: Most of us who have been using the AMD line of processors have long ago figured out that cooling is essential. But with the new interest in the Intel line mixed with the overclockability of the new Northwood processors, this idea is becoming a larger part of the Pentium Power System. Come join Asher "Acid" Moses as he takes a look at the Alpha PAL8942 HSF. It's time to see if the Alpha coolers can do for Intel what they have long done for AMD.
Alpha usually ship their heatsinks off to resellers without a fan, so it is the reseller's job to supply a number of fans for the customer to choose from depending on what they intend to do with the heatsink. Obviously, people who want maximum cooling performance would benefit much more by having a larger, more powerful fan than a smaller, quieter fan.
Our PAL8942 unit came from the kind folks at Coolerguys. Due to the fact that TweakTown is mainly directed at the hardware enthusiast or overclocking crowd, it is no surprise that our unit came with the largest, most powerful fan available. This was none other than the Delta 80mm x 80mm x 38mm Ultra High Speed Fan that pushes a massive 68CFM and runs at 4900RPM.
Performance does come at a cost though, and this cost is an increased noise level. The fan has a sound output of 48.5dba which is comparable to a 747 taking off or, more practically, a vacuum cleaner. Well, I might be exaggerating a little there, but the truth is that this unit is very loud; much louder than the stock Intel unit we used as a comparison. However, those looking for maximum performance have no choice but to put up with the noise as you won't get any better performance by installing a smaller, quieter fan.
