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Product:
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Sytrin KuFormula VF1 Plus VGA Cooler |
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Price:
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$42 (CDN) / $37 (U.S)
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Supplied By:
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Sytrin Corporation
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Author:
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Skaal-Tel
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Date:
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May 10th, 2006
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Rating:
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MODTHEBOX would like to thank Amy from Sytrin Corporation for sending
the KuFormula VF1 Plus VGA Cooler for review.
Introduction:
The video card, which for many of us is probably the most expensive single component in our computer systems, is
obviously the most important part of any gaming system. Unfortunately, many video cards come with woefully inadequate
cooling. Anyone with the misfortune to have had a fan fail on their video card and experience constant crashes, blue
screens, graphical corruption etc will testify to the general inadequacy of most stock offerings. While some of the
more powerful modern video cards possess dual fans, 2 slot cooling solutions, heat pipes, and all kinds of funky and
innovative solutions, far more do not. This is where today's review product; the Sytrin KuFormula VF1 Series High
Performance cooler enters the picture. While many may be familiar with offerings from Zalman and Arctic Cooling, it
seems that Sytrin has a genuinely new and ingenious approach to VGA cooling. The secret is incorporating both whisper
quiet operation or alternatively, high performance cooling. Today in the MTB Labs, we will be evaluating the
KuFormula VF1 Plus VGA Cooler.
Specifications:
The KuFormula VF1 Plus VGA Cooler is comprised of aluminum construction with a copper base plate and 2 heat pipes. The unit
includes a univeral clip design that will work with most video cards offered from ATI and NVIDIA. A bundled switch
allows 3 fan speeds for a cooling fan that works perfectly with the design of the heatsink. Here are some
specifications taken directly from the Sytrin Corporation website:
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The Sytrin KuFormula VF1 Plus as you may see it in your local PC shops ships in a regular cardboard box, with an
absolutely ingenious packaging method inside. Each of the parts is snug within a special formed foam package.
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Once out of the package you can see the full array of parts provided. The bracket and turbine fan assembly appear to be
powder coated black, and machined quite nicely. The heatsink itself is very unique. Instead of simply copying a
previous existing design, Sytrin appear to have struck out on their own and come up with a truly new system. The VF1 Plus
uses box like heatsink construction with a roller fan to cool air directly from the bottom of the case over the
heatpipes, where it can do some good for your video card.
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Click image for larger view
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Click image for larger view
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Rivaling an entire computer system's assembly in complexity, assembling this video card cooler is not for the ham-fisted!
As with any video card cooler, in the worst case, you can end up with a dead video card as such; either leave it to
the professionals or pay very close attention to the absolutely excellent instructions provided with the kit. The fold
out booklet has beautifully clear diagrams, numbers on the parts which resemble other parts, and very clearly stated
step-by-step instructions. Although I approached assembly with the same trepidation I would normally reserve for
nuclear science, I ended up with a perfectly functional cooler and was never once forced to draw spare screws from my
collection. Everything you need is provided.
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