Test System & Temperature Results

Test System

Testing Procedure

All testing is done at a room temperature of 23°C (73°F) with a 1°C margin of error. The coolers are tested with Turbo, EIST, and C1E enabled, which will allow the CPU to clock down to a low 1.6 GHz while idle, or clock up to proper speeds under stock and overclocked conditions. The retail Intel Core i7-4770K I use for testing at stock is set to load-optimized defaults with the CPU's voltage at a static 1.15 V. Overclocked, the processor is running at 4.2 GHz on the CPU and 3.9 GHz on cache, with respective voltages set to 1.20 V and 1.15 V. During all these tests, fans are set to run at 100% in the BIOS, with temperatures being recorded by AIDA64.

The idle test will consist of the CPU sitting idle at the desktop for 15 minutes. This will allow for a stable temperature reading that will be recorded at the end of those 15 minutes.

Wprime's and AIDA64's CPU test represent typical multi-threaded loads. Both offer consistent results, with one being a benchmarking application and the other a stability test. Both are run for 15 minutes before the peak reading during the test is recorded and taken as the result. This test lets enthusiasts know what temperatures they can expect to see with games and applications. Wprime is set to eight threads while AIDA64 is configured to stress the CPU, FPU, cache, and system memory.

AIDA64 offers maximum heat generation when set to stress just the FPU in the stability test, which will really push the CPU. This test represents extreme loads much like LinX, Prime95, and other extreme stress tests many users are familiar with.

Idle Temperatures

At idle, the Raijintek Aidos does little to impress, but it is hard to impress when the spread from best to worst at stock is 5°C, and the Aidos does sit 2°C behind the best-performing coolers. The overclocked test sees the Aidos move up a few spots, toward the middle of the pack and just 3°C behind our top performer, the Phanteks PH-TC12DX. That said, idle tests are hardly indicative of performance, and in this situation, the CPU is kept plenty cool by the Raijintek Aidos.

Typical Load Temperatures

In Wprime, the Aidos performs as expected for its size, coming in near the back of the pack. What is surprising, however, is that the much smaller Aidos beats the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO and NZXT Respire T40 by 1°C and 4-5°C respectively, at both stock and overclock,.


Once I fired up AIDA64 and ran its CPU stability test, I was flabbergasted by the performance of this cooler at both stock and overclocked. At stock, it ties the Noctua NH-U12S and even beats out the more expensive Themis, another Raijintek cooler. In the overclocked test, it falls back a bit, but still manages to edge out the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO by 1°C, demolishing the NZXT Respire T40. These results are most likely due to Haswell using TIM under the IHS instead of solder, but that is still an impressive showing from the Aidos given its small size.

Max Load Temperatures

Now on to the worst-case scenario, where the coolers are pushed to the limit. At stock in the AIDA64 FPU test, the Raijintek Aidos again manages to edge out the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO by 1°C. In the overclocked test, it manages to tie the Hyper 212 EVO. I am still astonished by this tiny cooler's ability to keep up with the larger Cooler Master cooler, and by how badly it manages to demolish the NZXT Respire T40.