Installation

Installation of the Thermaltake SpinQ is rather easy and mimics the stock system for both AMD and Intel. Since we will be testing on an Intel platform, we will only show the Intel installation steps. First, we will start with the two push-pin brackets and four small machine screws.


The two brackets will mount from the bottom, one on each side, and with two screws for each one.


The motherboard being used is an MSI P6N Diamond, which has heatsinks for the major components and heatpipes connecting each. This arrangement is very common today on mid-level to high-end motherboards, but it makes the area around the CPU socket more confined. After the CPU IHS has been cleaned of old thermal paste, a small ball of Noctua NT-H1 thermal paste is added to the center.


The SpinQ is now placed on top of the CPU in the direction recommended by Thermaltake, with the push-pins guided into the motherboard mounting holes. The SpinQ is twisted side to side while pushing down, then the push-pins are pressed down into place. While this mounting method may not provide the best contact between the CPU and the heatsink, it is the simplest method and the easiest to install. And definitely on the plus side is the fact that the motherboard does not need to be removed from the motherboard tray or case to install.


Immediately the heatsink was removed to show the contact between the heatsink and CPU and to see how well the paste spread out. The paste did spread, but not as well as I would have liked, and the layer seemed pretty thick.