[nextpage title=”Introduction”]
Today we are reviewing Prolimatech Armageddon CPU cooler, which has a slim tower heatsink with six U-shaped heatpipes and room for two 140 mm fans. Will it perform well in our tests? Let’s see.
Armageddon box is quite small since the heatsink is slim and it comes with no fans.
Inside the box we found the heatsink, manual, installation hardware and a tube of thermal compound.
In the next pages we will see this cooler in detail.
[nextpage title=”The Armageddon”]
In Figure 3 you have a front view of the cooler. Note it has two independent heatsinks, each one connected to one of the tips of the six heatpipes.
In Figure 4, you can see the side of the cooler. Note how the heatsink is just a little bit wider than the base of the cooler.
In Figure 5, you can see the heatpipes in detail. Armageddon is different from most coolers we saw so far because the heatpipes are not positioned in a straight line, but side by side, which means all of them receive direct airflow.
Figure 5: How the heatpipes are distributed.
In Figure 6, you can see the top of the cooler, where you can check the position of the heatpipes.
[nextpage title=”The Armageddon (Cont’d)”]
In Figure 7, you can see the base of the cooler, which is smooth but with no mirror-like finishing. Note that Prolimatech says the base of their coolers doesn’t have a mirror-like finishing on purpose: according to them this provides the best performance and users should not try to polish the base.
Prolimatech Armageddon does not comes with fans, but the manufacturer sent us two Xigmatek XLF-F1453 fans (140 mm, 1000 rpm, 16 dBA, 63.5 cfm) with the cooler, so we tested it with these fans. Keep in mind that if you use other fan(s) the results may be different from that we found.
In Figure 9, you can see Armageddon with the fans installed. A highlight of this cooler are the clips that hold the fans, called "armaclips". They are really practical, making it easy to install or to remove the fans.
In Figure 10, you can see the backplate used by this cooler.
[nextpage title=”Installation”]
Armageddon installation system is identical to the one seen on Prolimatech Megahalems Rev. B, which we tested some time ago. First you must attach two aluminum bars to the motherboard, screwing them to the backplate.
After that you need to put the cooler in place and attach it to the frame, using a third aluminum bar.
Figure 12: Installed on the motherboard.
Then you install the fans, as you can check in Figure 13.
In Figure 13, you can see the cooler inside our case.
Figure 14: Installed in our case.
[nextpage title=”How We Tested”]
We are adopting the following methodology for our CPU cooler reviews.
First, we chose the CPU with the highest TDP (Thermal Design Power) we had available, a Core 2 Extreme QX6850, which has a 130 W TDP. The choice for a CPU with a high TDP is obvious. To measure the efficiency of the tested cooler, we need a&
nbsp;processor that gets very hot. This CPU works by default at 3.0 GHz, but we overclocked it to 3.33 GHz, in order to heat it as much as possible.
We took noise and temperature measurements with the CPU idle and under full load. In order to achieve 100% CPU load on the four processing cores we ran Prime95 with the "In-place Large FFTs" option, and three instances of the StressCPU program, all at the same time.
We also compared the reviewed cooler to the Intel stock cooler (with copper base), which comes with the processor we used, and also with some other coolers we have tested using the same methodology.
Temperature measurements were taken with a digital thermometer, with the sensor touching the base of the cooler, and also with the core temperature reading (given by the CPU thermal sensor) from the from the SpeedFan program, using an arithmetic average of the four core temperature readings.
The sound pressure level (SPL) was measured with a digital noise meter, with its sensor placed 4" (10 cm) from the fan. We turned off the video board cooler so it wouldn’t interfere with the results, but this measurement is only for comparative purposes, because a precise SPL measurement needs to be made inside an acoustically insulated room with no other noise sources, which is not the case here.
Hardware Configuration
- Processor: Core 2 Extreme QX6850
- Motherboard: Gigabyte EP45-UD3L
- Memory: 4 GB G.Skill F2-6400CL5S-2GBNY (DDR2-800/PC2-6400 with 5-5-5-15 timings), configured at 800 MHz
- Hard drive: 1 TB Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 (ST31000528AS, SATA-300, 7200 rpm, 32 MB buffer)
- Video card: PNY Verto Geforce 9600 GT
- Video resolution: 1680×1050
- Video monitor: Samsung Syncmaster 2232BW Plus
- Power supply required: Seventeam ST-350BKV
- Case: 3RSystem K100
Software Configuration
- Windows XP Professional SP3
Software Used
Error Margin
We adopted a 2 °C error margin, i.e., temperature differences below 2 °C are considered irrelevant.
[nextpage title=”Our Tests”]
On the tables below you can see our results. We ran the same tests with the coolers shown on below tables. Each test ran with the CPU idle and then with the CPU fully loaded. On BigTyp 14Pro, TMG IA1, NH-U12P and ISGC-300 the tests were done with the fan at full speed and at minimum speed. The other coolers were connected directly to the motherboard and it controls the fan speed based on CPU load level and temperature on PWM models. ISGC-400, iCEAGE Prima Boss, Megahalems Rev. B, Thermaltake SpinQ VT, Zalman CNPS10X Flex, Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme, Tuniq Propeller 120 and Zalman VF2000 LED were tested at minimum speed on idle test and at maximum speed on full load test.
CPU Idle |
|||||
Cooler | Room Temp. | Noise | Fan Speed | Base Temp. | Core Temp. |
Intel stock | 14 °C | 44 dBA | 1000 rpm | 31 °C | 42 °C |
BigTyp 14Pro (min) | 17 °C | 47 dBA | 880 rpm | 29 °C | 36 °C |
BigTyp 14Pro (max) | 17 °C | 59 dBA | 1500 rpm | 26 °C | 34 °C |
Akasa Nero | 18 °C | 41 dBA | 500 rpm | 26 °C | 35 °C |
Cooler Master V10 | 14 °C | 44 dBA | 1200 rpm | 21 °C | 26 °C |
TMG IA1 (max) | 16 °C | 47 dBA | 1500 rpm | 22 °C | 30 °C |
TMG IA1 (min) | 16 °C | 57 dBA | 2250 rpm | 21 °C | 30 °C |
Zalman CNPS10X Extreme | 16 °C | 44 dBA | 1200 rpm | 21 °C | 29 °C |
Thermaltake ISGC-100 | 18 °C | 44 dBA | 1450 rpm | 35 °C | 49 °C |
Noctua NH-U12P (low) | 15 °C | 42 dBA | 1000 rpm | 20 °C | 30 °C |
Noctua NH-U12P | 15 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 20 °C | 28 °C |
Noctua NH-C12P | 17 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 23 °C | 28 °C |
Thermaltake ISGC-200 | 21 °C | 43 dBA | 1100 rpm | 31 °C | 35 °C |
Schythe Kabuto | 22 °C | 42 dBA | 800 rpm | 29 °C | 34 °C |
Arctic Cooling Alpine 11 Pro | 20 °C | 43 dBA | 1500 rpm | 32 °C | 39 °C |
ISGC-300 (min) | 18 °C | 42 dBA | 800 rpm | 26 °C | 30 °C |
ISGC-300 (max) | 18 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 24 °C | 26 °C |
SilverStone NT06-E | 21 °C | 66 dBA | 2600 rpm | 30 °C | 41 °C |
Zalman CNPS9700 NT | 22 °C | 48 dBA | 1700 rpm | 28 °C | 35 °C |
Scythe Mugen-2 | 17 °C | 41 dBA | 700 rpm | 25 °C | 30 °C |
ISGC-400 (min) | 17 °C | 44 dBA | 850 rpm | 24 °C | 30 °C |
Cooler Master Vortex 752 | 20 °C | 48 dBA | 1700 rpm | 32 °C | 44 °C |
iCEAGE Prima Boss (min) | 22 °C | 42 dBA | 1000 rpm | 29 °C | 36 °C |
Evercool Buffalo | 17 °C | 51 dBA | 1850 rpm | 22 °C | 29 °C |
Scythe Big Shuriken | 20 °C | 42 dBA | 900 rpm | 31 °C | 39 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper TX3 | 21 °C | 44 dBA | 1700 rpm | 30 °C | 39 °C |
Titan Skalli | 20 °C | 43 dBA | 1200 rpm | 27 °C | 34 °C |
Prolimatech Megahalems Rev. B | 21 °C | 40 dBA | 800 rpm | 28 °C | 32 °C |
Zalman CNPS9900 NT | 23 °C | 45 dBA | 900 rpm | 30 °C | 34 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper N620 | 21 °C | 44 dBA | 1200 rpm | 28 °C | 34 °C |
Nexus LOW-7000 R2 | 23 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 33 °C | 42 °C |
Evercool HPK-10025EA | 20 °C | 54 dBA | 1900 rpm | 27 °C | 34 °C |
Evercool HPH-9525EA | 23 °C | 50 dBA | 1900 rpm | 38 °C | 49 °C |
iCEAGE Prima Boss II | 23 °C | 42 dBA | 1000 rpm | 29 °C | 35 °C |
Thermaltake SpinQ VT | 24 °C | 45 dBA | 950 rpm | 32 °C | 39 °C |
Titan Fenrir | 21 °C | 42 dBA | 950 rpm | 29 °C | 35 °C |
Zalman CNPS 10 Flex | 23 °C | 40 dBA | 800 rpm | 32 °C | 39 °C |
Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme | 24 °C | 43 dBA | 1100 rpm | 30 °C | 37 °C |
Gelid Tranquillo | 22 °C | 41 dBA | 850 rpm | 29 °C | 36 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus | 20 °C | 45 dBA | 1200 rpm | 27 °C | 35 °C |
Spire TherMax Eclipse | 20 °C | 58 dBA | 2300 rpm | < font size="1">25 °C | 34 °C |
Tuniq Propeller 120 | 20 °C | 43 dBA | 1050 rpm | 24 °C | 33 °C |
Nexus VCT-9000 | 20 °C | 44 dBA | 600 rpm | 28 °C | 37 °C |
Coolink Corator DS | 19 °C | 45 dBA | 1050 rpm | 25 °C | 32 °C |
CoolIT ECO | 17 °C | 43 dBA | 900 rpm | – | 32 °C |
Zalman VF2000 LED | 17 °C | 43 dBA | 1300 rpm | 28 °C | 36 °C |
Cooler Master Vortex Plus | 17 °C | 45 dBA | 1400 rpm | 23 °C | 34 °C |
Prolimatech Armageddon | 17 °C | 48 dBA | 1050 rpm | 20 °C | 25 °C |
CPU Fully Loaded |
|||||
Cooler | Room Temp. | Noise | Fan Speed | Base Temp. | Core Temp. |
Intel stock | 14 °C | 48 dBA | 1740 rpm | 42 °C | 100 °C |
BigTyp 14Pro (min) | 17 °C | 47 dBA | 880 rpm | 43 °C | 77 °C |
BigTyp 14Pro (max) | 17 °C | 59 dBA | 1500 rpm | 35 °C | 70 °C |
Akasa Nero | 18 °C | 48 dBA | 1500 rpm | 34 °C | 68 °C |
Cooler Master V10 | 14 °C | 54 dBA | 1900 rpm | 24 °C | 52 °C |
TMG IA1 (max) | 16 °C | 47 dBA | 1500 rpm | 27 °C | 63 °C |
TMG IA1 (min) | 16 °C | 57 dBA | 2250 rpm | 25 °C | 60 °C |
Zalman CNPS10X Extreme | 16 °C | 51 dBA | 1900 rpm | 24 °C | 50 °C |
Thermaltake ISG-100 | 18 °C | 50 dBA | 1800 rpm | 58 °C | 93 °C |
Noctua NH-U12P (low) | 15 °C | 42 dBA | 1000 rpm | 28 °C | 59 °C |
Noctua NH-U12P | 15 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 25 °C | 54 °C |
Noctua NH-C12P | 17 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 37 °C | 76 °C |
Thermaltake ISGC-200 | 21 °C | 48 dBA | 1900 rpm | 42 °C | 68 °C |
Scythe Kabuto | 22 °C | 47 dBA | 1200 rpm | 38 °C | 63 °C |
Arctic Cooling Alpine 11 Pro | 20 °C | 51 dBA | 2300 rpm | 49 °C | 85 °C |
ISGC-300 (min) | 18 °C | 42 dBA | 800 rpm | 36 °C | 64 °C |
ISGC-300 (max) | 18 °C | 46 dBA | 1400 rpm | 31 °C | 56 °C |
SilverStone NT06-E | 21 °C | 66 dBA | 2600 rpm | 39 °C | 96 °C |
Zalman CNPS9700 NT | 22 °C | 56 dBA | 2600 rpm | 34 °C | 63 °C |
Scythe Mugen-2 | 17 °C | 46 dBA | 1300 rpm | 28 °C | 54 °C |
ISGC-400 (max) | 17 °C | 47 dBA | 1400 rpm | 36 °C | 69 °C |
Cooler Master Vortex 752 | 20 °C | 55 dBA | 2300 rpm | 48 °C | 92 °C |
iCEAGE Prima Boss (max) | 22 °C | 53 dBA | 2000 rpm | 35 °C | 59 °C |
Evercool Buffalo | 17 °C | 51 dBA | 1850 rpm | 32 °C | 67 °C |
Scythe Big Shuriken | 20 °C | 50 dBA | 1500 rpm | 51 °C | 85 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper TX3 | 21 °C | 53 dBA | 2700 rpm | 39 °C | 66 °C |
Titan Skalli | 20 °C | 47 dBA | 1550 rpm | 37 °C | 69 °C |
Prolimatech Megahalems Rev. B | 21 °C | 61 dBA | 2600 rpm | 30 °C | 51 °C |
Zalman CNPS9900 NT | 23 °C | 56 dBA | 2000 rpm | 34 °C | 54 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper N620 | 21 °C | 50 dBA | 1650 rpm | 32 °C | 56 °C |
Nexus LOW-7000 R2 | 23 °C | 53 dBA | 1900 rpm | 45 °C | 74 °C |
Evercool HPK-10025EA | 20 °C | 54 dBA | 1900 rpm | 39 °C | 69 °C |
Evercool HPH-9525EA | 23 °C | 50 dBA | 1900 rpm | 58 °C | 100 °C |
iCEAGE Prima Boss II | 23 °C | 56 dBA | 2100 rpm | 32 °C | 56 °C |
Thermaltake SpinQ VT | 24 °C | 52 dBA | 1500 rpm | 40 °C | 68 °C |
Titan Fenrir | 21 °C | 50 dBA | 1600 rpm | 33 °C | 58 °C |
Zalman CNPS 10 Flex | 23 °C | 61 dBA | 2600 rpm | 33 °C | 59 °C |
Tuniq Tower 120 Extreme | 24 °C | 56 dBA | 1900 rpm | 35 °C | 60 °C |
Gelid Tranquillo | 22 °C | 46 dBA | 1450 rpm | 31 °C | 60 °C |
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus | 20 °C | 52 dBA | 1900 rpm | 32 °C | 64 °C |
Spire TherMax Eclipse | 20 °C | 58 dBA | 2300 rpm | 29 °C | 73 °C |
Tuniq Propeller 120 | 20 °C | 55 dBA | 1900 rpm | 36 °C | 68 °C |
Nexus VCT-9000 | 20 °C | 50 dBA | 850 rpm | 43 °C | 88 °C |
Coolink Corator DS | 19 °C | 56 dBA | 1800 rpm | 32 °C | 62 °C |
CoolIT ECO | 17 °C | 54 dBA | 1850 rpm | – | 62 °C |
Zalman NF2000 LED | 17 °C | 51 dBA | 2200 rpm | 43 °C | 97 °C |
Cooler Master Vortex Plus | 17 °C | 57 dBA | 2700 rpm | 33 °C | 78 °C |
Prolimatech Armageddon | 17 °C | 48 dBA | 1050 rpm | 24 °C | 56 °C |
The next graph shows how many degrees Celsius the CPU core was hotter than room temperature during our idle tests.
The next graph gives you an idea on how many degrees Celsius the CPU core was hotter than room temperature during our full load tests.
[nextpage title=”Main Specifications”]
Prolimatech Armageddon main features are:
- Application: Socket LGA1156 and 1366 processors (officially; we could easily install it on our socket LGA775 CPU).
- Fins: Aluminum.
- Base: Copper.
- Heat-pipes: Six copper heat-pipes.
- Fan: Two 140 mm (not included).
- Nominal fan speed: N/A.
- Fan air flow: N/A.
- Maximum power consumption: N/A.
- Nominal noise level: N/A.
- Weight: 1.65 lbs (750 g).
- More information: https://www.prolimatech.com
- Average price in the US*: USD 65.00
* Researched at Amazon.com on the day we published this review.
[nextpage title=”Conclusions”]
When we first look Armageddon we instantly remembered Prolimatech Megahalems, which we tested some time ago. We were not so sure about what to expect: it is thinner than its older brother, but taller. And the placement of the heatpipes, side by side (not in-line as with most tower coolers) made us to expect to achieve an excellent performance with this cooler, but honestly we had second thoughts.
The product advertising puts a lot of focus on its slim design, but this is not a big deal: the cooler with both 140 mm fans installed uses more space inside the case than most "non-slim" coolers. It is also a very tall cooler — the tallest CPU cooler that we’ve tested so far.
It has a good looks, but with no bells and whistles. If it will draw you attention or not will depend on the fans you install. The noise level will depend on the fans as well.
Regarding performance, we think the numbers may not tell the whole story. Armageddon kept our CPU 9 °C hotter than Megahalems (which was the best-performing CPU cooler we’ve tested to date). This means it has a very good performance (better than many good CPU coolers) and we could easily say "forget Armageddon: Megahalems costs the same and is far better". But keep in mind that Megahalems was tested using a 120 mm fan spinning at 2,600 rpm, while Armageddon was tested with two 140 mm fans spinning only at 1,050 rpm. Keep also in mind that Armageddon performed exceptionally well with the CPU idle.
In conclusion, Prolimatech Armageddon is an excellent cooler and must be considered as a good purchase if you have a wide case and can get good-performance 140 mm fans. We are giving it our Silver Award.
Leave a Reply