Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX: Does VX Rule Cooling?

Conclusion

We concluded in our comments on the Scythe Andy Samurai Master vs. Thermaltake MaxOrb review that the heatpipe tower has emerged as the best performing design among the coolers we have tested. None of the down-facing fan coolers have been able to really challenge the outstanding performance we have seen with the heatpipe tower designs that mount a side-blowing 120mm fan.

Our benchmarking of the Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX has not challenged that conclusion. There is no doubt the Big Typhoon VX is, along with the Cooler Master GeminII, the best of the down-facing cooler designs. However, a maximum overclock of 3.85GHz compared to 3.90 to 3.94GHz with the best heatpipe towers is just not good enough. Even more persuasive is that the best cooling at load at 3.85GHz was 62C compared to 43C to 50C for the best heatpipe towers at this speed. If the small but consistent difference in overclocking is not convincing, then surely the much improved cooling of the best heatpipe towers will give you food for thought.

We have seen other reviews that compared the Big Typhoon VX to the Thermalright Ultra-120 and found the Big Typhoon the winner. We can only point out that results from reviews using an older Intel CPU or an AMD CPU are not comparable to test results using a Core 2 Duo test bed. We use a Core 2 Duo because that is the processor most overclockers today would choose for their system. The headroom is incredible on these CPUs and a high overclock can be very demanding of cooler performance.

We also tested the Thermalright coolers with the excellent high-output S-Flex SFF21F cooling fan. The Big Typhoon VX uses a fan with an output as high as 86.5CFM. It is hardly fair to compare that performance to a Thermalright mounting a 30CFM to 47CFM fan. We certainly expect the cooler with a fan running at more than twice the airflow to perform best. Last of course is the CPU itself. We have found the Zalman 9500 and 9700 to be among the very best coolers on an AMD 939 or AM2 CPU. However, neither of these coolers was more than average on our Core 2 Duo test bed.

We have tried to keep an open mind about the arguments for down-facing fans. We agree a fan or fans blowing down on your motherboard sounds like a better cooling solution than a side blowing fan. It should also cool your motherboard components better, and that should mean better performance. However if down-facing cools better, then why can't these down-facing designs compete with the best heatpipe towers in performance on our Core 2 Duo test bed? We have no auxiliary cooling in our test bed, so the down-facing designs should shine in better performance. Unfortunately they don't.

While performance does not top our charts, there are still many things to like about the Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX. It is one of the easiest to mount coolers we have ever tested. While we do have concerns about two pounds being supported by Intel-style push clips, the installation itself is easy and does not require you to remove your motherboard. It is equally easy if you are mounting the VX on an AMD processor.

The attached fan speed control is also very useful on the Big Typhoon VX, particularly since it is attached to a very high-output fan capable of 86.5CFM at high speed. The fan is quieter than screamers of old, and yet can be dialed down for much reduced noise. However, none of our noise measurements suggest that those seeking silence will be happy with the VX fan. Personally, the fan is quiet enough at low speed with a closed case to satisfy our ears, and the noise frequencies are not grating, but silence purists will want better. Fortunately they can swap the VX fan for their own favorite silent fan.

Of course, a lower output fan will lower performance further, but the Big Typhoon VX is reasonably robust at stock speeds and you can likely build a quiet system that effectively cools as long as you don't expect much in overclocking.

With these latest tests of the Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX we have now tested four down-facing designs - the Cooler Master GeminII, Scythe Andy Samurai Master, Thermaltake MaxOrb, and now the Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX. All of these are top-of-the-line coolers which should compete with the best high-end coolers we have tested. Unfortunately we are disappointed again, since none of these four could really compete with our top tier of coolers.

The evidence from our Core 2 Duo test bed is now reinforced by the Big Typhoon VX results. It is increasingly clear that the tall heatpipe towers with horizontal fins attached to vertical heatpipes are the best air-cooling performance you can buy these days. These towers use side-blowing fans to further dissipate the heat. Most use one fan, but some can use two or more fans in a push-pull configuration.

Top air-cooler performance solidly belongs to the Thermalright Ultra-120 eXtreme (coupled with an S-Flex SFF21F fan) at 3.94GHz. Right behind and tied at 3.90 GHz are the Tuniq Tower 120, the regular Thermalright Ultra-120, the Scythe Ninja B Plus with SilenX fan, the OCZ Vindicator with SilenX, and the Scythe Infinity with dual push-pull Scythe fans. All of these coolers outperform the Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX and every other down-facing cooler in overclocking and cooling efficiency on a standard Core 2 Duo test bed. Most are also quieter than the Big Typhoon VX.

In the end the MaxOrb and Big Typhoon VX, both from Thermaltake, perform almost identically. With the MaxOrb weighing about half as much as the Big Typhoon VX we would have a hard time recommending the Big Typhoon VX over the MaxOrb unless you want to use a different fan. If you absolutely have to have a down-facing fan cooler, buy the Thermaltake MaxOrb. However, if you want the best cooling efficiency and the best overclocking for your money choose one of the heatpipe towers from the top of our performance charts.