Product(s): Thermolab Baram Heatsink
Provided By: Thermolab
Price:

Introduction: 

It's been a while since I've had a Thermolab cooler on the bench, but today we are going to take the Thermolab Baram for a spin and see how it does. This heatsink is shipped without a fan, so you're going to want to go find a nice 120mm fan to strap on it for optimal cooling. For our testing we are pairing the Baram with the Noctua NH-P12 120mm Fan (Reviewed Here). This fan will cost you ~$20.00 CDN online.

The last coolers we looked at from Thermolab were the Thermolab Nano Silencer (Reviewed Here), and the Thermolab Micro Silencer (Reviewed Here). Neither cooler broke any records for cooling; however they were both very affordable low profile coolers that got the job done. Thermolab isn't known for having big fancy coolers with flashing lights, they have become known for making a cooler that gets the job done and doesn't cost you a fortune.

Let's take a closer look at the Baram and see what it's all about...

 

First Impressions:

Right out of the box I was impressed how sturdy of a heatsink the Baram was, some tower heatpipe coolers can be pretty flimsy (especially the fins), however the Baram seems to be very well built. The design is pretty standard compared to other heatpipe coolers with a couple exceptions thanks to the unique fin design.

Just like the other Thermolab products we're taken a look at, the packaging is very simple and comes in a plain cardboard box.

 

Accessories are pretty standard, and include enough mounting brackets to strap 2 120mm fans onto the Baram. Both Intel and AMD installations require a bracket on the back of the motherboard. Thermolab has also included a tube of thermal paste and you should have enough for a couple installations quite easily.

Well, that's what the Baram is all about; let's see how it performs...

 

 

Thermolab Baram Heatsink Specifications:

All Specifications taken from Thermolab.co.kr

 

BARAM(바람) [baram] has a meaning of 'airflow' in Korean, and is the product for a cooling mania who is expecting to have a supreme cooling performance.

BARAM is a heat pipe cooler used for CPU, designed in an optimal aerothermodynamic structure.

 

Applicable CPU's

• Socket Standards : Intel Socket 775, 1366CPUs, AMD Socket AM2+/AM2 CPUs
• Thermal Design Power of CPU : Max 250 Watt

 

Specification

Product Name BARAM Dimension 67 × 132 × 160 (L x W x H)mm Weight 625g Heatsink Material Pure Copper, Aliminum Dissipation Area 7,580 cm²

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thermolab Baram Heatsink - Testing and Installation:

Installation is pretty straightforward for both AM2 and Intel LGA775, although both require you to remove the motherboard to install the bracket on the back of the motherboard.

Installation complete, let's see how the Baram performs:

Testing:

Test Setup:

We've recently re-designed our Cooler testing setup to show how new coolers are able to handle the new quad-core CPU's from both AMD and Intel, which produce more heat than traditional Dual and Single Core CPU's. We will be providing test results from both a Intel Quad Core processor (LGA775), as well as a AMD Phenom X4 CPU (AM2+) in all our reviews to give readers a better estimate of how this cooler will work on their CPU, as well as a better estimate of what the cooler being reviewed is capable of.

For Intel (LGA775) testing we will be using the Intel Quad Core Q9400 CPU, which produces 95 Watts of heat. This could be considered a mid-range processor, and while most Dual-Core processors produce ~50-80 Watts of heat, this should give you a pretty accurate estimate of what type of temperatures a cooler will provide you with. Click here to go to Intel's Processor Spec Finder website to find out how many watts of heat your Intel processor produces.

For AMD (AM2+) testing we will be using the AMD Phenom X4 Quad-Core 9950 CPU, which produces 140 Watts of heat and is currently one of the hottest running processors available. This processor should give us a very good estimate of how a cooler will perform with one of the hottest CPU's available. Click here to go to AMD's Processor Spec Finder to find out how many of watts your AMD processor is producing.

For both AMD and Intel testing, we have taken all temperatures using CoreTemp v.0.99.4. CoreTemp takes a temperature from the CPU core, and allows for much more uniform results across different motherboard and CPU platforms. These temperatures may seem higher than other temperature recordings; because chances are they are taking temperature recordings using the diode underneath the CPU, which isn't able to be as accurate, and can really fluctuate between different brands of motherboards.

For all tests we are using the Highspeed PC Top Deck Tech Station, and we are using no additional cooling in our testing. All temperatures are recorded in a controlled environment that is set to 23 degrees Celsius (73.4 Fahrenheit) to provide fair results between coolers.

For all tests we use Arctic Cooling MX-2 High-Performance Thermal Compound (Paste), We use the same thermal paste in all our testing so that we can keep our results consistent. If a cooler is shipped with thermal paste pre-applied, it will be removed and we will re-apply it with Arctic Cooling MX-2 to provide fair results.

Intel Test System:

• Intel Quad Core Q9400 (2.66Ghz) - Provided by Intel
• ASRock P45R2000 Motherboard - Provided by ASRock
• ATI Radeon HD2600
• 4 GB Kit of Crucial Ballistix Tracer PC2-8500 Memory - Provided By Crucial
• Western Digital 250 gig (16 MB Cache)
• Generic 400 Watt Power Supply

 

AMD Test System:

• AMD Phenom X4 Quad Core 9950 (2.6 Ghz)
• Gigabyte GA-M790FX-DQ6 Motherboard
• ATI Radeon HD2400
• 2 GB Kit Crucial Ballistix PC2-8500 Memory - Provided By Crucial
• Seagate Barracuda 500GB Hard Drive
• Generic 400 Watt Power Supply
• HSPC Top Deck Tech Station - Provided by Xoxide

 

Let's see how the Baram compares:

 

Click on Chart for Larger View

 

 

In the first test (Intel LGA775) the results are pretty decent compared to stock cooling, with almost a 10 degree decrease under full load. Also while reducing the temps it also significantly reduces the noise thanks to the Baram's 120mm fan.

 

Click on Chart for Larger View

 

The second test is much like the first, with a good 10+ degree decrease in temps under full load, and a 10 degree drop in idle temps. The Baram is rated for 250 watts (although no processor produces much over 140 watts), and with a toasty hot processor like the AMD X4 9950 it really showed that it can handle the heat without a problem.

Unfortunately we don't have any other coolers to compare the Baram with yet; however in the coming weeks and months we will have a very nice database of coolers for comparison, so make sure to keep checking out our cooler reviews as we will have all this data plus more coolers to compare with.

 

 

Thermolab Baram Heatsink Final Thoughts:

The last couple products we reviewed from Thermolab haven't performed all that great, but the Baram is a different story. This heatsink performs well, even when cooling the AMD X4 9950 that kicks out 140 watts of heat, and under full load lowered our temperatures at least 10 degress Celsius from stock cooling. The Baram isn't a flashy cooler, it doesn't have lights or any gimmicks (even the box isn't flashy), but it gets the job done.

The installation on both AM2 and Intel LGA 775 systems was pretty straightforward, both platforms require you to remove your motherboard, but you should have no troubles getting this heatsink installed on either.

I don't have any major complains about the Baram. This cooler isn't a "cheap" cooler, as the heatsink alone is going to run you ~$50.00 USD online, and then when you strap on a nice 120mm fan (The Noctua fan we used is ~$15.00 USD) you are going to be in the $60-$70 dollar range, which makes it one of the more expensive air coolers.

At the end of the day I'm very happy with the Baram heatsink, and once you combine this heatsink with a nice 120mm fan of your choice you'll have a very nice cooling solution that will be both quiet and reliable. The Thermolab Baram has earned our "Top Pick" award thanks to its good performance and high quality construction. If you're looking for a new cooler, you'll want to check out the Thermolab Baram.

 

Pros:

• Good Performance
• High Quality Construction

 

Cons:

• Nothing Major

 

 

 

I'd like to thank Thermolab for sending us the Baram. If you have any questions, comments, or general feedback, please leave it at the "Comments" link below.