Installing the cooler on the s775 platform
Installation of the cooler isn't particularly hard. Like all bolt-through installation methods you’ll have to take the motherboard out of your case to install it. Some may argue that this method of installation is overly time consuming, however in my opinion on a bolt-through installation of (heavy high-end) coolers can ensure a proper mount. The included back plate is necessary to protect the motherboard from bending or breaking from physical strain.
Something I do not really like about this the G-Power II mounting system is that the screws need to be tightened at the back of the motherboard. With the mounting hardware that comes with the Big Typhoon this is not necessary as the thumbscrews that come with it need to be tightened on the topside of the motherboard. A major advantage of this system that it is easy to do a remount or mount another cooler that is compatible with this system without the need to unscrew the motherboard from the case.
Here you can see the threads of the screws that go through the motherboard and back plate.
Temperature tests
Note that 5C was added to all values (apart from ambient) for a more realistic image
It seems that the G-Power is performing amazingly compared to the Big Typhoon. Excellent performance indeed !!! One thing to note is that at 12V the fan of the G-Power pushes more air then the Big Typhoon. At 5V it pushes a lot less. The original Big Typhoon doesn't come with the necessary hardware to run it at 5V. After uninstalling it from the system I did a brief test using the molex<->fan adapter provided with the G-Power. At 5V the fan of the Big Typhoon pushes nearly no air at all, and I think that running this fan at a low voltage isn't a good idea on my hot little E6600. I didn't include a test at 5V as Thermaltake doesn't include this as a feature.
Note: I also tried the thermal paste that was included with the cooler and it was just 1-2C behind AS5 across the board. Because of this small difference I didn't include these numbers in the graph.
Acoustic performance
The G-power is virtually silent with the fan at 5V. You will only be able to hear this cooler when you put your ear very close to it. [b]The HDD and DVD writer in my test setup are much louder even while doing nothing![b] The Big Typhoon is also very quiet (at 12V), however it is much easier to hear than the G-Power. I must say that the acoustic profiles of both coolers are very pleasant at 5V for the G-Power and 12V for the Big Typhoon.
At 12V the G-Power pushes a lot more air and thus it's a little noisier. The acoustic profile of the cooler is still good as the fan-pitch is low to medium at most. Installed in a case this cooler probably can’t be heard over most other system components like VGA coolers and HDDs.
Summary of acoustics:
Big Typhoon at 12V: Bearly audiable / Acoustic profile is excellent
G-Power II Pro at 5V: Practically silent / Acoustic profile is excellent
G-Power II Pro at 12v: Clearly audible, but acceptable / Acoustic profile is good
Summary and conclusion
With the G-power II Pro Gigabyte has launched an excellent product. The cooler provides good cooling performance and pretty looks at a very nice price point. Unless you are a bencher it makes no sense to buy a really expensive cooler like the TRUE that comes without a fan. From my testing I can conclude that G-Power II Pro may come close to the TRUE in terms of performance which is an incredible achievement by Gigabyte.
Pros
+ Excellent cooling performance with the choice of near silent operation
+ Available at a very competitive price point (availability will get better soon according to Gigabyte)
+ It looks pretty and has bright blue LEDs (for case modders)
+ Included thermal paste is of good quality
Cons
- Remounting the cooler requires the motherboard to be uninstalled from the case
- The (decent) fan can’t be changed
The verdict: 9/10
I'd like to thank www.dollarshops.eu and www.giga-byte.com for providing me with this review sample. Thanks a lot
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