CPU cooler Vinga CL3008B

The domestic brand Vinga is well known to our regular readers. Under its banner, a wide range of computer components is offered: cases, power supplies, non-serviceable liquid CPU coolers, air cooling systems, fans, and related accessories.

Today's article is dedicated to the classic CPU cooler Vinga CL3008B priced at 942 UAH ($34). Let's see how the novelty looks, what it can cool, and how it fares with noise levels. So, let's get started!

Specification

Packaging and delivery set

The cooling system comes in a medium-sized cardboard box, designed in black and yellow color scheme. On its top side, there is a photo of the standard fan with lighting and the key features of the cooler. On the back, there are detailed technical specifications.

Inside the Vinga CL3008B package, we found a metal universal reinforcement plate, two sets of mounts for AMD and Intel platforms, pins, stands, washers, spring-loaded nuts, a wrench, as well as a small syringe of thermal paste and a set of user documentation.

Appearance and design

The Vinga CL3008B is a tower-type cooler consisting of an aluminum radiator on copper heat pipes and one fan. It looks very presentable thanks to the top decorative cover, completely black coloring, and attractive propellers. By modern standards, the cooler has medium dimensions, so it will fit in most common Middle Tower cases.

The "tower" is based on five heat pipes with a diameter of 6 mm. They are threaded with 40 aluminum plates with a thickness of 0.4 mm and an inter-fin distance of 2 mm. Their shape is optimized to reduce air flow resistance and increase efficiency, even if the fan rotates at a low speed. For this purpose, they have cutouts in the center and on the edges. There are also special bends on the ends that fasten the fins together, providing strength and monolithic structure to the product.

In the radiator body, the pipes have a slight bevel for more uniform heat exchange. We have seen something similar in the example of PСCOOLER S129 X4.

The base of Vinga CL3008B is made using direct contact technology. It reduces production costs but has an obvious drawback in this case - uneven heat dissipation in the form of gaps (1-1.2 mm) between the heat pipes, which are filled with aluminum.

However, the ruler test and the quality of the contact surface processing (48 x 35 mm) do not cause any particular complaints - everything is within the norm. Initially, the sole is covered with a protective film, which must be removed before installation.

The mounting to platforms is represented by two sets of steel guides located on the sides of the pressing plate.

The 120 mm Vinga CL3008B fan is attached to the radiator from the wide side with conventional wire clips. The symmetrical design allows for the installation of a second one, but the necessary components will have to be purchased separately.

The branded propeller is notable for its optimized wavy shape of the inner part of the blades and the presence of soft blue lighting. There are anti-vibration inserts at the corners of the frame. A 4-pin cable with a length of 37 cm without braiding is used for connection. PWM speed control of the blades is supported in the range from 800 to 1500 RPM with a maximum airflow of 110 m³/h and a noise level not exceeding 26.5 dB. Although in reality, the fan spun up to 2000 RPM. The manufacturer claims the use of a reliable hydraulic bearing, which lubricates itself during operation. The mean time to failure is not specified, but it is definitely several times more than a regular cheap sleeve.

Installation Process

The Vinga CL3008B cooler is installed on most current and outdated platforms: AMD Socket AM2 / AM2 + / AM3 / AM3 + / AM4 / FM1 / FM2 / FM2 + and Intel Socket LGA775 / LGA1156 / LGA1155 / LGA1150 / LGA1151 / LGA1366 / LGA2011 / LGA2011-v3 / LGA2066. The procedure itself is well illustrated in the user manual - anyone can understand it, as everything is very clear and simple.

On motherboards for mass Intel processors, a universal reinforcing plate with a sticky double-sided pad is used. We turn it on its side with the Intel inscription facing us and install the pins in the diagonal holes. Don't forget about the dielectric washers.

Now we mount the resulting structure on the motherboard. From the top side, we again use dielectric washers and screw in the standoffs. The included wrench is perfect for this.

Install the necessary metal plates and guides on the sides of the base and secure each with short screws.

Apply thermal paste, place the cooler on the processor, remembering to remove the protective film from the base, and evenly tighten the spring-loaded nuts along with the steel washers. This is conveniently done with a crosshead screwdriver or the same wrench.

Next, secure the fan. Connect it to the appropriate connector on the system board. The photo above clearly shows that the mounted cooler does not conflict with the VRM cooling on the motherboard and the first DIMM slot.

In the case of a platform based on an AMD processor, we have a similar algorithm, but the reinforcing plate will have to be flipped and other mounting holes used. After installation, the first DIMM slot will be partially blocked for high modules, but there will be no issues with standard height modules.

Inside the system unit, the Vinga CL3008B looks interesting and not trivial. It would be a shame to hide it behind a solid side panel.

Testing

The following equipment was used to test the Vinga CL3008B CPU cooling system:

The performance of Vinga CL3008B is sufficient for dissipating heat from overclocked multi-core test processors up to 4 - 4.5 GHz. To prevent throttling, it required almost half the rotation speed of the standard fan. Therefore, the new product will easily handle energy-efficient modern CPUs.

Regarding comparison with competitors, we have similar results with the DEEPCOOL GAMMAXX GT cooler, while the Aardwolf Performa 9X looks better. Perhaps the situation for Vinga CL3008B could be improved by a heat distribution plate at the base or the complete absence of gaps between the tubes, as well as their more even distribution in the radiator body.

Let us remind you that the full load mode (Full load) implies maximum utilization of all processor cores. Therefore, in real conditions where the load is variable (for example, in games), you can safely expect lower temperature readings.

According to monitoring data, the included fan operates in the range from 1100 to 2000 RPM. It remains quiet up to 1710 RPM. At a speed of 1830 RPM, the acoustic background is in a comfortable zone.

Conclusions

In practice, the Vinga CL3008B CPU cooler performed at a very decent level. It offers a presentable appearance with soft blue LED lighting, good execution, and average efficiency combined with a relatively low noise level. If your processor's TDP is below the stated 160 W, you can count on a decent margin for overclocking experiments. This is true for almost all mainstream AMD and Intel chips.

It is important to support most modern and outdated processor sockets. The mounting is simple and reliable. The cooler's height is below 160 mm, ensuring compatibility with the most popular cases.

Notably, it covers the first DIMM slot for bulky RAM modules on the AMD platform. There will be no problems with standard height modules, as well as with the Intel platform in general.

The Vinga CL3008B will be most interesting to owners of cases with a transparent side panel, where not only efficiency and noise are important, but also design.

Advantages:

• interesting appearance with soft blue LED lighting;
• support for all current and many outdated platforms;
• durable 120mm fan with PWM control over a wide operating range;
• comfortable noise level over almost the entire rotation range;
• good efficiency;
• reliable mounting system.

Features:

• covers the first DIMM slot for bulky modules on the AMD platform.
• lack of wire clips for mounting a second fan.

Author: Viktor Yefimenko 
Translation: Liliya Masyuk