Comparison Deepcool AK620 Zero Dark vs Deepcool LE500 Marrs

— Fan. Classic fan — a motor with blades that provides air flow; it also includes multi-fan kits. Anyway, you should not confuse such devices with coolers (see below) — fans do not have heatsinks. Almost all solutions of this type are designed for enclosures (see "Intended use"), only a few models are designed for "blowing" hard drives or chipsets.

— Radiator. Thermally conductive material construction with a special ribbed shape. This shape provides a large area of contact with air, as a result — good heat transfer. Radiators do not consume energy and operate absolutely silently, but they are not very efficient. Therefore, they are extremely rare in their pure form, and such models are intended either for low-power PC components with low heat dissipation (energy-efficient processors, hard drives, etc.), or for assembling an active cooler (see below) from a separately purchased fan and radiator (this option is found among solutions for video cards).

— Active cooler. A device in the form of a radiator with a fan installed on it; however, in many models, the heatsink does not directly contact the cooled component, but is connected to it using heat pipes, while air is blown sideways (the so-called tower layout, especially popular in systems for the CPU; for more details, see "Blowing the air flow") . Anyway, such designs are, on the one hand, relati...vely simple and inexpensive, and, on the other hand, quite effective, which makes them an extremely popular type of Cooling system. In particular, it is in this format that most solutions for CPUs are produced (see "Intended use"), and in general coolers can be used for almost any component of the system, except for the case.

— Water cooling. Water cooling systems consist of three main parts: a water block in direct contact with the cooled component (usually a processor), an external cooler, and a pump (separate or built into the cooler). These components are connected by hoses through which water (or other similar coolant) circulates — it provides heat transfer. And the cooling block is usually a cooler — a system of fans and heatsinks that dissipates heat energy into the surrounding air. Water systems are noticeably more efficient than active coolers (see above), they are suitable even for very powerful and "hot" CPUs, which traditional coolers can hardly cope with. On the other hand, this type of cooling is quite bulky and difficult to install, and it is not cheap.

— A set of LSS. Kit for self-assembly of liquid (water) cooling system. The difference between such solutions and conventional water cooling (see above) lies in the fact that in this case the entire system is supplied as a set of parts, from which the user must assemble the finished coolant himself (whereas in traditional water systems, the matter is usually limited to connecting hoses and filling coolant). Such a format significantly expands the user's options in terms of installation: you can independently choose individual layout nuances, replace some regular parts, supplement the design with third-party elements, etc. On the other hand, the installation itself turns out to be much more complex than traditional water systems. Therefore, very few LSS kits are produced, and they are designed mainly for enthusiast modders who like to experiment with the design and construction of their PCs.

— backplate. A solid metal plate used as a fastener for the cooling system. Serves to prevent the motherboard or video card from bending when deploying a heat dissipation system, and also provides passive cooling for the rear side of those modules with which it is adjacent.

- Water block VRM. A water block that provides efficient cooling of the elements of the VRM (Voltage Regulator Module) CPU power subsystem.

- CPU waterblock. Heat exchanger made of copper or nickel, designed to remove heat from the CPU through the coolant. Used in computer water cooling systems. Most often, processor water blocks are supplied with mounts for certain processor platforms.

- GPU water block. Liquid cooling blocks for the most efficient heat removal from the video card. Similar solutions are produced for a specific group of video cards on a single GPU. GPU water blocks consist of two main parts: the upper one, where a copper alloy heat sink is located, a plastic overlay with liquid channels and a casing to stiffen the structure, as well as a metal plate at the bottom of the block on the reverse side of the printed circuit board.

— A set of fasteners. A set of fasteners for mounting cooling systems on computer motherboard elements. Issued for specific socket versions.

A feature found in some active CPU coolers (see "Intended Use").

For tower arrangements in general, see Airflow Blowing below. And the double-tower design means that the cooler has two working blocks — that is, two fans and two radiators. Accordingly, there are more heat pipes in the design than in single-tower models — at least 4 of them, and more often 5 – 6 or even more. Such an arrangement can significantly increase the cooling efficiency; on the other hand, it also significantly affects the dimensions, weight and price.

The highest speed at which the cooling system fan is capable of operating; for models without a speed controller (see below), this item indicates the nominal rotation speed. In the "slowest" modern fans, the maximum speed does not exceed 1000 rpm, in the "fastest" it can be up to 2500 rpm and even more.

Note that this parameter is closely related to the fan diameter (see above): the smaller the diameter, the higher the speed must be to achieve the desired airflow values. In this case, the rotation speed directly affects the level of noise and vibration. Therefore, it is believed that the required volume of air is best provided by large and relatively "slow" fans; and it makes sense to use "fast" small models where compactness is crucial. If we compare the speed of models of the same size, then higher speeds have a positive effect on performance, but increase not only the noise level, but also the price and power consumption.

The maximum airflow that a cooling fan can create; measured in CFM — cubic feet per minute.

The higher the CFM number, the more efficient the fan. On the other hand, high performance requires either a large diameter (which affects the size and cost) or high speed (which increases the noise and vibration levels). Therefore, when choosing, it makes sense not to chase the maximum air flow, but to use special formulas that allow you to calculate the required number of CFM depending on the type and power of the cooled component and other parameters. Such formulas can be found in special sources. As for specific numbers, in the most modest systems, the performance does not exceed 30 CFM, and in the most powerful systems it can be up to 80 CFM and even more.

It is also worth considering that the actual value of the air flow at the highest speed is usually lower than the claimed maximum; see Static Pressure for details.

The maximum static air pressure generated by the fan during operation.

This parameter is measured as follows: if the fan is installed on a blind pipe, from which there is no air outlet, and turned on for blowing, then the pressure reached in the pipe will correspond to the static one. In fact, this parameter determines the overall efficiency of the fan: the higher the static pressure (ceteris paribus), the easier it is for the fan to “push” the required amount of air through a space with high resistance, for example, through narrow slots of a radiator or through a case full of components.

Also, this parameter is used for some specific calculations, however, these calculations are quite complex and, usually, are not necessary for an ordinary user — they are associated with nuances that are relevant mainly for computer enthusiasts. You can read more about this in special sources.

The maximum TDP provided by the cooling system. Note that this parameter is indicated only for solutions equipped with heatsinks (see "Type"); for separately made fans, the efficiency is determined by other parameters, primarily by the air flow values (see above).

TDP can be described as the amount of heat that a cooling system is able to remove from a serviced component. Accordingly, for the normal operation of the entire system, it is necessary that the TDP of the cooling system is not lower than the heat dissipation of this component (heat dissipation data is usually indicated in the detailed characteristics of the components). And it is best to select coolers with a power margin of at least 20 – 25% — this will give an additional guarantee in case of forced operation modes and emergency situations (including clogging of the case and reduced air exchange efficiency).

As for specific numbers, the most modest modern cooling systems provide TDP up to 100 W, the most advanced — up to 250 W and even higher.

The direction in which the active cooler (see "Type") airflow exits.

This parameter is relevant primarily for models used with processors, but the options can be as follows:

— Sideways (scattering). Operation format typical for coolers of the so-called tower design. In these models, the fan is mounted perpendicular to the substrate in contact with the processor, due to which the airflow moves parallel to the motherboard. This ensures maximum efficiency: the heated air does not return to the processor and other system components, but is dissipated in the case (and almost immediately goes outside if the computer has at least one case fan). The main disadvantage of this option is the large height of the structure, which can make it difficult to place it in some system units. However, in most cases this point is not fundamental — especially when it comes to a powerful cooling system designed for an advanced system with a performant "hot" processor. So, it is side dissipation that is the most popular option nowadays — especially in coolers with a maximum TDP of 150 W and higher (although more modest models often use this layout).

— Down (to the motherboard). This format of operation allows you to "lay" the fan with a heatsink flat on the motherboard, significantly reducing the height of the entire cooler (compared to models using side blowing). On the other hand, this form...at of work is not very efficient — after all, before dissipating through the case, hot air again blows over the board with the processor. So nowadays, this option is relatively rare, and mainly in low-power coolers with an acceptable TDP of up to 150 W. And you should pay attention to such models mainly when there is little space in the case and a small cooler height is more important than high efficiency.

The presence of its own illumination in the design of the cooling system.

The backlight serves a purely aesthetic function — it gives the device a stylish appearance that blends well with other components in the original design. Thanks to this, such cooling systems are especially appreciated by gamers and fans of external PC modding — especially since the lighting can be different, and the most advanced models even provide backlight synchronization with other components (see below). On the other hand, this function does not affect the efficiency and performance, and the overall cost is inevitably affected, sometimes quite noticeably. Therefore, if the appearance does not play a fundamental role for you, the best choice, most likely, will be a cooling system without backlight.

The standard noise level generated by the cooling system during operation. Usually, this paragraph indicates the maximum noise during normal operation, without overloads and other "extreme".

Note that the noise level is indicated in decibels, and this is a non-linear value. So it is easiest to evaluate the actual loudness using comparative tables. Here is a table for values found in modern cooling systems:

20 dB — barely audible sound (quiet whisper of a person at a distance of about 1 m, sound background in an open field outside the city in calm weather);
25 dB — very quiet (normal whisper at a distance of 1 m);
30 dB — quiet (wall clock). It is this noise that, according to sanitary standards, is the maximum allowable for constant sound sources at night (from 23.00 to 07.00). This means that if the computer is planned to sit at night, it is desirable that the volume of the cooling system does not exceed this value.
35 dB — conversation in an undertone, sound background in a quiet library;
40 dB — conversation, relatively quiet, but already in full voice. The maximum permissible noise level for residential premises in the daytime, from 7.00 to 23.00, according to sanitary standards. However, even the noisiest cooling systems usually do not reach this indicator, the maximum for such equipment is about 38 – 39 dB.