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- Date:
- Monday , March 22, 2004
- Author:
- Steve Lynch
- Editor:
- Kyle Bennett
- Google +1
Swiftech MCX64-V and MCX6400-V Heatsinks
Swiftech is a name synonymous with quality cooling components whether it be high end watercooling kits or state of the art air cooling products. See the latest in Athlon64 cooling from Swiftech put to the test.
Installation:
Installation is extremely straightforward. You will need the following items (pictured above): Optional retention frame and backing plate, heatsink, retention screws and fan.
Swiftech does not include an installation manual per se but they do include an exploded view guide with each heatsink that outlines the correct order to install each part. This should be more than enough for the average user to install the heatsink.
The first thing you will need to do is install the backing plate to the backside of your mainboard. Expose the adhesive on the backing plate by pealing back the protective paper, line it up with the two mounting holes and install. Next, you’ll want to turn your mainboard back around and install the black retention frame over the studs protruding through the mainboard. Unless you have three hands, the next part is easiest done with the case ( or mainboard ) lying flat. Install the CPU and apply the thermal compound then line up the holes on the heatsink mounting bracket with the holes in the retention frame. Thread one retention screw down until the spring touches the bracket and the do the same with the other screw. Alternately tighten the screws in small increments until the heat sink is completely tightened.
Both the MCX64-V and the MCX6400-V are designed to fit within AMD’s strict “no components” zone for approved heatsinks and should fit on most Athlon64 and Opteron motherboards. The MCX64-V fit our test mainboard, the MSI K8T Neo, without any clearance issues:
The MCX6400-V, while it does fit within specs, is a much tighter fit for some components and capacitors, something to keep in mind when deciding on this heatsink. Overall, there were no real "issues" when installing either heatsink.
System Configuration & Testing Procedure:
MSI K8T-NEO (VIA K8T800), Athlon64 3000+ clocked at 2GHz (10 * 200FSB) and 2.15GHz (10 x 215FSB), 1024MB Corsair XMS PC4000Pro, Tyan Radeon 9700 Pro, 80GB Seagate SATA/150 hard drive, Vantec 550w PSU.
Our Testing Methodology:
Using the on-die sensor of the Athlon64 3000+, we are able to see temperature changes almost immediately as the load changed on the CPU. We used Prime95 and a UT2K3 16 Player Bot match to load the CPU. The CPU is operating at "100%" according to WinXP task manager, which is exactly what we need for temperature testing. Motherboard Monitor 5 was used to monitor temperatures during testing.
Temperature readings are taken from the on-die temperature sensor on the Athlon64 3000+. Prime95 was run simultaneously with a UT2K3 CTF map running in the background with 16 bots going at it to get our temperatures as high as possible for a sustained period of time for testing. With the noted two applications running, we allowed the CPU to stay at 100% load for 30 minutes and then observed the temperatures and kept an eye on them from there. What we're looking for is where they peaked and leveled off. This is the temperature we recorded.
The ambient temperature in the test area was 76F. We kept the temperature level for the duration of the testing in order to make our test results as accurate as possible. The different ambient temperatures and other test variances will result in having test temperatures unique to this test, making comparison to other previous [H] testing impossible.
Tests will be conducted with the Delta fan that ships with the MCX64-V. The stock 80mm x 25.4mm fan flows 31.5cfm at 2700rpm. We are also using a larger Sanyo Denki 80mm x 32mm fan that flows 54cfm at 4600rpm.
We are using the stock heatsink that comes with the Athlon64 3000+ for temperature comparisons. The Ajigo MF043-044A has a thick copper base coupled with thin aluminum fins. Overall weight of the stock cooler is 450g (fan included). The Ajigo MF043-044A uses a smaller 70mm x 15mm fan that flows 21cfm at 3000rpm.
All three coolers, side by side:
Installed:
Test Results:
All test results are recorded in Fahrenheit. I'm including this link to an awesome Fahrenheit to Celsius Converting Tool for all of our non-USA readers. The newest version of the Google Toolbar will also do temperature conversion by simple typing it into the Google navigation box. By typing "48C in F" without quotes, Google will convert the temperatures for you.
The first round of testing was done at stock clock speeds. We tested both with the stock 80mm x 25.4 Delta and then again with the Sanyo Denki 80mm x 32mm fan. We used the stock (Ajigo) heatsink as a baseline for our comparisons.
We saw an 8°F temperature drop by using the larger Sanyo Denki fan, but the better performance also brings almost twice the noise level compared to the stock Delta 80mm fan. Oddly enough, the OEM (Ajigo) fan is almost as loud as the Sanyo Denki fan even though it moves roughly half the amount of air.
Load temperatures were extremely impressive. The OEM (Ajigo) fan, while it does stay within the AMD specified heat range, is a huge 35°F hotter than either of the two Swiftech coolers.
Next came the true test of performance, overclocking. Our maximum stable overclock with this processor was 2150MHz ( 10 x 215MHz FSB ). While this may not be the biggest overclock ever recorded for an Athlon64 3000+, it sure jumped the temperature up a notch and that is just what we needed.
Again we see a uniform rise in temperature between the two Swiftech coolers, but the OEM heatsink is really struggling under the added heat.