Overall and Final Verdict

I will admit I would like to retest the Black Edition in the proper orientation at some point but again, I am not looking forward to the installation. While it did preform admirably in several areas even at a handicap it isn’t completely without blame. The unique arrangement of the heatpipes sits so low that without sufficient space around the CPU socket you are forced to face it in a different direction that is optimal for performance. This completely eliminates any gains that may have been achieved.

The Black Edition was a pleasant surprise after all of the wrestling and hoops I had to jump through to get it installed. The quiet operation and equal performance in a smaller package are certainly upsides to look at. However, the space required by the heatpipe arrangement coupled with the bear of an installation leave me with less the pleasant feelings.

Author Bio

Author: William

Review and Event Staff

William is the newest addition to both the Review and Event staff. Being in charge of power, hopefully you have to see very little of him during our lans. Outside of lans he can be found engaging in his unhealthy obsession with all things gaming in between writing the odd review and bothering Wes at all hours of the day. An avid gamer nearly all his life, it is common for the latest MMO release to cause him to drop off the face of the Earth for a week or two.