Prolimatech Lynx CPU Cooler Review

[siopao1984]

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It was only four years ago when Prolimatech was founded and the company initially offered only a single CPU cooler, the Megahalems. That single cooler however was good enough to make Prolimatech famous among enthusiast cycles and allow the company to establish a good foothold in the industry. Today we will examine and review something new and different from Prolimatech, the Lynx. The Lynx is not a massive cooler designed to win over hardcore enthusiasts but an entry-level cooler, primarily designed to compete against other basic products and replace the stock CPU coolers. The specifications of the Lynx however are very interesting considering this is meant to be compact, simple and cheap CPU cooler; we will soon see just how many surprises this product holds. Manufacturer features and specifications

• Three high quality nickel plated heatpipes for effective heat
• Equipped with one 120x120x25mm PWM fan (800~1600 rpm).
• Option for adding 2nd fan to maximize cooling performance.
• Flexible mounting kits for Intel socket LGA 1155/1156 and AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3
• Compact tower cooler, perfect for small chassis.

Heatsink Dimension	(L)118mm X (W)70mm X (H)159.5mm
Heatsink Weight	400 g(heatsink body only)
including Fan	120 x 120 x 25 mm Black PWM fan
CPU Platform	Intel Socket LGA 1156/1155 , AMD Socket AM2/2+/3/3+

Read more: Prolimatech Lynx CPU Cooler Review by VR-Zone.com

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The Lynx comes supplied inside a compact but relatively fancy and sturdy cardboard box. The artwork on the box is not excessive, mainly revolving around a picture of the cooler itself and a silver sketching of a large feline.



Everything is tightly packed inside the small box. The cooler is wrapped in a nylon bag and takes up the middle of the box, sandwiched between the cooling fan and the box with the included bundle.



As expected from an entry-level product, the bundle supplied with the Lynx is minimal. Besides the very basic installation manual, a large sticker and a tube with thermal compound, only two plastic retention backplates and the required installation hardware are supplied.

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Prolimatech’s Lynx is unlike any other of their coolers we have seen to date. When enthusiasts hear the name “Prolimatech”, complex towering constructs instantly come in mind. The Lynx might be a tower cooler but it also is surprisingly compact and frugal. It is unusually narrow, measuring only 28mm wide, about the depth of the cooling fan supplied with the cooler; however the Lynx is quite tall, measuring 160mm in height, making it unsuitable for use with low-profile PC cases.



With the cooler being very narrow, the surface of the cooling fins is limited. In order to counteract the lack of space, Prolimatech made the fins very thin, increasing their numbers and heat dissipation capabilities. The fins are mechanically attached to each other at all four edges, keeping them from getting easily bent.



Three 6mm copper heatpipes run though the base of the Lynx, transferring the heat generated by the CPU to the aluminum fins. The heatpipes are nickel plated, matching the color theme of the rest of the cooler.



The lower part of the cooler’s base is made out of nickel plated copper and is very smooth, although not machined down to a mirror finish, while the rest of the base is made out of solid aluminum. Although the base of the cooler appears exceptionally well made and very smooth, it is strange that we found it slightly discolored by what later proved to be persistent residue from the warning sticker. Normally, warning stickers are not supposed to leave any kind of residue once removed.



The fan supplied with the Lynx is an aesthetically neutral black 120mm fan. The fan is PWM controller and can have its speed adjusted between 800RPM and 1600RPM by your motherboard’s BIOS. We could not trace the OEM of the fan but after dismantling the fan we found out that it was using a simple but well made sleeve bearing engine.

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The installation of the Prolimatech Lynx cooler is not difficult, although it requires the removal of the motherboard from the case and the overall procedure might feel a little too complex to beginners. The AMD socket (AM2/AM3/FM1) installation is demonstrated in this review.

In order for the Lynx to be installed onto an AMD socket, the AMD retention braces need to be screwed on the base of the cooler. Unlike the retention braces intended for Intel processors, the AMD braces need to be facing inwards, towards the body of the cooler. The braces are easily secured by using a common Philips screwdriver.



The second step is the installation of the cooler on the CPU. After applying a thin film of thermal compound on the CPU, the user needs to place the AMD retention backplate into place and the cooling body onto the CPU core. Finally, four spring loaded screws are being used to fasten the cooler on the backplate, firmly securing the cooler on the CPU. However, significant pressure is required for the spring loaded screws to reach the backplate, meaning that it would prove very difficult to install this cooler if the motherboard is still inside a case, even if the case has the motherboard tray cut open.



After the cooler is firmly secured on the CPU, the only pending task is the installation of the cooling fan. This is an easy task, as the fan is simply held onto the cooler’s body by using small wire clips. Even with the fan installed the Lynx is very narrow and will not come near any of the RAM slots, allowing the installation of virtually any kind of RAM module regardless of their height.

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In order to provide you with the most professional and accurate reviews, we are using the following equipment to test the performance of coolers. The system automatically calculates the Delta T temperature, which is the difference between the ambient temperature and the temperature at the top of the thermal core. We test each cooler with the included thermal grease.

• Custom copper thermal core with automatic power controls
• Watlow heat generation rods
• PT100 temperature sensors
• Lutron DW-6091 Power Analyzer
• SL-5868P digital sound level meter
• CompuLAB interface
• MyPClab thermal interface
• Custom calibration box
• Custom software

More information about our testing equipment and methodology can be found in this article.



Considering the design and class of the Lynx cooler, it actually performed quite well. Of course it can hardly compete against “monster” tower coolers but it was never meant to be; the Lynx has been designed as an upgrade over stock coolers for entry level performance enhancements. Against the stock AMD X4 955 cooler, which is even considered to be one of the better stock coolers available, the Lynx offers massive acoustics and thermal performance improvement. Operating temperatures are reduced by 10-20% (depending on the thermal load) and noise is cut down by 18.2dB(A), a tremendous figure.

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Quality (30% of the total score)

As enthusiasts have come to expect from Prolimatech, the Lynx is an exceptionally well made product down to the smallest details. The materials used are of high quality and the manufacturing process appears to be very precise, leaving no imperfections to talk about. Prolimatech reinforced the edges of the fins in order to keep them from bending and the cooler’s base is machined nearly perfectly. Even the retention braces are thick enough to withstand many times more stress than they ever were intended to. Despite its narrow size, little weight and thin aluminum fins, the Lynx is surprisingly strong mechanically as well. In our view, only the cleanliness of the cooler’s base could have been improved, although the residue of our sample could have been just because someone fiddled with it before shipping.

Quality Score 9.5/10



Performance (40% of the total score)

Performance wise, the Prolimatech Lynx is not going to break any records but it definitely meets the demands of the target group the company designed it to satisfy. It cannot outperform much larger and considerably more expensive solutions but it vastly surpasses the capabilities of stock coolers, both thermally and acoustically. Our only complaint lies with the installation process, which is a little complex for beginners. Installation also requires a significant amount of force, making it even more frustrating for people with little or no experience on computer assembling.

Performance Score 8.5/10



Aesthetics (20% of the total score)

Prolimatech certainly tried to make the Lynx as aesthetically attractive as possible, considering this is an entry level cooler of course. The design of the Lynx is simple and straightforward, which is not a bad thing for users who enjoy modesty and elegance over fancy looks.

Aesthetics Score 9.0/10



Value (10% of the total score)

The retail value of the Lynx is most likely the Achilles’ heel of this product. This cooler can be found retailing for about 28€ (37 USD / 45 SGD) at the time of this review, a price which is relatively high considering the competition and the class of this cooler. It also cannot be used on socket 1366 and 775, while socket 2011 requires special mounting hardware sold separately. Socket 2011 users would probably not lay their eyes upon a cooler of this league, yet we believe that lacking support for socket 775 CPUs, the perhaps most successful socket in the history of personal computing, is a significant flaw. The saving grace of this product is the full bundle (good cooling fan, sizable tube of thermal grease) which accompanies the cooler.

Value Score 7.5/10

[philcarr]

very informative... thanks