Performance

The system being used to test the heatsink is as follows:


Ambient temperature was kept to 26°C (+/-1°) and was measured by a standard mercury thermometer.


At stock speed the Max Orb does a good job of keeping up with the competition. Fan speed does not have much influence here as both low and high speed have the same results.


When the processor gets overclocked and more voltage is added, fan speed starts to show a slight difference. On high speed the Max Orb stays within one degree of the other coolers, but low speed is only one degree higher. Performance may have been slightly better if there were some fins on the base of the heatsink to help remove more heat quickly.

Fan Noise

To measure fan noise we used an IEC Type 2 sound level meter on the dbA setting. Measuring distance was 10 cm from the heatsink fan hub. The short distance of 10 cm is necessary to get proper readings with very silent fans. All fans were tested outside of the case at 12V supplied by a lab PSU. On fans that come with a fan controller or allow control of fan speed in any other way, "low" and "high" indicate the settings on the fan controller.


With the fan set to its lowest speed it remains fairly quiet. It becomes quite a bit louder when turned up all the way, but it is not the loudest fan in our test group so far.