The Basics (continued)

Speaking of the included fan, we see it in the images below.  The outer (visible) side sports a Thermaltake logo, while the inside face shows off a "SuperRed" logo.  If you take a closer look, you will notitce that there are more blades on the SuperRed side than on the Thermaltake side.  The moving pieces consist of the seven blades shown from the Thermaltake side.  The blades shown on the SuperRed side are molded into the frame, and serve to optimize the airflow through the cooler.

The two images below show an end and side view of the CL-P0191.  The massive block is mostly air, with thin fins of aluminum held together in a tight array.  These fins are where heat is drawn by two means...  By being directly brazed to the copper base, and by the two heatpipes we see in the below right image.

Below we see a glimpse of the copper base, and its interface with the aluminum fins.  A raised portion of the copper base is found in the dead center, and this is obviously where it will make contact with your processor.  A clear plastic cap is provided to protect this raised surface and the pre-installed thermal pad Thermaltake has included.

Below we get a close up look at the copper base.  It is quite flat, and although machining marks are present, it is quite smooth to the touch.  Some enthusiasts insist on a mirror finish, but this type of surface is what I look for...  Flat, smooth, and not overly polished.  One oddity caught my eye...  Initially I noticed that the grain on the raised portion was in a different direction than the grain on the base, making me think they were separate pieces.  Taking a closer look made me realize I was right, as it appears that the two pieces have either been brazed or bonded together with some sort of thermal adhesive.  Either way, a solid block would provide better thermal transfer, but picture all the scrap copper generated by doing so on a cooler this large!

The thermal pad is still present in all pictures, but at one stage of the testing it was removed.  What was revealed was a surface consistent with what we see above, and one that is flat enough and smooth enough to provide solid heat transfer.