Phanteks PH-TC14CS CPU Cooler
Overview
Hardware: CoolingWHAT WE LIKED:
Unique design, excellent thermal performance, cools memory, sturdy construction and comes with a 5 year warrantyWHAT WE DISLIKED:
Blocks memory with tall heat spreaders. Have to remove lower fan to replace memory.Discuss in the Forum
Summary
To wrap things up, let’s go back and talk a little bit about the look and design of this cooler. The Phanteks PH-TC14CS is not your typical tower design cooler. In fact, the horizontal “updraft floating balance” design is what really makes this cooler stand out on its own. From its gloss black mirror finish and its nine black colored blades with MVB (Maelström Vortex Booster) this CPU cooler performed extremely well on our test bench. As with most large coolers available today, planning ahead of time with the components you are going to use is important. During our review we mentioned if you are using or plan on using RAM with tall heat spreaders you will have to reconsider as installation can pose some problems. We recommend that low profile memory be used in most cases. However, depending on the spacing of your motherboard’s RAM and CPU sockets, it may still be possible to use tall heat spreaders in the furthest DIMM slots from the cooler.
Installation of the cooler went without a hitch as the hardware was easy to use. The hex key tool that is provided to secure the cooler to the mounting plate can be a little tricky but not a problem as long as you take your time.
Thermal performance of the cooler performed really well under our stock settings and our overclock settings. We feel that the Phanteks PH-TC14CS cooler can perform at even higher clocks with the right chip. Our test used an Intel i5 3570k Ivy-Bridge processor which under the new architecture performs warmer than its previous generation chip the Sandy-bridge. With that in mind, this cooler would be a very good upgrade option for those still using Sandy-Bridge CPUs.
From a design stand point and its thermal performance we give the Phanteks PH-TC14CS an Overall Great Hardware review. For the price of $76.00 at Newegg at the time of this review, we feel this cooler gives good performance for the money, and it comes with an exceptional warranty of 5 years!
The Phanteks PH-TC14CS can be found here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835709015
