(Mini review) Scythe ninja mini

[disruptfam]

Today i have the pleasure of doing a mini review of the Scythe ninja mini cpu cooler.

Special thanks to wade @ www.itsdirect.com.au For the Scythe ninja mini



Introduction:

So who is Scythe? What do they do? Scythe Co., Ltd. (Registered & incorporated in Tokyo Japan) originally started in Akihabara Electric Town located in Tokyo Japan, where visitors can find the latest electric products from computer parts and accessories to the world’s most advanced cellular phones with video camera capabilities, small displays and the ability to play movies!

As for myself i haven't had any experience with a Scythe cpu cooler,But i've heard good thing's about them.Although i have not had any experience with Scythe hsf range, i have several scythe fan's which i can not praise enough.


Specifications:
(As per scythe usa website)

Scythe
"NINJA MINI" 6Heat Pipes CPU Cooler


Ideal for HTPC, Living-Room PC Systems! Ready to accommodate either 80mm or 92mm fan for various user needs!




Model Name:
Model Name:
Manufacturer: Ninja Mini CPU Cooler
SCMNJ-1000
Scythe Co., Ltd. Japan

Heatsink x6 Heat Pipes
Dimensions: 110 x 110 x 115 mm
Weight:580g
Material: Aluminum
Copper





Fan
Dimensions:
Noise Level:
Air Flow:
Speed:
Bearing Type:
80 x 80 x 25 mm
24.4 dBA
32.2 CFM
2,300 rpm (±10&#37
Sleeve Bearing



x4 Screws
x1 LGA 775 Clip
x1 Socket 478 Clip
x1 AMD (Socket AM2, 940, 939 and 754) Clip
x2 92 mm fan attachment Clips
x2 80 mm fan attachment Clips
x1 80 mm cooling fan
x1 Thermal Paste
User's Manual

Compatibility:
Intel® LGA775 (SocketT) Processor
Quad-Core Intel® Xeon® Processor 3200 Series
Dual-Core Intel® Xeon® Processor 3000 Sequence

Intel® Core™2 Extreme processor
Intel® Core™2 Quad processor
Intel® Core™2 Duo processor
Intel® Core™ Duo Processor

Intel® Pentium® Processor Extreme Edition
Intel® Pentium® D Processor
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor Extreme Edition supporting Hyper-Threading Technology
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor supporting Hyper-threading Technology

Intel® Celeron® D Processor

Intel® Socket478 Processor
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor Extreme Edition supporting Hyper-Threading Technology
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor supporting Hyper-threading Technology
Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor

Intel® Celeron® D Processor
Intel® Celeron® Processor

AMD SocketAM2 Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 FX Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor
AMD Socket940 Processor
Dual-Core AMD Opteron™ Processor
AMD Opteron™ Processor
AMD Socket939 Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 FX Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core Processor
AMD Socket754 Processor
AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor
AMD Sempron™ Processor

Ready for 80mm or 92mm Fan Mounting
The default silent fan (80 x 80 x 25 mm) can be easily exchanged to another 92mm sized fan with 25mm of thickness for high performance user (92mm Fan Clips are included).
Improved Mounting Systems
Never stop the improvement of mounting systems, the Ninja Mini CPU Cooler has the improved mounting mechanism with easier than ever mounting for all sockets!

Universal Socket Compatibility with AM2
Ninja Mini CPU Cooler is compatible for socket 478/754/939/940/AM2 & LGA775. All in one solution for your PC system.


Closer look:



Come's in some nice looking packaging Also supplied scythe 80mm fan



As you can see it's a low profile hsf, great for smaller cases such as a htpc case where a full size heat sink fan cannot fit....


The base of the cooler,Come's with warning not to remove until installation.When taken off,you find a nickel plates base..




Top of cooler..


The cooler has a total of six heatpipes and a stack of fin's,Constructed of aluminium and copper.

Overall i would have to say it's a very nice looking hsf Scythe have excellent build quality,packaging is great and the best thing of all, is that it come with everything you need straight out of the box!!

It's nice to see a hsf with everything included everything you need Very convenient

The package include's:


x4 Screws
x1 LGA 775 Clip
x1 Socket 478 Clip
x1 AMD (Socket AM2, 940, 939 and 754) Clip
x2 92 mm fan attachment Clips
x2 80 mm fan attachment Clips
x1 80 mm cooling fan
x1 Thermal Paste
User's Manual


Components Used:

Case Antec 900
Amd 3700+ sandiego @ 2.2ghz 1.38v
Asus sli Premium motherboard
1 GB kingston ram
6600GT
Western Digital 320gb hard drive
Installation:

Installing is fairly Simple.Just a process of choosing which mouting bracket you will need.Screwing it in to the cooler using the 4 provided screw's and connecting to your motherboard.

For this test i used my old 939 rig.Screwed on the 939 clip to the hsf, and placed onto cpu abit of light pressure and hey presto it's installed.One thing i did notice during installation is that the fan on the heat sink was very close to my ram modules,About 2mm from touching them.This may be a problem with some user's depending on motherboard layout.As for the fan install, use the supplied 80mm fan bracket hook onto fan and slide over hsf,they are Spacing's on both side's where bracket is placed.




Testing:

For testing i used the (once king of air coolers) the tuniq tower for comparason,and of course the Scythe ninja mini.I was curious how it would perform against a full size hsf.Mx-2 was used on both hsf's and ambient was 26c during all testing.

Idle temps were taken after 30mins of innactivity.
Load temps were taken after 30mins under stress test (orthos small fft's)


Performance:

Tuniq Tower fan @ medium
Idle: Cpu: 34c Cpu diode: 34c




Tuniq Tower fan @ medium
Load: Cpu: 40c Cpu diode: 50c



Scythe Ninja Mini
Idle: Cpu: 40c Cpu diode: 39c



Scythe Ninja Mini:
Load: Cpu: 44c Cpu diode: 51c




Final Conclusions:

I was suprised how well the Scythe mini ninja performed for such a small hsf.Although it's not in the same league as the Larger Tuniq Tower,it's size/performance ratio is very very good.The supplied 80mm fan is very quiet but still's push a fair bit of air.I was very pleased with the overall package and the fact that everything you need is included in the package.

The Scythe ninja mini is perfect where a large hsf is not a viable option in smaller case's such as a htpc.If your after a quiet low profile hsf with good size/performance ratio you can't go past the Scythe ninja mini.

Overall I give the Scythe Ninja mini

Pros:

Everything you need included in Package
Excellent Build Quality
Excellent size/performance ratio
Great for Smaller cases

Cons:

Some user's may have size issue's
Some user's may have compatability issue's

[cdu cnp]

Purchased this HS for a upgrade build.
The face of the HS was smooth but not flat .
Using a dial indicator I measured a .028" valley in the middle of the HS .
There were 2 large ridges on the outer edges of the HS causing the low spot to run the whole length of the face.
So I was actually missing 1/3 of my contact surface.
After quite a bit of lapping and sanding it finally was flat and polished.

Re installed with AS5, ran computer for several days to allow AS5 to cure.
Ninja still would not cool my x2 5000 BE effectively.
@3.1 Ghz with 1.4v It would crash Prime 95 , orthos, and Everest torture test. Reaching 56-60C. That is with 1-80mm 45cfm fan and a 60 cfm 92mm fan is a push/pull setup.

Removed,purchased a Zalman 9500 AM2 .Didn't even allow AS5 to cure and immediately saw 8-10 degrees cooler temps.
Everest torture test runs @ 50 C.With NO crashes errors and what not.

Not pleased with the ninja at all.

[g1raffe]

Nice review.

[MaSell]

Haha it looks so funny compared to "big" Ninja

[blackdem0n]

nice review, tnx