Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme Gets Revised

[Mussels]

trt740: lapping only helped me since my CPU and my heatsink were both convex. my cores had a 10C difference between core 1 and core 4 - lapping reduced that. i believe lapping the CPU made the most difference.

inferknox: you can use any fan with a xiggie. they use a funny little rubber mount, but thats transferable to any standard fan, and you could always resort to zip ties.

 

[aj28]

It's a hunk of metal. Lower the price.

 

[Deleted member 24505]

Leonard,your not even using a TRUE or a Xiggy so how are you such an expert on which is the best anyway.

 

[BazookaJoe]

TRUE is the best cooler ever, and it's BIG so I feel like a real man!

 

[Selene]

As a long time user of the TRUE, I just love it, and plan on using this for every build I do from now on.

 

[Kitkat]

the design is already ace and world renound if they FOUND something as simple as cutting a v hole makes a diff lol DO IT! Next they will find that bending the top right fin UP and the lower left -30 fin DOWN is the secret code to - 10 degrees. lol so DO IT lol

 

[sttubs]

I picked up a TRUE with a package deal. What rpm of fan do you recommend? The E8400 will be overclocked to ~3.8-3.9 & the case has great airflow.
TIA

 

[newtekie1]

Xiggy vs. TRUE

I have both in machines right now and I'll clear up a few things:

Does the Xigmatech match or beat the TRUE's performance? No, but the two are very close. Close enough that I would say it doesn't make a difference.

Is the TRUE worth the price over the Xigmatech? Yes! Cooling performance is only part of the equation. The Xigmatech coolers are cheaper for several reasons:

No Nickle Plating(looks worse)
Cheaper Mounting Brackets(Push Pins!!! They sell a bolt through kit for 775, why not just include it instead of the BS push pin brackets? And they don't even offer a bolt through kit for AM2/3.)
Lower Quality

The TRUE is a high quality heatsink, you can look at it and feel it, and just know that it is of the highest quality. The same can not be said about the Xigmatech coolers. They feel a lot cheaper, and the quality is just not up to the level of the TRUE.

And the issues with lapping the TRUE aren't that major, both my Xigmatechs required lapping also. They weren't as bad as the TRUE, but there were large gouges in the copper of the heatpipes, large enough that I could get my thumb nail stuck in them when running it across the surface. A quick hit with 1500 Grit solve that though, while the TRUE took 400, then 800, then 1000, then 1500 because I had to get the base flat first.

 

[Bjorn_Of_Iceland]

The curved base surface is actually meant to be curved (convex).

Its designed for procs with heatspreaders and are actually effective. (in fact a swiftech Apogee GTZ water block even have a convex surface.)

TRUE design truly is.. ahead of its time.

 

[Kitkat]

I have both in machines right now and I'll clear up a few things:

Does the Xigmatech match or beat the TRUE's performance? No, but the two are very close. Close enough that I would say it doesn't make a difference.

Is the TRUE worth the price over the Xigmatech? Yes! Cooling performance is only part of the equation. The Xigmatech coolers are cheaper for several reasons:

No Nickle Plating(looks worse)
Cheaper Mounting Brackets(Push Pins!!! They sell a bolt through kit for 775, why not just include it instead of the BS push pin brackets? And they don't even offer a bolt through kit for AM2/3.)
Lower Quality

The TRUE is a high quality heatsink, you can look at it and feel it, and just know that it is of the highest quality. The same can not be said about the Xigmatech coolers. They feel a lot cheaper, and the quality is just not up to the level of the TRUE.

And the issues with lapping the TRUE aren't that major, both my Xigmatechs required lapping also. They weren't as bad as the TRUE, but there were large gouges in the copper of the heatpipes, large enough that I could get my thumb nail stuck in them when running it across the surface. A quick hit with 1500 Grit solve that though, while the TRUE took 400, then 800, then 1000, then 1500 because I had to get the base flat first.

annnnnnnnd i do like xig's coolers they are just as awsome yeah got some probs but another thing is some of them can only be mounted a cirtan way on AMD computers , so thats another thing to keep in mind too

 

[mascotzel]

no one ever heard of Megahalems?

it beats TRUE

 

[leonard_222003]

Leonard,your not even using a TRUE or a Xiggy so how are you such an expert on which is the best anyway.

I have the TRUE in my system right now but i didn't update the system details , i'll do it just for you .
Also i saw the xigmatec dark knight or something like that in action , up to 65-70 C and 1.5 V on a core duo E5200 both were about the same with 2-3 C better for the true but not so significant , this was done with a friend , then we uped the voltage to 1.6 , TRUE holded the very hot CPU to 75 C full load of orthos , xigmatec failed and was going for over 83 , we stoped on the xigamtec.
You can really see the perfomance of a TRUE in a very hot scenario , if you buy it for a normal overclock then it's a waste of money.
Most people see coolers below the TRUE losing by 1-2 C and say why is this so much more expensive , it's just not worth it , but at what temperatures are these results ? 50-70C ? not enough to really push the TRUE , go for much more and you will see the TRUE leaves the competition behind.
Other thing to consider is how well the TRUE scales with a better airflow , some coolers just don't benefit from a better airflow at some point , put a delta 5000 rpm cooler on the TRUE and you make history with some huge overclock.
Mascotzel is right , Prolimatech Megahelms is a bit better than TRUE , also there is Thermolab Barams or Cogage True spirit who also match or beat the TRUE by a little bit , the Cogage is a mini TRUE with impressive perfomances at normal overclocks , at the size of cogage i think no one is better except water cooling .
Wonder what all these companies have in common with Thermalright ? they all worked at Thermalright , left at some point and started their bussines separately.

 

[Kitkat]

cool results, atleast we know what the next inovation will be in all coolers lol

 

[WOOKZ]

3 words not said yet zig thors hammer

 

[leonard_222003]

3 words not said yet zig thors hammer

Because it doesn't exist for people who know a thing or two about coolers
First of all it isn't better than a TRUE
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=300&Itemid=62
being released after the TRUE everybody would've expected to beat the king , it doesn't , it just equals it and i think the TRUE is still better in a hotter scenario;

http://vr-zone.com/articles/heatsin...r-v10-vs.-xigmatek-thor-s-hammer/6605-10.html

it doesn't scale with better airflow , so that pantented bent fins thermalright has it isn't some marketing bullshit like HDT.

 

[trt740]

Because it doesn't exist for people who know a thing or two about coolers
First of all it isn't better than a TRUE
http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=300&Itemid=62
being released after the TRUE everybody would've expected to beat the king , it doesn't , it just equals it and i think the TRUE is still better in a hotter scenario;

http://vr-zone.com/articles/heatsin...r-v10-vs.-xigmatek-thor-s-hammer/6605-10.html

it doesn't scale with better airflow , so that pantented bent fins thermalright has it isn't some marketing bullshit like HDT.

All the bent fin thing is to allow bigger surface area in a smaller space and to direct some air flow over the power regulators and it does help in both cases.

 

[From_Nowhere]

Sweet! A new revision on a badass cooler, but I still see no reason to change mine out yet.

 

[trt740]

Sweet! A new revision on a badass cooler, but I still see no reason to change mine out yet.

If you want the real mini True this is it and with two 92mm fans is very close to the same cooling ability of the TRUE and it is actually made by Thermalright http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/product_page/cpu/utm90/product_cpu_cooler_utm90.html This is a bad ass little cooler and size wise is a bunch smaller than the TRUE.



I have said a bunch of great things about the TRUE but here are some bad!!!!!!
1. The fan holders should come standard with the TRUE black and not the wire holders.
2. Two fans should come with the TRUE black
3. The mount should not scratch the TRUE blacks finish when installed and it does.
4. Once installed you should not have to remove the motherboard to change the CPU.
5. The TRUES fins are easily bent and scratched

For those reasons I switched to the Noctua
1. Similar performance within a degree or two of the TRUE
2. a fraction smaller
3. Two fans come with it and they are arguably the best 120mm fans made
4. Better mounting system that once installed the motherboard doesn't need removed to change the cpu. Also includes a screw driver.
5 Much stronger frame and fins that are hard to damage and bend, and because of this the fan wires work easier.


Noctua negative: it not a ugly cooler but it's not a TRUE and is nowhere as nice looking plus the fan color is fugly.

If Thermalright would have fixed those thing I would never have switched. cutting a triangle into the TRUe is bullshit just fix those few things/ Heck the Meg could have fixed these thing and in some cases they did but then there is no AMD mount and only one fan? So they dropped the ball as well.


Here was my old TRUE Black one of three I owned, plus a Ultima 90

http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=81760&highlight=True+black

 

[newtekie1]

You don't have to remove the motherboard to change CPUs with the TRUE.

You can permanantly mount the back plate to the motherboard by removing the covering on the foam and exposing the extremely sticky tape under it. And trust me, it is permanant.

If you want a less permanant solution, you can just us a little tape to hold the back plate in place on the back of the motherboard.

 

[trt740]

You don't have to remove the motherboard to change CPUs with the TRUE.

You can permanantly mount the back plate to the motherboard by removing the covering on the foam and exposing the extremely sticky tape under it. And trust me, it is permanant.

If you want a less permanant solution, you can just us a little tape to hold the back plate in place on the back of the motherboard.

Trues don't come with adhesive on the mount anymore on mine in the photo it is a plain piece of plastic. Also it makes zero sense to mount your bracket permanently to a motherboard.

However, with the New C revison, the X bracket is gone and the heat sink can be removed without taking out the motherboard and FYI adhesive was removed along time ago from the TRUEs back plate. Like three revisions ago. At least that been fixed

True revision c mounting instructions http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/download_images/booklet/tb120revc/1366.pdf

 

[WOOKZ]

CHOICES R CHOICES buy what u like both are good that's why they cost a motza

 

[trt740]

http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=285&Itemid=62
CHOICES R CHOICES Review maybe people could read

Thats one review and that's definitive? It really beats the hell out of the TRUE? Also that test uses socket temperature and is hardly accurate. Read how they got these temps ( http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.p...k=view&id=285&Itemid=62&limit=1&limitstart=13 ) Just about every review lists the MEG and TRUE neck and neck and they should be since they were designed by the same team of people and one was designed from the other.

 

[WOOKZ]

i was going to buy true black but was not available to me so i scrounged suppliers for a hammer chipper with my purchase

 

[Hayder_Master]

why not direct touch pipes, and basic design like the old one

 

[From_Nowhere]

If you want the real mini True this is it and with two 92mm fans is very close to the same cooling ability of the TRUE and it is actually made by Thermalright http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/product_page/cpu/utm90/product_cpu_cooler_utm90.html This is a bad ass little cooler and size wise is a bunch smaller than the TRUE.

I was not referring to the size of the cooler. I was referring to the small revision of the TRUE 120. The TRUE 120 rev. B is nice, but it's no reason to upgrade if you already have a good cooling setup.