Prolimatech Megahalems Revision C CPU Cooler Review

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Undoubtedly Megahalems, the first CPU cooler which Prolimatech released in 2008, is largely responsible for the high reputation of the company among enthusiasts and their highly successful market penetration despite the steep competition. Today we are going to test and review the third revision of the Megahalems CPU cooler which, despite the virtually unchanged design and physical dimensions, the cooler today can be installed on virtually all recent Intel and AMD CPUs.Manufacturer features and specifications

• Top fin made of scratch-resistant Stainless Steel to preserve shine.
• Minimal air resistance between fins allowing best balance between noise and performance. For all out performance, fan RPM at 1600 or above is recommended.
• Heatpipes are lined up in a straight line to prevent air back draft allowing air to easily pass through the heatsink body.
• Wide gaps between fins with mathematically calculated thickness to maximize best air-to-surface cooling rate.
• Easy-to-install retention mechanism for LGA 775, 1366, 1155, 1156 and 2011 and AM2/AM2+/AM3/AM3+.
• Includes easy-to-apply high grade thermal compound, a perfect sidekick to all Prolimatech heatsinks.
• New Universal Backplate to support all Intel platforms.
• Two sets of fan clips for a duo-fan installation.

Heatsink Dimension	(L)130mm X (W)74mmX (H)158.7mm
Heatsink Weight	790 g
Heatpipe	Ø 6mm X 6pcs
Suggest Fan	120mm X 120mm X 25mm 140mm X140mm X25mm
Suggest Noise Level (dBA)	Below 26dBA
Air Flow	57 CFM
Direction of heatsink	Faces the rear exhaust system fan
CPU Platform	Intel Socket LGA 775/1366/1156/1155/2011 AMD Socket AM2/2+/3/3+

Read more: Prolimatech Megahalems Revision C CPU Cooler Review by VR-Zone.com

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Prolimatech supplies the latest revision of the Megahalems CPU cooler inside a fairly large cardboard box with simplistic but fairly well designed artwork. The most important features of the cooler can be found inscribed around the sides of the box; however shop browsers would have liked a more complete view of the cooler itself.



Inside the box we found the cooler well secured between two thick polystyrene foam pieces and wrapped inside a nylon bag. The bundled items are packed inside a secondary rectangular cardboard box.



The bundle may not be very special but it certainly comes well presented. The company supplies a rather basic installation manual, a large case sticker with the company logo, a tube of high quality thermal compound, wire clips for the cooling fans and mounting hardware for the installation of the cooler on every modern consumer CPU socket.

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Prolimatech’s Megahalems Revision C is a dual tower cooler of significant proportions. Although its size will not rival some of the latest super-cooler designs we encountered from other manufacturers, it definitely is greater than the vast majority of the high performance CPU coolers currently available. In order to improve the aesthetic value of their product Prolimatech nickel-plated every copper part of the cooler, as well as the top aluminum fin which now creates a mirror-like effect.



Much like with all such designs available today, the contact base and heatpipes of the Megahalems are made out of copper while the heat dissipation fins are all made out of aluminum. The fins are thin but they are connected to each other, making them very resilient to mechanical stresses expected during the handling and installation of this product. While the fins are very thin, the space between them is approximately 4 times wider than a fin’s width, minimizing noise due to air turbulence.



Six thick 6mm ID heatpipes are moving through the base of the cooler and transfer the heat generated by the CPU to each side of the cooler. The company nickel plated the heatpipes, enhancing the aesthetics of their design but also protecting the soft copper from long term oxidation/corrosion damage.



The base of the Megahalems cooler is very smooth and virtually flawless; however the company did not bother polishing the base down to a perfect mirror finish. It is highly unlikely that such measures would increase the actual performance of the cooler by any measurable figure and it would definitely do nothing to help with the appearance of the cooler once it is installed, which explains why the company did not waste time and/or resources over this.

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Although the installation of the Megahalems is not overly difficult, it definitely requires tools and a fair amount of time. First time installers should take it slow and read the installation manual carefully. AMD socket users will have to remove the plastic retention bracket from their motherboard, leaving however the stock backplate into place. The metallic retention bracket provided by Prolimatech should then be secured at the top of the motherboard by using the proper thumbscrews. The thumbscrews make it easy to install the cooler with the motherboard still inside the case, given that the motherboard tray is cut open behind the CPU area of course, however we recommend tightening them a little harder by using a common Philips screwdriver once all four screws are installed.



Once the retention bracket is in place, the user only has to apply a thin layer of thermal compound on the CPU and place the cooler on it, tightening the thick black aluminum retention bar with the provided spring screws. One of the major improvements over the previous revision is that now the spring screws do not interfere with the installation of 140mm fans.



Finally, the fans need to be secured with the wire clips. Note that Prolimatech does NOT supply any fans with the purchase of this cooler by default. We installed two Blue Vortex 12 LED 120mm 1600RPM fans as they were supplied to us by the company for illustration and testing purposes. The end user may freely choose any 120/140 mm fan(s); however we would recommend the installation of 120mm fans as 140mm fans might improve performance slightly but they are larger than the cooling body, looking “out of place” and ruining the aesthetic value of the Megahalems. It also is interesting to note that despite the size of the Megahalems, the cooler leaves the RAM slots clear and the users with the option to freely install tall RAM modules.

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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.



The latest revision of Prolimatech’s Megahalems did not make it at the top of our charts; at least not with the 120mm fans we used. More powerful fans could improve the cooling performance of the massive cooler slightly, allowing it to outpace the competition. At the same time however, the acoustics performance of this particular model is considerably superior to that of other coolers offering similar thermal performance, even with two 120mm 1600RPM fans installed.

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Quality (30% of the total score)

When it comes to quality, the reputation of the Megahalems cooler alone is enough to disperse any doubts. Largely unchanged since its first revision in 2008 and despite all the technological advancement and new products, the Megahalems Rev C is still a very carefully designed and fabricated cooler. The Megahalems is free of any manufacturing imperfections, sharp edges or mechanically weak spots, making it one of the most durable and well made coolers we have ever seen.

Quality Score 10/10



Performance (40% of the total score)

Since Prolimatech ships the Megahalems without any fans included, the performance of the cooler obviously depends on the fan(s) installed. For maximum performance, the company recommends the use of 1600RPM fans – and for a good reason. While our fans were running at 1600RPM, the Megahalems offered exceptionally high thermal performance which easily compares to some of the best coolers we have ever tested; however, once we dropped the speed of both fans down to a silent 900RPM thermal performance took a massive hit, rising up to nearly 44°C from 30°C. Clearly, the Megahalems is a high performance cooler designed for hardcore enthusiasts and which requires high airflow in order to perform comparatively well. However, since the high airflow design of the Megahalems creates little air pressure noise, high speed fans can operate at measurably lower noise levels than if installed on other coolers.

Performance Score 9.0/10



Aesthetics (20% of the total score)

Nickel plated heatpipes, nickel plated and etched top aluminum fin, plus immaculate finish…it is obvious that Prolimatech spent a lot of time and effort trying to make this cooler as aesthetically appealing as possible. Aesthetics will also be affected by the fan(s) the user is going to install, allowing modders to choose those they find mostly suitable for their theme. Lanparty attendees and hardcore modders will love the nickel plated top of the Megahalems; a single wipe and it becomes all new again.

Aesthetics Score 10 /10



Value (10% of the total score)

High performance, excellent quality, awesome aesthetics…almost too perfect to be true, was it not? There is a catch however and that is the retail price of the Megahalems Revision C. Prolimatech’s most famous cooler retails for 70 USD (87 SGD) at the time of this review, a price higher than that of most competitive products. Add at least one high quality cooling fan (which is not supplied with the Megahalems) and you are about to reach the retail price of Corsair’s H100 ready-to-run watercooler. Of course it is not nearly as complex as a watercooling solution neither it requires as much space; yet performance maniacs would certainly be driven towards it. The saving grace of the Megahalems is the exceptional versatility of the cooling body, which can be installed on virtually any consumer CPU currently available.

Value Score 7.5/10