Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus Direct Touch 4 Heatpipe Heatsink AM2 AM3 LGA1366 LGA775 LGA1156 120MM

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For a while there, the OCZ Vendetta 2 was king of the budget heatsinks, but the crown has since been passed to CM's Hyper 212.My short review is this: best CPU heatsink. Note: this takes into account cost, as there are better ways to cool high-performance CPUs like i7s and Phenom IIs, but they all cost 5x more than this. Seriously - for the $25 I paid for this, there is nothing that comes close to it in the price range.This cooled my QX9650 at 4.0GHz admirably. It is currently cooling my i7 860 at 3.8GHz admirably. Given the current CPU market, the Hyper 212 can handle anything you can throw at it, and the only meaningful step up would be to transition to liquid cooling.About the backplate installation... I have a ot of experience with heatsink backplates, so I did not have much difficulty installing in this one, although it did take some time. For those who are less accustomed to system building generally and installing CPU heatsink backplates in particular - the CM backplate has a non-intuitive configuration, which could lead to either a poorly mounted heatsink (if installed incorrectly) or just general frustration during the installation procedure. But considering that the backplate is included in this $25, while other manufacturers sell them separately for around $10 each, you take what you can get with this awesome deal.In sum - supreme performance, unbelievable price... but not necessarily ideal for novice system builders.

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I don't know why a lot of people say this heatsink fan is painless to install, because for me, it was one of the most "challenging" I have ever dealt with.Anyway, this HSF requires you to installed their special retention plate, which can be painful to inexperience system builders, you will have to take out the motherboard from the case, which you only need to do once.In my experience and opinion, the four screws suppied that holds the heatsink to the plate will eventually be worn out if you reinstall a lot of times (for upgrading CPU). The heatsink is so big you need a long and thin screw driver with the correct bit to screw it down vertically and properly without damaging the screws. Also if you don't have a torque screwdriver, you have to stop when you "feel" it can not go any further. If you are insensitive like me, you will damage the screw quicker because you don't know when to stop.Because of the four screws that will eventually be worn out after few reinstallations and render this unusable (well you can probably find replacement screws from hardware store), I would recommend people to get something that uses the original plate and requires no screws instead, for less hassles and easier upgrading CPU process. Of course, if you are going to install this only once and don't have plans on upgrading your CPU in years, then this is a perfect budget HSF to have. This review was modfied by poster x 11-10-09 08:38 PM This review was modfied by poster @ 11-11-09 03:05 AM

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Picked this up for a low price of $30 dollars.The heat sink is a beast but is very solid.I had some issues installing it (mainly since the instructions were very poor). I added a second fan (it only comes with one) and the push/pulling of air and overall cooling is fantastic. My computer is running at a very nice temperature. The only thing I was not fully impressed with was that the heat sink once installed can wiggle and slide around.

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I really love this cooler. It comes ready to rock, it's got a backplate and extra clips for a second fan. The stock fan is reportedly decent but I replaced it with a pair of Ultra Kaze 2k so I can't really comment. The Heatsink is quite narrow perpendicular to the pipes and fits in my Antec 300 which is great. I find it performs very well and chose it over the Xigmatek Direct Touch because this came with everything I needed out of the box.Highly Recommend.

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Very nice heatsink for a very nice price. This thing comes with everything you need so you don't need to buy additional accessories, but it was very hard to install. Also, the thermal grease it comes with isn't that great, so I recommend getting something else.

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Got one of these for a friend to cool his i7 920 system. So far he's running at 3.2GHz and core temps average 54c-58c. Not as good as some of the other air coolers out there but definately does its job. When you consider the price it almost makes it better than the competition.

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Overall this has kept my cpu quite nice and cool. You have to be careful as there are some pits where the heatpipes aren't totally flat so it might require a bit more thermal paste than you're accustomed to applying.Despite some other reviews saying it was hard to install I didn't have any issues despite the less than spectacular instructions. You will have to remove your motherboard to install it.. it's easier that way. I've ratcheted the fan down using Asus Q-Fan and I'm pleased with the acoustics and temperatures on an i7 860.

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I prefer this to a TRUE.Have lapped base since "MINE" needed it.Also am using a delta: PFB1212UHE-F00 which MOST ppl would consider atrociously LOUD!!!Overall this is the BEST BANG for the $$$ & what i saved on NOT buying a Prolimatech Megahalems "EVEN on SALE" i spent on the Delta 5500RPM 252.85CFM fan.BUY it if u r a Frugal shopper, not sure if i'd use 2 Delta PFB1212UHE-F00.Possibly Looking w grabing a CoolerMaster Hyper Z600R in the future for use with my Delta's. This review was modfied by poster @ 10-08-09 10:41 PM

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As others have already mentioned, the value for the money is impressive. It cools better than my other coolers (AC Freezer, OCZ Vendetta, Scythe Reeven), and the fan is also relatively quiet.

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dual fan support, impressive look, great efficiency direct touch pipesbought two of them for me and my girlfriend, gain 8 degrees at idle on athlon x2

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Being my first non-stock heatsink, I didnt quite understnad the manual too well...But once I got it working, and MX-2 applied, it cooled my i7 920 (which is at stock speeds atm) to about 43degrees on load, and 19-22 idle depending on my room tempreture.

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Not a lot to say about this heat sink other than it delivers excellent performance for the money. Should be at the top of any value-seeking shopper's list. Dropped temps on an i5 (stock) from 66oC fully loaded on the stock HSF to 44oC fully loaded without increase in fan noise. That's very impressive for the money.Everything you need is in the box, but I used AS5 instead of the included paste.The procedure for mounting the heat sink is very poorly documented, but it's easy enough to figure out. My biggest issue was installing the fan. The spring clips work fine, but it wasn't immediately obvious to me which way they were supposed to go so it took some trial and error. Recommend installing the fan before mounting the HSF so that you don't have to fiddle with the spring clips while it's mounted because doing so can shift the heat sink around. It mounts very securely, but it can still wiggle.I find that although the fan is quiet, it does have a definite buzz. On the other hand, the heat sink continues to deliver solid performance even when the fan is rotating at super slow speeds so it's not a serious issue.Basically, I am totally impressed with the performance at this price.

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Overall im very happy with this heatsink, It was cheap, handle my overclock very well, keep CPU cool, But: There's space where the CPU contact is making possible air patch BE CAREFULL how you apply the thermal conponent and you will have no problem, had to re-apply !

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It's not quite as big as other cooler's I've seen but it is still large so you're going to want to make sure you have enough clearance with your side panel. With that being said, many of the best coolers are big so this isn't really a negative.At first sight without even installing it, this cooler is quite impressive already and also somewhat run of the mill at the same time. It's got your regular copper heatpipes with the exposed heatpipes at the base and your aluminium fins going up along the pipes. It feels like a well made cooler and the fins don't show much bending at all when force is applied. Also included is a powerful 2000RPM fan. The rest of the accessories are fantastic as well as they include a backplate, an X bracket allowing you to mount on AM2/AM2+/AM3, LGA775, LGA1156, and LGA1366 with no problems at all. Also included are two sets of fan clips so you can mount two fans on the cooler in a push-pull configuration. Of course you also get your tube of thermal compound and the instructions. The package is very complete and absolutely amazing for the price.In addition to the mounting options and all that you get in the package, the performance is very good as well. It won't be breaking any records but it is on par with the best direct touch heatpipe coolers out there.A couple of improvements that could have been made to the heatsink to improve performance might have been the inclusion of thicker heatpipes as the ones on the cooler are surprisingly thin (but still work very well). Also, the base could have been a little larger as I noticed it doesn't completely cover the IHS of my AMD chip. A larger base would allow for a larger surface area to make contact with the chip and thus better heat transfer and cooling.Overall, the cooler is fantastic. Performance is among the best and what you get in the box presents a great value. When you look at the price though when on sale (or even regular price) this heatsink is a fantastic bargain. I don't think there's any other cooler that presents this much value while being incredibly inexpensive.

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Good overall cooler, fitting two fans will knock temps down another 2C or so. My only gripe is when you want to remove the cooler you may have to hold the mounting studs as they want to turn with the hold down screws. I bought a Megahalem to replace this on my I7 at 4ghz and it brought temps down 5C

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Keeps my stock 720BE at 25-35C. Option to mount either horizontally or vertically. Leaves room for tall ram heatsinks on the Gigabyte MA790XT-UD4P mobo. Second-best heatsink on a hardware canucks review.

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Awesome CPU cooler, keeps my P2 955 with a slight OC at 40C under load. Matched with some MX-2 this thing is amazing! Fan is a bit loud, but gives great performance and once you have some music or sound going you can't notice it anymore!For the price you can't go wrong with this for 30$ ... why pay 60$ more to gain a 1C or 2C difference?!

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great cooler got my triple core from 60* down to 40* at max load and 30* at idle i recommend this for anyone who is looking for a solid cooler

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Overall this is a great deal as it's a mere $30, comes with enough parts to install it as a dual fan setup, comes with a backplate, and is compatible with practically everything on the market right now. It cool fairly decently and is about equal to a Xigmatek HDT-S1283 and an OCZ Vendetta 2 if not better.It's fairly simple to install and is pretty solid once you get it on the motherboard however the use of only 1 screw attaching the HS to the clips which hold it to the motherboard allows it to twist slightly.My biggest gripe about this though is the way you attach fans to it. The fan clips provided are absolutely horrible and you will most likely have to try more than a few times to get the clips to stay on the fan and heatsink. On top of that, the clips aren't sized properly and allow about a full 1-2 CM(s) between the fan and the heatsink unless you bend the clips.Having the HS setup to be in a North-South configuration is also troublesome as it's impossible to use the fan clips on the top fan and is much easier to just sit the fan onto the heatsink without securing it down.I would have preferred using zipties to keep the fans on if I had any around instead of the horrible clips.

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This is an updated version of the proven 212, the 212 plus cool your OC cpu without having to spend a lot....I pmed this one under $30, well worth the money, best bang for the buck.The only downside is you have to take out your motherboard to install this but the end result well worth the effort.

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You have to take out your motherboard and mount a backplate to installed this CPU. It is beastly large...It does not cool as well as I thought it would... but it is decent.I'm a noob at installing parts and I was able to install it so it is not so bad.

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CM seems to be careless with the screws on their budget products. I had a CM690 and many of the screws on the psu and the bottom filter don't match up. Now it's this hsf. One of the 4 screws doesn't fit in any of the nuts, so I can't use this cooler at all...

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You can't get any better cooling than this at this price. It's simply amazing. It was either this or the Xigmatek Dark Knight but the review from hardwarecanucks.com convinced me (along with the price).It's cooling my Core i7 CPU with Easy Tune temp readings ranging from 33 (moderate PC work, like burning a DVD) to 40 (load). Granted I haven't overclocked the CPU yet but again, that's great performance for its cheap price.The cooler is a bit tall. Make sure it fits your case. I'm using old Thermaltake Case and the side fan is literally millimeters away from the top of the heatsink.Installation is also simple.

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This is a great cooler for the price. It comes with one 120mm fan which is good. I ended up putting dual 120mm fans on it with the supplied clips. It keeps my i7 idle o 31C & OC(3.2gb) o 36C, and full load (everest cpu stable test)of 42C & 51C respectively with none of the core exceeding 59C. Serious OC for under $30. Its one of the best!