CPU at 2.66GHZ


The Alpenföhn Nordwand's initial performance test at stock speed on the CPU places it as one of the top tier heatsinks but not as the best. While offering the best performance at idle, it lags behind the Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus by 0.5 degrees. Its closest competitor, the Thermolab Baram leads by 0.75 degrees but despite this, the Nordwand still outperforms the hugely popular Noctua/CoolIT and Sunbeam offerings. Once we change the setup to a push/pull one on the Alpenföhn Nordwand using the Noctua NF-P12s, it pulls ahead of all the competition taking a clear degree lead over the mighty Thermolab Baram which used the same fans. This suggests that the Nordwand is the most efficient heatsink when paired up with the same fan configurations.


CPU at 4GHZ


The Alpenföhn Nordwand's performance is more pronounced with the overclocked i7. The regular setup is ahead of the Noctua NH-U12P which sports two fans and the push/pull setup is the second best performer on the charts, just 0.75 degrees shy of the Thermolab Baram. The idle temperatures are also very impressive but still do not match up to the Baram. The five heat pipes certainly puts the Alpenföhn in the same league as the Thermolab Baram but again that's not enough to take its crown. Overall, it is still a brilliant cooler that unlike the Baram, does come with a fan!

Noise

Rated and operating at 1500 R.P.M, the Alpenföhn fan is a very good one that stays very quiet even under load, while still operating adequately. I could not hear it over my Scythe S-Flex case fans and the fact that it outperformed the Noctua NH-U12P is testament to the cooling potential of the fan. The fan itself uses a 4 pin connection, present on most motherboards and a Molex adapter is provided just in case. Since it is a PWM fan, its speed adjusts depending on the load and temperature so quiet operation is ensured when idling, whereby the fan will reduce its speed to 850 R.P.M. This is a very useful touch for those that require a quiet setup. The rubber mounting further dampens noise by reducing vibration.