Installation Tips

As for the installation of Thermalright HR-01 X onto mainboards, I have to remind you that it is intended for server platforms with Socket 603/604/771. There is a special X-shaped retention bracket bundled with the cooler that should be inserted between the heatpipes:

Don’t think that we will be testing this cooler on some new server platform. It can be installed perfectly fine with a retention bracket from Thermalright SI-128 SE, which is exactly the same as the retention bracket for the IFX-14, which we are going to discuss later in this article. Since we have already talked about this installation procedure in detail in our previous article, we will not dwell on it again. Moreover, I have to add that Thermalright also offers HR-01 Plus cooler that is an exact copy of HR-01 X, but bundled with all necessary retention parts for LGA 775 and Socket AM2(+) mainboards.

If you are not going to use Thermalright HR-01 X in passive mode, you can attach two or one 120-mm fan to its heatsink. In case of one fan you should use the included wire clips, but for the second fan you will have to think of something on your own. For example, you can use rubber bands, like I did:

The gap between the mainboard and the lower heatsink plate is 40mm, so it will hardly hinder any tall components in the area around the processor socket, even the memory DIMM heat-spreaders.

This is what two Thermalright HR-01 X coolers look like on a server platform from Intel:

In conclusion I would like to add that Thermalright HR-01 X is not a cheap cooler, as you may have thought judging by its design. It is priced at around $55.