Maximum Overclocking...

The next step that we wanted to check was all about what overclocking ability the CoolGate CPU cooler would provide us with our Intel P4 Prescott processor. Once again we will compare it with the results we gotten with the stock Intel heatsink and the Coolgate cooler. During the overclocking we are running the system at full load, and increase the clock speed gradually until the system becomes unstable.

	Core 1.40V (Ref)	Core 1.55V (Oc)
Stock Intel Cooler	3375MHz	3525MHz
CoolGate Cooler	3435MHz	3630MHz

The Spire CoolGate heatsink is definitely the better option when it comes to achieving the highest overclocking of our Intel P4 Prescott processor. For getting the highest capable score we also bumped the voltage to 1.55V, higher doesn't make any difference and we have been able to clock down the CPU at 3.63GHz. So quite impressive!

Final Thoughts

All in all, this is a pretty impressive cooler, it does work great and that a very silent noise level. Other than that this is a pretty straight forward easy to install CPU Cooler and should be considered on any ones short list. The socket 478 mounting instructions and the procedures were easy and understandable, although a bit limited. And above all, the Spire CoolGate CPU cooler is a good substitute for the stock Intel P4 heatsink.

You have to hand it to Spire; the CoolGate is an outstanding cooling solution with an innovative design. Side-blowing coolers aren't that common, although other brands and vendors have also adopted this approach for some series of their CPU cooling solutions. To make the side-blowing fan more efficient, Spire utilized copper heatpipes to draw the heat to the upper part of the heatsink. The compactness of this heatsinks heatpipe technology puts it in a category of its own. The price is right, and the quality is all there.

Spire is known for its cost effective heatsinks because of its quality inside attitude, although a great improvement would be to use a copper base which would be more effective. The CoolGate will definitely tame a Pentium 4 system and offer superior cooling over retail heatsink. With excellent cooling and looks, Spire hits a home run with the CoolGate CPU cooler.

Pros

• Excellent quality cooler
• Innovative design
• Outstanding performance
• All copper dual heatpipe
• Quality construction
• Compact cooling solution
• User-friendly installation
• Decent compact packaging

Cons

• Poor heatsink base finish
• Aluminum heatsink base

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