Installation

The system for this review consists of the following components:

• Intel Pentium D 840 (Dual Core 3.2 GHz)
• Intel 945GCZ mBTX motherboard
• 1024 MB (2 x 512 MB) OCZ DDR2 5400
• 500 GB Hitachi Deskstar 3 Gbps SATA hard drive
• LiteON CDRW/DVD combo drive
• Arrowmax 550W ATX/BTX PSU
• Windows XP Professional

The test system was not installed in a case, but simply allowed to sit in open air, mounted to a BTX adaptor plate from Thermaltake. This plate is actually intended to convert an ATX style Thermaltake case to being BTX compatible, but it will do quite well to allow for this CPU cooler to be tested without a case.

Below we can see the interface between the CPU cooler and the motherboard / mounting plate.  Unlike ATX coolers which might be able to clip onto the motherboard's socket, BTX requires a bit more.  You can't just run a system with a motherboard and cooler, you need to have either a case or a mounting plate.  Another thing the Intel design includes with BTX is a 4-pin fan power lead, seen in the below right image close to its intended header on the motherboard.  You can control the fan via a built in thermal sensor or via pulse width modulation with the 4-pin lead, but the design also allows you to plug it into a typical 3-pin fan power header, too.

Finally, we have a look at the Thermaltake CL-P0191 from both the left and right sides.  Nothing flashy or fancy here, just a fairly non-descript black box hanging off the edge of the motherboard.  

Unlike many ATX coolers that employ bright colors, LED lighting, and other flashy gimmicks to get your attention, this cooler (and BTX coolers in general) are strictly business and made to be forgotten. As we move on to thermal testing, hopefully it will provide adequate cooling and be quiet enough to allow us to forget about it on a day-to-day basis.