Sunday News part 2

The fan obtains the power through a 3-pin power connector that connects to a spare motherboard header. Attached directly to the power connector is the thermal sensor. The thermal sensor adjusts the fan rotation and will speed it up as the sensor gets hot or slows it down when cool. At its highest terperature level each fan is capable of pushing 26.97 CFM at 2500 RPM with a noise level of 27.39 dBA. At the lowest temperature level each fan is capable of pushing 21.37 CFM at 2100 RPM with a noise level of 21.84 dBA

The igloo 7 aluminum case from BeanTech is a mid sized case that is packed full of features. This black stylish case with its slide off door panels and removable motherboard tray is sure to please.

Our 15-Keychain contest has ended, and now we’ve started another one. Aimed at those that are less fortunate, unemployed, or at school, we’ve decided to hold a ‘give-away’ where we’d donate an AMD Athlon XP 1700+ (1466-MHz) CPU and a CoolerGuys Non-conductive Shim to someone who NEEDS it. You must register in our forums and post your reasons as to why you deserve this modest little chip. Groveling is encouraged!

Thermalright makes many of the best coolers available today. We have personally tested their SLK 900, and their AX 478. There are a multitude of ways to improve performance on air coolers: more powerful fans, better thermal interface material, etc. One of these ways to improve performance is lapping. “Lapping” is a term to describe the process of using sandpaper to smooth and flatten the bottom of a heatsink. Lapping also removes air bubbles that are trapped under an un-lapped heat sink. We’re going to see how well a SLK-800 performs when it’s professionally lapped by EliteCool.

One of the biggest problems as a result of buying an AMD Athlon system was the noise. Ever since the days of the Athlon 1400MHz,AMD CPU Coolers had the task of removing huge amounts of heat, and to shift this heat, faster and therefore louder fans were used on the coolers. Since those days people wanted cool but quite PCs. Usually these two features were mutually exclusive, unless you factor in price. So when Spire asked me to have a look at their affordable silent Athlon Cooler I have to admit I was a little skeptical.

There is a quiet cause ticking away on nearly 100,000 computers worldwide. People are giving up a little of their computer time to unravel another of life's mysteries. They work as individuals and they have grouped together to form teams. They cobble together pc parts to build new computers dedicated to the task. They even mark the passing of a friend with their accomplishments.