A few days ago I posted my review of the JetArt VC2600 VGA Cooler, which I was very happy with. I have decided to roll the HDD and CPU Cooler Reviews into one as the HDD Cooler review is fairly short.
JetArt HCA06 HDD Cooler Review
The HDD cooler is quite simple, attaching to the HDD with four screws and powered by a molex plug. Included in the package is the cooler and 4 screws.
The cooler is specifically designed for a standard 3.5? HDD, and is screwed onto the bottom of the drive.
It doesn?t extend over the sides of the HDD, so you shouldn?t have any trouble fitting the HDD back into the HDD bay.
The molex power connector has a passthrough plug on it so you it doesn?t take up another plug. Simply connect the HDD cooler molex to your HDD, and then the molex from your power supply to the other end.
Before installing the JetArt HDD Cooler my HDD, a 250GB Samsung 7200RPM, my temperatures (measured using SpeedFan) were normally around 27C, which is by no means high. But with the cooler that has dropped to a chilly 17C! It is also very quite, and I noticed no increase in noise from the PC with the cooler installed.
I am very happy with the JetArt HCA06 HDD Cooler, and would recommend it particularly if your HDDs are running a bit too hot.
For pricing and purchase details please contact JetArt at their website.
What I Like: Significant temperature drop, very quiet, easy to install
What I Dislike: Nothing, it works just great!
JetArt SL1800 CPU Cooler Review
One thing I was particularly interested in doing with my cheap PC was some overclocking. I have never really done it because I was afraid of screwing up my hardware. I have been even more reluctant recently to do it with my good desktop as it is just running so perfectly. As my recent experience with my Apple Airport Extreme update has taught me, don?t mess with a good thing?
But with my cheap PC, I could overclock to my hearts content. If I overclocked a bit too far and it somehow damaged the CPU, or it overheated, it was only AU$59 so not the greatest loss. The stock Intel cooler was quite good at keeping the temps down at both stock and overclocked speeds, and I was hoping the JetArt would help keep them even lower.
The stock Intel cooler is identical to the one on my Pentium D, and on the Core 2 Duo that I recently installed in a friends PC (that I put together for him). Funny that the top chip includes the same cooler (and an identical box) as the cheapest of cheap Intel CPUs 😛
First step was to remove the original cooler. With the stock Intel one it?s very easy. There are four clips that twist and pop out easily. You can then gently twist it back and forth to release the thermal paste. Clean off the residual.
Installing the JetArt cooler is similar to other 3rd party models, requiring the motherboard to be removed to install a mounting bracket on the back. The JetArt includes a 4 pronged piece that pokes through the mounting holes.
Poke the bracket through the holes, and flip the motherboard over.
Now for the cooler itself. As you can see, the JetArt SL1800 is MUCH smaller than the stock Intel cooler. It is a made of copper with a small fan on top.
Before you install the cooler you need to apply some new thermal paste. Spread the paste out in a thin layer across the CPU.
–The cooler has a blue film over the CPU contact point which needs to be removed before installation. It doesn?t have the nice shiny surface of the VC2600 Graphics cooler, but you will likely never see this side of it again 😛
The cooler lines up with the four spokes from the mounting bracket. Lower it down on the CPU.
Now this is the fun part. The screws have springs on them to ensure that they stay tight when screwed down. The problem with this is during the installation you need to press particularly hard to get the screw to grip on the spokes. I had the feeling that I would have a similar mishap that I did installing the graphics cooler.
Fortunately I managed to get all 4 in without incident. Just be careful and patient 😉
All that is left is to connect the fan to your motherboard. It should connect to the same point that the old fan did.
The JetArt cooler performed very well, under both standard and overclocked conditions. At standard clocks (2.8Ghz) with the Intel cooler the temperature was usually about 35C, which dropped to 29C with the JetArt. Not bad considering the smaller size. I saw a better improvement when overclocking. With the Celeron up to 3.35Ghz (yes, 550Mhz over!) I saw a drop of 10C, from 50C down to 40C. From what I have read about the 336 it can go up to 3.57Ghz stable so I will certainly be pushing it further.
One issue I have had with the JetArt is that the fans spin at high speed constantly which is rather noisy. I?m not sure if it is to do with my motherboard (AsRock 775Dual-VSTA), but the Intel cooler slows and speeds up based on temperature. I will see if a BIOS update fixes it (I current have the latest).
Other than that I am very happy with the JetArt CPU Cooler. It performs well, and is excellent if you are into overclocking. Its compact size would make it perfect for motherboards that have capacitors and other components close the the CPU socket.
For pricing and purchase details please contact JetArt at their website.
What I Like: Compact design, excellent cooling ability even when overclocking
What I Dislike: Fan runs at full speed all the time (may be a mobo issue though), installation can be fiddly.
So it’s quiet? Or was the fan’s sound drowned out by other fans, drives, etc. in the case? I always like to add more cooling, but have always experienced an increase in noise when adding more fans.