The top of the heat pipes lack the capped ends found on the Silver Arrow and instead they have the more common rounded/grooved ends. The large hole in the centre is to aid in installation which we will cover down the page.


The heatsink is currently only compatible on Intel socket LGA 775/1156/1366 so the installation kit is limited compared to that of the Silver Arrow. Included are the.
- multiple support backplate for Intel (Intel)
- anchoring mount (Intel)
- fan clips x4 (2x 120mm & 2x 140mm)
- pressure vault mounting plate (Intel)
- Insulated washers x4 (Intel)
- backplate cap for Socket 775 (Intel)
- screw pillars x4 (Intel)
- thumbscrews x4 (Intel)
- anti vibration padding x4
- angled wrench
- Thermalright Chill Factor III Thermal paste


Installation of the HR-02 is a very simple task and the mounting bracket is amongst the most secure out there. Thermalright uses a unique backplate system that is universal for all the latest Intel sockets (LGA775/1156/1366). To change compatibility, the notches in each corner have to slide into the appropriate hole, the outer one being for LGA 1366 and the most inner one for LGA 775. Once placed behind the motherboard, the pillar screws have to be placed on top to secure the backplate and theanchoring mount on top of that. Using the pressure vault mounting, the heatsink can then be finally installed. For more information on the installation, visit Thermalright's page or our own illustrated page. Note that AMD compatibility will be coming soon.


The screwdriver is to ease installation since one of the pressure vault bracket screws cannot be accessed by hand. It also becomes clear why the large hole is present in the heatsink. The main problem with this method is that it can be hard to judge where the screwdriver ends up so make sure to carry out the installation in a well lit area.


And with the fan installed, the HR-02 looks massive. here, the Silver Arrow fan clips were used rather than the ones bundled with the HR-02. The provided fan clips also do a good job but tend to be more fiddly to use. Often the ends going into the heatsink holes would pop out when trying to clip the fan into place. It would have been better to see Thermalright bundling the Silver Arrow fan clips instead as those work with both 120 and 140mm fans.


When installed on the motherboard, there is plenty of space between the heatsink and the memory modules so users shouldn't have to worry about the size of their memory heat spreaders. It's important that the cooler is oriented in this way to compliment the case airflow and for the rear end to be closer to the back exhaust fan.


Even with a fan installed, there is space between the cooler and the RAM section of the motherboard. The size of the heatsink can cause it to come into conflict with the motherboard's chipset cooling so check the compatibility guide before purchasing.


Looking closer, it becomes apparent that all six slots can be populated with modules without any problem. However, the closest slot to the heatsink may not be able to house modules with tall heatsinks due to the fan clip getting in the way.