Thermolab are bringing years of cooling expertise to the table with the Baram. Let’s see how it does.
Product on Review: Thermolab Baram CPU coolerManufacturer and Sponsor: Thermolab Co. Ltd.
MSRP: Not Specified
Street Price: £32.99
Thermolab is probably not a name you have heard before amongst the plethora of high end brands such as Noctua, Thermalright, Zalman, Coolermaster etc dominating the cooling market. But Thermolab is no stranger to effective cooling and have been in the business long enough to know the ins and out of how to make a good cooling solution. The reason you may not have heard of them is probably due to the way they operate. In the past years since they were set up, they have strived to create the best possible cooling designs with many patents safeguarding their unique ideas. It has only been in the last year that they decided to put those hours of research into releasing the Baram, which we will be looking at today.
If you have looked at the previous CoolIT Domino A.L.C review, then you will already know what the Baram has in store for us. For those who haven’t, stay tuned for quite a surprise. Thermolab have gone for a fairly typical heatsink tower design but they have subtle unique touches that effectively puts it in the high end air cooling league, not an easy feat by any means. Baram in Korean means “air flow” so the product is evidently geared towards that.
First a little bit of on Thermolab’s history:
2008
August Released AM2, AM2+ Clip Set for Nano Silencer
March Released slim cooler for Micro Silencer- socket775 (Height 59mm, Weight 276g)
March Released slim cooler for Nano Silencer- socket775 (Height 39mm , Weight 214g)
2007
June Patent application: Heat pipe test equipment
June Patent application: Heat exchanger
June Patent application: Heat pipe heat sink and its manufacturing method
May Create manufacturing infrastructure for heat pipe heat sink and extruded heat sink
May Thermal product: Released high performance thermal grease TL5-H(8W/mK)
April Thermal test equipment: Released automatic test equipment for heat sink thermal resistance TLS-M
January Thermal Design : UMPC Thermal Solution
2006
November Thermal design: low noise cooling module for special equipment
August Thermal design: low noise thermal solution and cooling module for home server
July Patent application: Developed safe operation method of temperature sensor for spring cooler
June Thermal design: Improvement of air current and cooling module for VOIP server
February Thermal design: Developed heat collection plate of heat pipes for automatic spreading fire extinguishers
January Patent application: Automatic temperature controller and its method
2005
December Patent application: Cooling device inbedded print circuit board and its manufacturing method
December Patent application: Heat pipe structure equipped with Louver Fin
December Selected as Gyunggi internet trade frontier enterprise
September Developed and delivered cooler heat resistance test equipment for PC
June Thermal design: Cooling module of compressed air for oxygen generator
June Thermal design: Fanless solution for built-in PC
May Registered factory
April Thermal design: Developed cooling module of power LED for projection TV
April Selected as an Industry Family (By Gyunggi Small & Medium Business Supporting Center)
March Changed over to a corporation body as ThermoLab Co., Ltd.
2004
September Developed high efficient Louver Fin heat pipe cooler
September Thermal design: Fanless solution for IP TV
April Developed water cooling set for PC March Developed air cooling cooler equipped with micro heat pipe of 1.8 phi.
March Established ThermoLab(Private company)
2003
October Registered patent: Reciprocate pump without take-in & exhaust valve and heat exchanger equipped with it
October Registered patent: Slim type heat exchanger
September Completed development of DC pump using power device for PC.
Thermolab are based in South Korea and judging from their history, they have had a lot of success through innovation in the past. Let’s see how this translates into real world performance!
Features and Specifications
Features1. With the efficient heat pipe arrangement, maximized the thermal distribution effects.
2. Optimum fin structure to minimize air resistance intaken.
3. Optimized fin pitch for axial Fan
4. The air tunnel formed inside the stack-heatsink fins accelerates the airflow.
Specifications
Supported Processors
•Intel 775/1366
•AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3
Physical Specifications
•Dimensions: 67 x 132 x 160 mm (L x W x H)
•Weight: 625 g
•Dissipation area: 7,580cm2
1.Heatsink- 1EA (BARAM)
2.Smart Clip – 4EA (2 x 2EA)
3.Fixing Bolts for Smart Clip – 5EA (4EA+spare 1EA)
4.BackPlate – 1EA
5.Fixing Bolts for Heatsink – 5EA (4EA+spare 1EA)
6.Rubber Pad – 1EA (For LGA775, AM2,AM2+,AM3)
7.Insulation Washer – 1Set (4EA+spare 4EA)
8.Thermal Grease – 1EA
9.Hand Nut – 5EA (4EA + spare 1EA)
10.Fan wire clip – 4EA(2Set)
As with most modern heatsink tower design, Thermolab employs the use of copper heat pipes and aluminium fins for the best thermal conductivity. The heatsink is fairly large but should be easily accommodated in most ATX cases. What set the Baram apart from the competition are its unconventional features that aid in creating a much greater surface area for heat dissipation, in such a way that the streamlined air flow transfers heat more effectively as well. The alternating circular fin plate design along with the heat pipe structure aim to do just that. Rather than creating a bigger cooler, Thermolab are refining a tried and tested design while keeping it very user friendly and accessible within the case.
Packaging
The box in which the heatsink comes packaged
The packaging in which the Thermolab Baram comes in is simplistic but very professional looking. The first impression you get from looking at it is that they mean business. The box is fairly typical for computer components whereby the front flap has to be removed from the side inserts first so that the whole cover can then open. Inside the box the heatsink is covered by another pre-fitted piece of cardboard that is compartmentalised to also retain the provided bundle securely.
Side of the box
On the side of the box is listed some of the specifications. Thermolab have worked hard to ensure compatibility with all recent AMD/Intel mounting holes. As mentioned, the heatsink does not include a fan but in some ways, it allows the user to buy their own one based on their preference rather than paying extra for a pre-included fan that would be of no use.
The bundle including some useful spare screws
Thermolab provides all the necessities with the Baram heatsink. The metal motherboard back plate accommodates for the most recent sockets from both Intel and AMD. For motherboards that don’t already have a pre-fitted plate for the mounting mechanism, a rubber pad is provided. Along with all the screws (1 spare for each), there are 4 wire clips to hold up to 2 fans for some push/pull air flow. As standard, there is a tube of thermal paste bundled and as seen from the previous reviews, it performs quite well. The installation manual is a mere sheet of paper with some instructions and despite that, it makes installing the heatsink very easy. (Note: the original Baram heatsink had a more complicated manual and installation was a pain)
The heatsink
The heatsink stand fairly tall at 160mm putting it 2mm that the Noctua NH-U12P. It is a very attractive design using a blend of curves and flat finish on the fin plates. This produces a shiny mirror like finish. The contrast of the silver aluminium against the copper heat pipes refrains it from being dull on the eyes.
Closer Look
The copper heat pipes protrude at the top
The distribution of the heat pipes isn’t for mere aesthetic reasons, they help create a larger surface area on the plates onto to which the heat can be transferred. The annotations shown previously demonstrate how Thermolab aims to achieve higher heat dissipation.
The fins are arranged in such a way as to maximise air flow
Again, Thermolab breaks away from the conventional tightly and evenly spaced fins to increase airflow. By making the fin spacing closer towards the middle where the fan generates the greatest airflow, it means that the heatsink can make do with larger spaced fins at the top and bottom where turbulence might have otherwise been created.
The holes are where the mounting “smart clips” are attached
The base of the heat sink has a flat mirror finish for maximum surface contact with the processor once installed. The heat pipes are very close to the base to enable more effective heat transfer.
The heat pipes have large diameters for efficient heat transfer
The 5 heat pipes bend in various directions to create the pattern found at the top. Somehow Thermolab managed to cram those 5 thick heat pipes in the base, ensuring they make the most out of the space available.
Installed nicely and securely
Once installed, it does dominate the inside of the computer as one of the largest component. Thankfully though, it does not get in the way of the RAM or the other components. The Thermolab Baram will be tested with 2 Noctua fans attached.
Note: Photos courtesy of Dave Mitchelson
Test Setup
CPU – Intel Core i7 920 – 4.0ghz
RAM – 6GB (3x2GB) OCZ platinum DDR3 1333mhz
Motherboard – Biostar T-Power x58
Graphics card – Gainward 896MB GTX260 216
Power Supply – Enermax Revolution 85+ 850W
Hard Drive – Samsung F1 320GB
Western Digital Caviar WD3200AAKS 320GB
Drivers – ForceWare 185.66
CPU Coolers:
Noctua NH-U12P SE1366
Thermolab Baram (with 2 Noctua NF-P12 fans)
CoolIT Domino A.L.C
Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer
Program Suite:
Core Temp 0.99.5
LinX stress Test
PC Wizard
How I tested:
Testing will be based on temperatures recorded by Coretemp and PC wizard after 20 passes of LinX stress test. The absolute temperatures recorded in the tables are averages of the 4 cores and the delta value provided for a fair comparison, taking into account ambient temperatures. The test will be run at stock speed and at an overclocked speed of 4ghz.
Initial thoughts
When we first received the Thermolab Baram at the start of the year (quite a while ago now!), the mounting kit proved useless. Funnily enough, the bundle was pretty much the same as the one currently provided with the exception of the hand nuts. Instead, there were fixing bolts that were required to be screwed into the “smart clips” and into the back plate underneath. The problem was that these bolts never reached the back plate to secure the heatsink.
After a few iterations of mounting systems, Thermolab finally got it right and installation could not be any easier. For LGA1366, all that you have to do is screw the fixing bolts onto the back plate and feed it through the mounting holes and after installing the “smart clips” onto the heatsink, all that is left to do is to secure it down with the hand nuts. My only complaint is that the nuts could have been designed to be installed using a screw driver as is the case for the Noctua heatsink. For the installation instructions, check here.
Results
2.66ghz
The results speak for themselves really! It demolishes the likes of the CoolIT Domino A.L.C and the Sunbeam Core Contact Freezer and manages to edge out over the Noctua. Using the 2 Noctua NF-P12 fans, this shows that the Thermolab Baram’s heatsink design is more effective than the Noctua NH-U12P.
4.0ghz
This is where the Thermolab Baram really flexes its muscle. Designed to support CPUs generating up to 250W, it has no problem cooling the overclocked i7 where the Sunbeam Core Contact freezer failed to do so. Its most significant achievement is cooling the CPU 4.75 degrees more than the Noctua. The 5 heat pipes and optimised heat sink design show exactly what Thermolab’s years of research have attained.
Conclusion
The Thermolab Baram is an impressive piece of kit. Looking at the results, it bested all the other high end coolers thus putting itself into a league of its own. Surprisingly it is also much cheaper than the Noctua and CoolIT solutions at only £32.99, although no fans are provided. Couple it with some Scythe/Noctua/Akasa/Yate Loon fans and this is definitely a heatsink worth considering. The most astounding observation was the fact that it out-competed the NH-U12P by over 4 degrees at loads, proving Thermolab\\\’s use of the heat sink design to be more efficient.There isn\\\’t much in terms of negatives to say about the Baram. It\\\’s easy to install, looks attractive, works very efficiently and the price point is definitely in its favour. The original we received may not have had the most intuitive manual or installation kit but Thermolab was quick to fix those issues and the end product is just fantastic. However, in terms of marketing, it does seem to have failed in getting some attention away from more popular manufacturers such as Noctua, Thermalright etc. Personally I believe this to be down to the fact that its unique features are very subtle so people are not taking enough notice of it, whereas the likes of the Prolimatech Megahalems of the Coolermaster V8 have distinguished designs that sets them apart. This is a big shame because the Thermolab Baram is a brilliant cooler!
Pros:
•Excellent design features
•5 heat pipe solution
•Easy to install
•Class leading cooling performance
•Very well priced although other similarly priced product provide a fan
•Attractive design
Cons:
•Nuts bundled must be installed by hand
The Thermolab Baram CPU cooler deservedly earns itself the Vortez Hardware Gold Award.
I would like to thank Thermolab for providing us with the sample.
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