Enermax ETS-T50 Axe Cooler Review: Solid-Value Air Cooling

[Guest]

With straightforward good looks and no-frills lighting, the ETS-T50 Axe provides solid cooling performance for most modern CPU platforms at a reasonable price.

Enermax ETS-T50 Axe Cooler Review: Solid-Value Air Cooling : Read more

 

[HEXiT]

i like what they have done with the fan shroud as the blades of the fans dont exceed the hight of the cooling fin stack which means in theory the fan is more efficient... but they have lopped out chunks of the cooling surface which means the air will try and flow out of them reducing the effective cooling and air flow over the rest of the cooling stack.

the whole thing could be a great cooler if they just go with straight edges on the fins that butt up directly to the back of the fan. but as it is i would have reservations.

 

[Dark Lord of Tech]

All their coolers look the same , just change a shroud or fan!

 

[HEXiT]

thats a shame then...

 

[dish_moose]

If I recall black body radiators are the best at transferring heat - white may look pretty but ugly is as ugly does - meaning black would have been a more efficient choice.

 

[rubix_1011]

Enermax sent us the product SKU they wanted tested and reviewed, so it was a choice by the manufacturer in this instance.

 

[Krazie_Ivan]

"When the PC boots up, the cooling fan runs a 10-second phase of reverse cycling to help rid the blade surfaces of dust accumulation."
...how much does this actually help? seems like it would, but i've never read any testing. would be great on mobo's especially, & only require a simple bios update to add the option & maybe give it some adjustability.

 

[rubix_1011]

According to their website, it must work in their opinion; http://www.enermax.com/home.php?fn=eng/product_a1_1_1&lv0=49&lv1=50&no=322

The cooler was only installed in our lab test system for a couple days at most, so we don't see the long-term effects for a feature like this. However, if anyone does have the cooler and has some personal insight, I would be willing to hear what it is.

 

[photonboy]

Hexit,
I don't understand your logic about the cut-outs affecting air flow. The holes next to the heat pipes? That's intentional, I assume for turbulence in the way that pits on golf balls make it go further than a flat ball.

Ignoring that for a second, even if the air was diverted to the layer above or below then so what? The air is still passing by a flat heatsink surface and thus pulling away heat.

Besides, what really matters are the TESTS for noise vs cooling and that you have. No need to SPECULATE about performance issues when there is actual data.

 

[HEXiT]

if you look at the front face of the cooler where you attach the fans. there are cut outs

which means theres a gap between the back face of the fan and the front face of the cooling fins. air like water will choose the path of least resistance so if theres a gap the air will try to flow out of that rather than pass through the fins.
if the fins butted directly up against the fan with no gap then the air would have no option but to pass through the fins. which would make the cooler more effective as it would increase the static pressure.

i do like the fact that they have blocked off the sides of the fin stack as this forces the air to flow thought the entire stack instead of it evacuating out the sides. but the gaps in the front face may negate any advantage to cooling that the blocking of the sides should bring.

 

[Olle P]

... the whole thing could be a great cooler if they just go with straight edges on the fins that butt up directly to the back of the fan.

A distance is actually better since it helps the distribution of air between the fins.
A tiny amount of air will probably leave at the gap, but less than you think.

If I recall black body radiators are the best at transferring heat - white may look pretty but ugly is as ugly does - meaning black would have been a more efficient choice.

Mixing apples and pears...
* Black body radiators are very efficient, provided they're hot enough. >1,000 degrees on the surface it's great for cooling in a vacuum environment. Our Sun is a prime example of a black body...
* For convectors, which this cooler is, it's best to have no paint at all, since the paint act as an insulator. Black paint is the worst, since it will absorb radiated energy from the surroundings.

 

[HEXiT]

^^ i guess. but i would still have preferred it blocked off and they went for performance rather than aesthetics.
dont get me wrong it looks cool and performs well, but in a market that is packed with tower coolers you would think every scrap of performance would be priority.

then again im all about functionality over looks. so im probably just being picky 😀