Thermalright Phantom Spirit 120 [EVO]

[nomdeplume]

Believe a few of you are running one of the two PS120 variants.

1. Have you found success using a different set of fans
2. Is there a reason other than aesthetics and RGB to go with the EVO? As in performance differences between stock fan models.

Yes, I read the TPU review.

 

[freeagent]

My T30 slid right into the middle no problem. With the smaller PS120 I had to spread the towers quite a bit. Also the clips work just fine with a T30, the SE.. no chance. I think I was using FC140 clips to make it work.

 

[nomdeplume]

My T30 slid right into the middle no problem. With the smaller PS120 I had to spread the towers quite a bit. Also the clips work just fine with a T30, the SE.. no chance. I think I was using FC140 clips to make it work.

Browser ad blocking broke system specs dropdown and I'm too lazy to sort through filter combinations.

Which cooler are you referring to that your T30 slid into, Evo? I think you own a handful of TR if I'm thinking of the right person.
Saw conflicting statements the base cooler is identical between 120 and 120 Evo.

Half expected once I made this thread they would announce a new model within days.

 

[tabascosauz]

My T30 slid right into the middle no problem. With the smaller PS120 I had to spread the towers quite a bit. Also the clips work just fine with a T30, the SE.. no chance. I think I was using FC140 clips to make it work.

putting T30 in PA120 straight up sucked ass, it shed so much paint

FC140 was ok, the 140s have more clearance between finstacks

 

[freeagent]

putting T30 in PA120 straight up sucked ass, it shed so much paint

Yeah in the SE it sucked balls bro, but in the Evo it just slid right in.. not for you?

FC140 is still a badass cooler, after the Evo it is my fave.

I like the size of the Evo..

 

[JWNoctis]

1. I don't have another set of fans, though I don't see how any more-or-less standard 120mm fan of similar thickness won't work. There's nothing obviously proprietary except maybe thickness. For that matter, there's still a small, maybe 3mm gap between the first fin stack and the second fan, with stock fans installed.
2. The EVO worked fine for me. The stock fans PWM down to 20% no problem, are very quiet at slower speed, and supposedly have better bearings than those on the SE. It also does look better with no protruding heatpipe ends. I have not tried the SE. Can't be of much help there, unfortunately.

The ARGB on the EVO made for a nice look on a themed build, but now I just leave them off.

 

[freeagent]

I use the K12's from my Evo on my rad as pull fans

It works ok..

 

[nomdeplume]

1. I don't have another set of fans, though I don't see how any more-or-less standard 120mm fan of similar thickness won't work. There's nothing obviously proprietary except maybe thickness. For that matter, there's still a small, maybe 3mm gap between the first fin stack and the second fan, with stock fans installed

More in line with acoustics and performance of fans not designed for - gap included - the finstack. Both mod's understood 30mm fans were increasingly a large part of any question about fan swapping. Sort of thing that might be nice to have a heads up on but I could always play around with on my own if desired.

Shedding a lot of paint is certainly a worthwhile consideration. Sounds like a luck of the draw if you get one manufactured with a hard 3mm gap or one that lets you drop in a 30mm fan. Safe to say anyone going the 30mm fan direction isn't worried about a little more noise at any rpm.

FC140 is still a badass cooler, after the Evo it is my fave.

This was the only other cooler I was considering.

The day and age for 3lb hunks of metal hanging off a board are far enough past I figured lighter might be better all around. Years back I almost got that massive Scythe passive cooler.

 

[tabascosauz]

More in line with acoustics and performance of fans not designed for - gap included - the finstack. Both mod's understood 30mm fans were increasingly a large part of any question about fan swapping. Sort of thing that might be nice to have a heads up on but I could always play around with on my own if desired.

Shedding a lot of paint is certainly a worthwhile consideration. Sounds like a luck of the draw if you get one manufactured with a hard 3mm gap or one that lets you drop in a 30mm fan. Safe to say anyone going the 30mm fan direction isn't worried about a little more noise at any rpm.

I don't have experience with the EVO, so it could very well have a bigger gap, I haven't checked the drawings. It was the PA120 that was not fun for T30 swap - twice, with two different PA120s.

Thermalright quality control is not very good so if the clearance for 30mm is marginal, then one sample may have a much better experience compared to another. Of course you can also take matters into your own hands (literally) and give it the beans.

Shedding paint should only be an issue for white Thermalrights, not grey or black. But it does highlight the clearance issue. Those flakes got absolutely everywhere.

U12A wasn't competitive the first time I had it go up against the FC140 on 5800X3D, but now it matches the FC140's performance with the new offset kit, on 7800X3D. Of course, if you have Intel, FC140 all the way.

 

[freeagent]

Yeah I know the flakes. Comes from clipping or unclipping. I wouldn't say that is a bad QC thing though, it is paint.. anodising would have had a different results.. maybe.

 

[tabascosauz]

Yeah I know the flakes. Comes from clipping or unclipping. I wouldn't say that is a bad QC thing though, it is paint.. anodising would have had a different results.. maybe.

I wasn't talking about the paint, it was pristine. I was talking about the fact that Thermalright is still incapable of ensuring tower heatsinks don't have entire finstacks canted off in whichever direction over yonder lol

But that is besides the point. @nomdeplume go with an anodized one if you want to jam fans in there. But if you do replace them, EVO loses a bit of value

 

[nomdeplume]

I'd been thinking of quickly made and assembled parts and whatever amount of cooling happened outside the machine warped them differently. More and more I'm correlating bent finstacks with bent towers.

But that is besides the point. @nomdeplume go with an anodized one if you want to jam fans in there. But if you do replace them, EVO loses a bit of value

I've been using a Nth hand legacy Scythe for almost a decade with a 150mm Noctua using the low profile 15mm fan clips. Tool not a jewel.

Think by this point I have a pretty good handle on what to expect with TR differing greatly from the precision of a Japanese or Austrian industrial statement piece.